THE 100% FREE CLASS For you utility company addicts with power hogging appliances this is affectionately known as the first step in... "The 12 step program to energy independence." ...and here's 10 more helpful links for do-it-yourselfers. Buy the CD and you are automatically licensed to Copy and Resell it or use as a PROMO Item! STEP 1: Admit you have a problem and don't want to throw money down the drain anymore on electricity generated by power plants that are polluting our environment. Today, a happy, joyous and liberating day, you are going to try a free class and see if you like working with wood. This class is the first step for you to learn how to unplug from the grid for $1000.00. This class is very easy, it is free and anyone can do it. If you don't want to buy a CD or make a more professional airfoil with twist and balance, and just want to make a prop that actually does fly with zero twist, here ya go: Take a 4 foot plank of gorgeous, clear, no knots, cheap and strong vertical grain douglas fir 1 x 4 or a finished 3/4 x 3 1/2 (about)-the tighter the grain, the better. Do not use expensive hardwood for this down-and-dirty airfoil - silly student. No longer than 4 feet unless you know how to add twist and do a good job on balancing (or plan on killing somebody today). Make a large, unbalanced prop and give it to your Boss for Christmas...now that's an idea! Find the exact center to within 1/32nd of an inch and drill it with a 1/2 inch bit. (see left sidebar below for lots of free images for this class) Set your table saw for 4 to 7 degrees. Lower means a faster quieter airfoil, higher means more torque and lower start up speed, but noisier. Cut each end from the tip to center, stop 4 to 6 inches from center. Belt sand flat. Flip the airfoil over and using a belt sander, carve away the material so it is rounded similar to the image below. Notice the vertical grain doug fir - no knots, no warp, good stock. The other classes explain how to get that, but you wanted fast and free...away we go... (click here to order) Sand with 36 then 100 grit and get her so she balances on a pencil eraser on center...hard to put a pencil in that half inch hole, so tape a quarter over it and balance on that. When balanced, you're done sanding. Slap some house paint on it. WARNING/DANGER: PAINT THE TIPS BRIGHT RED or the high speed turbine jet engine blade designer who comes to our shop now and then will be really mad at you! All our novice Hands On Students do this to honor her. Put it on an ametek gen ($35-ebay) and arbor (Chicago tools) and mount with tail (eBay - or with our class for less than $20-see photo) and 12 foot water pipe with guy wires and POOF! You are making electricty for 30-60 minutes of work. WARNING! DANGER! Make sure the battery is connected (motor spins) with a red and black wire/clamp to the ametek motor before putting the prop on. Then disconnect it and put the red wind gen clamp on ground with the black wind gen clamp together on ground.Be ready to connect red to positive once your wind gen pole is up and secure. It will start to spin - as in 1-3 seconds go crazy if you have wind. WOW! Two people makes this all a lot easier. If you do this on a light wind day and you make sure the motor spins before mounting the hub and flying the blade, and if for any reason you want it to stop, just put the wind gen positive clamp on the battery ground with the wind gen battery ground clamp: a very easy and fast brake. See photo on left sidebar below and do not skip this step or you may regret it if your motor or wiring are bad and it can't stop. Get this all ready (see image on left side bar below) before letting her loose and we strongly suggest you folks wear welding leather, steel toe boots and motorcycle head gear or get far far away and fly this on a very light 3-10 mph day until you are sure your rig is balanced, works and doesn't fly apart and kill your child (or you)...it really isn't hard to make if you take your time, but no point flying an untested airfoil in 15-20 knots of wind unless you are suicidal like the idiots in our shop who fly all kinds of crude props...and wear all that gear when they do. This airfoil is crude, no twist means noisy and if it was larger it would probably vibrate, fly apart and kill somebody, it doesn't really fly nicely (compared to a good airfoil...come on...), but it will make power for minimal labor and