Mc Tools berley mincer
Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: Saltwater Fishing
Forum Name: The Briny Bar
Forum Description: The place for general chat on saltwater fishing!
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=140153
Printed Date: 09 Sep 2026 at 11:52pm
Topic: Mc Tools berley mincer
Posted By: Mc Tool
Subject: Mc Tools berley mincer
Date Posted: 17 Jul 2026 at 12:23pm
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Ok ....things are moving , so far I have ordered a pulley off aliexpress ,a 1" bore x 69mm dia b section double pulley to match the pulley on the mincer ...which is 300mm in dia . Also ordered off amazon a two foot length 1" dia carbon steel rod with a ¼" key way . The rest of the drive I have scrounged up and is a pair of 1" pillow block bearing mounts( needs new bearings ) a 320mm dia double pulley ( ancient bi-lock sorta thing ). I have a water blaster ( donated by Eddie 🙂) chassis to mount motor and mincer to . Pix below   The shaft in the image is about 2" to short 🤬 but the one on order has the key way so that solves two problems ( 150 bucks on my doorstep ). Now just gotta get some angle and start making mounts and brackets . More to come 😁 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Replies:
Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 17 Jul 2026 at 8:10pm
| You’ll be able to start selling the stuff, |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 17 Jul 2026 at 8:37pm
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Well I did think maybe I could mince berley for any locals wanting to process their frames etc ...but I gotta see just how well this thing works 1st . The plan is to over engineer my part a bit but the mincer itself is an unknown at this point .😁 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 17 Jul 2026 at 9:34pm
| Looks like an awesome project, amazing what you can buy from aliexpress |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 18 Jul 2026 at 3:42pm
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Nice. I need a berley mincer. I'll watch this ------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: slayliner
Date Posted: 19 Jul 2026 at 9:40am
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Posted By: slayliner
Date Posted: 19 Jul 2026 at 9:43am
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Heres my mincer , I bought it like this , a trademe special .Its a little bit slow but does the job. No. 32 mincer a bigger one would be better
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Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 19 Jul 2026 at 11:18am
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I did have one I got off a mate. It was a beast but too heavy to move easily and when the dodgy welding on the handle broke it stayed where it laid and the elemnets took over.
------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 20 Jul 2026 at 5:43pm
Got some self aligning bearings , mounted the motor and (power)wire brushed the big pulley .   Unbelievable just how muchs hit you get covered in with the wire brush 😆 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: krow
Date Posted: 20 Jul 2026 at 7:20pm
Nice. I think that might be just enough power 
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Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 20 Jul 2026 at 7:47pm
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😁 why thank you Krow 😆😆 The guy I bought the mincer off reckoned it would take 9hp to drive it . Tbh I couldnt get a lot of sense outa the guy but after thinkin about what he was saying I think he was trying to power the thing without a decent reduction gearing and thusly needed a 9hp motor that had enough torque to turn the mincer at pretty much idle speed . I have calculated that with my reduction set up of ...primary ( pulley diameters ) of 52mm to 315mm for 6.051:1...and secondary 73mm to 285mm for 3.9:1 I will end up with Motor speed of 2750 rpm and mincer speed of 116rpm . Im hoping to be able to run motor at 2500rpm (or even slower )for about 100rpm mincer speed . Google advises mincer should be run at between 80 to 150 rpm but they are talking mincing meat and they are saying that too higher speed will smear any fat and spoil mince BUT (😁) im mincing fish and other crap and my only real concern is that I dont want said crap being flung all over the place ...so... she'll be right . Oh , by the way , pix have been edited somewhat ....yeah I removed all the empty beer bottles 😁 .....tell ya what , that Ukrainian (Obilon ) beer is good stuff ...knockin on 10% in a 500ml can for 5 bucks a shot . ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: slayliner
Date Posted: 21 Jul 2026 at 8:43am
| Pretty sure my mincer does 22 rpm |
Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 21 Jul 2026 at 4:40pm
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From AI search for what it’s worth Operating Speeds for Burley MincersWhen processing tough bait, fish frames, and burley ingredients, a slow speed is highly beneficial for several reasons: High Torque: Prevents the auger from binding when processing bones, cartilage, and scales. Efficient Feeding: Allows the auger to grab and pull chunks into the blades rather than mashing the soft material.Recommended Speeds: Manual cranking: ~40–80 RPM, depending on your pace and how much leverage your handle gives you.Motorized setups: 60–160 RPM. This is the sweet spot to let the blades cut continuously without burning out the motor. Speeds to avoid: Avoid using standard drill speeds or high-speed blenders (1,000+ RPM) for heavy-duty burley frames, as they cause friction and can instantly overheat or strip the gears. |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 21 Jul 2026 at 6:34pm
