Building A Threshing Machine

[Rustaholic]

I like this video but my garden tractor with a sickle bar mower will be a lot better.



This video shows in a five gallon bucket what I will do in a 55 gallon drum.




I wanted to start this topic here so when I get to working on it I won't need to go back there.

[Rustaholic]

First the grain reaper.
My 1968/9 Allis Chalmers B-210 Garden Tractor came with a lot of attachments.
The one I will use here will be the 48" sickle bar mower.
Mine will be a lot sharper than the one in that video is.
The tractor will be pulling a trailer that has a pick up ramp made from one or more snowmobile tracks that will bring the crop into the trailer box.
I will build as many trailer boxes as I need for the whole crop.
It is my idea to use a winch to lift each box up into the barn loft then each box will get a fan on one end to help in the drying of the grain.
I want to put a tarp over each box and have the fan on one end and mesh on the other end.
That will make the air go all the way through the box.
I think the grain will dry pretty fast that way.
I see the boxes as being 4' wide, 8' long and  30" tall.
Four boxes would probably be all I would ever need.

[Rustaholic]

When the grain is dry I will lower the boxes of crop down to where my 55 gallon drum thresher is.

My thresher being so much bigger than his bucket I will be putting all of the straw in there.
I will use a 55 gallon food grade barrel that has a removable lid.
Turning it upside down I will cut the center out of the bottom leaving a two inch border around the edge.
Then I will take a piece of expanded steel and cut a circle out that will fit inside the barrel and put five, six or a dozen bolts through that two inch lip to hold it in place.
I will have a couple round pieces of mesh with different spacing that I can drop down of top of the expanded steel for different grains.

I will weld steel plates with a piece of pipe sticking out of the center then bolt two of them to opposite sides of the drum about 2/3 of the way up the barrel.
Then I will weld up a frame that will attach to those two pieces of pipe and hold the barrel up off the floor.
I will mount it that way so I can have a tray under the barrel to catch the grain as it falls through the grid.

I will be feeding and operating the huge drill motor from one side of the barrel and on the other side of the barrel will be a
square hole cut with a standard size furnace blower that will help the grain want to go through the mesh.

The drill motor has a chuck on it that will go clear up to 3/4".
I have a piece of 1/2" threaded rod and a 16' long piece of light chain the I will cut 12 inch pieces from and
space them through the whole barrel using 1/2" nuts and washers.
I will be driving a tapered punch through the end link on each piece of chain so it will slip down the rod.

With a LOT more power and more chains I will not need to be moving the drill side to side.
I am strongly considering a welded up bar across the bottom with a place where the bottom end of my threaded rod will set in a pocket.
With all of that power I do not want it to go wild on me.
With the whole shaft anchored I can fine tune the chains so they go almost to the sides of the barrel but do not touch it.
It would really make it loud to be around and disturbing to me, the goats and the pigs if all those chains were slapping the drum. 

[Rustaholic]

I really like how this guy relay crops.
I do not like his threshing machine that he shows in one of his videos but I like what he has here.


For his tiller with the cage wheels I am thinking that same B-210 Allis Chalmers garden tractor can
easily pull my spike tooth harrow or even one of my old bed springs to level off a planting area.
I might be planting some different crops but doing his four part rotation back on that acre when I get it all worked up.

Here is this man's second video where he actually shows how he drys the grain, grinds and uses it too.


The way he drys the threshed grain is similar to the way I am planning to dry the grain before threshing instead of putting it in a shed like he did in his first video.

[Rustaholic]

The crops I am looking at threshing are Buckwheat and Hulless Oats.
Just for grins I might even throw some cow peas through the thresher.
I have a chipper/shredder that I will get the carburetor back in shape and have it running soon so I can shred the cow pea plants to put them right back on the soil.

In place of that man's four part rotation I want the clover for rabbits and maybe a little to the goats.
Turnips instead of the potatoes.
? instead of the vegetables
Hulless Oats instead of the Wheat.
That question will wind up being something for the critters not us humans.
Most of the Oats will be Feed not Food.
I will eat most of the Turnips.


In another place I will be doing Cow Peas one year then the next year I will split it between Corn and Gray Striped Sunflowers.
This year I am just planting in my vegetable beds  these three crops to increase my seed.

