Alex glad to so it working for you. I made a couple small batches, just enough to keep the grass cut. I have mowed as many times this year already as I usualy mow all summer all without gasoline! I don’t even use it for start up anymore, just the shopvac. I just found small 12 volt canister vacume at the thrift store.I will keep this onboard for restarts when needed. Since my first run I have not had anymore moisture problems. I think I was not getting the gasifire up to temp before trying to switch from gasoline on the subsequent runs. All is working very well now. I have improved on my filter cooler but still only temporary. This unit will be going back on my lil pit bike and building a 12" a foot taller for the mower to extend run time, althow my last run was close to an hour but things were getting very hot. my charcoal was down to the halfway point. not good but no harm done, nozel still looking un burnt after close to 5 hours mowing. Much fun and a great way to become accuinted with wood gasing an ice. I need to build a cyclone at some point but a WK unit is a priority now, need to get a vehicle done and learn to operate it so I am ready for the next woodgas meet
Hey Jim, how about posting pictures (or videos for Terry L) of your mower. That sounds like an interesting machine!
Yah, what he said 
TerryL
here you go Terry, sorry these are all I have now I droped my camera in the shop the other day and no mere camera.I guess i’ll have to brake down an buy one of them fancy do it all phones that every one is so addicted to these days, God I hate them things. first two are the mower and the third is my pit bike it was built for but the bike is just not ready so to start learning I fashioned it on to the mower with a ready made bracket for something that was under my bench.
Whoa Jim!
That is a cool bike.
“I guess i’ll have to brake down an buy one of them fancy do it all phones that every one is so addicted to these days, God I hate them things.”
Hahaha, Not sure why you hate them. They sure are a time saver. I can communicate with all four of my kds no matter where they are. Plus I can check in on DOW where ever I’m at. Plus I can work without being at work. Very convenient.
Looking forward to the videos
Bill the bike is a 1953 CZ 125. I got it with a bucket of engine parts that are all junk. I was looking for an old Clinton engine or something small for it. I was in one of my sheds and spot ted that 8 horse Briggs and Stratton. I knew it was to big but when I seen them togather it looked like a perfect match and enough of a challenge to make it fit .I did have to raise the rear of the fuel tank 1/2 " and the tank must re removed to get to the plug. Still easier to service than a modern atv .I agree the phones are handy. It is more the people that can’t put them down long enough to park there car. I can’t count the times I have been nearly hit by inattentive drivers on the phone and don’t get me started on the texting. So I guess it is not the phones I have the problem with it is more the peoples addiction to them. For me they are either to big to carry in a pocket or to fragial, not to mention I am not handy with electronics. I don’t want anything I cant repair myself.
That makes complete sense about the phones Jim. You’re right, there are a lot of inattentive drivers out there. For me, for now, it’s a great tool. Especially for the DOW site. I like information and this sure beats running back in the house to get the encyclopedia or Webster.
The bike sure looks like a fun project.
Had a friend come by and check out my simple-fire and mower tonight. I am sure he will have a mower running on one very soon. He was especialy impressed when I threw a little water at the air intake and he herd the rpm’s increase and engine smooth out as was I. I think a Koen water drip is in it’s future.
Here are some pictures of my Charcoal Grinder/Trommel Screen Sifter, for making popcorn size charcoal and grading the super dust fines out.
It’s been a work in progress building it as I go, plans, what plans. Some of the lay awake at night shuff going around in my head. Wake up, and build on it some more.
@b Southerland, @KristijanL, I think the screen is fine enough to not take any of the good gold out as Kristijan calls it.
Still need to finish the catch hopper shoot to take the grounded up charcoal to the Trommel entry. The reason for it being in the box is to confine the dust and catch it all to be put into the garden and so I can use it in my wood cutting area with out getting char dust everywhere.
Bob
Nice! Thank you for the pics. I see several good ideas at work. Yes, the bi-product biochar for the garden is another plus for making black gold.
Just in case someone reading this isn’t aware of it, the trommel is also used for classifying pay dirt for actual gold prospecting. The rocks are screened out to leave the fines for processing through a dry-washer, sluice, gold cube etc.
@mggibb, here are more pictures here on this site, trying to keeps things organized, good luck on my part.
The old Sears variable speed is hook on to the shaft by claps and plastic tube, my slip clutch. The rubber lid sealed goes around the shaft and plactic bucket and has a tenchen pully.
The chain and shaft, sprockets and mounts were taken off the New Holland baler, it was the wire tieing mechanical part of the baler. I cut it up to my needs and liking. Welded up the Grinder box from some metal plates bolted it to the shaft after cutting the 1" wide slots and welded the cutting blades on the shaft. The end hook is the original part on the shaft, is part of the baler wire twister when tieing the bales.
It’s big and bulky might put some wheels on it for easy moving. Hope the box keeps the black dust down.
Bob
Looking good! I recommend a 2 X 4 screen about 4 ft long and a couple of feet wide covered with 1/8" hardware screen cloth, with the screen on the bottom of the frame. This would be a pre-sorting table where you can pick out any brands, stones, nails, bolts, screws, hinges, from your raw charcoal. I brush the charcoal back and forth over the screen with one of those brushes that comes with a dustpan. A Harbor Freight very strong magnet on a rope is dangled and danced over the charcoal as it is brushed back and forth. I can hear clicks as it sucks up a nail now and then. Usually the brands are the larger pieces, so I pick them out at this time. I use my fingers to see if they will break, and if not, they are used in the next load of charcoal-to-be-made. Now the charcoal can be brushed into a scoop shovel and loaded into your ginder and trommel. No use grinding brands, nails, and stones, (My 2 cents for the day.)
I found a bit of time to put together some trommel parts I had lying around. The rings are from an alloy car wheel. I cut the 5 spokes out and split in two. The heavy screen was part of an old soil sifter left here by previous owners of this farm.
I did a little more work on the unit today, finished the chute from the blades to the Trommel just need to finish the hopper feed area and the in closer with some plactic for dust control.
Bob
That is an impressive system
Maybe add a large magnet to capture metal on the feed chute to the grinder?
Or are you going to do the prescreening as described earlier
I will use a magnet before the charcoal makes it to the hopper, not planning on putting any wood in the retort that has nails in the wood anyway.
Bob
Here is a short video of the unit running.
Bob
Thanks for the video. Makes me want to get my trommel spinning.
That enclosure does a good job of confining the dust
Are those roller blade wheels the drum runs very smooth
Have you measured the percentage of fines to 1/8"+ material
Well done
I still have to use a filter mask. Need to put a box fan below the hopper to keep the char dust from fly upwards in to my face lol.
Yup, using some of my old Rollerblade wheels, I use to do a lot of skating back in the 80’s and 90’s
I’m just down to Snowboarding and skiing in the winter now. With DOW I been getting all the excersize that I need. You don’t need to go to the gym, if you do the DOW work out.
Bob