How to Assemble an Aermotor Windmill

How to Assemble an Aermotor
Windmill
On December 21, 2011, Dr. David Martin, Ken Dabkowski, Edward West, Kim Smith
and Ditrick Dunn visited the Aermotor facility in San Angelo Texas. The Aermotor
facility is a large warehouse and assembly center. Here, Aermotor manufactures most
windmill components, receives components from suppliers, and assembles windmills for
customers. When we arrived at the Aermotor facility, we were greeted by Randy Carter.
Randy is one of the operation managers at Aermotor and was our guide to all activities.
Bob Bracher, the President of Aermotor had just recently undergone open heart surgery.
He came out to greet us for a short period of time and has been immensely helpful
throughout the entire ordering process. We thank Bob for all of his work and support!
Guy Morrow, Aermotor’s Executive Vice President and General Manager of Operations,
Kristi Wrinkle, and all of the other non-pictured Aermotor employees jumped in to tell us
about their company, their products and their lives.
Bob Bracher – President, Aermotor
Guy Morrow – Aermotor Executive VP and GM of Operations
Randy Carter – Aermotor Operations Manager
Kristi Wrinkle – Aermotor Office Manager
David Martin
Edward West
Kim Smith & Ken Dabkowski
Ditrick Dunn
After the greetings, Randy invited the team on a factory tour
To get a sense of the scale of the facility and machinery, here are some pictures of the
tour:
Machine used for cutting sheet metal.
Machine used to shape and stamp metal. Aermotor uses this flywheel press to punch the
holes in angle iron.
Ken demonstrating the size of the flywheel press. This press punches the bolt holes for
the tower assembly and can be used to form metal components of the structure.
Die-cast unfinished wheel hubs into which the spokes for the fan are affixed.
Out front of the Aermotor facility. Three differently sized windmills on the left. Texas
flag to the left, American flag to the right.
Windmill Assembly:
Detailed drawings on windmill assembly are available in the book entitled, “The 702
Model Windmill: Its Assembly, Installation and Use”, and for the purposes of
simplification, we have modified that document, added photos of our assembly process
and understand that certain components of the windmill will come pre-assembled. In our
document we will reference the part names & list on pages X through XVI (of the book)
to remain consistent. Our focus here is to take sections 1-3 of the book and make it easier
to understand. There are several components which are first constructed separately and
then combined. Assembly happened in this order:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
Installation of the mast pipe
Tower (combined with mast pipe)
Motor (comes pre-assembled but check)
Assembly of the blade sections (sets of three blades)
Installation of wheel arms/attaching fan/Blades to wheel arms
Tail/tailbone
Combination of Fan/blades, Motor, Tailbone
Standing the structure up and combining the tower with the fan, motor and tail
The windmill can be completely assembled on the ground and then hoisted into place,
most likely, in sections. Determination on hoisting technique will be decided on site
based on conditions, equipment and options.
In the following sections we will discuss parts, tools, safety equipment, and assembly
information.
Parts!
The windmill crates should include all of the parts we need. The boxes will not contain
any of the tools we need (we’ll discuss that next).
As you can see from the picture, not too many parts are required to build the tower.
o Square tower clamp (used to hold the top of the mast pipe in place)
o 8 Straight Long bolts (used to hold the top of the mast pipe in place) and
corresponding nuts
o 4 shorter black bolts and corresponding nuts
o Mastpipe (Red)
o Short (1 inch) and long (1 ½ inch) bolts, nuts and washers (½ inch & 3/8 inch) –
All the corners and sides of the structure use ½ inch bolts and nuts and all of the
middle structure connections use 3/8 inch bolts/nuts. Different lengths of ½ also
exist – whenever three pieces connect in the middle of a structure a long bolt 1 ½
inch length is used. For two connections a one inch length is used.
o List of individual component parts in Figure 1.1, and pages XII - XVI
Tools!
