Who has used the PTS plans to build a flow bench?

[gte]

Just curious as to who has used the plans available here to build a flow bench, if anything was missing, what your approximate cost was and how it is working now?

I'm guessing you just need a table saw, some basic hand tools, some screws and an electric drill to put them together?

Thanks!

[bruce]

I'll go first . . . I built my bench to my plans using a circular hand saw, router a cordless drill and some Harbor Freight clamps and the material list from the plans. I designed the plans so almost all the materials could be purchased from the local Lowes or Home Depot.

The blowers need to be sourced and switches as well as some other odds and ends. The only thing not in the plans at this moment is manual water gages but there is extensive info found here on the forum to help in building something that will work specific for the builders application. I'm working on drawings and a kit for an inclined manometer as well as the digital manometer project we are now working on to support the plans.

The water and digital manometer will also work for a homebuilt flowbench and will not be specifically for my PTS plans.

I'm kind of biased on my evaluation of the plans though, so I hope others add in on this post . . .

[Otto]

i have built one using the PTS Plans exelent repeatablity Plans are very good and the support is superb

[gte]

Bruce,

While others are chiming in, could your setup be converted to a positive pressure bench at a later point in time?

I don't know if you remember this post?

(thanks for the replies)

[Tony]

[68Corvette]

I was stuggling "for a while" meaning several months drawing my desing and trying to decide how to arrange flowbox, orifice postion, pressure valves etc.
I had MSD (Mercdog) plans, but did not actually like them as there are some problems that are known and you can find them by reading from forum.

Investment to PTS plans was not much and they did actually remove all my headaches about box desing.
I would say that that only would have been worth of the investment, but then I also got access to PTS plans section where are other similar benches and product support.
So I would not really think twice this time =)

My bench is still under constuction, but when comparing box volumes / space use and all neat little tricks that would had to be made for MSD bench also I cant see any reason why it wont work like a charm.

[106-1194218389]

I bought the PTS plans. I was only using two shop vacuums at the time so I only built the chamber side where the orifice plate is. I just put to pvc Van Stone flanges on the side of the bottom chamber below where the orifice is mounted. It works trmendously well. Very repeatable. I can go back weeks or even months later and all reads very close. It is actually closer and more repeatable than some of my friends who have commercial benches. These plans also will not have the inherent problems that many of the commercial benches have. The Super Flow SF300 and SF600 use a carbon disc to change flow direction for the inclined manometer and it has a tendancy to wear and get leaks thus causing the manometer to read low giving a false reading. A bench built with these plans will not have that problem. I am just amazed how well my bench built with the PTS plans work.

John

[Tony]

I have to agree with the above.

There has been a tremendous amount of accumulated thought, knowledge, and experience go into the PTS bench design, all the problems have been solved in very ingenious ways. Highly recommended.

[msj442]

i to am one of the people that has a pts build in progress. it is amazing how many different variations of the same principle there can be. i have several plans and blueprints on flowbench building. i spent about 250.00 on stuff to build a mercdog bench and still was not happy on the bluprints based on things i read on this forum. and there was no support at all with the mercdog just what was on here. i chose to go with bruces design due to the fact it had less moving parts virtually none and it was more user friendly to build. i just wish i read a little more before i purchased stuff. i ended up making everything i needed except motors and electrics. i even just recently bought the 12 motor plans because i needed to have the feeling of having everything i could find on this again. so thanks again bruce. i know you hear this all the time but i am so appreciative that there is people smarter than me out there.
max

[stef-1]

I bought Bruces plans quite a while ago now and have been building up my bench bit by bit when my workload allows. The plans are easy to work from even if you've put them down for a while. The support on this forum is amazing and any questions you have will be answered by people who have at one point been in the same situation as you. For the most part, searches will bring up the answers you need.
If anyone asks me about flowbenches I point them in this direction!