Examples of equipment and tools designed and built by BodgerJohn

(Click on images for larger pictures – click browser ‘go back’ icon to return to this page).

A bicycle powered generator designed and built for Transition Town Poole as a renewable energy demonstration. The equipment, which is designed to pack flat for easy transportation, uses a ‘rolling road’ principle to drive a permanent magnet motor from an electric scooter as a generator to charge a 12v car battery.

An inkle loom, used for hand weaving long narrow items such as belts and straps.

Two custom built sets of pole-lathe beds and poppets. The right hand example includes tool rests and packing pieces.

An apple press built for the Holton Lee centre. Apples are first crushed using a tool called a ‘scratter’, before being wrapped in a set of muslin cloths. These packages are called ‘cheeses‘. The cheeses are then placed between a stack of press plates and a hydraulic car jack is used to apply pressure to squeeze out the juice into a stainless steel tray. From here it pours into a suitable container. Ideally, the pressure would be applied via a large wooden screw and nut. However, manufacture of this arrangement would have exceeded the available budget.

A broadfork made for the Friends of Turners Nursery. A broadfork is a multi-tined fork used to aerate and break up topsoil in long furrows, acting like a primitive plough, but causing far less damage and negative impact on the soil. Although a common implement in some parts of the world, e.g. Australia, they are not readily available in this country. This means they either have to be imported or manufactured locally.

A rustic stool, made from spalted Ash.

A portable charcoal/coal forge for metalworking, made from a recycled propane cylinder. Air is blown through the forge by a bilge blower powered by a 12v car battery.