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Drift and Taper Punches
Rat Tail File
3 vice grips
Hammer
Open ended wrenches
Adjustable smooth-jaw wrenches
Cold Chisel
Claw Hammer
Woodsaw
Saw horses if available
Table
12 ft Ladder if available
30 ft Ladder if available
Flat files
Side cutting pliers
Channel lock pliers
Screwdrivers
Ropes and Chains
Hard hats
Safety belts
Steel toe footwear with rubber soles and heels
Scale for weighing blades to equalize weight in the wheel
Sledge hammer
Hacksaw
Wire brush
Steel measuring tape
Spirit level
Shovel
Pick
Post-hole digger
Heavy iron bar
Chains
Three guy ropes longer than the height of the tower
Steel cables or heavy manila rope
Block and tackle – 4000lb
2 harnasses/3 harnesses
If possible, battery powered drill with metal bits to drill holes in windmill anchor
structure.
Mast Pipe Assembly
To begin construction of the tower, the mast pipe assembly must be completed. There
are only four notched side tower braces so these will not be confused with any of the
other segments. (see figure 9, page 6 of book). Take two notched side tower braces and
fit them together like so:
When aligned, the notches will fit together. Take the mast pipe (figure 10, page 7 of
book). Lay the mast pipe so that the bolt holes (second hole from the left in picture
above & directly aligned in picture below) line up. It is easiest if you begin this assembly
on a raised table and get additional lift off a block. For example, you will see in all
pictures below, the entire windmill structure uses blocks to raise the structure off the
ground a few inches. This aids in the ability to connect bots and nuts from underneath
the structure.
The holes are meant to each take one long bolt each. Now arrange the other two notched
pieces around the mast pipe to create the square (see below).
In each of the holes, place a long bolt. There are two long bolts needed in each corner.
Using nuts, tighten the long bolt down after insertion but keep slightly loose until the
square clamp bracket (also known as a ‘tower clamp’ see picture below) can be fit over
the top. There will need to be some alignment. Fit square clamp bracket over the mast
pipe until it surrounds all four sides and is level (approximately at the long bolt level).
Tighten the square clamp bracket and once completely aligned, tighten all the long bolts.
Picture of completed mast pipe. Notice how the long bolts (2 per corner) are inserted in
the top (right in this picture) holes. The bold head is always BELOW the corresponding
corner nut. This was of particular and noteworthy importance. Notice also how the
lower (left in this picture) shorter black bolts are coming from the inside out and the nuts
are attached. These are attached through the bottom square of the mast plate.
Tower Assembly
See page 64, section 11.8 and 11.9 for a schematic of how a 33ft tower should be
assembled. Note the upper section on the 33 foot tower has a short stub tower upper
section without cross members. This section carries the platform. As you will see in the
book, there are 8 corner posts in this assembly. Four of these make up the bottom section
and the other four make up the middle section. Flat angle braces are used on the bottom
section while round angle braces are used in the two sets on the middle section.
Next, turn to page 29 of the book. Figure 41 shows how to lay out the corner posts on a
flat raised (board) surface. The upper end of each corner post always has three holes.
The lower end almost always has two holes. If both ends have 3 holes, the holes at the
bottom are spaced at 4.5 inches or 11.5cm between the bottom and top hole as shown in
Fig. 41. In Figure 42, the upper end of the bottom corner post ahs holes that are spaced
5.5 inches (14 cm) apart. Note how the upper corner post overlaps the bottom corner post.
See pages 30- 36 and fig. 40-63 on windmill structure construction.
Laying out the pieces:
Round rods – lay out two rods in an X pattern using the shorter rods on the top, longer as
you go down. There are three holes at the bottom of the side leg. Set the rods to the center
hole on the side leg.
Add cross supports at appropriate widths.
Two leg sections should be laid out on each side raised off the floor. Each leg section
should bow outwards at an angle to fit the cross beams. In an X pattern, lay out the leg
sections.
When connecting the cross beams between corner posts add gold 1 ½ inch bolts. Connect
to the third hole from the top of the first corner leg section. Connect the round rods to the
outside (bottom in picture) of the structure. Do not yet connect to the mastpipe upper
section beams (see picture below).
Notice how the entire first level of the structure is resting on raised blocks. Also notice
how it is attached to the mast pipe topper. As you will see in the following pictures, all
bolts face out, all nuts attach on the outside of the structure. All cross supports attach
from the outside of the structure.
As you move down the structure to connect cross beams and round rods, all connect at
the same point and use only one bolt. (see below)
If the round rod does not fit to the corner support, use punch to twist round rod. These
struts may be over-galvanized as well in which case some of the excess material may
need to be filed out. Also note that the lower end of the upper strut always is placed
outside the rising upper section of a lower strut. This pattern, once again, was reinforced
on several occasions.