zero cash out of pocket for this fast, free, it really does work...class...in fact it works like a charm. Now look at the gorgeous airfoil on the right, with rocket science twist, tips (depending on application and region), made to within .25mm (1/100th) of an inch and you begin to appreciate how much loving care we put in our airfoils and can teach you how to make the most beautiful airfoil on planet Earth, also known by everyone who sees one spinning to be"the quietest airfoil too...." There are more free classes and info (below) and even free wind gens (above), but that is the fastest way to get a blade right now, for zero instructional costs, minimal sci-fi lingo about dynamics, chords, twist and glossy finish and for kids with a dad and a table saw, she is a blast to make and fly. You can either buy the CD and RESELL IT OVER AND OVER ON EBAY OR IN YOUR LOCAL NEWSPAPER and make 5 - 10 times your money or give it away free to schools and youth centers or teach them to use it as a FUND RAISING TOOL Want the entire full class free? Ask Terry who runs www.windgensuperstore.com for a copy; usually free with any generator purchase from their website. The following PAID classes are hosted by eduhosting.org and are much more detailed, from blade twist to tip refinement, CDs, videos and complete mounts and stop, start, reverse, automatic load dump circuits that are cheap and easy to make with zero soldering, mounts for towers, sailboats, RV, home and cabin installations even desulfators (all covered in the Novice class), to caliper work, angles of attack and balancing with bubble levels, fine glossy finishes and larger gens (all covered in the Master's Class) to making airfoils faster with special jigs that insure accurate balance etc., also Master's level topics. The proceeds go to the Free PCs for Kids program - since 1983! Click the CD to receive the complete circuit, mount (for homes, sailboats, cabins, RVs and more), airfoil carving class on CD: packed with info, diagrams and publications such as Jack Park's Wind Generator Book, Popular Mechanic's Articles, and access to the online class, videos and more! Click here and save $10.00 - you get the blade carving and wind generator construction online classes. You can download the same courses, books and video as the CD contains. Click this CD to receive the complete blade carving class on CD AND a wooden blade template with all lines drawn to get you started, along with all the other classes mentioned above. Want a LARGE rough cut airfoil with a class to help you get up and flying faster? Click this CD to receive the WindGenZen Masters Class with a rough cut mohogany airfoil (you sand and finish). The Master's Class give students access to all of the classes at the website and goes into more depth on creating a well balanced airfoil, critical for airfoils over 6 feet, as well as caliper work, a bubble level/angle finder for matching angle of attack and obtaining the gorgeous finish we spent years developing for our airfoils - famous around the world as the most beautiful airfoil on Planet Earth. This class includes access to all other classes and when finished, also makes you eligible to participate in our woodshop program. We send paying customers to you once we have verified that in fact, your product meets our high standards. This class is for folks who want a very nice airfoil and don't want to spend time at the 4 and 5 foot level achieving the skills required to make large wind gen blades. Don't want to make a prop from scratch? These two classes include the rough cut mohogany 7, similar to the long image on the far right. Click this CD to receive the WindGenZen Masters Class above, plus a 1500 watt generator to connect to your airfoil. If you have visited the chat rooms and forums and heard the chit-chat among wind generator manufacturers and solar PV installers they all know about these classes and the WindGenZen method of getting a good solid wind generator online for 1/20th the price of solar panels. These last two classes ar the ticket for people who do not want to spend much or carve a raw prop, but are willing to simply sand and finish the rough cut airfoil with our guidance...it is soooo easy. You get the Master's Class and access to all the other classes, so you can always make more gorgeous airfoils if you want to expand your system later.

Learn to carve these gorgeous airfoils!