 ------------- "Times up" |
Kandrew wrote:Posted By: krow
Date Posted: 21 Jul 2026 at 7:16pm
| Mate uses a chipper and it does a good job. messy but quick and easy except the cleanup. Just need to only use frozen. |
Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 21 Jul 2026 at 8:00pm
| When I use to make berley I started off with a mincer but it was just too hard so I brought a garbage disposer hooked it up and run the hose through at the same time the fish was being pushed through, was better but a cheap chipper would be even better. |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2026 at 5:40pm
Got the idler shaft and motor mounted , and sprayed a bit of paint about. Waddaya reckon guys ...do I need an idler pulley to get a bit more belt contact round that little pulley . Im going to use ax section belts for that primary reduction .   Made a wonderfull job of planning out the motor position ...marked the holes ,drilled them ...and then noticed I had 🤬ed it up and drilled the holes in the wrong place ...TWICE ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: krow
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2026 at 7:30pm
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Google says ....................................... |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2026 at 8:13pm
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Yeah Krow Im with you , I was hoping someone would say " nah mate she'll be right " . I haven't got a lot of room for an idler pulley , those two are as far apart as I can get them so I hoping the ax belts ( with the notches on the inside ) will be bendy enough to handle the jandal and last a while . Just thinkin about fitting a cover to the pulley / belt set up and removal thereof for access to belts. Im thinkin the idler pulley will be a couple of bearings probly about 35mm ish dia so I can get about 180⁰ of contact on the small pulley , problem is that I just dont know ...so I guess it "suck it and see " . At the worst Im up for wasting a couple of belts if I have to go for the idler alfter finding out I do need it . Being such a pioneer sux 😂😂. ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: rusty360
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2026 at 9:22pm
| If it slips you could try a heavy duty lawn mower type belt, they have a raw edge so drive a lot better. Or a super 2 belt. |
Posted By: Kandrew
Date Posted: 22 Jul 2026 at 10:29pm
| Not enough surface contact I would make sure the belt is the correct thickness to make as much contact as possible with the walls of the pulley. |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2026 at 6:23am
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As long as you have the right belt cross section for the pulleys I would give it a go. Technically it may not be correct but if they are B section belts (and there') two of them I think you will get away with it. Don't try to compensate for slip by over tightening the belts. That will wreck the mincer or the motor main bearings. She'll be right! ------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2026 at 8:18am
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The primary reduction pulleys are A section and the secondary are B . Not planned that way , neighbour gave me the big primary pulley which has a 1" bore, and the mincer came with a B section ....so I was sorta guided by all that . The new pillow block self aligning bearings were 80 bucks all up and new bearings for the old (not self aligning ) bearing housings were going to be 70 bucks so that didnt take much thinking about .🙂  ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: BotStomper
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2026 at 2:31pm
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I have a similar setup. Having a bit of slip available is quite a good thing because it means if the mincer jams on a big hunk of bone like an Albacore backbone it will just slip the belt rather than damaging anything. My second version is going to have an idler mounted on a lever so I can bump it to temporarily give it more grip on the small pulley if it's struggling with something, while still having a sorta fail-safe.
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Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2026 at 5:43pm
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Yeah coz we catch Albacore all the time here in Riverton aye 🙄, 😆😆. But I do understand your thinking ...if I could have laid my hands on a centrifugal clutch with double pulley I would have grabbed it but ........ ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: krow
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2026 at 7:34pm
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"centrifugal clutch with double pulley" My ride-on has one of those but I kinda need it Maybe put the word out to the local mower shop.
