Magnet placement + wheel load

[Branch Gordon]

Hey all. I have two questions hopefully someone can answer:

1. My bike wheel has small screws on the rim that are connected to the spokes. These screws are an equal distance apart along the circumference of the wheel. I was thinking of just attaching my ceramic magnets every other spoke, as they would be within the recommended distance. I've attached a photo so you can see what I mean. There would end up being 18 magnets on my 24" wheel this way.



2. There was a question asked in a previous thread that I didn't see an answer to... If it's important to have a load on the wheel (fan, genny coil, etc.), why is it also important to have a super long free spin time? Wouldn't the friction serve as a load as well?

Thanks!

Branch Gordon

[Woody]

Branch,

I have the exact same setup as you. 24" wheel, and I mounted 18 magnets on the spokes. Easy to do that way. As far as free-spin time, J.B. says you can get about 23% mechanical out of the bike wheel, and that should be figured into the total energy of the system. If you are using some of that energy just to overcome friction due to a bad build, bad bearings, etc. then the overall energy of the system will appear less. A longer free-spin time means you can eliminate bearing friction as being the reason behind any lack of performance you may experience, and it means you will be able to extract more mechanical energy from the system using a gen coil, or fan, or whatever method you choose to load the wheel. It's just one more item on the checklist of things that must be done with an eye toward excellence that will lead to success. That's the way I see it, anyway.

Cheers,

-Woody

[Branch Gordon]

Great explanation man, thank you!