mechanical pedal ideas

[OracleGlassArts]

Id like to build either a mechanical pedal or mechanical roller pedal. i dont see any reason why i couldnt just have a set of valves secured on the floor, that you roll your foot across to turn instead of using you hand. i was thinking of using needle valves (like the ones that come on a torch) or gate valves (like for your garden hose(which are rated to 125psi and are all brass i believe))


you think it could work?

any ideas/improvements are needed

has anyone ever done anything like this, either roller or on/off? i found this: http://www.talkglass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=15025&highlight=mechanical+pedal

but the pics are gone so its no help, and i dont think galaxie is on here anymore

thanks in advance!

[ALIEN!]

been wanting to build a mechanical one myself. Anyone got details on what valves are needed? Some good close up pics of valves w/numbers on a top hat or other mechanical would be great.

[somewhere]

If flow doesn't matter a gas saver mounted upside down with a return spring. Simple pedal with a string to the gas saver hook. Unfortunately the valves on gas savers just aren't that big but it will work.

[RedToroBoro]

I'm not sure where it is, but there is a thread where a guy made one using Nortel valves and roller blade wheels to use with his feet. Do a search for pedals and it is in one of the three build it yourself pedal threads

[OracleGlassArts]

http://www.talkglass.com/forum/showthread.php?p=257674&highlight=roller+blade#post257674

pedals came up with like 1000 "hows this pedal" threads, so i searched roller blade and found it. that was exactly what i was looking for RedToroBoro, rep'd

[gn0me]

I was thinking about trying these:

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/INGERSOLLRANDARO-Limit-Valve-2F895?Pid=search

But they're 1/8 inch. The CFM rating is 7.5 (not sure what pressure from, guessing 80 psi as the numbers come out right), and with a thorough cleaning it should probably be able to handle oxygen (as long as seals were teflon, will have to inspect)... just no idea if the CFM would be that high with regular gas pressures, especially propane. If the Cv is a constant, it should flow 17.94 l/m of propane (at 10 psi), but it's hard to say without actually trying. For oxygen at 35psi it should handle 77.9 L/m which should be fine for most torches. Also worrying is the pressure range of 30-150 psi.... might need a separate reg for the centerfire (and possibly after the valve) if the propane needs to be 30.


I guess the only way to find out would be to try. I may have to look into it. Will let you know my results if so :)

[Headdi Retti's Glass Art Studio]

gn0me, your always on it Brotha, always figuring shit out and you have helped me so much, as a diy man myself, I always appreciate your posts man they are info packed and well researched. Still working on my oxy system but you have been a great help....Thx Brotha!.....Repped....

[gn0me]

I'm happy to serve :)

Soon I'll post a step-by-step on how to compress oxy with a Gast pump, $30 tank from Harbor freight, and two concentrators. Still gotta get some plumbing, though. At the moment I'm just happy to have replaced the compressor from Home Depot.

And if I can figure out a way to rip the alarm out of the Invacare concentrator I have, the gods will be praised heavily. Probably with drinking.

[FredLight]

Loco has a mechanical pedal, maybe she'll chime in here.

I tried it and it works just fine, no lag and no electrical mess.

[Headdi Retti's Glass Art Studio]

Chime in Loco!

[OracleGlassArts]

still like the roller blade wheel one, because its so cheap and effective

where do i get some valves though?

[gn0me]

I think LTD has some nice needle valves that would work in that application.

[RedToroBoro]

The guy in the vid used Nortel valves. Give Jean a call at Nortel and tell her you need some. She is awesome. 1-416-438-3325

[Headdi Retti's Glass Art Studio]

Nice Red, Thx these are mechanical Correct!.

[RedToroBoro]

Headi, Yes the ones used in the roller blade vid. He mentions what he used. How are you Brother? Has your hand cramped typing on your Droid yet? lol Wish you were closer dude.

[Headdi Retti's Glass Art Studio]

Yeah Brotha, fingers have recovered for now. And yeah Bro closer, That would be Ku!. Do you live in some Cold Ass area? Iam still Alittle overwhelmed tryin to piece my studio together. I did manage to get all of my duct work for
both collecter and insulated fan box complete yesterday. Also made a stand for outdoor box. Just got to run flex and that's done. Fukn Yay!. Now I got to pick up some ass a tone (heh heh) some BB's and figure out away to shake the shit outta this 40 gallon gast tank its built like Bulldozer and heavy as fuk!.

