Gargoyle Whirligig or Weathervane

Gargoyle Whirligig or Weathervane

This is a concept idea and not intended as a pattern or plan. It has not been tested and may not work as suggested and further modifications may be required to make it work. The concept is to create a whirligig or weathervane with a gargoyle chasing or playing with a metal sphere.  Do not use metal disc for the propeller as they may fly off in high winds becoming a hazard. Instead we recommend using metallic paint on wood. Do not for get to angle the propeller blades so they catch the wind. If the propeller does not catch enough wind, a different design may have to be used such as mounting the gargoyle and propeller above the horizontal pivot.

(Note) the difference between a whirligig and a weathervane is that a weathervane only shows the direction of the wind, whereas a whirligig has moving parts powered by a propeller,or may also consist of just a propeller.

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Goldfish Whirligig

This is a concept idea and not intended to be a pattern. The design is not done to scale and has not been tested.  There are a number of ways this concept could be used and the number of fish is only limited to how long or how much space you have on the whirligig. The concept is intended to show how a wire crank shaft might be used. The propeller may have to be scaled up in order to get enough power to turn the crank and the propeller it’s self could be designed with goldfish at the ends of the propellers blades. Be sure to use washers and nut on crank shaft to keep shaft in place as it turns.

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Cloud rainbow sign with whirligig umbrella - sign is optional

This is a cloud rainbow whirligig umbrella that can be used as a business sign or address sign. The whirligig part of this is unusual in that it is a hanging whirligig. You must make sure to mount the fan blades of the umbrella at an angle for it to work properly. As with many of my other designs, this is a concept design and has not been tested or prototyped as of yet. The design is set up so that you can scale it to whatever size you need. Keep in mind that if you make the whirligig too large it may not work mechanically. The eye screws may have to be mounted differently than shown to offset the weight of the umbrella and rainbow. The left eye screw should probably be on the rainbow above the umbrella. You may also want to scale the umbrella down in size.
    It should also be noted that the umbrella by its self is a whirligig and can be used alone without the cloud and rainbow.

Top View Dragonfly

Top View Dragonfly

This is a public domain free to use dragonfly pattern created by Nevada crafter.com 

    This is a basic design that could be used or adapted to just about any project. From woodworking to 3-D pen's this simple design could be turned into anything from a whirligig to a simple stained-glass ornament,

or even a wire framed pendant.

    Basic designs like this are a good starting point and can be added onto with other designs or used simply by itself. 

Whale whirligig / weathervane

Whale whirligig / weathervane

This original design was conceived for use with the wood from fruit and vegetable crates that grocery stores discard, but due to the use of pesticides and other chemicals that may have been used on the wood I no longer use this wood source. The Woodstock that I use is 1/2" or 5/8 " and can be scaled to what ever size you need. 

    For the water spout I give you 3 options, although I used the copper wire the most as it was more cost-effective. 

    [Note] The difference between a whirligig and a weathervane is that a whirligig usually has a mechanical or electrical action to it, whereas a weathervane is usually just a figurine that tells the direction of the wind. A weathervane will also usually position the pivot post so that the figure( animal, person, object) is moving in the direction of the wind and not in the opposite direction. If you wish to use this as a weathervane simply move the pivot post back so that the whale will pivot as if he is traveling in the direction of the wind.

This is a simple basic design that can be modified numerous ways but it was made simple so as to increase profits and to allow me to compete with other crafters. The design can be spray-painted with one or two colors and not a lot of detail and still look good. 

    The fiber-optic version is a recent concept that I have not had a chance to fully work out. So if you attempt to create it please keep in mind that you may have to experiment with it in order to get it to work right. This version also increases the cost of materials which you may not be able to recoup even though all of materials for the lighted water spout can be found at dollar stores. The LED light is cannibalized solar yard light and the fiberoptics is cannibalized from a battery operated light.

    Still, it is a good project to challenge your skills at whatever level you happen to be at. The whales design was originally cut from a single piece of wood with a coping saw, which was a lot of work to just cut out the tail and very imprecise. At the time a coping saw is all I had, but when I later invested in a scroll saw I found it to be a worthwhile investment. A scroll saw makes quick work of it in less than a couple minutes.

Dragonfly weathervane

Dragonfly weathervane concept design

This is an untested design, so adjustments and alterations may be required. It is a basic design that could be altered so that a propeller could be added if you wanted to turn it into a whirligig. The pivot pin has been mounted as far forward as possible so that the dragonfly is always flying into the wind. It may be necessary to move the pivot pin slightly back for added strength depending on average wind speeds. Here in Nevada wind speeds can gust upwards of 60 miles an hour or more and may require that the wings be mounted more flat or even a downward slant to prevent dragonfly from being blown off the pivot post.

Although this design is presented for entertainment purposes it could quite easily be used as a pattern to create the actual weathervane.