On section two, connect angle iron cross beam supports.
Bent angle irons go on three of four sides. They do not go on ‘top’ of the structure (in its
current orientation).
All middle angles iron will connect to at a cross junction with a 3/8 inch bolt.
Then, connect the bent angle iron to a L shaped angle iron X support beams like so:
Be sure to note direction of angle iron angle!
Connect straight bottom L shaped angle iron like so:
Note: The same piece of metal angle iron is used for a 33ft and 40ft tower. Holes will
align based on size and overlap in accordance with the bottom corner support size.
Connect X angle iron and twisted angle iron supports to the cross support with a 3/8 inch
bolt.
13:20 on video – use 1.5 inch.
To begin side assembly, connect in this order:
1) Strut
2) Lock Washer
3) Nut
Next:
Attach (on left and right side) cross supports:
Then attach round rods to outside of the cross supports:
On the outer side where two round rods connect, the order is the rod going down, rod
going up, nut:
This picture shows the outside joint between sections one and two.
Notice the angle of the angle iron on the outside of the picture above!
Notice the angle iron cross and the angle of how it connects to the cross beam below:
Don’t forget to connect in the middle sections with 3/8 inch bolts!
If assembled correctly, it should look like this:
Work from the bottom (base) connections to the top on the left and right side.
When you get to the top of the right and left side, this should be the layout:
Once the left and right sides are completed, it is time to assemble the top. From the top
down, the first section uses round rods but the second section and the third section you
will use all angle iron and twisted angle iron. From the base of the structure, this is the
right corner post:
From the base of the structure, this is the left corner post:
Note: Twisted Angle curvature up
From the base of the structure, this is the right corner post: Note: Twisted Angel
curvature down
It should look like this orientation:
Once the twisted angle irons are installed, you will install a straight piece. From the
middle of the X of the twisted angle irons to the middle of the cross beam:
Note: the order of stack and use 3/8 inch bolt
Then from the next section connector down, use this orientation:
Lastly connect the angle iron small cross supports to the base and corner supports:
When you install the anchor legs, they go another five feet down and bury them 4’9.
Getting specific!
The following photos are shot after the tower structure was completed. They show the
appropriate orders of bolts, nuts, washers (if needed) and crossbeam attachments.
Lastly install the brake. Fit the the furling mechanism for the brake over the mastpipe as
shown below. Connect to top of structure at the base of mastpipe (black bolts). See
orientation of mechanism below. It should face the right (looking from structure base to
top – also as pictured here). The armature (where his hands are in the picture) connects
to the wire which runs to the brake handle at the base of the structure.
Make sure collar bolt faces as shown to avoid hitting the brake.
The Motor
The following pictures depict the motor in different stages of completion. The motor will
arrive full assembled (minus the oil and the top tin cover). Parts from the motor are
shown on page XIV of the book. The motor will come pre-assembled.
Blade Assembly
Pages 12-17 contain instructions and graphics on blade and wheel assembly.
34 – Wheel Band, Outer
35 – Wheel Band, Inner
100 – Sail with 17 tie
101 – Sail Rib
Start by equalizing blade weight as described in section 3.14.
On a scale weight each of the galvanized sheet steel blades.
3.15 The wheel of the windmill is composed of six sections of blades that are attached to
twelve steel arms (part 736 in figure 24). The first step in assembling the wheel is to put
together these sections of steel blades. Each section consists of three sheet steel blades
(part 100) three wheel ribs (part 101), an outer band (part 34) and an inner band (part 35),
together with nuts, bolts and lock washers, which are provided. Slip one wheel rib onto
each blade so that the beveled (cut) edge of rib points toward the wider end of the blade,
as shown in Fig. 23. It may be necessary to spring the blade gently when first slipping
the rib into position.
Next slide the outer band through the slots in the three blades. The bolt holes in the outer
and inner bands are farther from one end than the other. Place the long ends of the bands
on the concave side of the blades (fig. 24). Also note that care should be taken not to
scratch the galvanizing.
Once finished with the section, complete 5 other sections. Use gloves if possible, blades
are sharp!