[Rustaholic]

How did you folks get started if you started with worn out soil?

[Deleted]

Wow, great thread!

[Rustaholic]

Today while looking for something else I did find more 1/2" nuts for that piece of threaded rod than I will need.
I so far have come up short on the flat washers though. I found six of the sixteen I will need.
I am pretty sure the rest are here though.

[spacecase0]

I do a small grain plot and use the friction method of threshing
here is my attempt at holding the camera and threshing the grain at the same time
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVxldYRJ8Ks

[Rustaholic]

Apr 15, 2015 1:48:09 GMT spacecase0 said:

I do a small grain plot and use the friction method of threshing
here is my attempt at holding the camera and threshing the grain at the same time
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVxldYRJ8Ks

Looks to be pretty slow going there.
Yes is does seem to work.
Can you picture in your mind how mine will work?
In the first part of that one video where the guy is using a drill and threshing in a plastic bucket look at that and mine will be a monster version of it.
My 55 gallon drum with the mesh bottom and a fan to push the grain through the mesh will get-er-done fast.
My huge drill motor one will have 16 pieces of chain heavier than his spinning in the barrel.
They pretty much will slap everywhere.
I will use a second furnace blower to winnow the grain.

[Rustaholic]

Whether it is threshing or corn shelling or something else I want to get-er-done.
This video is a silly little one of my oldest corn sheller.
It will shell corn just as fast as you can throw them in there.
Use both hands too.
Very clean cobs and 70 pounds a minute.
Not too shabby for 1892.



The closest two gals are my Great Nieces, Faith and Madison (Maddie), and the other girl, Lillie, is from another display down farther.

[spacecase0]

Apr 15, 2015 14:00:57 GMT Rustaholic said:

Apr 15, 2015 1:48:09 GMT spacecase0 said:

I do a small grain plot and use the friction method of threshing
here is my attempt at holding the camera and threshing the grain at the same time
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVxldYRJ8Ks

Looks to be pretty slow going there.
Yes is does seem to work.
Can you picture in your mind how mine will work?
In the first part of that one video where the guy is using a drill and threshing in a plastic bucket look at that and mine will be a monster version of it.
My 55 gallon drum with the mesh bottom and a fan to push the grain through the mesh will get-er-done fast.
My huge drill motor one will have 16 pieces of chain heavier than his spinning in the barrel.
They pretty much will slap everywhere.
I will use a second furnace blower to winnow the grain.

I see what you are setting up, that should work,
my system is quite slow when you are holding a camera as well, way faster if you are not, but still not for large amounts
I would not try my system for more than just one family worth of grain
also my system is never going to break any of the grain, and that is critical to me because most of what I do is just seed saving (I just don't have the room for a big grain plot)
I have seen some small friction grain threshing methods where they use what I have, but the wire mesh is in a cylinder and the rubber wipers are spinning in the middle,
the only advantage it might have over what you are building is that it still works at low speed (so you could peddle power it and still have it work)

that corn thresher looks fantastic
I have a hand crank type (and I thought it was fast

[Rustaholic]

With me cranking and my sweet wife feeding the corn through a wooden one hole corn sheller we could do one bushel of corn on the cob in a minute.
There are no bearings in that sheller and the flywheel is about half as heavy as the one in my video.

Alone with that very engine I put twice as much corn through the two hole one in my video in a single minute.
The Mountville one in my video has a hand crank and is easy to turn because of the bearings.
The flat belt pulley is made as a part of that very heavy flywheel. 
It is all one casting.

[Rustaholic]

In three weeks I am taking the engine and two hole sheller to my mother's house along with 175 pounds of ear corn as a fun display for a family reunion.
I will sure try to do another YouTube video of it and offer it for sale.
I do not need that one because I have others.
That one is just such a great show piece because of all of the "Monkey Motion".
It needs to belong to someone that wants to display it.

20 years after that one was built they started making the ones that drop the corn out the bottom past a blower to clean it and spit the cobs out the back. I have a two hole one of those that I would rather run here. My master welder nephew made a flat belt pulley that I can put on that newer sheller's flywheel using J-bolts. It will just take a little time to get it centered on the flywheel then I will lock-tight the nuts on the J-bolts.

