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Forum Index : Windmills : Near perfect blades 4 the imperfect trady
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darcyrandall200 Newbie  Joined: 17/01/2009 Location: AustraliaPosts: 34 |
Hey guys, If you are anything like me and have difficulty sawing a straight line then perhaps you may benefit from using this jig I have made to create windmill blades. Simply take two pieces, screw to each side of your timber and then sand the surface of the timber until you reach the metal surface. Remove the two pieces and screw on the next two pieces that form the bottom profile of the blade. Again sand the surface until the metal surface is exposed. Finally add the top and bottom plates. Cut out the blade with a jig saw. Remove the plates and then sand the edges of the blade to form the air foil shape. The Jigs blade profile is based an an instruction written by Hugh Piggot. The Turbine hub is not part of the jig and I obtained it from this web site. It cost me a little over $100 dollars to have this jig laser cut. Cheers2012-04-21_230255_WindmillJig.zip Thankyou. Regards Darcy Randall, Perth Western Australia |
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Gizmo Admin Group  Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5078 |
Hi Darcy I couldn't open the dwg cad file. Do you know what version it's saved as, and maybe try saving as a earlier version. Autocad Release 14 or Autocad 2000 is pretty common. DXF's are better, but sometimes it looses "bits" of the drawing. Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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| darcyrandall200 Newbie Joined: 17/01/2009 Location: AustraliaPosts: 34 |
Hey, I created the original .DWG file with AutoCad 2012 demo version. I have attached another file which is my attempt at converting the file to AutoCad 2000 format2012-04-22_002814_WindmillJig2.zip . Cheers Thankyou. Regards Darcy Randall, Perth Western Australia |
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| brucedownunder2 Guru  Joined: 14/09/2005 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1548 |
Hi darcy,, She don't work for me ,mate ... Grab a camera ,,take a few shots ,, betcha we can see them --even I can do that !!! Bruce Bushboy |
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| Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5078 |
Got it. 
And here it is as a DXF 2012-04-22_091021_WindmillJig.zip I see how it works Darcy. Do you have any photos of the finished jig. Also, have you see Max's youtube video on blade carving, its a new technique that saves a lot of work. Have a look at the bottom of the last Chainsaw blade page http://www.thebackshed.com/Windmill/articles/ChainsawBlades5 .asp I like jigs. You spend a little time making them, but you save a lot of time making the final product. Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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| brucedownunder2 Guru Joined: 14/09/2005 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1548 |
Hang on ,,,, Have you actually done this ?????.. I see angles and holes in templates ,, but please explain how you would get a "saw" and what type of "saw" to go around-into those sharp corners - Is this just a thought or can you verify that you actually did the cutting . I'm a pain in the ask-ya mother-fer -sixpence, but others may not be as forward as this critter... Bruce Bushboy |
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| darcyrandall200 Newbie Joined: 17/01/2009 Location: AustraliaPosts: 34 |
Hello Yes, I have successfully managed to carve one blade using this jig. First I take elongated pieces three and four and screw each to a side of my timber. I then sand,plane,carve away at the timber until I reach the metal surface revealing the tyop profile of the blade. I then take eleongated pieces five and six. I screw these to each side of the timber then shape the bottom profile of the blade. Lastly the first two elongated pieces go top and bottom over the work piece when the blade twist has already been shaped. The two big holes you see allow you to drill a hole through the timber so you can insert the blade of a jig saw and cut out the blade. The two elongated pieces include some notches either end indicating where the blade ends should be cut. Give me a week and I shall capture some photos of the next blade I will be shaping. Cheers Thankyou. Regards Darcy Randall, Perth Western Australia |
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| brucedownunder2 Guru Joined: 14/09/2005 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1548 |
OK, thanks Darcy ,,, so the critical "saw" is a jigsaw" ok .. now I understand , was wondering how the hell you'd get a chainsaw in ther somewhere.. was thinking along the lines of whats-his-name from flinders island.. John something.. Ok ,, take some pics and we'll all feel fuzzy inside for a while ... thanks,mate Bruce. Bushboy |
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| darcyrandall200 Newbie Joined: 17/01/2009 Location: AustraliaPosts: 34 |
Second blade in progress I didnt cut the timber long enough. Hence you see the little bits of wood on top that join another two pieces of timber to my blade so that it fits the jig. Thankyou. Regards Darcy Randall, Perth Western Australia |
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| brucedownunder2 Guru Joined: 14/09/2005 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1548 |
Hi Darcy,,,, OK , I sort of see what you are doing (I'm a slow learner) ,,, so we forget about chainsaws and ambulances... we are now into a jigsaw attack -- how long is the jigsaw blade ??? I'm interested , keep going Bruce Bushboy |
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| darcyrandall200 Newbie Joined: 17/01/2009 Location: AustraliaPosts: 34 |
Hey Bruce, I think you have misunderstood what I am doing. I simply use the metal plates as a guide so that I dont sand away too much or not enough. I end up with blades that are pretty much identical to each other. I was aiming for accuracy and not speed and also to retain all my limbs. I do use a jig saw for the final step when I cut out the triangular shape of the blade. Predominantly I use an angle grinder with a sanding disc. Having said all of this I do believe if you were able to find a jig saw with a large enough blade you could indeed complete most of the job with it. Cheers Thankyou. Regards Darcy Randall, Perth Western Australia |
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| Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5078 |
Another way you could use it is hot wire cutting a foam block for fibreglass blades. Once you build the jig, you could cut out identical foam blades pretty quick. Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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