Claude Jolicoeur's apple grinder design question

[Andy Andy]

Hello all,

On Claude Jolicoeur's apple grinder what is the thickness of the stainless steel plates that are screwed on the drum? And do they need to be AISI 304?

Thanks.

[Claude Jolicoeur]

You mean the 2 side plates that hold the shaft and that you see on this photo?

They are in aluminum...

[Claude Jolicoeur]

And the thickness isn't really important - I am not near the mill at this time but it is probably around 5mm. These can be in any material as there is no juice going there.

[Andy Andy]

Hi Claude,

I mean the teeth (your book page 107-108). Please see the image on the right, from Reddit:

[Claude Jolicoeur]

The height of the teeth should be around 2-3mm to make small pieces.

If you mean the thickness of the steel plate to make the teeth, I don't know as I haven't measured. I'd say about 0.5mm... These are strips taken from collars that are meant to secure pipes on a fixture. I simply took the stainless model which is slightly more expensive than the non-stainless ones.

[Andy Andy]

Thank you.

But if it is 0.5 mm is not too thin?

[Claude Jolicoeur]

Le vendredi 8 janvier 2021 à 17:46:22 UTC-5, Andy Andy a écrit :

Thank you.

But if it is 0.5 mm is not too thin?

As I said I didn't measure the thickness. It could be more than 0.5 mm.

Just get one of those collars and check! I remember they are quite sturdy and not that easy to bend in shape. It required a good vice and hammering them.

[Andy Andy]

Claude, thank you. I want to use stainless steel sheet and that why I am curious. But I will check the hardware store for collars.

[Todd Miller]

If you want to buy stainless strips or almost any other kind of hardware McMaster Carr is your friend. They have strips as well as hose clamps as well as everything else. https://www.mcmaster.com/metals/stainless-steel/multipurpose-304-stainless-steel-6/shape~sheet-and-bar/

[dan....@gmail.com]

I was wondering whether the pattern used by Claude is of any significance or whether the reason to do so was to effectively use all offcuts ...

Dne sobota 9. ledna 2021 v 18:49:22 UTC+1 uživatel toddloom...@gmail.com napsal:

[Claude Jolicoeur]

No, there is no real scientific reasoning behind the way I disposed the teeth on my drum. Went by the inspiration of the moment!

[jeff.k...@gmail.com]

I used the teeth to balance the drum.  Install the teeth on the drum while it is mounted on it's axle.  As you screw on each tooth, the drum will fall off balance and the heaviest part will settle at the lowest point assuming you have the axel on decent bearings.  Space the teeth evenly.  I had about 10 cm between my teeth on a 40 cm diameter drum.

At the end of the process, I used a few smaller (shorter) teeth to balance it perfectly.  I screwed these on between the main teeth.  I tested the balance first by taping the small teeth on the drum (along with their screws - they have mass too!)  The drum should not rotate at all in any position when left to rotate freely on it's axle.  

Having the drum perfectly balanced made a big difference when it came to vibrations when it was rotating at a few hundred RPM.

/J

[Andy Andy]

Hi Jeff,

What is the thickness of the teeth?

Thanks.