This would be a great science fair project. This influence machine (one of several) was designed in the 1880's by James Wimshurst. It's an Electrostatic Generator that creates a healthy 7-inch spark. Potentially painful but USUALLY safe.
Awesome. I made a Wimshurst machine in my teens with 2 old LPs, some aluminium foil and sewing needles. It kind of worked too. Yours looks like a different animal entirely! I look forward to part 2!
Well done! im toying with the idea building the wimshurst machine as well so thats why im here. I built a style of static machine from plans many many moons ago . A design by author A.D MOORE . The neutralizing bar as you call it , is what creates the static electricity. The wires on it brush gently against the metal foils on the discs, the friction...creates a tiny amount of static onto each foil. (also known as triboelectric charging.) kind of like when you charge a party balloon by rubbing it on your hair then stick it to the wall.
In the info area of part 4 there is a link to the plans if you are interested. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-3kMQJk8HZZg.htmlsi=aNB33zCZH4UEAXeJ I used to sell a kit but the parts are hard to find and I had a hard time keeping the cost low. I sell a few part separately as well. If you make the machine by the plans the pulley kit is worthwhile. markq6zlmc.fws.store/browse/cat7671237_4804850.aspx This is an interesting video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-3kMQJk8HZZg.htmlsi=aNB33zCZH4UEAXeJ
Thanks Mark! That drum sander was fun. I've had the idea floating around in my head for a long time. After restoring the camel back drill press I decided to give it a try.
Hi Mark, really interesting project and excellent craftsmanship. Looking forward to the rest of this series, electrifying stuff! Well done! Cheers, Jon
That is a beautiful machine that you made. Today's video was enjoyable and I am looking forward to the rest of the series. It seems that most videos get about 10% thumbs up and you have over 20% at this point.
Great project. You are one of the few makers on YT who do wood and metal and you do both beautifully. Plus you have some Rube Goldberg genetic material as well :-)
What a wonderful creation :) . I really like the way you reversed the spin of the opposing disc, and I am sure that I will emulate it, upon making one here. Just as a side note, my attention was draw to this by the vacuum cleaner that I use in my machine shop. It has a stainless steel shell, that collects all of the dry wood dust. Because it is not earthed, it accumulates a *huge* electrostatic charge, and produces sparks that are loud enough to be heard over the rather noisy motor, and my grunts of pain, upon discharging it ;) . Thanks kindly for this fine video, and the shocks that I will surely get, as I test my copy of this machine :) .
I think I have one parts kit left which includes the pulley. I need to turn more wood pulleys on the CNC lathe so I can put together a few more kits. I hope I can remember how to use the lathe! Ha. The kits are expensive but I'm actually not making any money on them. I have no idea what abilities you have but judging by your user name I'd say your CNC abilities exceed mine. The machines can be made many different ways as long as you follow a few rules. The electrodes in front is a little easy I think. If you need a pulley set let me know. I have a lot of red and white oak but that's it right now. The set in the kits are maple. winkysworkshop@GMX.com. I'm definitely not into this for the money... its just a lot of fun. Let me know if you need info or get stuck let me know.
@@WinkysWorkshop Thanks kindly for your offer of help. It is appreciated :) . I believe that I would want to make mine from clear acrylic, in a bid to amplify the 'mystery effect' for those who are unfamiliar with how it works. My little herd of CNC machines would love this project, as the parts really do lend themselves to the CNC process, in its various forms. Because your machines are very ornate, I do believe that there is an active market out there for them. It is just a matter of seeking it, and sparking it up, so to speak :) .
@@CNCmachiningisfun There is a market for the machines and acrylic would look cool. I've made about 15 machines and perfected some aspects of the machines with each machine I make. I've sold all but the one I currently have. It's the same basic design as in this video although the disk support uprights are turned and the electrode supports are turn in Delrin along with the handles. The disk hubs are also wood which looks very cool but honestly the Delrin hubs are better for a couple reason. Performance and washing the disks. When the disks get covered in dust they don't work as well. Use cast acrylic for the disks... it cost more but its flat. Wobbling disks look bad and to a degree effect performance. I was asking a high price but to be honest, I doubt I ever made more than $5 bucks an hour. They are lots of work and cost a lot more that you might think. There is a Face Book group called Electrostatic Machines that's a great resource. Also there is a guy making a 12 inch 8 disk motorized Bonetti Machine out of acrylic. These are a sectorless machines. The sparks are about the same length but much more deadly. I made a two disk motorized Bonetti and honestly.... I'm glad it's gone. It's a painful and dangerous shock!
