Vintage Windmill and Wind Generator Forum

What’s your all’s take on how big of A completely assembled windmill can be pulled up using a cable over a gin pole. I’ve got a 12’ that will be on a 3 post tower I plan to put up within the next year just seeing if I’d need to rent a skytrac or if it’s doable with our tractors and cables.

Tower height is probable a big variable. I’d imagine back in the day they installed the majority of windmills (large and small) with a gin pole, mules and or tractor power.

I have quite a few windmill visitors that stop in at my place that tell me horror stories of how they either raised or lowered a windmill with tractor front end loaders and the end result was a crumpled mess. Why would anyone spend so much time with rebuilding a windmill and money spent and then try to raise it with a front end loader? Farmers are the worst. Yup. I'll just do it with my big John Deere front end loader.

if I have to set the motor with a lift might as well set the tower with it also. Just wasn’t sure about raising it as one. I used to hang iron for a living so it’s not as if I don’t know how to get the tower up just wanting some advice on one pick or 2

Ouch, Ross, since you farm you probably have one of those big green loaders...

That mill does not have a good history of being hinged. I got it after the guy that dropped it was too disgusted to fix it. This is what the tower looked like that I didnt bring back. He probably still has it.
I set 12s and 14s complete but DONT hinge. Hinging puts a lot lateral stress on a tower which they werent designed for. We did hinge big mills on the Rez but it was very critical how vertical the boom was on how light the front end of the truck got. Those towers were either drill stem or pipe so they had more lateral strength also.

Give me a holler when you get close on that mill rehab and would set for you

Ron Stauffer
Montrose CO

Thanks for the input. Sounds like I’m going to be better off getting a lift to pick it instead up using the tractor. I kinda thought this was the route I’d have to go. The towers gonna end up being a little heavier then before also all’s I could come up with is 3x3x3/16” angle that stub was all outta 1/8” material.

I would agree with the no hinges on larger mills, but don't have much experience with those. I have let down 30 ft w/ 8 ft mills, but would not want to go much larger than that. I can say that 20 ft towers w/ 6 ft mills on hinges are a breeze.

The common standardized 3 leg towers used corner angle that was for the next size larger mill in 4 leg. Meaning 8' 3 leg was 2.5 angle, 10' 3 leg was 3 angle, etc.

Ross that trussed tripod tower was not the normal upsized for a 3 leg as it was 3 x 1/8 angle, I think. Maybe because it was a trussed tripod 3 leg? There was something atypical about it I I have not seen enough 3 leg towers under large mills to see a pattern. I think that is the only trussed tripod tower I have ever seen for a 12.

So if you build a common standardized 3 leg style tower of 3 x 3/16 angle, that should be right for a 12'

Ron

Kind of high-jacking your post, but my first windmill was a 8 x 45' Aermotor that came from the neighbor across the road from where I grew up. I was told my grandfather stood it up with a team of horses.

Gregg

Raising it with a tractor or a boat winch is easily doable. There are a few videos on YouTube showing people doing it. The trick/secret is actually the restraint cable/rope on the opposite side of the pull. You also need to brace the legs if there are no side rails at the bottom so they don't collapse when all the side load is on them (at about 45 degrees of tilt).

The best advise I can give you is to make a scale drawing on a large sheet of paper. You need to know the head-end weight and 1/2 the tower weight (the combined weight of the top end). Then you need to have LONG beams joined at one end and ends splayed out for stability that won't buckle and 2 LONG ropes/cables: 1 to pull with and 1 to restrain the last 10 degrees or so of tilt. From the scale drawing, you can use the geometry of your rig to figure the rope lengths required, the pulling force needed (I recommend using reverse gear so you can watch the lift and its usually a very low speed gearing), rear weight box on the tractor to prevent skidding and a trusted person on the restraint line (fastened to the front of a car or truck.

The length of the lift beam is a factor in the pull force while the initial side view angle of the beam is too. But, its a good science project !

Sure the Skytrak or crane is a wonderful thing, but somebody needs to go up there to detach the hook, positioning it so you get the boom in the right position when raised, and a possible lift weight limit, adds some unanticipated complexity. I use a trailerable JLG boom lift with a jib crane arm to get the tower up and fastened, pick up the mill with fan and tail attached, and then put the bucket back on to complete the installation, pose for pictures and maybe play aerial fireman to see how far out a stream I can achieve when draining my lizard !