I have a one hole wooden sheller too but why bother to put a pulley on that one.
Rebuilding that one taught me a lot about keeping these old corn shellers in great shape.
That Hocking Valley one hole sheller had been worked to death,
I gave it a new pair of feet that sure look to be original from an advertizing picture from 1912 that I found online and downloaded.
Then the gears inside were jumping inside and I found the cause to be a totally worn out main shaft so I used a friend's old worn out metal lathe to make a new shaft that fit perfectly. The shaft is only about eight inches long but it needed to be five different diameters for different parts to mount on it. Now that older friend is gone but I have two better metal lathes so if I need to make a new part no problem. I am just so badly missing the great friend.

[beowoulf90]

Good thread..

I guess I'm going to have to start fixing some of the stuff I come across.
I had a Lancaster winnower/seed fan built in the 1870's in working condition. Couldn't find anyone to buy it..
So I disassembled it and sold the parts..

I saw that you had a Mountville sheller.. I had to chuckle about that since I was born and raised in Lancaster County, PA and Mountville is just down the road from my work.
I see these shellers fairly often at auction along with other old farm equipment..

I have a few old pieces that still work, just not farm equipment.

Such as a 1914 Racine Junior power hacksaw, an earlier Hand operated "dish washer" and 2 early wringer washers.

I love playing with the old stuff..

[Rustaholic]

Jun 3, 2015 13:59:48 GMT beowoulf90 said:

Good thread..

I guess I'm going to have to start fixing some of the stuff I come across.
I had a Lancaster winnower/seed fan built in the 1870's in working condition. Couldn't find anyone to buy it..
So I disassembled it and sold the parts..

I saw that you had a Mountville sheller.. I had to chuckle about that since I was born and raised in Lancaster County, PA and Mountville is just down the road from my work.
I see these shellers fairly often at auction along with other old farm equipment..

I have a few old pieces that still work, just not farm equipment.

Such as a 1914 Racine Junior power hacksaw, an earlier Hand operated "dish washer" and 2 early wringer washers.

I love playing with the old stuff..

I have quite a few of the old power hack saws from 350 pounds down to 20 pound ones.
That 20 pound one is heavier because of the 32 Volt DC motor on it.
It goes with my Delco Light plant I bought a few years ago.
I have an 1891 LeBlond metal lathe that is the 14th one they made.
I have a circa 1840 hand corn sheller too so I am all about old stuff.
The person that made me this way was a 105 year old sweet lady I spent 90 minutes listening to in 1966.
100 years earlier when she was five she had went West with her family in a wagon train.
That was right after the Civil war had ended.
She had described in detain the cook stove her dad set up and took apart at every stop for her mom to cook their food on.
25 years later five miles from here I found one just like it and bought it for ten bucks.
That guy had no idea what he had.
I knew exactly what it was when I first laid eyes on it. I was shocked when he said ten bucks.
           

[Rustaholic]

Jun 3, 2015 13:59:48 GMT beowoulf90 said:

Good thread..
I saw that you had a Mountville sheller.. I had to chuckle about that since I was born and raised in Lancaster County, PA and Mountville is just down the road from my work.
I see these shellers fairly often at auction along with other old farm equipment..

I actually have two of those old Mountville Hero shellers.
My second one is the model they made right after the one in the video.
I need to tweak that one up and sell it too.

[beowoulf90]

Jun 4, 2015 1:26:22 GMT Rustaholic said:

Jun 3, 2015 13:59:48 GMT beowoulf90 said:

Good thread..

I guess I'm going to have to start fixing some of the stuff I come across.
I had a Lancaster winnower/seed fan built in the 1870's in working condition. Couldn't find anyone to buy it..
So I disassembled it and sold the parts..

I saw that you had a Mountville sheller.. I had to chuckle about that since I was born and raised in Lancaster County, PA and Mountville is just down the road from my work.
I see these shellers fairly often at auction along with other old farm equipment..

I have a few old pieces that still work, just not farm equipment.

Such as a 1914 Racine Junior power hacksaw, an earlier Hand operated "dish washer" and 2 early wringer washers.

I love playing with the old stuff..