If you want to get your advice from the folks at Home Power.... They sell expensive solar panel ads and that may mislead readers by discouraging home-built garage engineering of wind farms. Their Senior Editor's primary mission seems to make his advertiser's happy, rather than provide useful tips for do-it-yourselfer wind gen folks. Go visit them by clicking their logo above. The WindGenZen CD and online classes not only help you save a tens of thousands of dollars, that revenue also helps pay for the non-profit Free PCs for Kids Program (since 1983). When we asked him for a non-profit link at his site, they initially refused: check their links section to see if that was straightened out (some of them are actually pretty nice folks). When we offered to give them the blade carving classes free for his readers, they refused: the offer is still good. Ask them for our blade carving CD - free - with a subscription to their magazine etc. When we asked for a link to this free class, they refused; see if that has changed. We sometimes wonder if editorial staff at such magazines really have your best interest at heart. Home Power Magazine and many other renewable energy mags sell expensive solar ads and wind generator systems average people can't afford; a great place to visit if you have money to burn. We suggest you organize a woodshop class at a local school or youth center and contact us and we will be happy to send you a free CD for your class.

Here is a free article to get you started:

So You Want To Build A Wind Generator? Mick Sagrillo There seems to be a renewed interest in wind energy. The last few years have brought increasing numbers of inquiries by do-it-yourselfers about the availability of plans for building wind generators. Whenever anyone asks about building a machine, my usual advice is to buy a new one. Too expensive for a limited budget? Then buy a used unit and rebuild it. Whoa! Mick! Easy teacher! Folks can do this cheap if they build it themselves! Our advice here at http://windgenzen.com and eduhosting.org is to learn the basics, start small and cheap so you understand how everything works before spending thousands of dollars, and then let your system grow and save money on the blade and gen so you have more to spend on batteries and invertors! We will show you how! Hands On NASA Airfoil Blade Carving Generator, Mount and Circuit Class Three part series over 2-3 days. First part includes online class covering 2nd and 3rd parts (mounts and circuits) for students unable to complete these labs live WANT TO SKIP THE COURSE? WANT THE CD, VIDEO AND ONLINE CLASS FOR $24.95? Some folks can't make it to a hands on class, so for them we have provided the ONLINE CLASS and the downloadable CD class and Video all-in-one, complete with step-by-step instructions, including: Tons of diagrams Line drawings with step-by-step hand holding for carving blades How to carve blades to the lines with just a few tools How to select wood, generators, build a desulfator How to put up a mount or tower - cheap How to build simple or complex circuits for controlling your wind generator A complete video showing you exactly how to carve a blade (avi format) PLUS a download copy of Jack Park's Simplified Wind Power Systems for Experimenters This classic collector lays out all the ground rules and takes you through every aspect of building your own rig from scratch - a must have for any wind gen student! More...more...more... There is already nearly a GIG of information here, but in case that isn't enough, we are always adding more diagrams and instructions for our students and once you buy the online class or CD, or enroll in a course, all upgrades are free, free, free! For those folks who can't make it, here's the online class for you. You can even download the CD version and make your own CD or play the video on your PC. Note: The video is an .AVI file for Windows/2000/ME/XP or fully compatible Macs. Have you already paid for the Online Class? Hands On Class Location: San Francisco (part one site varies from Half Moon Bay/Coastside to wood shops downtown) (part two and three sites are all Half Moon Bay/Princeton area). Schedule: varies depending on class sizes/enrollment and San Francisco weather (class is outside at a woodshop/yard, plus locations at our S.F. shop). Generally hands on labs are held each Saturday as well as during the week; we try to coordinate everyone's schedule and students can drop in for sections they miss. Full classes can almost always accomodate drop-ins who are RETURNING students they have already been through the class and simply want a refresher (free to drop in anytime after graduating for more tips and questions-we love grading blades!). Please plan on at least a 2-3 week delay after enrollment for a firm class date, giving you time to purchase the materials suggested for the class (a plank of wood if you want a specific grain, otherwise whatever is in stock at the lumber yard visit, tools etc.). You can select