Optimizing the winding

[Lycking]

Hey there!

Might be an already answered/noob question, but how do you guys optimize the time you use winding/assemblying pickups?

Especially humbuckers, because i use about 65 minutes pr. humbucker from picking the parts to finish assembly and wired up. This is excluding potting.

Single coils is about 15 mins or so, without the magnet assembly.

Am i just really slow, or are there some nice tips'n'tricks to make things go faster? My winder runs at 1000-1200 RPM the most of the time.

I've recently started a pickup business instead of just winding for myself/friends, and we're dealing about 5-10 orders (mainly sets) pr. month. I wind pickups after order, because having a full stock is too expensive when i've just started.

Oh, and does anyone have experience with 42.5 AWG wire? Because i'm about to stock up 5 kgs of wire, and not sure wether to continue with 42, or try 42,5 to optimize a little cost-wise and space/time wise. But i'm concerned the sound may become "dull" compared to 42 AWG (like a tele 43 awg neck) when going on low output vintage-style strat pickups. Most of my pickups are vintage-style P90's, Strat and tele single coils and PAF-like humbuckers with variations.

Thanks alot!

[David King]

Most of what passes for 42 these days seems a lot closer to 42.5 anyway. I wouldn't worry too much about that. The Tele pickups probably have something else going on.
I'd say if you can assemble, wind and ship a couple of sets in a day you're doing pretty well. I'd suggest that when someone orders a set of something that you make one extra set to put in stock. If it becomes a popular pickup you can wind 2-3 extra sets.
You might also consider winding two coils at a shot, just gang up a second spool, tensioner and traverse. If you are hand winding you can just make a hand actuated traverse with side by side gates. That will cut your wind time in half and only cost you a second spool of wire.

The real time killers are email, packaging and postage label printing. Slay those dragons and you can actually break even.

[spichael]

David king couldnt have said it better myself 42nom/max will get super close to 42.5, and running two tensioners at a time will be tricky but nothing the avrg winder couldn't handle.

[12xu]

Hey there!

Might be an already answered/noob question, but how do you guys optimize the time you use winding/assemblying pickups?

Especially humbuckers, because i use about 65 minutes pr. humbucker from picking the parts to finish assembly and wired up. This is excluding potting.

Single coils is about 15 mins or so, without the magnet assembly.

Am i just really slow, or are there some nice tips'n'tricks to make things go faster? My winder runs at 1000-1200 RPM the most of the time.

I've recently started a pickup business instead of just winding for myself/friends, and we're dealing about 5-10 orders (mainly sets) pr. month. I wind pickups after order, because having a full stock is too expensive when i've just started.

Oh, and does anyone have experience with 42.5 AWG wire? Because i'm about to stock up 5 kgs of wire, and not sure wether to continue with 42, or try 42,5 to optimize a little cost-wise and space/time wise. But i'm concerned the sound may become "dull" compared to 42 AWG (like a tele 43 awg neck) when going on low output vintage-style strat pickups. Most of my pickups are vintage-style P90's, Strat and tele single coils and PAF-like humbuckers with variations.

Thanks alot!

1000 RPM is faster than I wind, but my winder will go that fast. I wind at around 600rpm when hand winding.

Assembly takes me longer than it should, I spend too much time admiring every solder joint and turn of a screw and for some reason, I measure things too many times.

I think last time I checked, it might take me about an hour or 1:15 for a set of humbuckers. I try to wind 2 or 3 sets at a time...do all slugs, then all screws. Once that's done, I assemble.

I don't wax pot them.


Edit, I may have lied. I timed my self today. 1 Hour and 35 minutes for a set of hum buckers with covers.

[SkinnyWire]

That's not all that "slow" with regard to building a humbucker, especially if you're hand guiding the wire ... stopping to check the coil a time or two, etc. You can spend a fair amount of time just prepping the typically available bobbins for winding, depending on how picky you are regarding fit/finish. You might consider an assembly line approach. Group order quantities and wind coils one day, build up the next day, final assembly the next day with potting, final measurements/pack ship last day. If this is all you do, that's one thing. If this is outside of a "day job", then setting customer expectations up front is helpful. YMMV.

[big_teee]

65 minutes per humbucker, start to finish, including potting?
I've never even came close to making one that fast.
But, I'm old, slow, and Meticulous!
T

[spichael]

That's insane! I bet the humbucks you produce are top of the line tho! I can build them in 1/2hr but not to thrilled with the minutiae "clean non buldgy leads under tape wrap etc"

[David King]

I find I speed up by 50% just doing the same task 50 times in a row. You inevitably start analyzing your motions and trimming the waste and pretty soon you get through them a lot faster. Make a mental note of the changes and the next time you take on that task you'll be up to speed or even faster.

A lot of times you'll simply need to experiment with pushing the envelope to see what the real limits are at the risk of making a small mess but you'll often be surprised at how far you can push it before it blows up in your face.

In the end it comes down to practice and experimentation. Of course you'll want to keep thinking about what you're doing, mindfulness in the service of doing a better job and more often than not a quicker job.

[big_teee]

So Spichael, You can drag everything out, heat the soldering iron, wind 2 bobbins, Install 6 slugs, thread 6 screws, assemble an solder everything in 30 minutes.
I might need a ticket to watch that show?
T

[spichael]

So Spichael, You can drag everything out, heat the soldering iron, wind 2 bobbins, Install 6 slugs, thread 6 screws, assemble an solder everything in 30 minutes.
I might need a ticket to watch that show?
T

Given the proper tools you can make quick work of anything! im using a tanac set up and thread my screw could prior to use and am quick with a soldering iron but I so don't blame you, I am quite the spectacle!; D

[mr fab]

It takes me approx. 40-45 minutes to make a humbucker, depending on whether the client wants covers on or not and if he wants it potted. strat and tele pickups take aprox the same time maybe a little longer since I have to assemble the bobbins

30 minutes is quick, but I take my time and test each bobbin as I wind them up and make sure its all good before assembly. most of my humbuckers are 4 wire so there could be some time saved if they were wired 2 wire

[spichael]

Yeah when you have to assemble the bobbins its can be a little more time intensive, Also I'm not sure how you attach covers but I have gotten extremely good results using dual heat resistant clamps, one clamping the cover down and one clamping in it has genuinely helped me keep both bobbins flush with the cover it self

[big_teee]

Given the proper tools you can make quick work of anything! im using a tanac set up and thread my screw could prior to use and am quick with a soldering iron but I so don't blame you, I am quite the spectacle!; D

Modest too!
T

[Lycking]

My 65 is without potting, and when i have the soldering iron hot and such. I've been bringing it down to 55 if i dont make mess ups now. Practise makes.. eh, better

I hand guide the wire, so i stop like every 1000 turns or so and check the bobbin if it has loose wires or runner-offs. Also i test each bobbin after soldering the hookups on each, before i tape them up.

Too bad i just can't make em the "factory" way of 50 times each thing. As i said are we just started up recently, so we don't have the possibility of mass crafting to create a proper stock of each model, so we wind the pickups after the order has been placed.

It's fun to hear what you pros spend of time and how you do it! Thanks guys, i appreciate it alot!

[Lycking]

The real time killers are email, packaging and postage label printing. Slay those dragons and you can actually break even.

And now i've learned that this is absolutely true. Fixing the shipping takes so much longer than i would ever have guessed.