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Post by cpdad on Apr 25, 2007 19:00:45 GMT -5
or at least i think so ;D...while talking to 1 of the engineers i do work for...some how rocks and tumblers came up...probably from me ;D...then he said...kev you machined the parts for the 1 i built for the lab...hell i had no idea what the parts were for..to me they were just parts...but any way.....he sent me some pics. this thing probably has a grand worth of motor..gearbox...and variable frequency drive (vfd)...state of the art stuff....0-56 rpms...top of the line bearings...and so on...both rollers are idle rollers....drive is the soft wheel you see....then he goes and builds a dumpy wood cover...and just slaps drippy paint on it ;D the barrell is a foot in diameter...about a foot and a half long. clickable.
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Post by deb193 on Apr 25, 2007 19:14:43 GMT -5
Oh please tell me it is noisy, or needs too much grit, or anything so I can stop wanting one.
SO, what would a 0 to 56 rpm variable gear drive motor cost?
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Post by joe on Apr 25, 2007 19:48:31 GMT -5
Now that looks like a well engineered machine! How much weight does that barrel hold?
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Post by cpdad on Apr 25, 2007 20:44:42 GMT -5
daniel...it eats a ton of grit...and is very noisey...that 0-56 rpm computorized vfd..would set you back $1200 by itself...then grab a motor and gear reducer...hahahaha...about 3 grand to build it.
joe...i havent done the math on what it will hold yet...ill let ya know.
these guys work for the worlds most premiere pump builder...so they have $1000 parts on the shelf...kev
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Post by stoner on Apr 25, 2007 22:00:56 GMT -5
That thing will outlast the owner and his grandkids!
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spikeict
fully equipped rock polisher
Alba gu bra! In Promptu
Member since November 2006
Posts: 1,413
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Post by spikeict on Apr 25, 2007 22:41:22 GMT -5
Only $1,200 sign me up!! Just kidding, no REALLY just kidding.
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Post by connrock on Apr 26, 2007 7:07:24 GMT -5
Kev, Is that an over-kill or what? LOL
Nice to have the money to play with but a little research would have cut the cost way down.
Heck,he could have come here and done his research!!
Many years ago General Motors contracted our engineering dept. to design and build them a gusset cutter.The gussets were used as small braces which are welded into the manufacturing of automobiles.They gave us no ideas on it's design,just a green light and a pocket full of money.
Two years after the order was taken we finished the worlds biggest fastest gusset cutter and it was a monster of a thing!
The GM people came in for a demo of it's operation and we ran it for only about 10 minuets for them.The noise was deafening and the ground shook as tens of thousands of gussets flew into the retriever compartment (about the size of 1-1/2 30 yard dumpsters) but they were satisfied with it and that's what counted.One of the big wigs from GM was overheard in saying,"Well we asked for a gusset cutter and I guess you built it for us,,,,,,The good thing is that we'll only have to run it about 15 minuets every 10 years or so"!!!
This was definitely an engineering over-kill in it's best!!
connrock
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rallyrocks
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since November 2005
Posts: 1,507
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Post by rallyrocks on Apr 26, 2007 14:03:31 GMT -5
That's a great story, I hope you don't mind, I had to share it with my other engineering managers here....
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Post by connrock on Apr 26, 2007 18:23:12 GMT -5
Rally, If you are talking to me I don't mind at all.
We used to build some of the biggest machinery going.
We built a beryllium extrusion press that was over 25 feet high!It took us almost a full year just to build it!Some of the solenoid valves weighed over 250 lbs and had 4" seamless schedule 180 pipe welded to them!We had to make 4 pieces of this pipe with a 180 degree bend with 48 inch centers.We HAD to do it cold and without any flaws in the pipe!! The cylinder would actually hold a full size pickup truck!!
When we ,as pipefitters, first saw the hydraulic schematic we all ran and hid!!! LOL It was a real nightmare but we managed to get it right in the end.
That was many years ago and it was the biggest extrusion press in the world at the time!
We also did a lot of machine tool years ago and one of my favorites was a massive lathe we built for GE.The foot-stock was at least 10 feet off the ground at it's bottom!!! The gibs were 10 feet long,12 inches wide,5 inches thick at the outside and about 2.5 inches to 3 inches thick on the inside!! We had to hand scrape all of them for flatness.Man you talk about sore arms,hands,shoulders and backs!!!
It was VERY hard work but I really enjoyed doing it as it was usually a one of a kind and quite a challenge for all of us.
I used to love the job and sometimes couldn't wait to get into work.That was way back then,,,,,Now we can't even build a stinking birdhouse !
Between my body crying for a long rest and being totally fed up with the way things are done today I retired last Friday at 10:30 AM EDT!!!!!!!
To hell with all of them!!!
connrock
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Post by cpdad on Apr 26, 2007 18:49:43 GMT -5
ya connrock he was talking to you...i was going to say what a cool story myself...yep overkill...them enginers do that kinda stuff ;D...im lucky to work with the folks that overkilled that tumbler...being the dumb ol machinist that i am....they just happen to be a smart group of guys....and dont fall into the "smartest dumb butts you ever seen" category.
it must be nice to have money to build overkilled thingies ;D
i have seen these guys build a pipe line...using 6 foot diameter pipe...pay us to machine flanges about 8 foot in diameter...put it all together with various bends...inclines...and angles...just to test a pump to make sure it does what they say it will do...then take a torch...and cut it all up...and throw it away....i know thats jusr R & D.....but it must be nice to have the money to build something that the calculations say will work....test it...and then just throw it away when you have an answer...especially on a large scale....kev.
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Post by Condor on Apr 26, 2007 20:04:18 GMT -5
Man, I could certainly live with something like that. One thing though, it doesn't look much bigger than my 40lb tumbler that only cost me a hundred bucks.
Condor
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