Air - X modifications

[Rover]

Is there any modifications that can be made to to an Air X to make it function.

Yep I'm a poor sap that bought one

I've done the eagle blades and extended tail and it reacts quicker, however it will never reach the 500 rpm (I even tried 3 original and three eagle blades)

I'm not afraid of rewiring it, etc  

All I really need is 2-10 amps to feed to a small battery bank

I'd rather not scrap it for philosophical reasons, but ya never know

My wind environment is not the best, about 2 blocks off the Chesapeake bay, trees , but open to the north/north east accross a swamp field

Thanks

[Countryboy]

Take the blades off.  Put a pulley on it and run it with your lawnmower engine.

If you want to use wind to power it, a 200 foot tall tower may help a little.  (if you can handle the noise)

[DanB]

He'd do better to run a normal automotive alternator with a gas engine.

What you have is a fine little machine for perhaps boats - small weekend cabins that use very little power in good wind sites etc...

They are not good at capturing much energy in low winds.

If you want power in low winds you'd be way better off to get a larger wind turbine or build one from scratch.  There are not good cost effective 'modifications' to that machine in my opinion - for it's size and certain applications... it is not bad.  Unfortunately they seem to be marketed in such a way that many folks who buy them have very optimistic expectations.

They seem to hold their value well - you might do OK to sell it on ebay and buy something larger (or build your own)

[DanB]

One more comment -

You've done something like this -  I dont know what blades you tried but...

The Air X needs to run really fast to make power (it cuts in around 400 rpm).  The blades that come with it are well matched to the alternator.  All these 'modifications' that people are selling with larger and or wider blades seem rather insane to me.  Much like the origional machine - nice marketing but not very sensible!  Wider/larger blades turn more slowly so when they're mated to the Air X (or the 403) it will actually take even higher winds to make any power at all.  It amazes me the stuff I see people selling for wind power sometimes - lots of really questionable stuff out there.

[Flux]

I agree with Dan, it is basically a high wind speed machine.

If you must try to modify it, you need blades that will start in low wind against the iron loss drag. The required blades will run slower and you will need to rewind the alternator to cut in about half the original speed. Try doubling the turns with half csa wire ( drop 3 wire sizes).

Probably you would do better to carve some decent wooden blades or use 6 of the offered larger replacement blades( you need higher solidity).

Normally I would never suggest this as it will have no means of preventing self destruction in high winds but you don't have any wind so that shouldn't be a problem.

You will reduce the maximum output drastically but you may still manage 50W and you should make it do something in lower winds.

I still tend to agree with Dan that it would be better to sell it and start with something more suitable to a low wind area.

Flux

[ZooT]

Are the eagle blades like the hornet blades?

[Rover]

Yep, they are longer slightly faster versions

Unfortunately I can't go much higher than 20 ft due to restrictions. With the low use that I needed I probably should have gone with an ampair 100.

[Rover]

by faster I meant faster reacting...

[wayne]

There was a guy at TLG selling new blades for these things, I don't know if they work but they claim they do. Why after all these years they sell this and most folks never happy. Should be a wake up call!!

Wayne

[Mary B]

I have a 5 foot set of TLG blades. They are narrow and very fast so it might be an option. They are a bit noisy but once I get them on the tower with a better alternator (just have a small Ametek on them) the noise will be tolerable. They are currently on a test tower on my upper deck.

[kenputer]

Like most things they have a place,if you have them set up in a place that you don't get to often and have no use for extra power when you are not there,then the

air-x can be the right turbine for you with the buid in regulator that prevents over charging your batteries. As for the blades the ones that come with it are well suited for the air-x.

Kenputer

[Rover]

Actually tried an experiment by cutting down the hornet blades to 22 inches (about the same as the stock air x blades), using the hornet hub with 3 originals and 3  modified hornet blades I managed to get the unit to cut in (for the first time), and repeatedly.

Since it reached RPM with the combo of  mofified blades (eagel/hornet) I wonder if it would do better with 6 OEM blades?

Using a 3 blade set up of either the modified or OEM never got cut in RPM at roughly 10 - 15 mph winds at 20 ft sea level (rough air)

The only down side I see to the Eagle/Hornet 6 steel blade hub is its weight (roughly 7 inch diameter steel), quite heavier than the OEM 3 blade cast aluminum. I wondering if a lighter hub with 6 blades at 22 inches (OEM style) might work better as well.

Scott

[snowcrow]

Hi Rover, I am also a disappointed owner of a 12v Air-X!! The inverted and short tail, along with a high tip speed ratio, makes for a very unstable machine!! My Air-X would alway spin around after getting up to speed, the tail becomes wind staved and can't keep it pointed into the wind. I finally tied some streamers to the tail, just long enough as to not get them caught in the blades. It seems to work a lot better now, I hit 350 watts once, in a storm. I still need to fly it higher, in cleaner air.

Maybe a few streamers and a little taller tower will help, it worked for me!!

Blessings, Bill

[Flipper]

I modified the hub to accept six blades vs. three.  I changed to longer blades and observed the same slower overall operation as others have addressed.  I added a 3x12 inch sheet metal fin over the tail to increase stability with the longer blades.  I have also changed the stator from 12 volt to 48 volt (a $117 part).  The increased windings (3x) help with lower RPM operation.