Counting turns on a mini-lathe winder

[copperheadroads]

In the next few months & going to make a new winder for doing my handwound stuff .
I was going to use one of these cheap mini-lathe ,which I already own Mastercraft 12-in. Lathe with Chisel Set | Canadian Tire
I'm just curious & (I haven't removed the cover on the end of the shaft to see if i can mount a disc for a sensor )
how to rig a counter to this ?
Has anybody used a similar lathes for a winder ?

[big_teee]

In the next few months & going to make a new winder for doing my handwound stuff .
I was going to use one of these cheap mini-lathe ,which I already own Mastercraft 12-in. Lathe with Chisel Set | Canadian Tire
I'm just curious & (I haven't removed the cover on the end of the shaft to see if i can mount a disc for a sensor )
how to rig a counter to this ?
Has anybody used a similar lathes for a winder ?

I have no Answers, but do have some questions, you may be able to answer along the way.
Can you get the lathe to turn the right direction(bobbin top going)?
I was always afraid to buy one because of the rotation issue?
That looks identical to the one Harbor Freight sells.
Thanks,
T

[copperheadroads]

I have no Answers, but do have some questions, you may be able to answer along the way.
Can you get the lathe to turn the right direction(bobbin top going)?
I was always afraid to buy one because of the rotation issue?
That looks identical to the one Harbor Freight sells.
Thanks,
T

Thanks T
I'm sure it is the same as the Harbor freight
It's just a popular brand Up here in the north
& unless you can reverse or reverse wire the motor It wont turn in a opposite direction

[David King]

If it's like the one on the photo you can just mount a reflective stripe that goes 1/2 way around the back of the faceplate and use a Fairchild IR sensor pointed at the stripe.
If it's a DC motor you just need to flip the motor leads via a DPDT switch.

[kayakerca]

In the next few months & going to make a new winder for doing my handwound stuff .
I was going to use one of these cheap mini-lathe ,which I already own Mastercraft 12-in. Lathe with Chisel Set | Canadian Tire
I'm just curious & (I haven't removed the cover on the end of the shaft to see if i can mount a disc for a sensor )
how to rig a counter to this ?
Has anybody used a similar lathes for a winder ?

You could glue a magnet on the back of the faceplate, mount a reed switch on the drive housing, and run the lines from the reed switch to a dry contact counter such as the one below:

6300-0600-0000 - REDINGTON COUNTERS - COUNTER, 8-DIGIT LCD | Newark/element14 Canada

Very clean and easy setup.

Just another option.

No cheap shots on the price of the counter. It's not cheap, but it has a 7 or 8 year life cycle on the battery it uses assuming a 24/7 type usage schedule. And you already know the cheap guys us the old calculators that bounce.

[kayakerca]

You could glue a magnet on the back of the faceplate, mount a reed switch on the drive housing, and run the lines from the reed switch to a dry contact counter such as the one below:

6300-0600-0000 - REDINGTON COUNTERS - COUNTER, 8-DIGIT LCD | Newark/element14 Canada

Very clean and easy setup.

Just another option.

No cheap shots on the price of the counter. It's not cheap, but it has a 7 or 8 year life cycle on the battery it uses assuming a 24/7 type usage schedule. And you already know the cheap guys us the old calculators that bounce.

Edit: Oops on the battery life statement. Just looked up the data sheet. . . 15+ years. Sorry about that.

[kayakerca]

In the next few months & going to make a new winder for doing my handwound stuff .
I was going to use one of these cheap mini-lathe ,which I already own Mastercraft 12-in. Lathe with Chisel Set | Canadian Tire
I'm just curious & (I haven't removed the cover on the end of the shaft to see if i can mount a disc for a sensor )
how to rig a counter to this ?
Has anybody used a similar lathes for a winder ?

I've seen that lathe on sale at CTC within the past few months at ~ the $99 mark as well.

[copperheadroads]

I've seen that lathe on sale at CTC within the past few months at ~ the $99 mark as well.

Thanks guys
I'm going to be looking for a little larger display on the counter ,The Cub3 on my old winder is just too tiny

[tedmich]

4 Digit Red LED Counter Panel Meter DC 6-15V Up and Down Totalizer | eBay

plus reed switch like this
Our Smallest Reed Switch (Pkg of 2)-The Electronic Goldmine
PS
Powerful/Lightweight 12VDC Switching Supply-The Electronic Goldmine

[David King]

Get yourself a "Preset" counter so that you can shut off your winder automatically at the end of the cycle.
12V 24V Preset Scale DIN Digital Counter Relay UP&Down | eBay
I would also urge you to pass on the reed switch variation in favor of a real sensor that you can control the dwell on and eliminate the bounce.
get a QRD 1113 and 1114 from Mouser.

