Here are some pics of my updated Leesona 102. The tensioning wheel is bypassed as it is way too tweaky with 42 AWG wire. It is nearly impossible to keep from breaking 42 AWG wire with it engaged. The felt tensioner below it provides more than enough tension. The counters are Red Lion Cub 5's. A relay trips the solenoid to stop the wind when the preset count is reached. I can toggle to confirm the RPM for each station and also toggle to the variable clutch to do different TPL counts precisely. The Chucks have a rare earth magnet mounted in them with a hall sensor to trigger the counter. I did a complete tear down. Rebuilt the clutches, new bearings and vibration damper on the drive shaft. It should be good for another 80 years of service. It's a sweet set-up.
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Leesona 102 Updated
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Leesona 102 Updated
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Jon...you da Man!!!!!
That is a really sweet setup. Any chance in doing a video and posting on YouTube? I would love to see it in action
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Thanks Kevin. I'm sure I will post video on YouTube at some point.
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Ooh, that looks nice! I love old machines. You did a great job restoring and updating it.It would be possible to describe everything scientifically, but it would make no sense; it would be without meaning, as if you described a Beethoven symphony as a variation of wave pressure. — Albert Einstein
http://coneyislandguitars.com
www.soundcloud.com/davidravenmoon
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Originally posted by David Schwab View PostOoh, that looks nice! I love old machines. You did a great job restoring and updating it.
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heck, maybe you and possum (with his video skills) can team up and do a documentary on PAFs and how they were made
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Originally posted by JGundry View PostHere are some pics of my updated Leesona 102. The tensioning wheel is bypassed as it is way too tweaky with 42 AWG wire. It is nearly impossible to keep from breaking 42 AWG wire with it engaged. The felt tensioner below it provides more than enough tension.
That said, I'm interested in the details of that tensioner. Could you take some high definition photos from various angles? Thanks.
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Originally posted by JGundry View PostThanks David. Helping my dad restore a 1963 Studebaker Avanti as a teen turned out to be a useful experience when it came to dealing with a old oily coil winder that needed to be ripped apart and cleaned.
I'd love to see more details on the Leesona.It would be possible to describe everything scientifically, but it would make no sense; it would be without meaning, as if you described a Beethoven symphony as a variation of wave pressure. — Albert Einstein
http://coneyislandguitars.com
www.soundcloud.com/davidravenmoon
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I'll scan the detailed line drawing of the tensioner from the manual and post it. It's probably better than photos.
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....
"Dancers" just don't work for pickups at all. I had the Azonic that was made for pickup size wire. the spring dancer that shows tension in grams would start bobbing then just get out of control at winding speeds and broke the wire every time. If you go look at TV Jones website gallery photos you'll see he uses Azonics but by passes the meter spring. If you look at Gibson's winders in recent videos they don't use tensioners at all but felt tensioners, Duncan does the same. Some of them may use dereelers like whisker discs but pretty much everyone uses felt or a tensioner with the spring piece bypassed. If you use a flourescent light to illuminate your winder you can see a sort of strobe effect on the bouncing magnet wire, you'll see multiple frequencies of the bobbing wire, its a pretty intense jerking motioin tensioners can't handle. Personally I use felt and a thumbscrew, low tech seems the best way to go....http://www.SDpickups.com
Stephens Design Pickups
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Originally posted by Possum View Post"Dancers" just don't work for pickups at all. I had the Azonic that was made for pickup size wire. the spring dancer that shows tension in grams would start bobbing then just get out of control at winding speeds and broke the wire every time. If you go look at TV Jones website gallery photos you'll see he uses Azonics but by passes the meter spring. If you look at Gibson's winders in recent videos they don't use tensioners at all but felt tensioners, Duncan does the same. Some of them may use dereelers like whisker discs but pretty much everyone uses felt or a tensioner with the spring piece bypassed. If you use a flourescent light to illuminate your winder you can see a sort of strobe effect on the bouncing magnet wire, you'll see multiple frequencies of the bobbing wire, its a pretty intense jerking motioin tensioners can't handle. Personally I use felt and a thumbscrew, low tech seems the best way to go....
By the way, the out-of-control bobbing implies that the bobbin rotation rate landed on a mechanical resonance of the dancer. Dancers work only if their lowest resonant frequency exceeds the highest frequency in the wire motion. A big pulley on a long thin stalk will have a relatively low resonant frequency.
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Originally posted by JGundry View PostHere are some pics of my updated Leesona 102. The tensioning wheel is bypassed as it is way too tweaky with 42 AWG wire. It is nearly impossible to keep from breaking 42 AWG wire with it engaged. The felt tensioner below it provides more than enough tension.]
I have the operating manual too....There are some assumptions that i have about the machine and tensioners that i have incorporated into the formula for my PAF-style models.
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Originally posted by kevinT View PostI was rereading this post...how did Gibson prevent this from happening?
I have the operating manual too....There are some assumptions that i have about the machine and tensioners that i have incorporated into the formula for my PAF-style models.
The manual has very detailed instruction on how to adjust the tensioners. But the dancers jerking because of the oblong bobbins was an issue. I think it would be possible to make them work but I doubt they would wind a coil as tightly as the felt method. The PAF coils that I have unwound have all been very tightly wound. I lost patience trying to get the tensioners to work. Every time I thought I had it the wire would eventually break. I can't imagine them being used in a factory environment when simply bypassing the tension wheel and just using the felt tensioner works so well.Last edited by JGundry; 05-21-2008, 10:52 PM.
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