Primitive Technology: Flywheel blower smelt/Monsoon begins
Added 2025-02-06 21:34:23 +0000 UTCI added a fly wheel to the one way spinning blower. It smooths out changes in rotor speed. Each stroke takes more effort but fewer strokes are needed. I did an iron smelt and it produced average results due to the rotor coming out of the thrust bearings in the support stakes. So I made journal bearings by drilling a hole right through the stakes and narrowed the ends of the rotor to keep the fan in place. Before I got a chance to test it, the monsoon season began and it got too wet to make fire. So I added a third wall to the hut to prevent rain blowing in and wetting the fire wood. Finally, I made a proof of concept water wheel that rolls on tracks so it moves up stream against the current. I did this as I'm considering making water powered projects during the wet season. Much appreciated.
Comments
I did a re-useable charcoal mound where the wood was stacked horizontally as it's easier to stack and really pack the wood in. The reason I stack it in a cone for the non-reusable mound is that the mud conforms to the shape of the cone once it's built as opposed to in a reusable mound where the wood must fit the already built cylinder of mud. It's easier to fill a cylinder with horizontal layers of wood rather than vertical logs. For temporary mounds you could stack the wood horizontally first (I started it this way in this video), but then you would need to make the rest into a mound shape so that the mud stays in place after the wood burns away. I could use bricks to make a mound and have considered it but it uses up bricks. I might try one in future. Much appreciated.
Primitive Technology
2025-02-12 00:28:47 +0000 UTCIf I remember correctly, a while ago you showed a charcoal mount in which the wood was stacked horizontally instead of vertically. In your captions, you wrote about this having some advantages (maybe it was less effort or maybe it stacked more tightly, don't remember right now). It seems you went back to vertical, why was that? Other question: why don't you use bricks to build your charcoal mounds?
Julian Gonggrijp
2025-02-11 23:51:26 +0000 UTCI'm not sure if it's what you're into, but I'd really be interested in a collaboration with clickspring, he may have some ancient mechanisms or technologies you could use! I know he is Australian too :). Excellent video as always.
Tenthtwo
2025-02-09 03:23:46 +0000 UTCAh cool, thank you. I'm familiar with how candlenut leaves feel.
Robert Walter
2025-02-08 10:13:40 +0000 UTCThanks. The way I make the tinder bundle is to crush up candle nut leaves that grow in the forest here: See video here: https://youtu.be/z9n9rqb-lvY?t=42 . There are lots of different types of tinder that can be found everywhere but this is the type I use because it's always close to hand. Before I used candlenut leaves I either used dry grass in open woodland or dry leaf skeletons if in closed forest. Much appreciated.
Primitive Technology
2025-02-08 07:36:35 +0000 UTCExcellent as always. I might just be forgetting, but have you shown us how you make the tinder bundle that you put the little coal in? I feel like that's quite an important part of the process.
Robert Walter
2025-02-08 06:23:53 +0000 UTCThe roof beams started making a cracking noise as the bark split and steamed out. At the old hut I had a problem with termites that wouldn't go away until I started doing smelts in the hut. The fires dried out the roof beams and the termites stopped eating the wood as they need moisture to feed. Thanks.
Primitive Technology
2025-02-07 20:34:14 +0000 UTCI tried smelting at home with the same primitive equipment but using iron oxide sold at bunnings as cement colourant (iron oxide red it was sold as). It produced far more iron with nearly no slag. It needed to be mixed with cornflour as a reductant and binder though. I used an angle grinder to do a spark test and it was shiny and metallic as well as heavy and strongly magnetic. It was porous though and would need forging.
Primitive Technology
2025-02-07 20:31:58 +0000 UTCNice video as always. A question comes to mind: Seeing the furnace go all the way to the roof, and seeing flames shoot out of the furnace towards the roof that is supported by wooden beams, isn't that a fire hazard?
Mario Stoilov
2025-02-07 14:14:08 +0000 UTCNow if you could only find better ore to smelt with.
Kenneth Crips
2025-02-07 12:48:27 +0000 UTCIf it does, I'll make a video about it.
Primitive Technology
2025-02-07 07:58:08 +0000 UTCI hope the cyclones don't ruin any projects you have in mind.
Kiteman24
2025-02-07 06:38:38 +0000 UTCThanks Amy. Yes that's right, less smoke, but out of frame of the camera. Thanks.
Primitive Technology
2025-02-07 01:47:07 +0000 UTCThanks for the firemaking closeup! If you hold your tinder bundle higher than your head, will you get less smoke in the face?
Amy Tobol
2025-02-07 00:47:18 +0000 UTCThanks, the new journal bearing should work well. I'll test it when it dries out a bit.
Primitive Technology
2025-02-06 22:57:46 +0000 UTCGreat to see progress on sustained blowing while smelting, bad luck with the rotor falling out of the bearing. Would it make sense to pursue some sort of opening solution for the bottom of the furnace so you can reuse the same furnace many times? Seems like a lot of work goes into rebuilding it quite often. I think the tall furnace has a lot of potential due to better draft and fewer breaks to fill up. Excited to see more about the water powered projects!
Morten Bjerkvig Jølnæs
2025-02-06 22:11:19 +0000 UTC