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Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2026 at 7:48pm
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Like Smudge says - you have double pulleys - so in theory half the optimum contact should work. And there is always 'Belt grip' . Check that out. You may not have albies - but I am sure someone will post you few to try.  This is turning out epic. Just an idler wheel on a lever may suffice - if needed. What I learnt over the yrs with this sort of project - don't over- think it before it gets out the box. Run the bare bones and work it from there. Half the stuff you may be trying to compensate for may not happen. Refine it as needed. The Mk 3 will be perfect. What else have you got to do in a Sthland winter?? A video on startup would be good. Matt Watson stuff. Alan
------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 23 Jul 2026 at 8:11pm
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Yep ,I sussing how to post a vid . I have a small freezer full of fishy leftovers ...been collecting it for a couple of years now . Looked at ride on mowers clutches but they were all bigger than my 20mm crankshaft , and all to big in diameter . This motor has peak torque of 9.1nm at 2500rpm so Im thinking if I multiply that by 23.6 ( total reduction ) is 214nm ....which is about how hard youd have to twist my arm to get me to drink a Doh bro (🤮)..... Or Waikato (🤮🤮) 😆😆 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: krow
Date Posted: 24 Jul 2026 at 7:55pm
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That's going to take a bit of stopping. This is going to be epic. I too enjoying the progress. What are you plans with pushing feeder material into the top. Hand winding a bit of dowel does the job and I've made it of a size that won't easily fit into the worm. I'm thinking you may need something similar.
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Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 24 Jul 2026 at 8:22pm
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Had a day off from it today ,had 6m³ firewood that needed to be put in the shed . Im kinda hoping that this thing will accept stuff just being dropped into it , that was the point I had in mind when I went for the biggest one I could find....but if it transpires that I do need to encourage stuff into it I have a large dia table leg ....thinkin that its big enough dia to sit on top of the auger and not get dragged into the guts of the mincer....either that or something it can chew up if it does get dragged in ...like my hand 😆😆, nah, some dude on a fishing boat down here lost a leg stomping stuff into a mincer on the boat a while ago ,and I remember thinkin 🤬k that, there'd be nothing quick about it . Back into it tomorrow 🙂 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 25 Jul 2026 at 6:26pm
Yeah, he has us on the edge of our seats. Pass the popcorn. Alan ------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 26 Jul 2026 at 1:07pm
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My concern (well it's not like it's my problem hehe) is the grip the A section belts will get on the B section pulley. It is the sides of the belt that do all the work. On the other hand, the small wrap around the drive pulley will probably be fine. As has been said, the belts slipping under high load isn't a bad thing. It's not like it's going to run 40+ hours a week like a production machine. Really looking forward to the end result. You had yesterday off McTool and the weather is **** - at least up here. You better have made some progress today!
------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 26 Jul 2026 at 1:48pm
I dunno where you got that😆but ...maybe its me being ambiguous ...but the primary drive is A section belts and pulleys , because I was given the big taper lock pulley which is A section so I got the matching A section small pulley in 20mm bore to suit the motor crankshaft . The driven pulley the mincer came with is B section so I have ordered a matching B section pulley from fruugo  (Yeah, Im really worried a child might swallow it ....ffs! ) It was the smallest they had . Yep ...just going down to shed now 😁 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 26 Jul 2026 at 6:09pm
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Ahhhhh so both will be B section belts? That will work! I doiubt the wrap on the driven pulley will be an issue ------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 26 Jul 2026 at 7:23pm
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NO ! ( Are you doing this on purpose ?😁) A for the primary reduction and B for the secondary ....both with the correct section pulleys .....oh I see ....the pulley in the image in the above post is the one yet to arrive ....not the one on the motor now 🙄 Progress as follows ...had to cut and shut the handle ....mostly with stability in mind as this thing is getting a bit top heavy         I fell into the old trap of assuming that the waterblaster chassis would be square and symmetrical......its not ....so anyone wanting to point out any irregularities .....just dont 😆😆😆. There will be some extra bracing/ bracketry added .🙂 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: BotStomper
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 10:43am
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This is making me want to re-engineer my dodgy one. And maybe upgrade to the #52 mincer. I put mine together very much as a prototype and then it just worked well enough that I never bothered to re-make it. I'd estimate it's done somewhere over a ton of berley and to be honest has been one of the single largest changes to how we fish. I have no hesitation about using 20kg+ of berley on a big day of fishing, but if I was buying it at petrol station/tackle store prices it would bankrupt me.