I think Iam gonna use this big Oak tree and some ropes and pulleys, get that bitch airborne then go full on bezerker! On that pig!. Heh hehh hee!

Pause now please for a word from my sponsors And I will return right after a Safety Break meeting ! Thank you, Thank you very much!

[mindblowingglass]

The granger ones look pimp. I've been working on the same idea on and off for years now. The only problem I see with the granger ones is the seals. If there not prop/oxy rated either (or both) could eat the seals away and cause leakage which could turn into a big problem. As well as the flow , depending on how big your outerfire is.

[OracleGlassArts]

The guy in the vid used Nortel valves. Give Jean a call at Nortel and tell her you need some. She is awesome. 1-416-438-3325


video? did i miss something? i only found pictures

ill try nortel, but im expecting mucho $$$ for theyre valves....any harbor freight solutions? lol seriously though if valves are gonna be 30 each i might as well build one with solenoids

[RedToroBoro]

No dude my bad it was pics.lol. Iv'e looked at and watched so many DIY pedal threads.

[OracleGlassArts]

way to go red

so i realized that using this setup id only be able to control 1 torch, seeing as i have a redmax, itd be nice to be able to roll the top torch on and off as well, or at least cut it on and off.

whats the easiest way to do a mechanical on off?

i was thinking since ball valves have no seals (theyre all metal to metal seals rather) i could either just kick the lever on and off, or weld a second lever 90* from the original to make it easier to kick it open. the only thing left to do is figure out some sort of linkage between the prop and oxy ball valves.

also i found 1 valve in my garage! i wish i could find another valve for cheap

[gn0me]

Ball valves should have teflon seals to be gas-tight, I'm pretty sure.

You could probably take the lever off of one of them and weld the two control rods together, mounting the valves directly across from each other. Then you'd have a DPST ball valve :D

[OracleGlassArts]

well either way i think they're safe with gases because ive seen them used in homes for the natural gas. ball valves are also usually rated to 150+ psi.

gn0me you lost me on your linkage, wouldn't one valve be opposite of the other if you orient them with the tops of the rods facing each other like you're saying? otherwise that would be the easiest.

im gonna try to mount them inline with each other. ill weld rods on the end of each lever, connect those with another rod that has eyelet ends, and toss a foot sized plate with some grip tape on it.

i think ill be able to slide it forward and backward well enough to have adjustment of flame size, and then i can dial it in on the torch if i need to....but then again it seems like high oxy is the way to go with most things so it may be nice to keep the ratio the same and just change size

[loco]

Loco has a mechanical pedal, maybe she'll chime in here.

I tried it and it works just fine, no lag and no electrical mess.

Yo Fred come on over and play anytime you like! I have a "mechanical pedal" by Dan Grumbling, LOVE it and would really like to find another one, unfortunately he's no longer making them!

But it's not what TheGanjaKru is looking for. Mine is an on/off for the outer ring on my mirage.

I seem to recall that Carlisle made something similar to what the op is wanting. Hell I think is was Carlisle, but it's not on their site. What I DO recall is that is was an angled platform with a roller that spanned the entire width which was maybe 6 to 10 inches wide.

GanjiKru, I'd love to see what you come up with! If I never had to adjust my torch with my hands again that would be a wonderful thang!

[gn0me]

gn0me you lost me on your linkage, wouldn't one valve be opposite of the other if you orient them with the tops of the rods facing each other like you're saying? otherwise that would be the easiest.


Indeed, the valves would be opposite each other - as long as the ball can spin all the way around when the handle is off, you could use this setup:

Usually the casing has a couple notches to limit the ball's movement to 90 degrees, and often it's the handle that makes contact with the notches, so when you take the handle off, the ball can spin in either direction, 360 degrees.

So if you take one valve, take the handle off, and then weld the rod to the rod of another ball valve, with a handle still attached, that handle still restricts the motion to 90 degrees, but the handle-less valve can open by turning the opposite direction of what it normally would, and you have two valves that open at once.