I have quite a few of the old power hack saws from 350 pounds down to 20 pound ones.
That 20 pound one is heavier because of the 32 Volt DC motor on it.
It goes with my Delco Light plant I bought a few years ago.
I have an 1891 LeBlond metal lathe that is the 14th one they made.
I have a circa 1840 hand corn sheller too so I am all about old stuff.
The person that made me this way was a 105 year old sweet lady I spent 90 minutes listening to in 1966.
100 years earlier when she was five she had went West with her family in a wagon train.
That was right after the Civil war had ended.
She had described in detain the cook stove her dad set up and took apart at every stop for her mom to cook their food on.
25 years later five miles from here I found one just like it and bought it for ten bucks.
That guy had no idea what he had.
I knew exactly what it was when I first laid eyes on it. I was shocked when he said ten bucks.
           

Funny you should mention the Civil War. I'm a CW reenactor (23+ years) and in April I was the Commanding Union General (I'll never do it again) for the 150th Anniversary of Appomattox Court House organized by the Appomattox County Historical Society (this is was not at the National Park, that was done by the NPS themselves) The NPS had about 800 reenactors, we had approx 6,000. The NPS did the surrender everyday, while we did a different battle each day that led up to the surrender/stacking of arms and then did the Stacking of Arms.

I also have a old wood fired Cook stove
and a 1927 Standard Gas & Electric Vulcan Division Flattop gas cook stove. Both need restored at the moment, but are in good shape.

I love finding old pieces and fixing them..

 

[Rustaholic]

Jun 4, 2015 11:49:50 GMT beowoulf90 said:

Jun 4, 2015 1:26:22 GMT Rustaholic said:

I have quite a few of the old power hack saws from 350 pounds down to 20 pound ones.
That 20 pound one is heavier because of the 32 Volt DC motor on it.
It goes with my Delco Light plant I bought a few years ago.
I have an 1891 LeBlond metal lathe that is the 14th one they made.
I have a circa 1840 hand corn sheller too so I am all about old stuff.
The person that made me this way was a 105 year old sweet lady I spent 90 minutes listening to in 1966.
100 years earlier when she was five she had went West with her family in a wagon train.
That was right after the Civil war had ended.
She had described in detain the cook stove her dad set up and took apart at every stop for her mom to cook their food on.
25 years later five miles from here I found one just like it and bought it for ten bucks.
That guy had no idea what he had.
I knew exactly what it was when I first laid eyes on it. I was shocked when he said ten bucks.
           

Funny you should mention the Civil War. I'm a CW reenactor (23+ years) and in April I was the Commanding Union General (I'll never do it again) for the 150th Anniversary of Appomattox Court House organized by the Appomattox County Historical Society (this is was not at the National Park, that was done by the NPS themselves) The NPS had about 800 reenactors, we had approx 6,000. The NPS did the surrender everyday, while we did a different battle each day that led up to the surrender/stacking of arms and then did the Stacking of Arms.

I also have a old wood fired Cook stove
and a 1927 Standard Gas & Electric Vulcan Division Flattop gas cook stove. Both need restored at the moment, but are in good shape.

I love finding old pieces and fixing them.

I have an 1885 Majestic wood or coal cook stove that cooked the meals every day for 100 years and 4 months on the homestead I got it from.
The day it was given to me we tore the house down around it and it had cooked breakfast that very morning.
It has never cooked with coal but cast right into the grates it says to turn them over to burn coal.
The next day we tore down the second house on that farm and I also was given the Home Comfort enameled cook stove that was originally purchased in 1895. I gave that one to my brother-in-law though.
I think we would be great living close together.

[Rustaholic]

I was hoping to get some advise about bringing back worn out soil here but I will start a new topic for that.

[spacecase0]

Jun 23, 2015 14:30:16 GMT Rustaholic said:

I was hoping to get some advise about bringing back worn out soil here but I will start a new topic for that.

start it already,
I am waiting...

[Rustaholic]

Jun 23, 2015 21:53:27 GMT spacecase0 said:

Jun 23, 2015 14:30:16 GMT Rustaholic said:

I was hoping to get some advise about bringing back worn out soil here but I will start a new topic for that.

start it already,
I am waiting...

It is started.