Anyone with an interest in DIY and a little bit of enthusiasm for engineering will probably jump at the chance to find out how to make a mini conveyor belt, right? We’ll luckily for you, I happen to think these things are really cool, so I’ve spent the last couple of days finding out exactly how they work. Now I’ve done that, and managed to build one for myself, I feel confident enough to share my method and hopefully show you how to do the same. For the most part, this one’s pretty simple, so don’t get unduly concerned just yet, this mini conveyor belt can be made with things you might have knocking around at home already – and if not, the items you’ll require are cheap to buy.
The Basic Instructions:
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Locate a skateboard (it doesn’t really matter about quality, so long as it’s not broken) and using duct tape, stick a 9-volt motor to the underside, just in front of the wheel, so it runs parallel to the axle.
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Get hold of an elastic band and stretch it, so the loop fits around the wheel and down to the axle. This will be used as your driver belt. Just don’t tighten it too much – this will be your driver belt.
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Find your duct tape again, cut a strip and make a loop so that the sticky side faces outwards. Place this around both wheels on the same end of the skateboard, so that moving the tape encourages the wheels to follow suit. If the movement is too loose, just add more tape and tighten it up. Likewise, if the movement is too stiff, you might need to cut the tape and start again, this time being more careful to avoid tightening the duct so aggressively.
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Now find some lollipop sticks and cut them so they’re the same width as the duct tape. Once this is done you can lay them on top of the tape side by side, you might also want to spin the wheels slightly and cover the entire tape, as this will create a boardwalk-style belt.
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As we’re nearly finished, now all that’s left to do is to plug the wires from your motor to opposite ends of a 9v battery. Sometimes you might find the conveyor doesn’t quite move at an idea speed, so to adjust this, all you need to do is add more layers of duct tape or take some away. Alternatively, if you use two motors (one at each end), this can give the belt more power, but just be careful that you install them both so they operate in the same direction.
Hopefully, if you’ve managed to follow my instructions exactly, you should now have a working mini conveyor that can be used to transport small plates, or even the TV remote. Obviously it’s not going to be as impressive or functional as those provided by reputable manufacturer fastraxcc.com, but it’s pretty cool none the less. Now all you need to do is get some bigger wheels, and you can try it with the ironing board!
See you next time!
