Vintage Windmill and Wind Generator Forum

Peter

Very nice Aussie mills!

Some questions:
Is that more of the "satin" hot dip galvanize?
What is that weight in Comet stub for? (Maybe just a counterbalance so it doesnt fall over)
Are the corrugated tail vane sheets repurposed roofing?
The sail bracing on the Aqua looks challenging!

Ron Stauffer
Montrose CO

Ron
Thanks for the compliment
The tail and blades are just regular galvanized sheet, I acid washed them a bit to take some of the shine off.
The weight on the Comet is hooked to the furling lever, only the 6 foot mills had it. There would also be a
weight on the wheel that I'm missing.
I couldn't find any nice roofing sheet like that so I made it, I welded some pipe together. A top part and a
bottom part then squished the sheet with the tractor loader
The Aqua wheel is quite lightly built. It probably wouldn't last long in a storm but I like it, it's unique.
The picture I added are the last two Aussie mills that I'm working on.
Peter

Peter

The weight on the Comet is hooked to the furling lever, only the 6 foot mills had it.

Unless I am not seeing something correctly or there is an optical delusion, I dont see how the mill would swivel with that weight hanging inside the stub? Oh well.

I couldn't find any nice roofing sheet like that so I made it, I welded some pipe together. A top part and a
bottom part then squished the sheet with the tractor loader

Farm kids cant be trusted with real fabrication tools

Attached is my fuel tank cleaning setup when I had one of my deck engine tanks get rusty. The tire with the tank strapped to it is jacked up and on a frame stand. Running in 4 th gear with a couple of gallons of diesel and a coffee can of bolts and 4 hours later, I had one clean tank.

Those two last Aussie mills look like they were subjected to leftover Massey gray...Keep up the good work!

Ron

Ron
Wow that's quite a setup.
Here's a better picture of the Comet weight setup.
I also added a pic of the tail squisher.
Peter

Great name for that tool. Tail Squisher. Classic.

Thanks Peter, I see where the chain attaches to a swivel. Let me know when you decide to make your own corrugated roofing since you have all this time with no 4 legs that go moo.

Ron

Ron
Those corrugated tails were a pain in the butt to make, I'm glad I don't have to make anymore.
No more moos means I now have room to store my windmills
Peter

CTXmiller wrote: Wed Feb 26, 2020 7:38 pm Is the 30’ Comet still being manufactured?

They sure are:

http://cometwindmills.com.au/wp-content ... ochure.pdf

Wow!

There is some interesting info in the brochure as it notes in the upper left of the production of a 35" Comet. An approximate weight of a 35' head scaled from a 20' Aermotor would be in the neighborhood of 15,000# !

Comets must have been the equivalent of Australian Aermotor as the manufacturer laments the quality and use of aftermarket parts that were built to interchange in the bottom middle of the brochure.

Ron Stauffer
Montrose CO