what do you guys do with the cable?
been playing with it for the last hour, cant tape it to the slinky hose as then the slinky doesnt compact.
do you twist it round the slinky hose?
had a look through the archives found a pic of the clark system but it doesnt show where the cable goes
thanks
paul
thanks
and do you have 2 weights? one to pull the hose and one for the cord?
and do you have this running with the pulley on an overhead line
:o)
When you say cable are you referring to the power cord? I used some small velcro bands to attach the cord to the slinky hose, found them at the local hardware store.
yeah the power cord,
but then the slinky will not recoil?
The bands were attached tightly to the cord but loosely to the hose, hard to explain but the bands have holes in one end of them that allow them to be pulled tight on the cord, then wrapped loose enough on the hose so it can still stretch.
[img_assist|nid=1043206|title=velcro ties|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=85]
I use the little neoprene/velcro bands that come on fly line spools. I used to use two, one upper and one closer to the planer; but now I’m just using one about halfway. I would never twist the cord around the hose. That defeats the function of the slinky hose. Getting the adjustment on the velcro just right is important. You want it to let the cord slide through easily, but the band needs to stay in place on the hose. Once you get the weight correct on the other side of the pulleys (trial and error, personal preference) the one-umbilical works soooo good…
The weight is only on the power cable. I’m using the Clark system where the slinky hose runs up to an overhead drop, and the power runs along the vac plumbing through two pulleys. You need a little weight to tension the power cable through those pulleys. I use lead fishing weights taped to the cord. I think I’m using 3 ounces, but I’d have to unwrap tape to be sure.
My self-made rig is two clothesline pulleys hung on hooks on the ceiling, independent of the vac system. The counterweight I used was a sacrifical zinc anode available at most marine supply stores. It’s basically a zinc ball split in half with two bolts that keep it together. I wrapped a little bit of tape around the cord to size it to the anode. Makes a pretty good counterweight, looks kind of like this one, just with a smaller opening where the cord goes:
think i have it sorted with an old hammer for the counter weight, takes a bit of getting used too!
though popped out a 9’8 with it and it seemed nice and with a lot more range without having to move the blank forwards and backwards.
thanks everyone.
I don’t know how much your hammer weighs but that might be a little more weight than required. You want just enough weight to keep slight tension, not so much that you can feel it pull. That’s why I used fishing weights so I could add/subtract in one ounce (28g) increments. You could attach a small container and use sand/ballbearings/ whatever to get even finer adjustment.