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Show THE SELECTION OF A CREAM I SEPARATOR By T. F. Will oughby ol tbe I II C Serrlct Bnrtaa ' The selection of a separator Is not a difficult matter if the farmer will bear in mind a few simple facts. Cream and skim milk are separated In the cream separator by the action of centrifugal force. Centrifugal force is a force exerted outward from the center of tho separator bowl and Is produced hy revolving the bowl at a high rate of speed. Just what the action of centrifugal force Is can ho best explained by a simple and often-used often-used Illustration. When a Dal I attached to the end of i string Is swung around In a circle, tho ball, because of Its weight, will exert an outward pull. . Tho force exerted on the ball, which makes It try to get away from tho central point iround which it Is whirling, Is centrifugal centri-fugal force. When whole milk enters the separator bowl it is acted upon by centrifugal force and tho heavy milk solids are thrown to the outer wall ot tho bowl. The butter fat, which is tho lightest part of milk, Is not so strongly atfected, and gathers near the Center of the bowl where It mixes with a small amount of skim milk and forms cream. BSSSSSSSSSSSm vi? Ibsssssssssssbsss tjjjjjj Tbe interior of modern separator boirt The amount of centrifugal force cxerti'd i...iward from the center on I' .i 1; in a separator bowl Is deter-iu.iiuI deter-iu.iiuI uy trie peed and diameter of tno U'w ..s the diameter of the bowl is iii-r-r.sed the bpeed at which It is rcM'lMil must be increased or lliti'j will us a. loss of centrifugal force. This ran also be Illustrated by swinging a ball attached to the end of a string In a circle. The greater the length of the string, the greater the pull exerted. As the string is shortened, short-ened, it will be noticed that Hit- , I it exerts decreases unless the speed .i which it i.s w hilled is Increased. Therefore, In a bowl, which has a comparatively com-paratively hirge diameter, the maximum maxi-mum centrifugal force Is secured without running the bowl at an excessively ex-cessively high rate of speed. This means greater durability because It reduces the-straln upon the operating mechanism. Centrifugal force is what causet separation In all cream separatoi bow Is, but there are several conditions which atfect the thoroughness of 1U work. The ilrst separator bowls made were hollow and centrifugal force wai required to act upon the milk eu masse. It was necessary that these bowls be revolved at an excessively high rate of speed to insure sutllcient centrifugal force being developed to force the milk solids, other than butter but-ter fat, through the thick wMl of milk to the outer edge of the howl. Furthermore, Fur-thermore, tl. results were uncertain, as there v.-s ,i i ,.i n i.iaao rn these bowls to i.rcrcnt the Intermingling Interming-ling ot creim nnd skim milk that had been separate I Most separator bowls are now equipped equip-ped with an interior device composed of a central tnlik-fredlng shaft and a number of disks. Ths disks dlvldi ths milk Into thin layers or sheets and centrifugal force acts upon each sheet of milk independent 'of the others. The disks increase the capacity of ths bow and reduce the speed at which it must be revolve;' by eliminating ths necessity of forcing the skim milk solids through a thick wall of milk. The use of disks has now become a standard feature of separator construction. con-struction. While it Is true that ths separator bowl does the actual work of separa-1 tlon, the mechanism which revolves ths bowl Is of the utmost Importance. ' In fact, the design and construction of the operating mechanism will determine de-termine the length of time the machine ma-chine will do good work. Good material and workmanship arsl necessary to a separator. The truth of this Is often overlooked when the machine Is new, but the farmer who buys a high grade separator will appreciate appre-ciate it aftur he has used tho machine a few years as he will rcallre that he has a machine that will do good work for many years. That Is the real test of a separator after all. Any separator separ-ator that will develop centrifugal force will do good work for a time, but tor Spiral ears of a cream separator long service it must contain tho highest high-est quality of material and workmanship workman-ship and be designed to accomplish a thorough sep.trat Ion ot cream and skim milk without tearing itself to pieces. Spiral cut gears are now used In the best separators because they run smoothly and prevent Jarring, loosoor unsteady motion, or bauk-lash. They do this because they have four tooth in mesh where spur cut gears have ono tooth in mesli at a tlmo. The slightest Jarring or unsteady motion in theg cars will be transmitted to the bowl and will cause It to vibrate and do poor work. Hence, the value of smooth-running spl'al gears can easily be appreciated. The quality of material used In making tho gears w 111 materially affect ' the amount of wear they will stand. I Tough, clrso-gralned Iron Is tho best material for this purpose as It wears smoothly-pnd does not grind or cut. Tho shafts, spindles, and frame of a separator are among tho most expensive expen-sive parts of tho machine and should be protected from wear as much as possible. In tho better grade of cream separators, phosphoi bronze bushings are used to protect the frame and operating mechanism. This Is a very smooth, llnc-graiued metal which does not cut the parts moving In It. It is slightly softer than the steel shafts and spindles which movo In It, and consequently bears the burden of wear. Herein lies Its value as the bushings can be replaced at a very small cost whereas It would be a considerable expense tp replace the blufts, spindles, and frame. The bowl spindle or neck bearing of a separator Is one of the features a farmer should carefully Investigate. The purpose of this bearing Is to keep the bowl properly centered and to present pre-sent shocks or vibrations from being transmitted to the bowl from the gears. This bearing to be satisfactory mint. Iia Rtrnnir altnnlA utnl frnn frnm must be strong, simple, and fxee from the necessity of difficult adjustments. The fewer parts the bearing has the better, providing, the parts are properly prop-erly made. Every farmer naturally wants a separator sep-arator that Is easy to turn. By all mean a separator should be easy to operate, and many of them are, but unfortunately for the purchaser this quality is ofteri socured by building the machine light by sacrificing durability. It Is poor business sense to buy a light, fllinslly constructed separator rlmply because it Is easy to turn. Such a separator will not stand up under the work for a long enough period to be a profitable Investment. Milk as it comss from the cow is one of the purst articles of food, but it Is also very easily contaminated. Therefore There-fore the separator bow) must be kept in a clean, sanitary condition. Don't judge the easy-cleaning qualities of a separator by the number of pieces the bowl contains. What Is infinitely more Important is the construction of the parts. A plain, smooth surface Is easily cleaned, whereas, Intricate crevices crev-ices and corners are hard to get at and will often be improperly cleaned. In selecting a separator do not be misled by tho prlco. Those who try to bell a machine and uso as their strongest argument it? low price, often use this argument bec&uso the) have tio other. The man who Is selling low-priced low-priced machines Is making just as much profit as the man who sells a high grade machine at a slightly hlghei price. Ths difference is lu the qual.ty of the machine. |