@@WinkysWorkshop Indeed. There is a market, especially for the highly ornate machines that you have made. Naturally, a market is a difficult thing to create and maintain, while being painfully easy to destroy. Your advice on the material choices is solid, and I will certainly follow it, once I start on this project :) . Agreed, wobbling discs look terrible, and it can be a real challenge to make them run true, so cast acrylic is surely the way to go. Having looked at the Bonetti machines, I see what you mean about their spectacularly energetic output! Yours creates something in the order of half a million volts, and it seems that the Bonetti version is even more inclined to melt one's pacemaker. Their use, inside a grain silo, is NOT recommended! ;) . Perhaps I will start off with a smaller Wimshurst machine, and proceed from there, as I learn about the finer points of these fascinating devices :) .
The neutralizer bars are poorly named. They actually charge the sectors as the sectors rotate past, due to the electrostatic influence of the charged sectors on the opposite disk.
Yeah, sort of. it's weird the way these machines work. This is a good video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-nA4aCd5qFWs.htmlsi=Bwwi7K-v_szDCpU1
@@WinkysWorkshop Yes, that video explains it and has high-quality animation. Here is another clear explanation, using simple sketches on a blackboard: Demo 11108: Wimshurst Generator. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-CDU92whdkVw.html
@@WinkysWorkshop I like your beautiful workmanship and your attention to all the details to avoid corona leakage from sharp points that would otherwise reduce the maximum voltage achievable. 🙂
you should try to connect a one wire to the connection rod between the caps and a bigger cap and then make the discharge on to the bigger cap so that the discharge does not magnetize the sectors that sometimes slows down the machine. another thing perhaps graphite sectors would do better or perhaps soldering tint.
@@WinkysWorkshop i seen someone starting a giant machine like yours and i am sure the machine slowed down when the caps discharged and that the guy had to speed it up again. i assumed it was the sectors that produced eddy currents slowing the machine down how ever its possible that is not the case.
It actually does appear to look like a clock . It actually does appear to be a time machine .. I began my time machine with a wimshurst engine. I got the idea from the disk on h g Welles time machine..
@@WinkysWorkshop Well, the Description below the title is spelt wrong too AS well as where you show his photograph at the 54 seconds mark.Where it is white writing on the right hand side. Luckily the red writing under his picture is correct. SORRY for your troubles.
make the insulator out of anti static material same as circuit boards are placed inside. the question is if it would do better in a vacuum but it may need some work material between the disc any way some how.
Any plastic is a good insulator including phenolic (circuit boards) but the clear plastic is cheaper. Glass is not so good. It worked will for a standoff but not the discs.
Gday Mark, what an an amazing machine, is there a way to measure the voltage of the spark, I’d say it would give you a decent kick, looking forward to part 2, cheers
Thanks Matty! It will produce a a 7 inch spark and the basic formula is 30,000 volts per CM. That's about 530,000 volts. Realistically electrode shape and humidity play a huge part in spark length so it's just an approximation. This machine hurts a little to get shocked by but I've made machines much more powerful. The sound and thickness of the higher power machines are amazing but the shock is not.
Yes, the each pulley on the crank axel (drive) has two grooves. Both belts coming from the left side of the disk hubs will run in the inner two grooves of the drive pulleys and end up on the lower right side idler. The belts coming from the right side run in the outer two groove of the drive and go to the left side idler. Basically one idler diameter matches the distance between the outer two grooves and one matches the distance between the inner two grooves.
@@WinkysWorkshop Thanks that makes sense. After I commented I figured it out watching your other build video. You can’t ship your parts kit to Canada if we work out shipping costs ?
@@Tesla210 Yes, the web store I use is a free store and setting up shipping rules is crazy. Send me an email and we can look into the costs. winkysworkshop@GMX.com
Just like the Victorians if your going to make a machine make it beautiful. I would probably bodge mine together using Microwave oven Capacitors, any old wood I had around and likely old vinyl LP,s. Looking forward to the rest.
