Vintage Windmill and Wind Generator Forum

Nice work.

Ron, thanks for the post of the link to the video. I have never seen a Bilby tower. You could definitely tell it was built by Aermotor.

Any damage from the earthquake in Shattuck?

Depends on the size of the mill. Either way, they are the same.

Air chisel, grinder. No need in saving those fasteners. Just get some new ones.

A horizontal girt for an Aermotor tower. Older version. Had cross bracing with button heads that fit into the larger portion of the slot and slid into the smaller portion.

Chuck has been on here. He is "Windmill Farmer". Hasn't been on for a while. I don't know what they are up to (He and Ruby).

Penetrating oil, vibration, heat, and patience.

Since you have ball valves, you can hear them when they are working. They should sound the same. Buzz on the up stroke (check valve), buzz on the down stroke (traveling valve). If they sound different, something might be caught in one (or both).

Keep in mind, once you remove one of the staves, they are all going to want to fall together in the center. Some kind of curved support on the outside that can be attached to each stave that you are NOT going to remove would help. I have no ideal what that would look like.