well, the pulley thing seems to work. as the tension increased the number on the display increases. that's promising, I think.
I think the number on the screen is grams, but the loadcell is not calibrated, nor do I think it needs to be given that this magic number follows with the tension.
I know there is a relationship between the tension and the load cell weight but I don't feel like getting into that. I don't think it is necessary.
Lets see if I can play with this tension parameter a little bit as well as the speed ratio between the planetary head and the takeup spool.
I want to generate rope that is very stiff to very soft. It's probably not just the machine's parameters that dicate this but I am going to try to make it that way for fun. For example the amount of tar put on the ropes would affect this property as would the rope material. Also, stays are usually served which definitely affects the ropes stiffness, if you will. I wonder if there is a way to measure stiffness...
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