Now we just need the rest of the milking machine and a cow.

[Maker]

A bit of background: Recently (past year or so) my dad has been restoring stationary engines and pumps, he got an Argosy pump with a 1/4 hp Metropolitan Vickers motor, then got a Lister D, a huge Blake pump, a vacuum milking pump with a bent shaft and finally a vacuum milking pump in good shape.
Today I was looking at it all and thought: why not power the vacuum pump with the Vickers motor?
I whipped up a mount for the motor, plugged it in and started sucking.

The pump is the loud bit, the motor is silent. We put a tachometer on the pump and it's running at 800 RPM, the data plate says 1200 RPM so it's working at around %66 power
The vacuum pulled feels very strong, maybe I can measure it sometime but for now I've taken the motor home to make a nice steel base for it, I'll upload pictures of the base when it's finished.

 

[MattF]

If you end up posting a: "I slipped and fell..." post about it, no-one will believe you, you know.

 

[TAITSIE]

If you end up posting a: "I slipped and fell..." post about it, no-one will believe you, you know.

Thanks Matt, I now have a mental image

 

[mr migwire]

it dont stop till its got 40 pints....

 

[captain-destructo]

it dont stop till its got 40 pints....

yes i remember that joke as well

 

[p0689109]

When you say you" put a tachometer on the pump" how or what did you use to do that? I have a pump that I need to match the speed to the engine so that I do not over speed the pump, the engine speed being variable.

 

[Maker]

When you say you" put a tachometer on the pump" how or what did you use to do that? I have a pump that I need to match the speed to the engine so that I do not over speed the pump, the engine speed being variable.

I've got a fancy Eddy current tacho' that I touched against the end of the shaft. My dad found it at work for me years ago, I don't think they come cheap.

Similar to this. You put a rubber drive on the silver shaft in the top of the pic and touch it against the end of the spinning shaft and the pointer moves to the RPM on the dial.

 

[Bill Edwards]

You can get cheap digital ones that work without contacting the shaft:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Digital-L..._Measurement_Equipment_ET&hash=item5402086d8d

Or you can get ones that work by contacting the shaft in the same way as the one Maker has:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Digital-C..._Measurement_Equipment_ET&hash=item3f3c8bac23

Or ones that can do either:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/UK-Shippi...?pt=UK_Sound_Vision_Other&hash=item4d283f695f

 

[Maker]

This is the same make as mine but this will read up to 50000 RPM, mine only has a max of 20000 RPM, they have 3 ranges, x1, x10 and x100 of what the display reads.

 

[brightspark]

This is the same make as mine but this will read up to 50000 RPM, mine only has a max of 20000 RPM, they have 3 ranges, x1, x10 and x100 of what the display reads.

i got one of those for a tenner from autojumble. there good

 

[sardine]

The tacho in the second link, they are pants, the rubber end flys off in bits the first time you use it, you can get new ones, but they're half the cost of a new tacho.

I still haven't worked out how to make a rubber tip for it.

 

[Maker]

I'll make a thread in the for sale section soon but would anyone be interested in buying the pump (without the motor)?

 

[MattF]

Thanks Matt, I now have a mental image

It's not that image you should worry about. Imagine a dairy farmer becoming curious whilst he's swapping the suction cups over one day, leading to a conversation somewhere within a few days afterwards: "Are you sure this milk is fresh dear? It seems a bit clumpy".

 

[p0689109]

Thanks lads I did not know this sort of technology existed. I reckon I might go for the dual purpose one.