Thread: How To: English Wheel Building, On A Budget!

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This project cost me a total of $230.

I started with many different sized tubing, you can use whatever size you can acquire. Everything is 1/4" to 3/8" wall. I had very rough plans, only knowing some specifics that I wanted. Like a 36" throat, and a certain wheel height for ease of use. Other than that, I jst went with it.

In this first picture, I have placed the upper bar, and have the upper brace cut.


This is roughly where I wanted things...


I took measurements there, and got it standing.


Then braced it so that it could hold it's own weight, and added the upper wheel.


Now, the upper wheel took a bit of creativity. Rather than goign out and spending over $200 on a nice upper wheel, I opted to go the cheaper, yet still nice, route. I bought a 2.125x6.25 bearing (metric), and machined an axle. The hole in the center was just over 1 5/8", so I started with a chunk of 1 3/4" round stock, and made myself an axle.

[If you do not have a lathe, this could be tricky, and a proper upper wheel may be the cheaper route.]

Here is the wheel and axle, along with the mounting bracketry.




The wheel fits snugly over the axle, but I further insure that it will stay in place with a hard tar-like epoxy. It has not yet moved.
This is how it is attatched to the frame [note: there are now nuts on top of those bolts for added security]


I got a bit creative on the lower adjuster as well. I used a tow-hitch adapter and 2" tube in the center. I also used 1" Acme thread, and nuts for this.

I welded one nut to the 2" tube [I machined it so that 3/4 of the nut sunk into the tubing, for added strength]. I then threaded the Acme thread through the nut, until it was near the other end of the tube. I then welded the lower nut to the Acme thread, seperate from the nut in the tube. This assembly slid down into the tow-hitch assembly, with one boxed end. I made two 3/4" round bar handles, and welded them to another nut. I also drilled and tapped a hole in this nut, for a set screw. I put this handle on the bottom fo the entire assembly, and set it in place. I was now able to adjust pressure/height of the lower anvil with the handle on the bottom. My design allows the anvil to move up/down, without the handle moving up/down.



And here it is, pretty much completed, minus the casters for moving the whole thing around. The casters are a good idea, as the whole thing weighs over 400 lbs...


Here is the cost list:

Upper bearing - $60 (SKF 5313-2PS)
Three lower anvils from Hoosier Pattern - $140
6" of 1 3/4" rod - $8
3 feet of Acme thread, and 4 nuts - $15
Tow-Hitch/2" tube - $6

That adds up to $229. Now, the tubing for the wheel will probably cost you a good deal of money, if you decide to buy it new. I happened upon the pieces I used at a scrap yard, and got them for free because they were all off-cuts.

I hope this can help someone to make an english wheel. They really are worth the effort and money to build one.

Seth

Looks good ,thanks for sharing with us,Hank

Nice Job, Hank!! Looks Great. Thanks for the info