Sick job Alan.
I guess the perforated tube could be different style or size. it might work with wood too?
cool how you ve got that glass island held in there so sturdy.Is there any movement while engaging/disengaging the gong from a glass piece?
really nice job!.I love seeing your tech wizardry.
Thanks. There is not much movement of the glass piece. It is so light in weight that there is very little stress on the connection. It can be tightened back up if something does happen to dislodge it. I haven't dropped it yet, but should protect the glass pretty well.
Great video Jeppy. Thanks for posting. I need to get me one of those Ions some day. So smooth.
PDwasmy1st - The link may contain an extra period. You may just have to copy/paste or type it in.
I have made another change to the HI design. I just can't quit designing. The need for the right angle adapter and cutting the hex slot has always bothered me in addition to being a pain in the ass to make. The traditional electrical connections in the base is always a good option, but I wanted to still have access for cleaning and heating element replacement like with the thread in design. Turns out that the protective silicone rings that I make for the TT aromatherapy cups work perfectly to securely hold a wooden cap into the base hole to close off the bottom. I can use contrasting color woods for bottom cap. The power socket is now in the traditional location on the side.
I did some more thinking about the core outer tube. It has been traditionally used to hold the core firmly into the wood and support the center tube, but the core outer tube can also cause some issues. If all the moisture is not completely removed from the wood before inserting the core / outer tube, the wood can shrink from the heat driving off all the moisture. The outer tube will prevent the wood from shrinking at it can crack. The outer tube is also what conducts the heat out to the wood which can cause degradation over time.
I decided to just eliminate the core outer tube. I lengthened the center tube so that the heat can't travel as far down to the hexagon shaped support plate which is the same perforated aluminum plate as the GTV. The plate is connected to the center tube and screwed down to the wood at the bottom of the hole so there is no chance the core can get loose. I measured the aluminum plate temperature at around 200F. The air inlet is farther up from the bottom so that the air no longer travels to the bottom of the core and does not pass over the aluminum support plate. The length of the air path has not changed. The center tube is now the core.
Since there is no core outer tube to transfer the heat to the wood, it stays much cooler. There is no heat to the bottom cap at all. There is still radiant heat transfer from the center tube, but it is at a much slower rate than conduction. I can now use exotic woods with no worries of cracking or the wood getting too hot since it is so dense.
Here is one with the new design I just made from Ebony and Pink Ivory. The top hole in the wood is now 1" to keep the center tube a bit farther from the wood. The outside diameter is still 1.5". The height is right at 4" now. So many wood combinations are possible. I can now use pretty much any piece of wood. Maybe a glass body HI someday if I can find the right glass shop.