I got mine on ebay. I found several but not a one of them said what thread the mount was. Mine was 1" x 8 TPI which is common for a wood lathe. I made my lathe with a 1.5 x 8 spindle and modified the chuck to fit. I love this chuck. Here's a link but like I said, no thread mount info. www.ebay.com/itm/384285507231?hash=item5979337e9f:g:l4YAAOSwaBJeqT22&amdata=enc%3AAQAGAAACYPYe5NmHp%252B2JMhMi7yxGiTJkPrKr5t53CooMSQt2orsSQuF9OYLb3wphIAOfpJK8RrCZlxXMrR%252FNw2N4U%252FdTRSm3MvSlISTKMMV5qPHgWrsUkJ5z%252BYCXqzdh9KYtXIHfAUNTg9l44qcIr5vXQqzqpyDQlcQZmKUfGXDoro%252BL7AorsALNY70wYWkfaFWndfHa5CA0OQnshReUEiM66vyLnz9uci9eXyFO%252FwcxPX3IvXxfPAryri5MKNXlH8Xq%252FSWFe2DNMEhNJhIh%252BMkgwTuNZ1kMRCkOl89Aowu1k7H1yA%252BBWS%252BjCltKhTpmwQ7Ta1pYY33Bxg1XxT1G%252FvbohxT%252BF2o5wiNhJDweeGrgdFnFNwbMXAXxoInxGcKMLx2Cpa4TseKWyb9wEHl4qThFVO%252BnBeNDbNWvoe1E1tQi8iTQic4qHtOPi3SuNohIk8Q0mwHDURma2E54trv5QuElWiyF312oDSXS798PPfwhD7istshNOepiiOvHV10NUivKEM1u4Cmu3fXGtnZS5ypZl%252BIwtl9FMXuebtZlkkPrQRLumvSgwM9ZqnV5OEFZbQ5zIexwYmYd%252B%252BUw%252Bi%252FkQMN7Mfo7y%252FSJ6GMHfPaY%252BCc1DAk5WxzM66EzxWBAnBkWNdXH3rCseR3Ohv%252FRPBVBxwI0cYqGfcJICkMT1SRjrBbxC4xff5O1oGm3pcGEkcByJHS4oCNvldW%252BeXMX97jlCK63zM%252Fci6gBHnkcce0eLvBOQRt8Crx8qLSvQflsppEgl4ntQ50R6yIn%252FNKGETxW3BW5JpmGvdUyCMCWWIuNo6ZxKDueeb2w%7Cclp%3A2334524%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR-SNzMShXw
@@WinkysWorkshop Thanks. I notice they say the jaws are independently adjustable, but I can see a scroll behind the jaws. Have you been able to adjust the jaws separately, or just as a set?
@@WinkysWorkshop Got that. That's why I was surprised to read the following: ★ Each jaw can be adjusted separately so that it is centered on the clamping force. Internal clamping range: 0.2-4.0 inches (5-100 mm); external clamping range: 3.9-5.3 inches (98-135 mm). Did any instructions come with the chuck describing how to adjust "each jaw separately"? Sorry to bug you again.
My wife and I have been watching a RU-vid series: Kathy loves Physics and Electricity. A wonderful walk through the gradual discovery of the principles of electricity. In this episode: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-MpjoGC-Prks.html she talks about an Arago's disk. I wonder if this is the grandfather of your Wimshurst machine?? Great build!
I just watched the video. Very cool! I'm not sure the principles are related. There isn't any magnetism involved, its all a static charge. There were several machines made by different people and they are all called Influence Machines. I made a motorized machine called a Bonetti Machine. That thing was absolutely dangerous! It made a 10" spark but at much higher amperage. I sold it to a guy somewhere in the northeast. Shortly after he got it a capacitor failed. A spark blew a hole in the plastic. In a way I was glad it happened. I made him new capacitors with thicker plastics which reduced the output of the machine a little. Same spark length but less amps. There's the machine: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-TjlBi2mhzmY.html
@@WinkysWorkshop You have "sparked" my interest. I looked further and found this video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-nA4aCd5qFWs.html that gives a good explanation of how it works. I'm sure, since you made such a machine, that you have already reviewed all this. But it was cool to me. Thanks again.
@@KevinToppenberg WOW!!! That video explains how they work super well. Honestly I totally understand it now and I did not before. Seeing it vs reading about it made all the difference in the world!!!! Thanks!