You'd have to make sure both valves were all the way open and lined up when you welded them together, unless you wanted to make an oxy bypass version, where the oxy valve opens slightly sooner than the propane one. You could emulate this by having one of the valves slightly tilted when you mount it. It would be advisable to mount the casings to a block or something else solid because of this.

Hell, this sounds like a great idea! I'ma make one as soon as I can find someone to weld the valves together for me (or maybe I'll just use some JB weld instead :D)

Grandmaster tinkerer!

[ALIEN!]

I'd almost bet my ass these would work. They are listed as having Buna seals, but most manufacturers will make them with viton or something O2 compatible, even oxy clean out of the box if you request it.

http://www1.mscdirect.com/eCommerce/NavigationServlet/Valves/Pressure-Flow-Control-Valves/Self-Closing-Control-Valves/_/N-75f9b?cm_re=Category-_-BodyLink-_-Self-Closing+Control+Valves

Mount these bad boys on a wood or steel frame, make a custom lever so it works with a foot lever, really wouldn't be nothin to making one if you've got the proper tools for a little fabrication. Just keep in mind you would have to have some sort of latch to lock and release the pedal down though if you don't want a momentary pedal (I wouldn't want one a momentary one)

[FizZle]

...momentary is sweet than you dont have to try lookin at the ground to find ur pedal to turn off ur outer when you got hot glass...just pick up ur foot...imo

[OracleGlassArts]

i get it now gnome...i dont think i would have thought of that myself, and its so simple. you could also use a threaded coupling, i think JB weld would be too brittle though. you can always make a ghetto welder with a car battery and some jumper cables lol.

alien and fizzle are blowing my budget away! im trying to do this for less than $50 guys! but momentary does sound nice for the bottom flame at least

[OracleGlassArts]

also after thinking about making a manifold (so i could us the valves from my y splitter), i realized that i don't ever use the valves for the hoses to my redmax, they're always left open (i turn my hand torch lines off when im not using it)

So as long as i can plumb it to be a straight shot, I can eliminate those extra valves and ill be good to go on the roller attempt....ive also only got 100lbs of oxy for over the weekend so ill actually put some time in on this project (probably)

first i just gotta attach a new stem i made already to a bub i threw my phone at (first really nice sherlock bub fresh out the kiln of course)

[OracleGlassArts]

i did some googling on teflon and found that its ozone safe, which im fairly sure makes it oxygen safe....learn: http://www.lenntech.com/teflon.htm

so then i found these valves with teflon seals
http://www.antonline.com/p_M88CF58-GP_485237.htm?sID=GP

does anyone know what materiel most ball valves use? i dont see why teflon wouldnt be common, but im just not finding many that even specify the materials used at all.

[OracleGlassArts]

got 2 ball valves and one needle valve, but the cold makes me move slow so i haven't done much else besides clean one for oxygen and strip em down....i gotta get a lock nut and maybe some jb weld because the shafts are brass with steel bolts for the handle

[Headdi Retti's Glass Art Studio]

Oh I can't hardly wait, but i promised not to say anything!.....but this is about to get Awesome in so many way's!... A Preemptive Whoooooot!..Exciting!..... ;)

[gn0me]

A starting point (http://www.talkglass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=37245) ;)

[Headdi Retti's Glass Art Studio]

Yes indeed! Bro Iam excited!..:)

[Trey Cornette]

The thing I don't like about all the mechanical foot pedals I have seen is that the valves are so far away from the torch, on the floor with several feet of line to the torch, that even after shut off it takes quite a while for the gas pressure to drop in the line and you end up with slowly dying outer flame that heavily reduces any work in the flame. With electric I can mount the valves right under the bench with only about 18 inches of gas line and get a very quick shutdown.

[LTD]

^^this^^ is very true! I do like the ingenuity in his build though!

[gn0me]

^^^^ Since the oxy turns on first/off last I don't have any troubles with reducing flames or diedown time.... it's practically instantaneous. Maybe I'll post a video soon :D Also there's only about 24in of hose to the valves as they are ;)

The real problem right now is that I need to make a retention spot for the oxy bypass function.... it works great as on/off now but the oxy bypass can be a little more troublesome to find since it's just a nudge up of the lever from the off position.