Vintage Windmill and Wind Generator Forum

Hello to all fellow Windmill'ers (is that a real term) from Minnesota. I'm sure like most people who came here before me it was a love of something just neat, old and useful. As a kid I always wanted a Windmill, well now over 50 its time!

Been a Amateur Radio guy forever, enjoy wood working, can weld (its ugly but it sticks), fix/maintain everything so looking forward to this project.

Took on the this project more on whim without much guidance, will it bite me in the end, maybe but its all about the journey right?

I will make a second post here to show you what I have thus far,

DB

As promised this is what I have thus far and the only picture. I did get the vane and a busted up tower. I have to pick it up and bring it home yet so more pictures to follow.

The story is the guy I got the mill from bought 20 years ago from someone who rebuilt it in IA. It sat in his pole barn for the last 20 years and never made into the air. Rather that's all true or not I don't have a clue but sometimes you just have to trust someone.

Its a 8' fan, I'm not planing on making it do any work and will keep it on a short tower for now. I live within many trees and to get up where it needs to be would be a task.

First order of business is to figure out what I got (like I said, this more of an adventure). About sure its an Aermotor, at least according to the name on the vane. I'm really curious how old it is, I'm hoping for like 1930-1940's old.

I'm thinking of building a 20' wood tower, maybe find and old steel one, lots of those standing around here.

The vane is way neat, its all in one piece with no bullet holes, like many the lettering has faded. That's one question I have, do you leave it as is or do you re letter/paint, etc. My gut tells me to not touch it?

If this tuns into a turd it will look fantastic just becoming wall art, but lets hope it will spin again.

It will find its way home this week and will dig into it to see what we have to work with.

Looks to be in pretty good shape you can identify the age by removing the bonnet and looking for a date stamp on the hoop most will have a letter and numbers the numbers are supposed to indicate the month and year of manufacture

That is an Aermotor and there is no reason to believe that it can not be put in working condition.
It may just need oil and the appropriate tower.
I have one just like it and have it set up over a 60 ft well pumping water.
Good luck with what ever you are going to do with this project.

First thing is to look on the case and see if it's an A602 or an A702. Looks like a single rivet wheel. Will go from there.

Oh...welcome to the site!

Thank you every one, I got the Mill home last night, sure will have a pile of question.

Looking at the hub. It seems to have the V arms not screw in. So wouldn't that make it a 602 built sometime between 1916 and 1933?

Yep, that's where we need to start. It will say on the case.

I hate to say this but the mill is still on the trailer, going to finish up another project hope by this weekend then get the mill off the trailer, then we can dig into it!