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Posted By: Phantom Menace
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 10:43am
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This threead is awesome. I've got the popcorn out and am following along. Do some videos when you fire it up and for the first run of berley.
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Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 10:59am
Oh Im going to vid the 1st run ....but you may not get to see it if it goes wrong 😆.......do you really put popcorn in your berley?......doesnt it just float away ? ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 3:13pm
Haha, good luck. I have used chicken pellets in berley, they work pretty well. a 20kg bag of general purpose animal feed pellets are pretty cheap. I'm sure they work well because they absorb the smells and flavours of the fish being used. ------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 3:22pm
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Most stockfood pellets have some sort of animal protein in them ...like meat, blood or bone meal . Even fish scales are good ....giving a visual hint that there might be bits of a sharks ( or other fish predator ) dinner in the water column . Todays efforts have been remedial coz the whole plot over balanced when I removed the big pulley and fell off the table to the floor bending and twisting both the base plate and the handle , and the muffler and air cleaner. 🤬 ......could have done without that 🙄...🙂🙂 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 4:57pm
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When you have this burley monster going, what are you planning to catch with it in the deep south? Great whites? Is it big enough to handle a Great White? You may need to upscale. Alan ------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 5:24pm
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Tbh we used bugger all berley down here ....or I dont , because mostly I catch Blue cod and they are not at all fussy about bait and greedy as hell ....pretty much if they are there you will catch them . They are a bit territorial and can be patchy but once you've found them .... Im getting a bit bored with them , Id really like to catch Trumpeter or gurnard , kahawai are good fun but I not that big a fan ....but then I have not tried smoking them yet . A decent smoke house is on the build list . I also want to smoke some meat ...maybe make some jerky ...I like "Jacks" that you can buy in the shop so I should have a go . Thinkin about buying one of the electric smoke generators , and Mitre 10 has a whole isle of different wood chips . There are some decent rocks (Pig Island ) that I want to get up current from and berley back to and either strayline or try some softbaits around them . Mostly I want to make berley to get rid of my freezer full of frames and be able to process any more frames instead of just chucking them in the bait freezer . Biggest issue I have is just getting on the water. Boat has been parked so long (again ) that I will have to un-mothball the motor ( paint a bit of engine assembly lube on the camshaft and followers, prime the oil pressure and fit a new cambelt ) before starting . 🙂🙂 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 6:22pm
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Yeah - once you find them, you can clean the blue cod out pretty easy. Smoked KY is def worth a shot. I make Jerky/biltong. But I don't smoke it. Never gave that a thought. Maybe next time. Keep up the good plans. Everyone needs a good plan on the go. Alan ------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 6:28pm
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Shows you how much I know ...I thought it was smoked dry 🙄😁. I would like to cold smoke chicken pieces . You used to be able to buy Tegal whole chooks but now only smoked Tegal breasts . Local butcher does them but not as good . ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 7:43pm
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Kahawai respond really well to top water burley. They are tasty as done in coconut cream or as sushi. Nice smoked and if bled and fresh as make a decent fried fish too especially the smaller ones. To top that off they are a great bait - at least up here. Catch your bait, don't buy it ------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 7:54pm
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Used to buy bait fish when we lived in Nelson ( thanks Big Blue ) circa 2001 to 2014 and now when I go to P&S I see the same fish frozen in the food fish section ....plus lots of other imported baity looking stuff . There are Mullet in some estuaries round here but it seems they are mostly caught in nets ...which puts me out . I know fresh is best but squid bait from shop is easy for cod but once I get some berley I will fish the Aparima estuary for KY coz they are def there ,and maybe squeeze in between the kids at the wharf and try sabiki's for some fresh baitfish ......or buy it off them 😁. ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 27 Jul 2026 at 8:28pm
