Polymer Clay For Prototype Bobbins

[tonedeciple]

Has anyone tried using polymer clay for prototyping a bobbin? I'm thinking of forming an "I" beam a little more than a foot long, slicing it into 4 bobbin length pieces, remove a little from the center column on each end and cure it in the oven for about 25-30 minutes. Then I'll round the ends on my sander and drill holes for the pole pieces.

Does this sound reasonable? Or does anyone one have a better approach using this stuff?

[Bruce Johnson]

I guess that would work, but it sounds like the hard way to get there.

Look at the selection of styrene plastic available in a local hobby shop. There are strips, sheets, bars, channels, I-beams, etc in lots of small sizes. It can be easily cut, glued, shaped and machined into anything. It's the simple way to make prototypes of parts that you may eventually want to have cast or molded.

[David Schwab]

I use polycarbonate U channels to make bobbins. With a little gluing and machining I have bobbins in a small amount of time.

They don't look good for exposed coils, but they will work fine for prototyping or under closed covers.

[Mark Hammer]

I guess that would work, but it sounds like the hard way to get there.

Look at the selection of styrene plastic available in a local hobby shop. There are strips, sheets, bars, channels, I-beams, etc in lots of small sizes. It can be easily cut, glued, shaped and machined into anything. It's the simple way to make prototypes of parts that you may eventually want to have cast or molded.

Yup. Get to know your local model train store. LOTS of useful stuff in there.

[fieldwrangler]

I use polycarbonate U channels to make bobbins. With a little gluing and machining I have bobbins in a small amount of time.

They don't look good for exposed coils, but they will work fine for prototyping or under closed covers.

I used to use styrene U channels from the hobby shot for some stuff. Where do you get your polycarbonate rails?

Bob Palmieri

[David Schwab]

I used to use styrene U channels from the hobby shot for some stuff. Where do you get your polycarbonate rails?

McMaster-Carr

[fieldwrangler]

McMaster-Carr

I Shoulda Knowed...

Somehow I never looked for that stuff from that source.

[David Schwab]

I Shoulda Knowed...

Somehow I never looked for that stuff from that source.

I get lots of stuff from them.

[LtKojak]

WOW! Over 480 THOUSAND products?

How do you navigate through all that stuff?

They REALLY must have some pretty good software to manage all that stuff and the processes that go with'em...

I don't like that I MUST register to just browse around.

[David Schwab]

They have a really good online catalog and search system, and you can save bookmarks. Really top notch company.

They have a warehouse here in NJ, and a few times I ordered int he morning and had my order via USP by the afternoon!

I get all my steel from them too.