MEAT GRINDER

I designed and built this meat grinder for UNCSA's 2022 production of Sweeney Todd. The grinder had to appear functional, extruding ground "meat" when the crank was turned. The "meat" is really a mixture of tomato juice and gelatin, that was cured in cylindrical molds to fit the extruder pipe. The internal mechanism went through several iterations before I landed on a solution that worked. In the final version, turning the wheel moves a central driveshaft, and causes a plunger to push the gelatin through a grate at the front of the pipe. The gelatin extrudes through the holes in the grate in long strands, giving it the appearance of ground meat. The sides of the box are held on with large neodymium magnets, to make disassembly and cleanup between performances easier.