------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: BotStomper
Date Posted: 28 Jul 2026 at 12:17pm
| Cold smoked chicken sounds like a great way to lose a bunch of weight real fast. I wouldn't cold smoke anything I wasn't prepared to eat raw. |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 28 Jul 2026 at 5:10pm
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When you have finished your Monster Mincer, you can make a Biltong Box. I have seen one. I just air dry my stuff in the shed - after a bit of pre-treatment. But I have seen a box - about 600x600x600 with 3-4 mesh type shelves, a light bulb (like a 75-100w incandescent I guess). I don't think these eco bulbs would work. And something like a computer fan. The biltong was ready next day from memory. Your winter is filling up fast. Alan ------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 28 Jul 2026 at 5:26pm
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Oh gawd ,sounds like yet another repurposed fridge cabinet on the horizon ,I have one for all my ammo , another upright freezer for conditioning home brew ,another upright freezer for actual brewing . The upright freezers are good coz they come with the fan and shelves ,add a budget t/stat and a old style defrost element ( yeah I used to fix domestic refrigeration and appliances )and you have a temperature controlled insulated cupboard .....food grade too 😁. ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 28 Jul 2026 at 6:31pm
------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 29 Jul 2026 at 9:36am
 Keyed shaft arrived .....check the size of the box 🙄😁 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 29 Jul 2026 at 1:34pm
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I can't believe how they ship stuff so cheaply. Try shipping that from the US and see what it costs. I buy a bit of fishing stuff out of the US - skirts and a few poppers etc. The cost of the shipping is invariably more than the cost of the items. Alan
------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 29 Jul 2026 at 3:52pm
Dont under estimate China, will be the new Japan very soon along with India,some the stuff coming out is top notch. Wanted a new petcock for my bike,ex Japan $150 + freight Usa $80 + frieght Aliexpress $39.49 free frieght. Here in 6 days
------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2026 at 8:50am
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Yeah but....... My 1 inch shaft is actually .988" so not 1 inch and as such very loose in bearings , so I goes to bearing shop and swap the 1" bearings for 25mm bearings ......but now the shaft no fit ...its a thou and a half to big 🤬🤬🤮. Shaft has a smooth finely dimpled finish ...looks like galve and as the bearings only need ¾" at each end Im going to emery tape the .0015" off . This also means the secondary drive pulley Im waiting for will also be to big ....unless it measured by the same 🤬🤯 that measured the shaft , ....I'll wait and see how it fits when it gets here 😁. But yeah ,I get a lot of stuff from China and this is probly the worst Ive had and it aint unsurmountable ......the issue is one of redress in that Im better off sucking it up than moaning about it . One thing I will say is to make real sure you check the actual size of the item ....I bought a kitchen whisk ...turned out to be 4" long and next to useless . Tother hand I bought every damn bit of a Tohatsu 18hp outboard ....pistons ,crankshaft assy with rods ,bearings and seal ,cylinder block ( waaaay cheaper than getting old one bored oversize ) coils rect/reg ,carb , steering pivot ,gearcase internals ,tiller bla bla bla . Ie crankshaft assy inc con rods and bearings 310 bucks , crankcase /cylinders 208 bucks ...on my doorstep . I think that a lot of factory branded stuff is made in China and re packaged with another zero on the price tag . Pissed about that shaft tho 🙄😁😁😁 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2026 at 9:30am
Ugh , it gets worse  Its a steel pulley ....failed because its liquid ?? I have asked for explanation ....this should be interesting .🤞 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: lawabidingpoacher
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2026 at 5:00pm
| 😁 Been their before |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2026 at 5:35pm
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Hehe, keep up the good work McTool ------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2026 at 6:41pm
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Sorted , filed the dimples off , rolling the shaft across the table as I rocked the (fine ) file over it and then finished it off with emery tape , and it only took ....probly 4-5 mins per end . Taper lock pulley didnt seem to mind smaller dia ....probly actually fits better . Now Im at the thinking about belt/pulley covers 🤔. A whole 1.2 x 2.4m sheet of 1.5mm thick steel is $138 + gst and Im sure I'll find a use for the rest . Just reflecting on the build so far ....more of a "just keep thinking of the next bit and making it and then sticking it on (damn I love my mig welder😁)(and my cut off wheel/grinder )" rather than actually designing anything ....I mean it def looks home made ,specially after it all fell off the table and bent bits , didnt bother straightening it to much so the handle is a bit skewiff 😆. ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2026 at 6:51pm
