Gardner D. Hiscox's movement 525 is titled 'Swape, or New England Sweep.' It is an ancient and modern method of raising water from wells: a counterweight on one end of a pivoted pole helps lift the bucket on the other. The calculator below compares ideal gravity moments from user-entered masses and arm lengths.
Swape Interactive Calculator
Vary user-entered pole arm lengths, loaded-bucket mass and counterweight mass. Results compare ideal horizontal-pole gravity moments; they do not predict travel, operator force through a lift cycle, pole stress or safe construction.
Equation Used
- The displayed comparison is quasi-static at a horizontal-pole reference position.
- Masses act through standard gravity and arms are measured from the pivot.
- Rope, bucket and pole geometry are idealized and friction is omitted.
- No travel, human effort through the cycle, pole stress, foundation load, stability or safe capacity is calculated.
How Hiscox's New England Sweep Works
Hiscox movement 525 shows a long pole pivoted on an upright support. A bucket hangs from the long end over the well, while a weight is fixed to the shorter opposite end. Hiscox says the weighted end overbalances the bucket so as to divide the labor of lifting the water.
The source provides no dimensions, masses, material, well depth, lift rate or capacity. The pole arms are drawn at a common scale from the entered lengths. The illustrated sweep is prescribed from 15° to 45° above horizontal on the bucket side; it is not a solved trajectory. Bucket, rope, well and support dimensions are schematic. The displayed moments remain the horizontal-reference values, independent of playback angle.
Using the Animation and Calculator
Compare the bucket and counterweight moments to see how arm length and mass affect the balance when the pole is horizontal.
It is not a construction guide. A real installation requires verified pole strength, pivot and support design, bucket and rope condition, clearances, stability, well guarding, user access and local safety requirements.
Ideal Static Moment Comparison
At the horizontal reference position, each gravity moment is mass times standard gravity times horizontal arm length:
Signed assist is counterweight moment minus bucket-side moment. This is not the operator force or a full-cycle dynamic solution.
Worked Example: Entered Pole and Masses
For a 3 m bucket arm, 1.5 m counterweight arm, entered loaded-bucket mass of 20 kg and counterweight mass of 45 kg, the ideal bucket moment is 588.4 N·m and the counterweight moment is 661.9 N·m. Signed assist is +73.5 N·m and the arm ratio is 2.00.
These entered values are not historical dimensions or a safe lifting specification.
What the Calculator Includes
- Established by Hiscox: pivoted sweep pole, well bucket, weighted opposite end and reduced lifting labor.
- Calculated: ideal reference-position gravity moments, their signed difference and arm ratio.
- Not calculated: pole angle effects through the full cycle, human force, acceleration, rope tension, pole stress, support reaction, stability or safe load.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a New England sweep?
A New England sweep is a pivoted pole with a bucket on one end and a counterweight on the other, used to raise water from a well.
What does the counterweight do?
Hiscox says its end overbalances the bucket so as to divide the labor of lifting water.
Are the default dimensions historical?
No. Hiscox supplies no dimensions or masses; all calculator entries are user scenarios.
Does positive assist mean the bucket rises automatically?
Not necessarily. It only means the entered counterweight moment exceeds the entered loaded-bucket moment in the ideal horizontal reference calculation.
Can this calculator size the pole or support?
No. Strength, stability, impact, wear, foundations and guarding require separate engineering.
References
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