[TheForge] How to mount this lightweight blower?

[jerry Frost]

Bruce: You're really over estimating the torque necessary to turn a blower.
The only time I've ever had to worry about torque on the crank handle is
when I let a youngster crank for me. A little patient instruction and
attention to the helper is enough, kids LOVE to turn the crank FAST. <grin>

The pressed sheet shell blowers can be easily mounted with a bracket
attached as you say, with the shell bolts and a little 1" angle iron. If you
wish to cut a crescent shape from sheet steel though that will need
stiffening but  mimics one of the factory brackets. You don't need to use
more than 3 shell bolts, 2 will prevent it from pivoting and the 3rd acts as
the hip. (hip = angle brace as seen on sign brackets, etc.)

Another easy mount is to use exhaust pipe that's been opened from 2" to 3".
I buy those at Midas for a few bucks, they'll happily make them to suit.  If
necessary a couple sheet metal screws will anchor it more than solidly
enough.

Jer

-----Original Message-----
From: TheForge [mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Bruce
.
Sent: Tuesday, September 23, 2014 4:18 AM
To: Blacksmithing List Sponsored by ABANA
Subject: [TheForge] How to mount this lightweight blower?

I have a Champion "rivet forge" blower, which has a cast-iron gearbox and a
pressed steel housing.  Most other such blowers I've see have some specific
means of mounting to the forge and/or tuyere.  This one apparently had only
the nozzle, which must have been clamped into the tuyere somehow.

I need to mount this blower on a forge, and I would already need to adapt
the small nozzle (about 2" ID) to the 3" ID air pipe I plan to use, so I
might as well use that as part of the mounting bracket.  It should be easy
enough to fabricate a nozzle adapter that also clamps onto the nozzle.

However, I'm dubious about mounting the little blower ONLY by the nozzle.
The nozzle is about 10" from the shaft of the crank along the axis of the
nozzle, and (if memory serves) about 5" from the base of the crank crosswise
to that axis (i.e., parallel to the crank axle).  That's a heck of a lot of
torque that that nozzle-mount would have to deal with!

The only features of the blower that would be amenable for use as mounting
provisions are the five short 1/4" bolts that hold the two halves of the fan
housing together.  What I'm thinking is to "extend" at least three of these
bolts laterally far enough to connect with some sort of bracket.
This would be fairly easy to do on the intake side of the fan housing, but
I'd rather put such a bracket between the fan housing and the gearbox, which
also seems feasible.

Between the fan-housing-bolts and the nozzle, I can see any number of ways
of effecting such a mounting bracket -- that's not the trouble.  The trouble
is just that I really don't want to re-invent the wheel.  I would really
like to see pictures of how this blower was mounted originally, and I
haven't been able to find any.  If anyone can help me find one, I'd
appreciate it.  A Google image search turned up nothing on two or three
goes.

Bruce
NJ
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