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120,000 Volt Van De Graaff Generator

Step 3The motive system

The motive system
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The motive system consists of a roller made of pvc pipe attached to a 540 size motor. To build the roller carefully drill a hole smaller than the motor shaft diameter through the center of each end cap. Heat the motor shaft with a lighter and press one end cap onto the motor shaft squarely. Now cut a short length of pipe and assemble the roller. The bearing for the end opposite the motor is made from a piece of hardened steel rod epoxied to the head of a bolt. The top roller is made similarly to the bottom roller only it rides on simple brass bolts and is covered in aluminum tape.

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15 comments
Sep 20, 2009. 10:21 AMemeraldamber says:
hi, so batteries are the main source of power for this one? can't it make hair on head stand? what should be done to make hair on head stand? :D how much did this all cost?
Mar 10, 2009. 7:28 AMmujeebmurtaza95 says:
how many volts is a 540 motor .. i hav a 9volts motor will it wrk/???nd wat happens if we touch the top(the orb kinda thing) with our bare hands??? will our hair stnd up or sumthng?
Mar 9, 2009. 3:34 PMnguyenalexandert says:
would a 550 motor work? that's the closest thing i can find in a nearby rc shop about 25$, could anyone get to me on this? i need to ask some questions reguarding it too =/ the pictures don't seem to be so clear TT_TT msg me at nguyenalexandert@yahoo.com mind telling me how much this is all ganna cost in total? so far the closet flange seems to be $8~20, the motor is 25(550) or if i can gather the parts from things around the house
Feb 5, 2008. 3:35 AMmman6277482 says:
Im still confused on powering the motor. How do you make it turn? If you just connect it to a battery it wont simply start turning will it? i need lots of help.
Feb 5, 2008. 9:34 AMmman6277482 says:
how do you connect it to a drill battery? and right when you connect it to the battery it will start turning? dont you need to press a button or something?
Feb 6, 2008. 3:24 PMmman6277482 says:
could i replace the motor and create a crank so i could hand turn it?
Feb 6, 2008. 3:32 PMmman6277482 says:
where is the motor located then? it is kind of hard to tell from the photo.
Feb 6, 2008. 4:52 PMmman6277482 says:
do you think you could make a video of yourself making the van de graaff generator?
Apr 20, 2008. 1:18 AMtriggernum5 says:
A good rule of thumb may be that if you can't make a motor turn, you've got alot of work to do before you're ready for high voltage..
Dec 11, 2008. 5:05 PMKryptonite says:
What!?! Sacrilage!
Feb 5, 2008. 2:59 PMmman6277482 says:
where can you get a 540 motor? do you thing I could "disect" one from a remote control car? would that work? and do you think i could get this down in under 13 days?
Dec 11, 2008. 5:08 PMKryptonite says:
A 540 motor is not necesary, any motor here would work, as long as it's got enough oomf. I've got some really good silver cam motors, But they'd probably be too fast for this, oh well, I can always work a geared hand crank.

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Author:Tool Using Animal
I'm a graduate of the University of Central Florida with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, I am currently working on my Master's. Otherwise, I enjoy building things, designing the things I'm going ...
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