Tip-Over Windmill

Tip-Over Windmill ENERGY Wind Power 18-5-29 First-of-its-kind "tip-over" windmill built by Dick Carroll, La Junta, Colo., can be laid down on its side for easy access to the head, tail, and fan and is open on one side, making it easy to replace a worn-out "sucker rod". All that's needed to lay the windmill onto its side is a handyman jack, cable, sawhorse or 55-gal. barrel, and a pickup or tractor. Carroll used 2 3/8-in. dia. oilfield drill stem pipe and heavy-duty angle iron to build the tower, which is fitted with a large rectangular catwalk. One side of the windmill is hinged at the bottom. A 4-ft. long steel "leverage bar" mounted just below the catwalk hooks up the cable that runs to the pickup or tractor. To lower the windmill, Carroll releases the locking hinges and jacks up the opposite side of the windmill until it's over center. Then he slowly backs up the pickup or tractor to lower the windmill onto a sawhorse or barrel. To raise the windmill, he simply drives the pickup forward until the windmill is in a vertical position, then locks the bottom of the tower in place. "It works great for changing major parts such as gearboxes, ring and pinion gears, clutches, brake drums, etc.," says Carroll, a professional welder. "It's much safer than having to stand half-balanced 30 ft. up in the air on top of the windmill, holding on with one hand while you try to move the parts into place. I built it for a lady who manages a cow-calf operation by herself. She wanted a windmill tower as big and safe as possible so that her neighbors wouldn't get hurt servicing it. I salvaged the head, tail, and fan from an old windmill and spent about $1,400 to build the tower. I welded V-braces inside the tower to give it more strength. "The open-sided tower really comes it; handy for replacing worn-out sucker rod. You can remove each section of sucker rod by simply letting it fall to the ground instead of having to snake it through the top of the tower or bend it out through the side. "If desired, a winch can be mounted on the pickup and used to raise or lower the windmill. A sawhorse or barrel is needed to keep the fan off the ground and to keep the leverage point high enough so that the windmill can be easily raised back up" Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dick Carroll, 30937 Hwy. 109, La Junta, Colo. 81050 (ph 719 853-6538).

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