In 1991 I designed and helped build a 4 ft. dia. overshot waterwheel which
is used to power a stampmill for making paper pulp primarily from rags.
The shrouds are wood and the buckets are metal.  The wheel is in fine shape
and continutes to operate well.

This summer I began designing another stampmill.  The new one will have an
8-12 ft. dia. overshot wheel and the buckets will be made of western red
cedar.

One reason for going to wooden buckets is make a more accurate model of a
medieval papermill.  Another reason is to compare rates of wear by water on
wood and metal.

The main reason I chose metal buckets for the first wheel was convenience
and strength.  The buckets were formed at a metal working shop to my
pattern.  These buckets had lips with holes punched in them through which
stainless steel screws were put to fasten them to the shrouds, or sides of
the wheel.  Since the wheel is only 16 inches wide it was not necessary to
provide any additional support for the buckets.

The new wheel will have 24 inch wide wooden buckets of 1.0 inch-thick
cedar, and I have no plans, at present, to provide additional support for
the buckets.

The shaft of the 1991 mill runs in lubricated pillow blocks (ball
bearings); the shaft on the new mill will run in wooden blocks, made of
either elm or lignum vitae.

I've produced a short (10 min.) videotape about the construction of the
mill and it is available for $14.95 + $3.00 P&H.

Hope this helps.

Jack

>Date:    Wed, 26 Nov 1997 21:02:09 GMT
>From:    William Maurer <[log in to unmask]>

>The wooden water wheel on the mill at our historic site has disappeared
>over the years.  We want to replace it.  Advice we are getting is to
>forget about restoring the wheel as wood but to replace it with metal.
>Any experience with wood vs. metal?
>Pro and Con.  Replace or Restore.
>Thanks,
>Bill Maurer
>Director
>Gomez Mill House

Jack C. Thompson
Thompson Conservation Lab.
7549 N. Fenwick
Portland, OR  97217

503/735-3942 (voice/fax)

www.teleport.com/~tcl         The lyf so short; the craft so long to lerne
                               Chaucer, _The Parlement of Foules_  1386 AD