Flywheel and paddle assembly for a chipping or shredding apparatus, and an apparatus incorporating same

A method of making a chipping or shredding apparatus, said method comprising the steps of:

• providing a drive shaft;
• providing a flywheel having a front side, a back side, and at least one aperture extending from the front side to the back side;
• coaxially attaching said flywheel to said drive shaft;
• mounting at least one knife to said flywheel adjacent to said at least one aperture, said at least one knife presenting a knife edge on said front side of said flywheel;
• providing a paddle having a plurality of vanes for moving material out from said apparatus;
• and
• rotatably mounting said paddle coaxially to said drive shaft with said vanes positioned adjacent to said back side of said flywheel;
• wherein said paddle is configured to rotate on said drive shaft independently of said flywheel.

A method of adjusting a rotational speed of a paddle in a chipping or shredding apparatus having a flywheel and paddle assembly comprising:

• a drive shaft;
• a flywheel attached coaxially to said drive shaft, said flywheel having a front side, a back side, and at least one aperture extending from the front side to the back side;
• at least one knife carried by said flywheel adjacent to said at least one aperture, said at least one knife presenting a knife edge on the front side of said flywheel;
• a paddle rotatably mounted coaxially to said drive shaft adjacent to said back side of said flywheel, said paddle being configured to rotate on said drive shaft independently of said flywheel;
• and
• a transmission operatively connecting said drive shaft to said paddle, said transmission being configured to receive input power from said drive shaft and provide output power to said paddle, such that rotation of said drive shaft directly drives rotation of said flywheel, and indirectly drives rotation of said paddle via said transmission;
• said method comprising the step of adjusting said transmission to change said rotational speed of said paddle.