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Solar lighted Lantern fish whirligig

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presents

Flower kaleidoscope

The concept behind this design is to give a kaleidoscope effect. Each of the flower propellers rotate in opposite direction. If two drastically opposite colors are used such as black and white or yellow and blue, the effect is enhanced. The design of the propellers could also be applied to other designs in different combinations. Also keep in mind that this is not a pattern, it is a design concept. This way the design does not restrict you to a rigid pattern that can only be used for the one design.

Be sure and check out our website www.nevadacrafter.com here you will find links to our other blogs, YouTube videos and other posts. We hope that this post is informative and inspires you to create your own designs. Happy crafting from the Nevada Crafter.

Back and forth motion for whirligigs, steampunk and other mechanical devices

This is a mechanical gear assembly that could be used in a whirligig or other device to give you a back-and-forth motion. As the bottom gear turns it reaches a point where there are no teeth, which allows the upper gear to slip back momentarily as a result of the spring pulling it back in place. Please keep in mind that this is a conceptual idea, not a pattern and it has not been tested. It is presented here for entertainment and conceptual idea purposes only.

This is similar to a electromechanical device I found in old slot machines, back before computers. Although in the slot machine it was used to activate an electrical switch, much like a person pushing a button. The mechanics of this gear assembly could be used in numerous ways, such as simulating a person pushing a button, oars on a rowboat, or any other application that requires a back-and-forth or repeat motion. It is important to note that this assembly may have to be constructed out of a heavy-duty material (such as plastic or metal ) depending on how much wear and tear the device would go through. Make sure that the upper gear has room on the slider to move back and forth and that on the lower gear that the teeth are positioned properly. This setup will take some trial and error in order to figure out the best position for the lower gear. The spring on the upper gear should be of light weight and may also require testing of different lengths and strengths. If the spring is too heavy a propeller on a whirligig would not be able to turn the gear. As I stated before this is a conceptual idea and in theory it should work, but as with any new idea it is going to take a great deal of trial and error to figure out what works.

Note: this configuration could also be used vertically for the up-and-down motion of butterfly wings.

Fairy Silhouette

Fairy Silhouette

This is a www.nevadacrafter.com pattern. All copyrights reserved to Nevadacrafter.com this pattern is not for reprint or publication without the express permission of Nevadacrafter.com. Nevadacrafter gives free limited permissions to crafters and hobbyists to use this pattern for limited production of 200 silhouettes only for their personal use. This design is not for commercial mass production without negotiating royalties with Nevadacrafter.com

    This design may also be adapted to other projects such as whirligigs and weathervane's. Future posts will demonstrate how this silhouette may be used with whirligigs and whether veins. This is a basic PNG pattern fairy silhouette that can be enlarged to whatever size needed. It can be used as stand alone as yard ornament by attaching wire stakes or it can be enlarged and used as wall ornament.

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Blue Heron Silhouette

Blue Heron Silhouette

Limited use pattern for personal use only. Reprinting or publishing this pattern is prohibited. Mass production in excess of 200 without Nevadacrafters permission is prohibited. Nevadacrafter.com reserves all rights and copyrights to this pattern.  

The silhouette can be used as a stand-alone yard ornament or incorporated into a whirligig or weathervane. Please feel free to leave constructive comments or suggestions. We will try to reply within a reasonable time.

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Tap dancing whirligig

Tapping shoes whirligig

Note: tapping shoes whirligig is presented as a concept idea. It has not been done to scale nor has it been tested. Nevada crafter.com does not guarantee that this concept will work and is presented here only for entertainment purposes. Nevada crafter also retains all copyrights and does not allow the reprint publication of this document for the purpose of resale. The whirligig may be used for personal and smallbatch production only. Corporate mass production is not allowed. 

 The alternating cams lift the shoes one at a time and then drops them. The bottle caps on the bottom of the tip of the shoe rattle each time the shoe is dropped making a tap dancing sound. It may be necessary to place a metal bracket under the bottle caps in order to prevent damage  to wood and to add to the sound effect.The shoes are hinged at the back with a small drawer hinge. A small metal bell can be optionally attached for additional sound. The style of the shoe could also be changed to give it a man's shoe opposite a woman's shoe to give it more of an appearance of a couple dancing.The tail fin and propeller are presented only as examples and could be customized to fit the theme as well. As I do not know how noisy this whirligig may be, it may work better as a scarecrow in the garden than a yard ornament.

 The idea for this whirligig came from the love my mother had for tap dancing. As she could not get me to take lessons I hope that this whirligig idea will please her and so I dedicate this post to her.

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Butterfly wall mount

Butterfly wall mount

The wings are cut out separate from the body and the design can be either painted or cut out. The body is cut out and the eyes are made from wood beads mounted on dowels which are then attached to the body. a slot is cut in the side of the body for mounting the wings. 

please remember these patterns are copyrighted and the patterns themselves cannot be reproduced for sale.Production of the butterfly is limited to hobbyists and is not to be used for mass production. quantities over 100 require you  to purchase a production license.

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