backyard wind generator - DIY Wind Turbine

Here is my 2009/2010 holiday project. It is a wind turbine that I have made using mostly recycled materials that I had lying around the house including an old bicycle. I have based the design largely off the following websites: www.velacreations.com www.mdpub.com www.thebackshed.com www.gotwind.org Currently the turbine does not produce any electricity and the blades spin under no load. I have erected it in our backyard in order to take some measurements and determine the best location to finally mount it. There is currently no furling system so I am keeping a close eye on it. I plan to get my hands on a suitable DC motor or re-factor the design to support a small axial flux alternator. Overall, this project has been a fun learning experience. I'm a software engineer in the aerospace industry so it has been good to do something with my hands for a change.