Daily Run Down, & Round Table-P/Us

[copperheadroads]

Anybody made any pickups today? I didn't. Just took it easy, did a little cooking and some website work that's all.

jUST broke down one of my high output humbuckers & quickly rewound it ,It's quite a bit of work to adjust one thing I wasn't happy with it ......It took 1/2 hour I guess...........

[Stratz]

Multiple sets???
That would take me a month!
T

It took me 5 hours start to finish (clean up and what not) to make two sets without potting. I like to let them settle down overnight to get proper readings at ~68*F. Then I'll number them and pot them.

I wind Strat pickups pretty slow. Much better for even tension, turns per traverse and neatness.

[SonnyW]

It took me 5 hours start to finish (clean up and what not) to make two sets without potting. I like to let them settle down overnight to get proper readings at ~68*F. Then I'll number them and pot them.

I wind Strat pickups pretty slow. Much better for even tension, turns per traverse and neatness.

I like to pot them first then let them settle overnight before doing my measurements, for me anyway the resonant peak will always drop after potting. I just correct the DCR for temperature, there isn't any way in summer I can get my shop near 68F. I have found that outside of DCR the other measurements are less affected by temperature, I do try to keep it down below 85 or so.

[SonnyW]

jUST broke down one of my high output humbuckers & quickly rewound it ,It's quite a bit of work to adjust one thing I wasn't happy with it ......It took 1/2 hour I guess...........

That's pretty quick IMO to do a HB rewind. And I hate it when that happens. But I have to do it too often. More wire in the cardboard box.

[big_teee]

I could make a set of SCs, in the time it takes me to make a mini blade.
I have made several, and still looking for better building techniques.
I still don't know how to make them without super glue.
I think some do it without, but mine fall a part, even with tape.
Anyone want to share anything on this, I'm listening?
T

[copperheadroads]

That's pretty quick IMO to do a HB rewind. And I hate it when that happens. But I have to do it too often. More wire in the cardboard box.

Yes more wire in the box
43 gauge wire ,I thought I could hear a touch of mushyness so i peeled them & rewound them a little tighter
With the cnc winder you get to do other things while she winds

[copperheadroads]

I like to pot them first then let them settle overnight before doing my measurements, for me anyway the resonant peak will always drop after potting. I just correct the DCR for temperature, there isn't any way in summer I can get my shop near 68F. I have found that outside of DCR the other measurements are less affected by temperature, I do try to keep it down below 85 or so.

I have wound strat bridge pickups with a ton of wire like 7.5k & up & to prevent flaring as soon as they were wound I'd pot them right away

[SonnyW]

It took me 5 hours start to finish (clean up and what not) to make two sets without potting. I like to let them settle down overnight to get proper readings at ~68*F. Then I'll number them and pot them.

I wind Strat pickups pretty slow. Much better for even tension, turns per traverse and neatness.

It takes me several days, because I like to let the flatware cure after lacquer dipping, I try to make up the strat bobbins in sets of 6 and I mix that in with other work. Takes a couple of days but very little time per day. But once the bobbins are ready to wind I can do all 9 easy in one day, even handwinding, and including potting, then test them all the next day. Trouble is I never get the orders that way - 3 sets at a time. So I either make less or they go into stock. Can't do that forever.

You mentioned tension, I have been looking at handbook data and have reduced my tension for strat bobbins for machine winding. I used to try for 25-30g, but I found a chart that says over 22g for 42 awg will have the potential for resistance variation based on the yield strength of the copper. So the last two strat sets I did were at 20g max with good results, based both on my electrical testing and the customers sonic testing feedback. The same chart gives a minimum recommended tension of 17g. This is all for 42 awg.

[SonnyW]

Yes more wire in the box
43 gauge wire ,I thought I could hear a touch of mushyness so i peeled them & rewound them a little tighter
With the cnc winder you get to do other things while she winds

With my CNC winder I can do a single HB bobbin in about 6 minutes with my current program parameters and I can walk away and do other things, which I do, but it still takes time to diassemble, cut the wire off, and then do all the soldering and taping and assembly. Unless I don't re-use the bobbins I also have to press out the slugs, etc. So all that takes time. The biggest time factor for me is the installing in the test guitar and listening part.

[copperheadroads]

With my CNC winder I can do a single HB bobbin in about 6 minutes with my current program parameters and I can walk away and do other things, which I do, but it still takes time to diassemble, cut the wire off, and then do all the soldering and taping and assembly. Unless I don't re-use the bobbins I also have to press out the slugs, etc. So all that takes time. The biggest time factor for me is the installing in the test guitar and listening part.

I cut the wire /unscrewed pole screws / push slugs out /wound
/Attach new wires & tape . just to get back to assembled
Haha ......I did everything besides Install n test

[SonnyW]

I cut the wire /unscrewed pole screws / push slugs out /wound
/Attach new wires & tape . just to get back to assembled
Haha ......I did everything besides Install n test

That's pretty efficient. I would give you a far exceeds requirements performance review in my former life...

[copperheadroads]

I'm also trying to make the rail humbucker tele neck pickup work with the parts I got from Mojo ,,I do think it's achievable with some scuffing to the bobbins

[SonnyW]

I'm also trying to make the rail humbucker tele neck pickup work with the parts I got from Mojo ,,I do think it's achievable with some scuffing to the bobbins

I can't remember which one it was now, but on one of them I had to pad out the magnet dimension with some N35 3mmx1.5mm neo discs I got from K&J to make it work. I think I put 6 of them in there aligned with the poles and it worked good. The little neo discs were dirt cheap. I only made the one, and by the time I got my prototype done, the customer had already gotten something else. Bummer.

[Stratz]

I like to pot them first then let them settle overnight before doing my measurements, for me anyway the resonant peak will always drop after potting.

Problem with potting right away (other than sometimes not even feeling like doing it in the first place ) is that every once in a while something goes awry and I get a coil that's not useable in a set or sometimes not at all so I'd rather not waste the time and material to pot them right away.

I was winding two Strat sets last week from a 7lb spool of PE that I've been using for quite a while with great accuracy. Finish one bobbin, put it aside. Wind another, put it aside. On the 5th bobbin out of nowhere the wire broke. I never break wire unless there's something wrong with it.

So I checked the DCR on the previously wound coils. Three of the four were fine but the one I wound just before the one that the wire broke on was up by almost 400 ohms.

I was using a spool of Viking wire from the mid 80's but it wasn't an issue with age, it was a problem during the production. That's just one example why I don't pot until I let the pickups sit at least 8 hours before I test, record and pot them.

Theres still a few lbs left on the spool so now I'll have to wind some test coils (I'll use PVC bucker bobbins with a couple of thousand winds, test them and toss em) and hope it was just a isolated thin/weak spot in the spool.

Winding is a drag. I'd much rather be doing assembly.

Rob.

[Stratz]

The biggest time factor for me is the installing in the test guitar and listening part.

Thats why I built my test Strat, I can swap out the pickups (I have 3 pick guards for different pickup type/configurations) in 10 minutes.

While the tone obviously isn't 100% true I get an excellent feel of the general characteristics of the pickups.
After using the test rig for so long I pretty much know what the pickups will sound like in one of my "real" guitars.
It really is a time saver and I no longer dread sound testing pickups anymore

Rob.