Plastics

[David King]

That's a good lead...so you reckon 1.25mm Formica will be strong enough at the bobbin edge perimeter to stop the wire splaying the sides out? This issue remains my biggest headache when making my own bobbins - ie presenting a nicely finished 'upper bobbin' surface (the side that's visible when on the guitar), that's also strong enough to keep the wire in without at deformation at the bobbin perimeter (where the wire wants to push the bobbin edge out)

Pesky the splaying sides is all about your winding technique, it has a lot less to do with the stiffness of the bobbin perimiters. Set your guides inside the flanges by between 1/2 and 1mm so that the wire isn't pressing up against the flanges. It will fill the ends but it won't press against them. You need to experiment with the exact inset depending on your wire guage and tension. That's all it takes to solve that issue.

[jason lollar]

If it still splays out you need to use a tailstock winder or if your winder only has a faceplate you can drill a hole in the center and tap it for a 4 40, put your bobbin on and screw a caul the same size as your bobbin over the top of it to simulate a tailstock.
I use .0625 single ply tortise to make copies of old 40's pickups and thats what- celluloid? i dont recall but its really soft. You can also use any pickgaurd material but some stuff is really sensitive to heat if you pot. Some plastics will get super soft at just over 140 + or - and it can take just seconds to ruin a job.
Heres some custom stuff- the big black bucker is black pickgaurd material- there is a mini bucker in the forground for perspective and something made of .062 single ply tortise.
Both examples are side wrapped with .032 material of the same type

[David Schwab]

But then it would look homemade

Not really. It would look like shiny black plastic. That's how all the Rickenbacker truss rod covers were made before they went with the molded one. Gretcsh made their pickup mounting rings and pickguards that way too. It's a fairly common thing to do, and if you polish the edges it looks very nice.

but I actually want the finished item to look like it was made by the same team who churn out Iphones!

And in fact Apple made a lot of the iBooks that way. They were clear plastic painted white (or black) on the back side. The iPhones are painted glass.

iPods are anodized aluminum now.

[FunkyKikuchiyo]

I agree - I've seen painted clear polycarbonate/acrylic/whatever on a lot of high end items and it looks pretty classy. I'm not sure how well it would work for pickups, though. Once you paint the back, you then would have to glue it to a surface - wouldn't that destroy your lovely paint? Or, am I over thinking it? Would it chip/flake when cut, milled or filed? Beyond that, it seems like even if it was glued effectively, the paint would want to come loose from the material eventually as well.

[peskywinnets]

Well, hats off to Formica UK,... I only ordered some samples on Thursday afternoon - they arrived this morning (Saturday).

Of the 5 samples I ordered, 4 are too flimsy to be viable bobbin tops (the small A5 sample doesn't sit flat but arches quite significantly)... but one is definitely a go-er


The black one in the middle (top row)...the code is F2253 AB the product name is AR Plus, colour is Diamond Black - I'd estimate it's about 1.2mm** thick (my digital calipers are in the attic & I can't be arsed to go & get them!).

Anyway, fellow Brits can order some A4 sized samples here (their website sucks, so use the links below)...

Plain colours...

Colors -- The Collection -- Formica Limited

Patterned colours...

Patterns -- The Collection -- Formica Limited

(just drop the ones you fancy in your basket, then fill in your address - job done)



**Edit: My thickness estimate was bang on - just found this link http://www.formica.co.uk/publish/sit...s_ar_plus.html (1.2mm thickness)...

[David King]

They should lay flat, it sounds like they are using defective material for the free samples. The material will have a slight tendency to curl if the humidity goes way up or way down and that's something to keep in mind. Once you get a piece flat enough I would coat the back of it with a good moisture barrier coating to keep it that way. You might also consider laminating the very thin stuff back-to-back as it will be sure not to move.