Newb hating PE

[Train34]

Is plain enamel wire a practical joke? I just look at it funny and it breaks. Any tips on how to wind this stuff? I am putting the spool on the floor and using a winder I bought off ebay. Have the traverse set so the wire feeds within the bobbin. I think I have the basics down after reading through the guides posted here. After many attempts I have gotten 5000 turns on one bobbin but it was far too loose. I should have stopped mid way and checked but I was too excited I finally got the stuff to wind. Can't see the bobbin at the lower speed settings on my machine. Does it just take lots of practice?

[big_teee]

Welcome:
If this is a first wind, it takes a while to stop breaking wire.
So what gauge wire are you using, and some pictures of your setup would help us see what your up against.

T

[Train34]

Thanks for the reply. I bought 42 gauge PE and some humbucker kits from mojotone. The first wind was loose because I didn't put enough tension on it and was overcompensating for the other failed attempts. Hopefully I'll get the feeling for it on the next couple of tries. Is there some method you use to get the right amount of tension?

[big_teee]

Nice winder setup.
I don't really see how you get your wire from the floor to your winder.
I hand wind, and I have a stand I mount my wire on behind me.
So the wire feeds horizontally to the winder at close to the same level through my fingers of my right hand.
The wire is about 4 feet behind me on a stand.
So maybe some of the others that feed the wire from the floor have ideas.
They show this in the old Schatten winder manual.
http://music-electronics-forum.com/a...s-pu-specs.pdf
Try reading through it and see if it will help you.
If Others have ideas, please jump in.
T

[Train34]

I've been putting the winder at the edge of the table and placing the spool on the floor in front of it. Sorry it's not an accurate pic of my setup..not sure why it loaded upside down either. How much tension do you need to place on the wire with your setup? I'll be giving it another go. Hopefully I can report back with some success.

[big_teee]

Your wire is feeding off the end, correct?
Winding by hand I just let it slip between my finger and thumb.
I like enough pressure to keep the wire tight, and not enough pressure to stretch or break the wire.
Another thing is the wire guide spacing.
You want the guides just narrower than the bobbin wind area.
Anyone else want to jump in?
Good Luck,
Terry

[Justwannano]

It's upside down!

I'm guessing since you have have the traverse you also have a tensioner.

I scatter-wind and I've noticed that every so often there will be a bump on the wire...I can imagine that the bump
I'm feeling going through a tensioner could possibly cause the break. What material the tensioner is made of contacting the wire
would be a factor.

[the great waldo]

Hi Train

It must be hard winding pickups standing on your head Are you using fingers to control the tension, if so it might be an idea to pull the winder a bit further towards you also make sure all metal parts where the wire goes over or touch are well polished also I used a piece of thick floppy felt hanging over the front of the table as a kind loose brake for the wire coming off the spool. The state of your skin on the fingers makes a big difference I some times lick my fingers to increase the friction on the wire or talcum powder to drop the friction. I tend to wind only single coils by hand since I got my cncdudez cnc winder humbuckers seem to be a bit thicker on tone machine guided although I have made some quite bright sounding humbuckers with hand winding. Keep going you'll get a feel for winding. When I started I was breaking wire every 5 mins, these days that no longer happens unless I get a bad reel of wire then it's a real pain.

Good luck

Andrew

Thanks for the reply. I bought 42 gauge PE and some humbucker kits from mojotone. The first wind was loose because I didn't put enough tension on it and was overcompensating for the other failed attempts. Hopefully I'll get the feeling for it on the next couple of tries. Is there some method you use to get the right amount of tension?
[ATTACH=CONFIG]26203[/ATTACH]

[jason lollar]

That probably not a traverser- its more likley just a set of stops to limit the range of motion during hand guiding. PE and Formvar are harder to work with than poly. My opinion and its alot cheaper for all the mistakes youll be making. Tension- hard to describe but if you are using some sort of tension device like a felt pad and a clamp when you pull the wire you should feel some level of resistance- takes some trial and error. You might be suprised how much tension you can apply before the bobbin warps or you break the wire.
Other reasons for breakage- the wire can be spooled improperly so it will continue to break over and over or you could have a nick on the spool where the wire grabs

[Justwannano]

Can't see the bobbin at the lower speed settings on my machine.

I don't understand why you can't see the bobbin at lower speeds (or any speed for that matter) and I don't understand "settings". Do you mean
that there are rpm selections/settings? (if so what are they?) or is it variable/control knob from 0 to what?

[Train34]

I don't understand why you can't see the bobbin at lower speeds (or any speed for that matter) and I don't understand "settings". Do you mean
that there are rpm selections/settings? (if so what are they?) or is it variable/control knob from 0 to what?

Yes there is a control knob that varies the speed. After trying again I was able to make out the wind. Guess I jumped the gun on that one.

[Train34]

That probably not a traverser- its more likley just a set of stops to limit the range of motion during hand guiding. PE and Formvar are harder to work with than poly. My opinion and its alot cheaper for all the mistakes youll be making. Tension- hard to describe but if you are using some sort of tension device like a felt pad and a clamp when you pull the wire you should feel some level of resistance- takes some trial and error. You might be suprised how much tension you can apply before the bobbin warps or you break the wire.
Other reasons for breakage- the wire can be spooled improperly so it will continue to break over and over or you could have a nick on the spool where the wire grabs

I don't feel any sharp or uneven edges on the spool. There is no way I could put enough tension on this stuff to warp a bobbin. I've tried just my fingers and varied the tension. I've tried using a piece of cloth. The best method seems to be to send the wire under the first bar, then through the middle of the parallel bars, and then over the top bar to the bobbin. I can wind up to 5000 turns but its just too loose. Anytime I try to put more tension it breaks.

[big_teee]

Can you just try using one set of stops?
I would use the bottom set.
Slide the top set to the middle out of the way.
Try using the right winding arm, facing the winder.
You want the winder to be top going.
On the right side, top going, you will be winding CCW.
That is just right for Humbuckers.
Now with the wire going under the wire guide you should be able to control the tension.
Please give that a try.
T

[Train34]

Thank you everyone for your help. I wasted a lot of wire and don't have much to show for it. I bought this project as I usually enjoy d.i.y. but I am not having much fun messing with this. I am going to put the winder up for sale and stick with building amps and playing guitars. FWIW, the winder is nice and I think I could eventually have some success with this. Here is an upright pic

[big_teee]

Don't give up yet.
You'll get the hang of it.
Hang in there.
If I can do it anyone can!
T