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"(damn I love my mig welder😁)(and my cut off wheel/grinder )" " Get a lathe - then you really won't know yourself. Solves so many awkward problems. Alan ------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 30 Jul 2026 at 6:58pm
Hang on I just get the Mrs's email addy for you ....you need to talk to her 😆😆😂. I have thought about it for decades but ...I have a friend with a whole frigging machine shop in his garage ....easier to just buy him Bourbon 😁and get the job done properly . Last time I touched a lathe was in basic engineering as a trainee in the Rnzaf in 1980 . ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 31 Jul 2026 at 1:15pm
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You could buy the missus one for Xmas. Alan ------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 31 Jul 2026 at 1:44pm
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Nah ...been there , got her a real nice shotgun for her birthday ....and got 2 cats for mine 😆. Honestly I have so much crap now ....like if I cark it 1st its going to be a real pita for her , Im actually trying to down size as we have no kids to pass the stuff onto . 🙂🙂 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 31 Jul 2026 at 2:57pm
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A lathe and milling machine are nice to have but due to lack of use son sold his gear and now we have space in the garage.Down to a welder,2 drill presses a bench grinder,polishing/buffer machine mounted a cut off saw. Any thing that requires turning/milling just as quick to tack down the Rd,we found a old boy in the area with all the gear,amazing what a bottle of gin does.He requested gin! A Uncle in Mt Albert had a beautiful lathe until he burnt the garage down,turning proper mag rims and they caught fire.
------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 31 Jul 2026 at 4:53pm
Oops! I look after a bunch of fitters/machinists & fabricaters as a job. Here's the good part! I am a sparkie by trade and can't weld or use a lathe. Up The Wahs!
------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 31 Jul 2026 at 5:41pm
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Im a registered EST and Im crap at woodwork ....although I gotta say the more power tools I amass the better I get Made a wood box outa my old fence 😁  ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 31 Jul 2026 at 6:01pm
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Nice work McTool, you're clearly a practical man. I'm really looking forward to the outcome ------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 31 Jul 2026 at 6:35pm
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We will be able to send our fish frames down there to get minced. Alan
------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Phantom Menace
Date Posted: 03 Aug 2026 at 11:17am
I like that idea.
(the courier companies might have a different opinion though ... ) |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 04 Aug 2026 at 11:19am
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He will need to check his letter box every day. Alan ------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 04 Aug 2026 at 11:52am
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Ha ha ....I bloody well will have to do a visual as we have a outfit across the road called "Fi**** " that processes salmon frames into fertilizer using some sort of bio-digester ....so there would be no point in waiting till my letter box stunk ....actually it aint that bad just every now and then we can smell it but when you can you can . Im trying to keep him sweet as he may swing me a few frames for berley .....Im the only one allowed to shoot ducks on their pond ....so its lookin good so far 😁😁. ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 04 Aug 2026 at 11:57am
Ah ok that got "moderated "out the factory really is called eff eye ess aich eye tea ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 04 Aug 2026 at 6:44pm
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Wow, steal their stuff McTool! Salmon would make the greatest berley. Oily as, tasty as, if I could afford to I would use farmed salmon as bait and berley. Anyone tried it as bait? Surely it would work. ------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 04 Aug 2026 at 7:09pm
------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 04 Aug 2026 at 7:22pm
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Smoke the wings. Stuff the bait. Alan
------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 04 Aug 2026 at 7:43pm
