STATIONARY ARM
21½"
5"
MOVING
TAFFY PULLER ARMS ( 2)
5"
½"-dia.
steel
shaft
#6 machine
screw
cap
nut
2½"
TAFFY 101
I take it on faith that taffy machines answer some
important mathematical questions. But more importantly, I think taffy machines just look cool.
Taffy pulling machines appear to have emerged
on the American candy scene in the late 1800s when
salt water taffy rocketed to the heights of sweet, sweet
popularity, based partially on its delicious, dental-fill-ing-removing chewiness, and partially on the manner
in which it was marketed. Hypnotic taffy-making
machines, placed in store windows in seaside resorts,
produced in the viewer a nearly involuntary urge to
rush in and buy the colorful candy confection, without
regard to price or nutrition.
Salt water taffy became the classic souvenir
of many a trip to the beach. While taffy was sold in
other places before its close association with Atlantic
City, N.J., it was in the shops on that city’s famous
Boardwalk that it gained the “salt water” moniker
and became ensconced as an American institution.
In the 1880s, Joseph Fralinger, a former glass
blower, fish merchant, and baseball club manager,
opened a store on the Boardwalk selling lemonade
and cigars. But he soon came up with a better idea:
selling multiple flavors of salt water taffy to the
hungry hordes, conveniently boxed for travel and
2½"
7¾"
9"
gift-giving. He had a ready market in the great crowds
of tourists visiting the Jersey shore to escape the
summer heat and grim urbanity of the great cities of
the Eastern Seaboard. Soon this sideline turned into
a full-time job. Fralinger turned his attention to perfecting his taffy recipes, first using molasses, then vanilla
and chocolate. Eager vacationers lined up to enjoy the
delicious culinary chaos in each chunk of his freshly
pulled taffy.
Multidimensional topological mathematics and
consumer marketing strategies notwithstanding,
making your own taffy pulling machine is a worthy
maker project. Engineering the wonderful rhythmic
motion of the machine’s moving parts is the primary
goal of the project, and there are several ways to
accomplish this. I chose to use gear motors and a belt
drive to turn the taffy puller’s arms, but ambitious
makers may wish to modify and perhaps improve on
these plans by using alternative drivetrain parts such
as gears and hand cranks. An on/off switch would
be one obvious improvement.
The parts I selected are not terribly expensive,
and makers with a knack for scrounging may be able
to find them in surplus stores or online auctions,
possibly reducing the cost of the machine.
Make:109
