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Floating-Breaker Churn: A Propeller Dasher Under a Breaker That Floats in Wall Grooves, a Water Tube Held by the Faucet
Buttercup

Created by

Buttercup

11. November 2026IE
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Floating-Breaker Churn: A Propeller Dasher Under a Breaker That Floats in Wall Grooves, a Water Tube Held by the Faucet

Edward Lynch of Buffalo, New York, received US 27,864, dated 10 April 1860, for a churn. Propeller blades at the bottom of an upright crank-driven shaft drive the cream up against a breaker that floats on it: a ring round the shaft with bevelled arms whose ends ride loosely in grooves in the churn's sides, so it keeps its place at the surface for any amount of cream. A flat tube of warm or cold water stands inside, held by the faucet that also draws off the buttermilk. The patent gives no sizes; every size here is ours.
Intermediate
About 2 days, plus printing

Instructions

1

A breaker that floats

Loading Jupyter Notebook...
2

Paddles under a fixed partition, three weeks before

Sangster's partition is fixed below the cream. Lynch's breaker floats on top of it.
3

Read US 27,864

"They fit loosely in the grooves, so as to allow the breaker to float, upon the milk or cream, and hence always retain the same relation to the milk or cream, whether there be a large or small quantity in the churn."
4

Print the dash blades J

Two-blade propeller 190 mm across, blades 80 x 50 x 5 mm pitched 30 degrees, on a hub bored 16.4 mm. PETG, 0.2 mm layers, 40 % infill, 4 walls.
Design FileSTLCC0 - Free
5

Print the water tube L

Flat open-topped tank 160 x 30 mm and 210 deep, 3 mm walls, curved to stand against the bucket's side, with a collar under its foot to hold the faucet's nut. PETG, 0.2 mm layers, 100 % infill; fill it with water and check it holds before use.
Design FileSTLCC0 - Free
6

Print the crown wheel

Crown wheel, 36 teeth on its face, module 2, with a hub; bored 12.4 mm. PETG, 0.2 mm layers, 40 % infill, 4 walls.
Design FileSTLCC0 - Free
7

Print the pinion

Spur pinion, 12 teeth, module 2, with a hub; bored 12.4 mm. PETG, 0.2 mm layers, 40 % infill, 4 walls.
Design FileSTLCC0 - Free
8

Grooves i, breaks K and the faucet M

Screw three pairs of hardwood strips 20 x 22 mm, 335 long, upright inside the bucket a third of a turn apart, 24 mm apart in each pair, as the grooves i. Screw two triangular hardwood breaks K, 30 mm deep and 150 tall, to the side near the floor between them, and seal every screw hole outside with silicone. Bore the bucket 22 mm, 30 mm above the floor and opposite the third groove, for the spigot. Set the tank against the side there, pass the spigot through the side and screw it into its nut, set in the tank's collar, so it holds the tank and opens into the churn.

Materials for this step:

20-Liter Bucket20-Liter Bucket1 piece
Hardwood BoardHardwood Board1 piece
Wood ScrewsWood Screws16 pieces
Silicone SealantSilicone Sealant1 piece
PVC SpigotPVC Spigot1 piece
PETG FilamentPETG Filament1 piece

Tools needed:

FDM 3D PrinterFDM 3D Printer
Table SawTable Saw
Hole Saw KitHole Saw Kit
Cordless DrillCordless Drill
Drill Bit SetDrill Bit Set
Screwdriver SetScrewdriver Set
Adjustable SpannerAdjustable Spanner
Tape MeasureTape Measure
9

Floating breaker H

Cut a hardwood ring 100 mm across with a 60 mm hole and 50 deep. Cut three hardwood arms 20 mm thick and 50 deep, bevelled so the lower edge is 4 mm thick, the bevel facing the opposite way to the propeller's blades, long enough to reach loosely into the grooves; glue and screw them into the ring a third of a turn apart.

Materials for this step:

Hardwood BoardHardwood Board1 piece
Wood GlueWood Glue1 piece
Wood ScrewsWood Screws6 pieces

Tools needed:

Table SawTable Saw
Hole Saw KitHole Saw Kit
Cordless DrillCordless Drill
Drill Bit SetDrill Bit Set
SandpaperSandpaper
Bar ClampBar Clamp
Screwdriver SetScrewdriver Set
10

Shaft B, cover P and gearing

Screw a hardwood step 50 x 50 x 6 mm to the floor's centre, bored 17 mm, 5 deep. Cut a 16 mm stainless shaft 465 mm long and turn or file its top 77 mm down to 12 mm; fit the propeller 8 mm above the floor. Cut a cover P of HDPE sheet to lie on the rim, bored 20 mm in the centre. Cut a hardwood cross piece N 350 x 205 x 25 mm with two hardwood fingers O 30 x 30 x 20 mm under it to rest on the cover, bored 13 mm for the shaft; fit the pinion above it, two chairs with a 12 mm crank shaft and the crown wheel, and a hardwood crank D with a dowel handle.

Materials for this step:

Hardwood BlockHardwood Block1 piece
Stainless Steel RodStainless Steel Rod2 pieces
HDPE SheetHDPE Sheet1 piece
Hardwood BoardHardwood Board2 pieces
Hardwood DowelsHardwood Dowels1 piece
Wood GlueWood Glue1 piece
Wood ScrewsWood Screws10 pieces
Shaft CollarShaft Collar2 pieces
Split PinSplit Pin1 piece

Tools needed:

HacksawHacksaw
Files (Hand File)Files (Hand File)
Bench ViseBench Vise
JigsawJigsaw
Table SawTable Saw
Cordless DrillCordless Drill
Drill Bit SetDrill Bit Set
Spade Bit SetSpade Bit Set
Screwdriver SetScrewdriver Set
11

The build in 3D

FreeCAD model of this build, the bucket cut open: the propeller blades J on the shaft, the floating breaker H in its three grooves, the breaks K, the water tube L held by the faucet M, the cover P, the cross piece N with its fingers O, and the crank and gearing.
Design FileBLENDCC0 - Free
12

Churn

Pour about 6 litres of heavy cream into the bucket and set the breaker in its grooves; it floats on the cream. Pour warm or cold water from the kettle or tap into the tube L to bring the cream to about 15 °C, checked with the thermometer. Put on the cover, cross piece and gearing, and turn the crank steadily, timing it. When the butter comes, draw the buttermilk off at the faucet into a bowl, lift out the gearing, cover, breaker and butter, wash the butter in cold water until it runs clear, salt and weigh it.

Materials for this step:

Heavy CreamHeavy Cream6 l
WaterWater1 piece
Coarse Sea SaltCoarse Sea Salt1 piece

Tools needed:

Electric KettleElectric Kettle
Leave-In Probe ThermometerLeave-In Probe Thermometer
StopwatchStopwatch
Digital Kitchen ScaleDigital Kitchen Scale
Stainless Steel Mixing Bowl (Large)Stainless Steel Mixing Bowl (Large)
13

Troubleshooting

Floating-breaker churn troubleshooting.

Flow

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14

History and honest limits

**Edward Lynch** of Buffalo, New York, US 27,864, 10 April 1860, "Churn", assigned to himself and Jas. J. McCool. He claimed the floating breaker with its ring, bevelled arms and grooves, and the tube held by the faucet. His tube is metal; ours is printed, and our faucet draws the milk through a collar under the tube's foot, our reading of his double-duty faucet. Every size here is ours.

Materials

16

Tools Required

20

Design Files

5

CC0 Public Domain

This blueprint is released under CC0. You are free to copy, modify, distribute, and use this work for any purpose, without asking permission.

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