Vintage Windmill and Wind Generator Forum

Tom , good looking back yard set up .

Very nice job Tom!!!

Yeah, that hole is important. It needs to line up with the slot for the flat bar on the pullout tube. But the story of the Dempster neckpipe falling out is more common than you would think. That nib that goes in the hole wears off when the bolts get loose, and the pipe falls out. I have never broken those neckpipe clamps, instead have broken the bolts getting them too tight. Sometimes, too tight will egg the neckpipe, but it won't likely fall out.

Glad the damage was minimal. You could put a fifty pound weight on it if you wanted. The weight of water in a 2-joint well, plus the 2 steel rods would be more than that. Or pull the tail completely over, and loosen the brake adjustment where it won't drag.

Tom , hange somrthing cool off the sucker rod , or as Windy says , pull the tail over to slow rotation .

I hung a 15 lb bowling ball from it to start, and it helped a lot, but when the breeze picked up it was still pumping at about 35-40 strokes per minute. I might stack another ball on it and see how that works. Wind speeds today are only about 10-12 mph, but I am a little nervous still, so she's locked down for the time being. I will try again later.

Best to just take the wheel out of the wind by furling it completely. However, you must loosen brake adjusment, or take the rod off for it to spin slowly.

Windy , you are right on , furl the tail . I have my Aermotor pulled out of the wind for a couple of years now , fan still rotates sometimes to keep everything lubracated & loose , still looks pretty & sounds right anytime !

As long as the brake does not make contact.