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Yeah , judging by the look of it as it drives past my house on the back of the truck ....in them 1000 litre pipe framed containers, with the top cut off ....so I can see it sloshin about , I wouldnt give it to the cat . I wouldnt be surprised if , upon closer inspection I didnt want to get within 50 feet of it myself , but I will check it out . Tbh Id feel a bit hypocritical as I have previously been leading the charge in complaints to environment Southland re the smell in the early days . I thought scoring the pond was cheeky  I mean check where the pond is ...top right corner .😁 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 05 Aug 2026 at 4:09am
------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: MB
Date Posted: 05 Aug 2026 at 10:45am
| Snapper (if that's what we're talking about) would eat an old t-shirt, so salmon and carp burley works. |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 08 Aug 2026 at 6:57pm
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My popcorn is running low. Alan
------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 08 Aug 2026 at 7:40pm
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Yeah yeah yeah , I got others hit to do 😁 Thursday drove 550kms to pick up a rangehood from Cromwell , get home and she says she didnt want that one , and I got a quad in bits that really starting to grot me coz its in the way of everything . Started a credit card dispute over the Fruugo pulley ....so Im stalled untill I get that sorted Haha ,the guy who sold the rangehood gave us 12 new huge grey tiles ...gotta be 18inches square , anyhow she's been going mental trying to figure where she ( I ) can put them .....and my penis fingered friend turned up with his boat and an impeller kit so there was that too , and both my cars need oil and filter change ....farr canal . But Im not giving up on the mincer 😁😁 , next is an idler pulley for the primary belts and some belt guards , I can do those without the secondary drive pulley 😁😁😁🤯 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 09 Aug 2026 at 7:50am
------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 09 Aug 2026 at 8:04am
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I'll just save the last of my popcorn for a while. Til You get PCJ's stuff sorted. By then the pulley dispute should be sorted. Jeez, 550k to get the wrong rangehood. That sucks. Bet you felt great when you got that news. Alan
------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 09 Aug 2026 at 8:20am
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The rangehood was on facebook market place ,brand new 1000 dollar job in some posh new house ....didnt fit and we got it for 150 bucks still in the box and Im going to have to recess it into the ceiling a bit ( I didnt tell her that till we got home with it ) but for the money its worth it .I think the guy threw in the tiles with a view to them being used as a splashback ....which just wont work in our house . PCJ ....a VT250 still in one piece is a rare beast now days 😁 Pix of some pond we stopped at just south of Alex .just off main road on Lye bow road .   Ate lunch and watched ducks diving down for food , cant be that deep , wondering if there are fish in there ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 09 Aug 2026 at 9:55am
------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 09 Aug 2026 at 11:57pm
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Wow, nice little bike
------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 10 Aug 2026 at 9:22am
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Yes it does look good . I got given an MVX250 as a resto project ....a ridable bike and I stupidly let myself get talked into selling it ....to be fair the guy did a real good job of it ....converted it to 120⁰ firing order ....whole different bike .......the bastard😆 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 10 Aug 2026 at 10:40am
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Nice concept back in the day but they had a problem. Was the 120 crank a success?
------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 10 Aug 2026 at 11:02am
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Yes the 120⁰ thing was how it should have been . The vee three idea was sound but the way that Honda did it defied logic . It was effectively a V twin ,the two outer pots fired together and the middle on 90⁰ off . All 3 crank pins in alignment and the middle pot piston and con rod were weighted to be the same as the outer two put together which gave it perfect primary ballance without the rocking couple of a 90⁰ V twin. By disassembling the crankshaft ( press it apart ) , fitting an outer cylinder rod and piston to the middle pot and pressing crank back together with the crank throws out of whack ( damn ,I cant remember what firing order he set ) but any how the hardest part was sorting the ignition and drilling some weight out of the middle crank ( full circle ) webs . ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Kevin.S
Date Posted: 10 Aug 2026 at 2:03pm
Reminds me of a guy I worked with in the 90's who tried to do something similar with his T120 Triumph. He cut the crank in half and reset it to the new angle he wanted. The engine ran much better and smoother but vibrated at high revs because he couldn't get the crankshaft dynamically balanced. I don't think he ever found anyone who could balance the new crank and eventually gave up on the idea.