[copperheadroads]

Get yourself a "Preset" counter so that you can shut off your winder automatically at the end of the cycle.
12V 24V Preset Scale DIN Digital Counter Relay UP&Down | eBay
I would also urge you to pass on the reed switch variation in favor of a real sensor that you can control the dwell on and eliminate the bounce.
get a QRD 1113 and 1114 from Mouser.

Thanks

[JCrab]

Great thread, I have been looking around for another winding machine and there are some in begginers section looking as well..

[copperheadroads]

Cool .........lots of Ideas & It won't take long to build this winder
I would like to have a 5 digit counter ,but it guess it's not a must .
I see the 4 digit counters really cheap

[David Schwab]

I saw a winder made like this, and in fact, was going to make one myself. What the guy did was get a proximity switch and secure it to a bracket facing the faceplate. Then he glued a small neo magnet to the faceplate. Every time it turned the proximity switch would close and advance the counter.

Because I was going to build a winder like this, I ended up buying a bunch of proximity switches. I figured extras can't hurt and they were relatively cheap.

So if anyone is interested, I have six Balluff, model BES 516-383-S4-C switches. They look like this:



You can view the documents here:

http://balluff.com/Balluff/Website/T...S+516-383-S4-C

I'm going to keep one of them, but I'll sell them for what I paid for them, which is $25 each. Shoot me a PM if anyone is interested.

[copperheadroads]

I saw a winder made like this, and in fact, was going to make one myself. What the guy did was get a proximity switch and secure it to a bracket facing the faceplate. Then he glued a small neo magnet to the faceplate. Every time it turned the proximity switch would close and advance the counter.

Because I was going to build a winder like this, I ended up buying a bunch of proximity switches. I figured extras can't hurt and they were relatively cheap.

So if anyone is interested, I have six Balluff, model BES 516-383-S4-C switches. They look like this:



You can view the documents here:

http://balluff.com/Balluff/Website/T...S+516-383-S4-C

I'm going to keep one of them, but I'll sell them for what I paid for them, which is $25 each. Shoot me a PM if anyone is interested.

That's what I useed on my old winder & it works great
I mounted mine through a L bracket facing a lexan disc that I machined & I used some aluminium tape for the sensor to detect
thanks .....I will keep the offer in mind

[tedmich]

related to Dave's reflective IR sensor, this unit looks useful

Infrared reflectance sensor Infrared reflective switch | eBay
5vdc source and a nice pulse output, adj sensitivity and a big mounting hole.

[Rob DiStefano]

Cool .........lots of Ideas & It won't take long to build this winder
I would like to have a 5 digit counter ,but it guess it's not a must .
I see the 4 digit counters really cheap

a 5 digit counter is a *must* for me.

[copperheadroads]

a 5 digit counter is a *must* for me.

I agree ,I wind a few different pickups over 10000 turns ,I could live with the 4 digit counter but I'm sure I will find a 5

[Rob DiStefano]

yeah, that does look like the $127/shipped mini lathe sold via harbor freight. looks like it could do the job. sez the speed is variable starting around 750rpm - wonder if that can be modded to start at zero. as to reversing the spindle direction, i'd just turn the machine around . i need a backup for my sidewinder and this might be the way to go, as there's nothing i've seen yet that can compare to a sidewinder for quality, price and value.

but yeah, the counter is vital. an optical trigger is the way to go over a mechanical mag reed switch. add in a 5 digit digital counter. there has to be a simple, cost effective optical triggered digital counter somewhere out there that we can all use ..... couple the counter to any mini lathe and there's no more need to be concerned about a good, cost effective coil winder.

[copperheadroads]

yeah, that does look like the $127/shipped mini lathe sold via harbor freight. looks like it could do the job. sez the speed is variable starting around 750rpm - wonder if that can be modded to start at zero. as to reversing the spindle direction, i'd just turn the machine around . i need a backup for my sidewinder and this might be the way to go, as there's nothing i've seen yet that can compare to a sidewinder for quality, price and value.

but yeah, the counter is vital. an optical trigger is the way to go over a mechanical mag reed switch. add in a 5 digit digital counter. there has to be a simple, cost effective optical triggered digital counter somewhere out there that we can all use ..... couple the counter to any mini lathe and there's no more need to be concerned about a good, cost effective coil winder.

The direction the lathe turns if fine for me ,as it turns the same direction I wind most of my pickups anyway

[Rob DiStefano]

The direction the lathe turns if fine for me ,as it turns the same direction I wind most of my pickups anyway

what, you don't wind many RWRP pups? that's a staple for a strat middle or tele neck.

[big_teee]

what, you don't wind many RWRP pups? that's a staple for a strat middle or tele neck.

Not a big deal, you just flip the pickup over.
I do it all the time.
Also keep in mind, that isn't the only winder Copper has.
T