Collaboration
ART
BEAUTY & WELLNESS
CRAFT
CULTURE & HISTORY
ENTERTAINMENT
ENVIRONMENT
FOOD & DRINKS
REVERSE ENGINEERING
SCIENCES
SPORTS
TECHNOLOGY
WEARABLES
False-Bottom Jet Churn: Paddles Under a Pierced Partition Draw Cream Down at the Centre and Jet It Up at the Rim
Buttercup

Created by

Buttercup

11. November 2026IE
0
0
0
0
0

False-Bottom Jet Churn: Paddles Under a Pierced Partition Draw Cream Down at the Centre and Jet It Up at the Rim

James Sangster of Buffalo, New York, received US 27,570, dated 20 March 1860, for a churn. A false bottom divides the churn; paddles spinning beneath it draw the cream and air down through holes near its centre and throw it up through holes near its rim, under caps that aim the streams against each other. Another paddle turns above. The cream goes round and round, from rim to centre and back. The patent gives no sizes; every size here is ours.
Intermediate
About 2 days, plus printing

Instructions

1

Down at the centre, up at the rim

Loading Jupyter Notebook...
2

An upright churn with a pierced cover, one week before

Wiswell's cover is above the scoops. Sangster's pierced partition is below the cream, with paddles under it.
3

Read US 27,570

"U and V represent caps which partially cover the apertures L and N. They are placed in such a position as to cause the fluid to flow in streams against each other, by boring the holes L and N at the same angles at which the caps U and V are set. The caps may be dispensed with and the same result obtained."
4

Print the caps Q, U, W, V

Hood cap 50 mm across, open on one side. Print four. PETG, 0.2 mm layers, 40 % infill, 4 walls.
Design FileSTLCC0 - Free
5

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
6

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
7

Rim Y and partition E

Screw a ring of HDPE strip 10 mm thick and 12 high inside the bucket with its top 60 mm above the floor, as the rim Y, sealing the screw holes outside with silicone. Cut a disc of 10 mm HDPE sheet to rest on it, bored 17 mm in the centre. Bore four 30 mm holes, H, I, J, K, 45 mm from the centre, a quarter turn apart, and four 25 mm holes, L, M, N, O, 112 mm from the centre between them, each bored at 45 degrees slanting toward the centre as it rises. Screw a printed cap over each rim hole, its open side toward the centre.

Materials for this step:

20-Liter Bucket20-Liter Bucket1 piece
HDPE SheetHDPE Sheet1 piece
Machine ScrewsMachine Screws16 pieces
Silicone SealantSilicone Sealant1 piece

Tools needed:

JigsawJigsaw
Hole Saw KitHole Saw Kit
Cordless DrillCordless Drill
Drill Bit SetDrill Bit Set
ProtractorProtractor
Files (Hand File)Files (Hand File)
Screwdriver SetScrewdriver Set
8

Spindle D, paddles C, G and Z, shoulder J'

Screw a hardwood block 50 x 50 x 6 mm to the floor's centre and bore it 17 mm, 5 deep, as the step. Cut a 16 mm stainless spindle 435 mm long and turn or file its top 75 mm down to 12 mm. Fix a hardwood paddle bar 250 x 45 x 20 mm across it, 8 mm above the floor when the spindle stands in its step (the paddles C and G), pass it up through the partition, and fit a printed or hardwood collar 32 mm across and 20 high on it just above the partition as the shoulder J'. Fix a second paddle Z, 200 x 30 x 20 mm, across it 185 mm above the floor.

Materials for this step:

Stainless Steel RodStainless Steel Rod1 piece
Hardwood BoardHardwood Board1 piece
Hardwood BlockHardwood Block1 piece
Wood GlueWood Glue1 piece
Wood ScrewsWood Screws2 pieces
Shaft CollarShaft Collar2 pieces
Split PinSplit Pin2 pieces

Tools needed:

HacksawHacksaw
Files (Hand File)Files (Hand File)
Bench ViseBench Vise
Cordless DrillCordless Drill
Drill Bit SetDrill Bit Set
Table SawTable Saw
SandpaperSandpaper
Screwdriver SetScrewdriver Set
9

Top I' and crank X

Cut a hardwood top 350 x 205 x 25 mm to sit on the bucket's rim and bore it 13 mm over the centre for the spindle; fit the pinion on the spindle above it. Screw two hardwood chairs on the top carrying a 12 mm stainless crank shaft with the crown wheel meshing the pinion, and fit a hardwood crank X with a dowel handle on its end.

Materials for this step:

Hardwood BoardHardwood Board2 pieces
Stainless Steel RodStainless Steel Rod1 piece
Hardwood DowelsHardwood Dowels1 piece
Wood GlueWood Glue1 piece
Wood ScrewsWood Screws8 pieces
Shaft CollarShaft Collar2 pieces
PETG FilamentPETG Filament1 piece

Tools needed:

FDM 3D PrinterFDM 3D Printer
Table SawTable Saw
Cordless DrillCordless Drill
Drill Bit SetDrill Bit Set
Spade Bit SetSpade Bit Set
HacksawHacksaw
Bar ClampBar Clamp
Screwdriver SetScrewdriver Set
Tape MeasureTape Measure
10

The build in 3D

FreeCAD model of this build, the bucket cut through the middle: the paddles C and G under the partition E on its rim Y, the centre and rim holes with their caps, the shoulder J', the paddle Z, and the top with the crank, crown wheel and pinion.
Design FileBLENDCC0 - Free
11

Churn

Pour about 8 litres of heavy cream at about 15 °C, checked with the thermometer, into the bucket over the partition, set the top and gearing on the rim, and turn the crank steadily, timing it. When the butter comes, lift off the top, lift out the spindle and partition, take out the butter, pour the buttermilk into a bowl, wash the butter in cold water until it runs clear, salt and weigh it.

Materials for this step:

Heavy CreamHeavy Cream8 l
Coarse Sea SaltCoarse Sea Salt1 piece
WaterWater1 piece

Tools needed:

Leave-In Probe ThermometerLeave-In Probe Thermometer
StopwatchStopwatch
Digital Kitchen ScaleDigital Kitchen Scale
Stainless Steel Mixing Bowl (Large)Stainless Steel Mixing Bowl (Large)
12

Troubleshooting

False-bottom churn troubleshooting.

Flow

Loading...
13

History and honest limits

**James Sangster** of Buffalo, New York, US 27,570, 20 March 1860, "Churn". He claimed the paddles Z, C and G with the partition E pierced near its centre and near its rim under caps, "for the purpose of passing the cream around and around through the openings from circumference to center and vice versa". He made it of "wood, tin or any other suitable material"; ours is a food-grade bucket with an HDPE partition and printed caps and gears. Every size here is ours.

Materials

16

Tools Required

19

Design Files

4

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.

Support the Maker by purchasing products through their Blueprint where they earn a Maker Commission set by Vendors, or create a new iteration of this Blueprint and include it as a connection in your own Blueprint to share revenue.

Discussion

(0)

Log in to join the discussion

Loading comments...