Wood Testing Machine at Home: My First Break Test Experience

Instead of a UTM (universal testing machine), this is a WTM (wood testing machine). This was my first break test with linear actuator screws. Testing proof of concept and I suppose, also the wood! We borrowed the motor from the Rub Master 5000 to rotate two screws that move a piece of angle iron up and down. We broke what we were trying to break, which doesn't always happen. Load cell gets installed soon, and additional segments for longer samples. Then we'll tinker with making it "smart" so we can do cyclic loading. If all is successful, then we'll make it proper with aluminum extrusion and maybe a dual motor. Version 1 is rarely the best version so we're tinkering with cheap-ish parts for now. Follow to see the progress happen! Get your climbing, caving and canyon gear at https://hownot2.com/