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Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 10 Aug 2026 at 6:35pm
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That was a popular mod to quite a few parallel twins . Phil Irving ( great motorcycle engineer of Vincent fame ) reckoned the 285⁰ crank was optimum for the parallel twin but later peeps settled on the simpler 270⁰ being ¾ of a full 360⁰ . But you gotta realise that some parallel twins had a 180⁰ crank ( one piston up and tother down ) which gave better ballance but uneven firing order , and some had a 360⁰ crank which had both pistons rising together which were harder to ballance but gave an even firing order . Ducati are a 90⁰ V twin with good ballance but off beat firing ....Hoggly doggly's are 45⁰ and ...well .....ahem 😁 . The 270⁰ offset crank pins was the best of both parallel twins . Yamaha and Aprillia both use them now . If your a Ducati enthusiast you could say it was to emulate the Ducati sound ( it was ) whilst sticking with the parallel twin thus not infringing on copyright laws . I mean lets face it Ducati's are easily the best coolest motorbikes ever so its no wonder others want to imitate them .😆 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: smudge
Date Posted: 12 Aug 2026 at 5:47pm
As a long retired motorcycle enthusiast (15 yrs of competition -really Smudge? When were you ever competitive?) I am impressed with the motorcycle knowledge here. I think that McTools burley mincer is going to turn out just fine ------------- Best gurnard fisherman in my street |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 12 Aug 2026 at 7:48pm
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Yeah , it will but I have had a couple of set backs , Ive been skunked on the Fruugo pulley ...no sign of it , no reply to multiple messages to their help line , bank are ( predictably ) being a pack of arseholes re reversing the credit card payment , and good friend and neighbour ...who is very engineery took a gander at the mincer and says " ooh that frame isnt square and those two bearing mounts are 10mm off " ( damn his eyes ) which explains how I couldnt figure out where I was going wrong . I mean dont you hate it when some dude looks at something , points out what are glaring irregularities ....and only then do you see them ....that shaft is a mile off parallel to the base plate the motor is bolted to ...I mean I dont really give one coz bearings are self aligning and belts have a bit of "give " . So I gotta get another pulley sorted ....but it will be done 😁 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: BotStomper
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2026 at 9:42am
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Mine is super ropey because it's made of bits of 4x2 that were mashed together as a prototype. The alignment is terrible, the pulley is wonky as on the mincer so it wobbles all over the place, and yet it works completely fine. The belts have a ton of "tolerance". If it was a chain drive it would be a different matter but it ain't so it's all good. #52 mincer is still winking at me suggestively. Might be time for a 2.0 version.
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Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2026 at 10:56am
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If you do go 52 I would advise to get spares with it . I got an extra cutter plate with smaller holes but I wish I had also got a couple of extra cutters ( the cross shaped bits ) . Im sure they were an option and now Im going to have to track some down .🙂🙂 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Alan L
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2026 at 11:47am
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"Ive been skunked on the Fruugo pulley ...no sign of it , no reply to multiple messages to their help line , bank are ( predictably ) being a pack of arseholes re reversing the credit card payment " I have heard that comment more than once about Frugo. I avoid them. Just received some BKK treble hooks today - turns out they came from China. Ali Express. Took about a week. Ridiculous. Alan ------------- Legasea Legend member |
Posted By: BotStomper
Date Posted: 13 Aug 2026 at 12:09pm
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I wouldn't bother with the smaller holes. I'm currently working on my third iteration of the cutter plate which will have as much material removed as I can get away with and not compromise the strength. Touch wood but the cutter has been rock solid so far. Couple of chips in it from when a gut-hooked fish frame with the hook still in it has gone through the mincer though.....
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Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 19 Aug 2026 at 5:40pm
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Well I got my money back for the pulley. Bank were really dragging the chain , but in the meantime I got a full refund from Fruugo , money is in the bank so I guess you cant really ask for more , and ,gotta admit it didnt take much, they sent me a questionair asking how likely I was to recommend them to others so I gives them a big fat zero , they come back and ask why , I tell them and next day I get another email saying they would refund me and 5 mins later another email saying refund issued and when I checked my bank 3 hours later the money was there . Just gotta find me another pulley now 🙂🙂 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 26 Aug 2026 at 5:51pm
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Waiting on pulley , could only find 60mm dia pulley with 24mm bore so Im going to bore it out 1mm to suit the idler shaft . Not going to be sent (amazon. ) for 11 days as out of stock ....youd think they would say that before I bought it ....but for 28bucks I can wait a bit ....any how been busy ....I had to get married today , she reckoned 37 years was long enough for me to think about it and I was right outa excuses .😁😁 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 26 Aug 2026 at 6:39pm
You the 3 the rings of marriage right? Engagement ring wedding ring and the suffering Congradulations ------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: Mc Tool
Date Posted: 26 Aug 2026 at 6:50pm
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Oh We are waaaay passed that 😁 Went to the celebrants house and were out within 15 mins , back home and carried on laying the kitchen floor . Biggest impact on our lives was that I forgot to switch the oven back on at the wall and dinner will be late .....I was wondering why I couldnt hear nuffin boiling 🙄😁 ------------- I wish I was young again .... Id be heaps smarter than this time |