Notice how bolts and nuts face up in the picture (toward the middle of the fan)
Attaching the blades to the motor
3.16 Install Wheel Arms
The wheel arms (part 736) screw into threaded openings in the wheel hub (part 703) (fig.
25, page 13). After oiling the threads, slip the lead washers (provided) over the threaded
square bolt-like shank end of the wheel arm. Screw this end of the first arm into any of
the bolt holes on the rear of the wheel hub.
Follow page 14, 15, 16, 17 till the end of section 3.19 to walk through the other wheel
assembly levels.
Notice the rod connection on the inner and outer drum.
Hand tighten nuts – not too tight until all sections of the fan are on all the way around the
wheel.
Use vice grips to hold bottom fan section – aligned with hole.
Then connect the middle sections using the punch:
And the vice grips:
A completed fan and motor assembly
Tail Assembly
On page 9 of the book, you can see figures and part components of the tail bone assembly.
On page 10, there is a description of how to complete the installation of the regulator
spring. The figures illustrate all you need to know.
The tailbone assembly is pretty easy. Use the two U-bolts (parts 44 and 46) and the two
rectangular washers (parts 45 and 47) to fasten the reinforced sheet steel vane (part 3) to
the tailbone (part 639) (see figure 16). Attach the tailbone assembly to the pivot bolt
(part 510) in the manner in which it was received. The flat steel member of the tailbone
should be in a horizontal position. Make sure that the tailbone casting (part 585) is on the
right side of the tailbone (fig. 18). Tighten the nuts at the top and bottom of the pivot bolt
(part 510).
Attach Tailbone and Furl Arms and Furl Link
Assembly
Page 8 and page 9 of the book discuss Furl arm, lever and furl link assembly. Page 9 also
includes instructions of how to install the completed tail bone to the furl arm and link
assembly.
Install pivot bolt for tailbone see figure 13. Use Part 510 (Pivot bolt for tailbone)
& Part 639 (Tailbone with part 510)
Furl Assembly:
See Figure 14 on page 8. Then see figure 15 on page 9 for completed unit. . Here are
part descriptions:
Fig. 14
659 – Buffer device complete
585 – Tailbone casting
527 – Furl Link
528 – Furl Arm with Button Head
513 – Upper furl Ring, Split
786 – Brake lever
Fig. 15
661 – Mast with parts 674 and 609, complete
786 – Brake lever
528 – Furl Arm with Button Head
513 – Upper furl Ring, Split
527 – Furl Link
510 – Pivot bolt for tailbone
First add the silver shaft (part 510, pivot bolt for tailbone) in the middle of the casing.
Next, Add part 580 and screw into casing as shown here:
Bring spring away from twisting action and leave part 580 facing away from the spring as
shown here:
Next attach part 28 (vane spring) to part 580 (spring holder):
Connect the tailbone casting (part 585) to the base of the casting on the (510, pivot bolt
for tailbone) as pictured here:
Pictured above: completed assembly of (510, pivot bolt for tail bone) and (585, the
tailbone casting).
Connect part 528 (furl arm with button head) to the socket to the brake lever (part 786).
Then connect the ring to part 528 (furl arm with button head):
Note: Remember that the bend part always goes inside towards the center of the 613 furl
ring upper.
Then connect the other 528 furl arm with button head to the furl ring 613 center as
shown:
Attach the tailbone casting over the pivot bolt:
Lastly, attach part 527 furl link to the tailbone casting and the brake lever as shown:
After assembled, you will need to hoist the structure into place, hoist the fan/wing/motor
assembly into the air and sit on the mastpipe (661) as shown below:
Once set, screw top locknut (part 578) and lock washer (579) on as shown below:
From the bottom of the mastpipe, insert pumprod (171) through the mastpipe up to the
yoke as shown in the next two pictures, and connection with part 610 pin for yoke:
Note: The yoke and guide wheel should already be
assembled.
Attaching the tailbone to the motor casing:
Connect tailbone to part 510 (bolt for tailbone). Add lock washers on either side.
Note: see picture above and face tailbone crossbeam in the direction shown.
Connect the 659 (buffer device) to the center of the tailbone crossbeam.
Connect the spring to the end of the tailbone.
Edward scheming a way to lift the tower ☺