I have the plans for Reflecting Accent. I am looking for a source for the lift. I know it is an electric RV lift. I have searched around the web and found many, but not the right type. The type needed is a low profile. The ones I have found all have a large "top". Any help would be greatly appreciated. Anyone build one before? Any suggestions?

I've done an extensive search (4-hours) for this same lift as outlined in the "Simplex Levitation" plans and could not find any either.

"Linear Actuators" provide some possible alternatives.

I too got the plans and found one the day after I received them.

It is a little different than the one drawn in the plans but it does the trick.

I went to an RV place and they had them for sale there. There was a floor model on display. the owner said that it's been on display for 3 years. I asked if I could buy that one and he said that if I wanted it I could have it for $150. So I grabbed it right away. The retail at the time was $450.

I took it home cleaned it up, and it works great. I've also done a few mods of my own to it. I'm an Aircraft Component Technician, by trade, So working with Electro-mechanical Actuators is an everyday occurence to me.

If you want some more details, or are still having problems finding one, please PM me and I can give you more details,and suppliers.

Michael Berends

I was at a friend of mines shop not long ago. He's the founder of a group called "The geek group" and thegeekgroup.org

Obviously he's into high tech gadgets. In his shop he showed me a small motor that I'll probably pick up from him some time. The motor was only 3 or 4 inches long and maybe a couple inches wide. It was mounted on this arm. I asked how much weight it could lift. He told me to stand on the arm and it lifted me up with no problem.

He told me it's a motor used to move large satellite dishes. I'm not sure what they are called but maybe you'd want to look into that.

Ron Jaxon

Wow, it sounds fantastic. Ron, do you know by chance the name or the manufacture of that motor? With that kind of motor, levitation will not be a problem.
Thanks
Ken

Thanks for the info guys!

Has anyone here actually built and used Simplex?

I have the plans coming and am very interested in your experiences (also if anyone has a good motor source PLEASE email me the link at MikeC1800@aol.com

Thanks!

-MikeC

I still have not finished the simplex but have many of the main components. (The lift, steel cradle, etc.)

I have the plans, can anyone post or me an online source for the lift device (Not to many sources in Hawaii, people rarely drive through water to another state from here!)

Try ebay. I did a search and found mine used but in working order. cost: about $55 icluding shipping. Maybe I got lucky, but good deals do pop up.

http://www.jcwhitney.com/autoparts/ItemB......00194337

This is very much like the lift in the plans. It only goes up 18 inch.

Here is another one I just found. http://www.hilltoprv.net/index.asp?PageA......mp;MMP=1

I know this is an old discussion but I just found something that fits. My girlfriends mother has one of those chairs that help you stand up (A lift chair). She just got a new chair so she gave me her old one because one day I took a good look at the motor on it. It's pretty much like the ones in the links Magical Dimensions just shared. So look for some of those used chairs. You can get a motor pretty cheap from them. They may not be the best but it's something to keep an eye out for.

Ron Jaxon

My only problem with the RV lifts.. (there's a place up the street from me that sell them for about $150... is that they're sooo slow!

By the time you get to the top of it's 18 inch travel distance.. it's been about 45 sec!

it just seems like a long time to make an audience sit for 18" of travel! and then you have to wait the same amount of time for it to go down... that's a minute and a half of just travel time.. not to mention some sort of hoop passing..

it just seems awfully slow to me

Pardon my ignorance, but what is "Reflecting Accent"?

I'm not sure if that works like the motor I have. Mine has a threaded rod. When the motor turns it lifts the outer bar that's threaded onto it. Is that the same?

If so I was thinking to try and find a new threaded part that'll lift it faster as the motor turns. Exceuse me for not knowing the proper names for those parts.

I was also thinking of a few other ways to use it. For example the old method that I call the "Teeter Totter" levitation (Bar going through hole in curtain). Can moutn the motor to lift the other end behind the curtain. That's just a thought though and I've never tried it.

Then I was thinking about mounting a spool and use cable like a winch.

I was thinking that if I rig it onto a super-X type levitation the lift would only serve to lift the floating girl off the platform she's laying on. Just clearing her from it so it can be moved away.

Ron Jaxon

I've heard the old Barn-storming tent show magicians would Jerry-Rig a levitation by bolting one board, (Say a 12" X 50" X 1") to the front of a similar board in the shape of a "T", put a drape on the horizontal board and run the long end of the "T" through a slit in a back curtain. This rig sat on two sawhorses.

An assistant (or volunteer) sat, then lay balanced on the board, which rose in the air thanks to another sawhorse in back of the curtain, and a burly assistant pressing smoothly down on the backstage end ala seasaw.

granted she could not rise far, but again, just high enough for the sawhorses to be removed and to hover in space to establish floating.

The hoop went over in the classic "double-over" move, and the "hypnotized" girl floated back onto the returned sawhorses.

This is a classic example of utility items like sawhorses pulling "double duty" as innocent looking showprops. Beleive U.F. Grant wrote up something very similar in one of his "MODERN LEVITATIONS" pamphlets. One of the very few of his age who laid out the "real work" in language so shockingly understandable, few got how great it was.

Jax, beleive your "threaded bolt" is commonly referred to as a "wormscrew" drive type motor, commonly used these days to move car seats back and forth electrically, maybe that is one option. Gotta admit your satellite dish motor description sounds trememdously fascinating. Anyone out there find more leads for them?

The SIMPLEX is interesting, though does not fit my style. I am looking for something more metaphysical looking, and have to admit I do find a lot of levis movements too mechanical for my taste. (not to mention some motors are pretty noisy).

Whats the latest with the rest of you levi-heads?


MikeC

Isn't there a motor/lift that is used on planes that can be used? The motor/lift that is used to move the wing flaps might be the thing. Does anyone have any knowledge of this part of a plane?


Ray

Hey Ray,

My background is as an aircraft component technician.

I have repaired and overhauled 1000s of actuators used on various aircraft.

The actuators are REALLY expensive and work on 28vdc. Most Flap actuators are rotary and use gears that are attached to cables to deploy them. The ones used in larger aircraft are Hydraulic.

I have seen Steering Servoes that might work but they only have a one foot travel at the most. Actually the stroke found on most of these actuators is fairly short.

There are commercially available linear actuators that will work for this application though. My brothers and I played around with one for opening and closing a huge skylight. The actuator and the power/control module were on the pricey side though.

Hope this helps? If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

Michael

Thanks Michael,
Wow, You are full of information! After reading your post I guess I will pass on that idea! LOL


Best
Ray

Could someone please tell me what "Reflecting Accent" is, or is it one of those situations where "If you need to ask, then you don't need to know"?