any scheduled weekend class AFTER that date to suit your schedule. Materials: plank(s) of wood, depending on the blade size you wish to make. 4-7 foot blades are a single plank forming a 2 blade prop, 1 plank forms the diameter of the blade and cost $5-$20.00 total in wood; 3 blades/blanks supplied with tuition. Blade stock is available locally near lab and we show you how to shop. 9am-10am breakfast at airport held before class, followed by a trip to lumber yard. Shop opens at noon for class. Blades 7 foot and longer are 3 blade props, one plank for each blade forming the RADIUS; again, $5-$20 per blade or $15-$60 for a 3 blade prop. Plus a hub; stainless hubs run up to $100.00 and less expensive wood and steel hubs can be made for under $25.00. Tools: this depends on how you want to carve your blade-with or without power. We teach both classes in the same lab. Some folks want an 'organic' blade, made with no fossil fuel. Some folks want to plug in and get chopping! Organic method: a draw knife (about 12-15 inches wide, german made) OR hand planer, but the draw knife works faster, a shureform (large, planer style cheesegrater about 12 inches long with a flat cheesegrater style blade), a large 12-18 inch course/rasp/bastard file (not required, but saves time) and a rubber/soft sanding block (for curves) and an optional hard/firm block (for flats) with 36 grit, 100 grit and 220 grit sandpaper (at least 3 sheets each). Power method: a power planer, a belt sander with a 30-60 grit belt or a large disk grinder (course pad) and a finish sander/orbital/buzzzzing style sander, plus 36 grit, 100 grit and 220 grit sandpaper (at least 3 sheets each). COURSE BREAKDOWN: First Part - $150.00: Live, personal, hands on shop. Students finish with a wind generator blade set from 100 watts to 10kw. Instruction in a step by step class teaches you everything you need to build a wind generator AS CHEAP AS POSSIBLE! Students learn-and-do: wood selection. Tuition buys each student 3 blade stocks. aerodynamics of three industry awarded, high speed powerband standards: NASA, NACA and Wortman airfoils and how to add 'features' to your shape. blade template line layout. carving to the lines to insure an accurate airfoil. shaping for local wind conditions based on the powerband you selected. sanding and balancing. finishing for durability and appearance. Sign up for all three classes and we'll upgrade your blade stock free to mohogany (central/south american hardwood varieties) blade stock-gorgeous, or you can upgrade at the lumber yard and select any premium wood and pay the difference. Also includes online classes covering 2nd and 3rd parts (mounts and circuits) for students unable to complete these labs with live instruction. First Part Tuition: $150.00 plus materials you select based on size of blade you wish to build. Optional: add $75.00 and class includes a generator. Class starts with breakfast, followed by a trip to the wood store (local lumber yard) for folks who didn't bring a plank, followed by 4 hours of shop time. We suggest you buy a cheap 4 foot blade for your first carve ($5.00), rush through the process to get a feel for it all, and then spend a bit more time on the 2nd blade (may be premium wood/expensive if you so choose). This way you are somewhat accustomed to the process and can turn out a very nice blade the 2nd time around with less flaws. After 4 hours students leave with a finished blade ready to be coated. Drop in students who want assistance with the coating phase can come back on another class day free of charge. Second Part - $50.00: Students learn how to select and locate a generator to match your blade from new and surplus suppliers CHEAP!. Build a mount and mast/pole with under $50.00 in materials, set up on a city roof, cabin, RV or sailboat and test your blade and generator with a simple control circuit. This class is more chalkboard and examples (live) than hands on since you will be erecting a tower at your site. There is a sample tower and several gens students can play with to see how it all fits together. Third Part - $50.00: Shows students how to enhance your control circuit to incorporate wind switches, diodes, over charge sensors, desulfators, electric brakes and invertor selection with under $50.00 in materials. (more complex circuits such as desulfators are more expensive to build). This lab is split with chalkboard and then we assemble and test various circuits on a live wind generator so students get hands-on experience wiring it altogether. Students who wish to return and 'drop in' later with a bag of parts can do so free of charge. Buy the ONLINE CD CLASS or enroll in any WindGen Course and receive a download copy of Jack Park's Classic - all 80 plus pages! We disagree with Mike when he says 'folks shouldn't try to make their own wind generators.' Our lab and classes have successful students around the world. However, Mike's article suggests several good sources for information and is reprinted here below: