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by Balsa Man
February 11th, 2018, 6:03 pm
Forum: Towers B/C
Topic: Remembering Len Joeris (Balsa Man)
Replies: 32
Views: 16558

Remembering Len Joeris (Balsa Man)

On February 8th, Len Joeris passed away. He was involved in a one-car accident and died at the hospital shortly afterwards. This post is written by his two children, Jean and Ben. We wanted to inform you, this community which was so important to Len, and to remember his life and contributions. Scien...
by Balsa Man
February 8th, 2018, 8:50 am
Forum: Towers B/C
Topic: Towers B/C
Replies: 524
Views: 134806

Re: Towers B/C

Thanks everyone for the input! That’s very cool and kinda funny at the same time. If I actually do this method of baking a tower, how many silica gel packets do I put inside the box? As many as you can get your hands on And be aware it needs to dried out (to remove water it has absorbed https://sci...
by Balsa Man
February 7th, 2018, 4:31 am
Forum: Towers B/C
Topic: Towers B/C
Replies: 524
Views: 134806

Re: Towers B/C

I’ve read about baking a tower on past discussions. I couldn’t find the percentage, but how much percent would baking the tower decrease from? Baking a tower can decrease the weight of a tower from 1-10%, depending on how brave you are, and how much your tower weighs at the beginning. However, once...
by Balsa Man
February 7th, 2018, 4:10 am
Forum: Towers B/C
Topic: 1/20 vs. 1/32 bracing
Replies: 16
Views: 3814

Re: 1/20 vs. 1/32 bracing

Thanks for the help. I understand now what you are talking about . . . . I can 3D print those. I assume you don't make one to go down the entire length of the jig right? Just at the ends, top and maybe in the middle? Excellent; thanks. As I'd mentioned, we print them at 5cm long, and we print them ...
by Balsa Man
February 4th, 2018, 3:52 pm
Forum: Towers B/C
Topic: 1/20 vs. 1/32 bracing
Replies: 16
Views: 3814

Re: 1/20 vs. 1/32 bracing

I am thinking I am going to try creating a jig like you mentioned in an earlier post. Do you have a picture of your edge piece that holds the legs at a 45 degree angle? The one that you glue on the edge of the tower jig? I can't seem to wrap my head around that. I don’t have a pic that really shows...
by Balsa Man
February 4th, 2018, 1:27 pm
Forum: Towers B/C
Topic: Towers B/C
Replies: 524
Views: 134806

Re: Towers B/C

Not sure if this has been asked already, but is there any benefit to adding a single horizontal brace on each side where the base meets the chimney? This has been asked and answered a number of times. The tops of the base segments are pushing in toward each other with a force of a bit over 2kg (wit...
by Balsa Man
February 4th, 2018, 8:52 am
Forum: Towers B/C
Topic: 1/20 vs. 1/32 bracing
Replies: 16
Views: 3814

Re: 1/20 vs. 1/32 bracing

I question whether my kids can get the bonus and still keep the weight that low. Are there any design differences in going for the bonus aside from simply making the base wider? No, just need to bring the base leg ends out a little. So base legs will be very slightly longer, and the force on them g...
by Balsa Man
February 4th, 2018, 6:55 am
Forum: Towers B/C
Topic: 1/20 vs. 1/32 bracing
Replies: 16
Views: 3814

Re: 1/20 vs. 1/32 bracing

Ours was a B tower, no bonus. 1/8 legs and 1/32 bracing. X bracing, 5 X's on the base and 5 on the top. The kids have been getting anywhere from low 6 to low 7 gram towers holding 10 to 11 kilograms. Decent score, but it probably won't win our region. They haven't been using the tension pieces alon...
by Balsa Man
February 4th, 2018, 6:14 am
Forum: Towers B/C
Topic: Towers B/C
Replies: 524
Views: 134806

Re: Towers B/C

Anyone know if the chimney is under compression or tension or both. Just stop and think about what's going on..... This is really basic. Load block is sitting on top of the chimney; bucket is pulling down on the load block, so the force created is pushing down on the top of the tower - compressing ...
by Balsa Man
February 4th, 2018, 5:18 am
Forum: Towers B/C
Topic: Tower with Arches
Replies: 3
Views: 1508

Re: Tower with Arches

I was thinking that maybe I could base my tower design off of a alternating series of arches, with the base just being 4 big arches. I've already got a method of creating the arches so that's not a concern. I guess I really want to know if it would be structurally sound, because that's really my on...

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