Using the safe high voltage power we get by placing a sheet of aluminum foil on the face of a television or computer CRT screen, it spins a styrofoam cup around at a respectable speed.
We start by spreading glue over the ouside of the styrofoam cup. Put just a thin layer on, so it dries quickly. Before it dries, cover the cup with aluminum foil. Press the foil flat against the cup, so any wrinkles are pressed down.With a sharp knife, neatly cut a half inch strip out of the foil on both sides, so you have two patches of foil, one on each side of the cup, that do not touch one another.
The cup is going to be spinning upside down on the point of a ball-point pen. To keep the cup centered on the pen-point, and to provide a low friction bearing, we need to glue something hard to the center of the bottom of the cup, something that has a little dimple in it to sit on the pen-point.
I chose to sacrifice the end of another ball-point pen.
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The photo shows the end of the pen, cut off with a sharp knife. The side of the cut end that is facing down has a little dimple that is perfect as a place to accept the point of the other ball-point pen.
The end of the pen is glued in the exact center of the bottom of the cup, as shown below. Note the little dimple.
Next we make the stand for the motor. Start with a paper plate, and glue the bottom of a ball point pen to the exact center of the plate, so the point stands straight up.
Glue the two soda cans upside-down onto the plate, leaving enough room between them for the strofoam cup to rotate easily without touching either can. There should ba about a half of an inch gap between the cup and either can.
Straighten two of the bends of a paper clip (leaving one end bent as in the photo below) and tape them to the cans as shown. Bend the wires into an S shape, leaving enough room to place the cup on top of the pen.
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