psw Posted June 7, 2005 Report Share Posted June 7, 2005 I understand the wear issues but lego is easy to come buy. So part replacement should be easy for the mantinence crew to take care of. I find the modular aspect very appealing. This is by no means a production machine. I'll be lucky if I make 3 or 4 guitars this year. ...But in the end its lego so you can't expect it to be indestructable. ← Well...just didn't want people to get too enthusiastic with their production quotas. And as you say...you can alway's hire more lego guys I built quite a few prototype winders before I came up with my work in progress...with lego you could try all sorts of neat ideas, cheaply and easily...me, I never got access to this kind of lego growing up Here's a neat web site of a fellow aussie who just loves making winders...often from all sorts of found stuff...great to get a spring board of ideas from for those without lego and it's varied and colourful workforce. Designed2Wind - Pickup Winding Machine Website Nice...I'll be looking forward to the tutorial...perhaps Mr Bill could give us a factory tour...ormaybe Leo the pirate...yo-ho-ho!!! pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stalefish Posted June 8, 2005 Report Share Posted June 8, 2005 This thing keeps growing and growing.. I've refined the revolution counter by adding another traversing arm to the other side of the winder.. It basically works like one of those reed switch things.. The black and white wires are basically an extension of the "=" key of the calculator.. When the circuit is completed, the calculator registers the key.. As the arm moves back and forth (or, strictly speaking, elliptically), the black wire would flick at the aluminum foil which is connected to the white wire, momentarily completing the circuit once every revolution.. Top view.. Close up of the reed switch.. The calculator.. I'm still looking around for a cheap motor.. Good point about the wear, though.. Will have to keep an eye on that.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Marossy Posted June 8, 2005 Report Share Posted June 8, 2005 Wow, you are a serious techno-geek, aren't you?! Love the "hotwired" calculator! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psw Posted June 8, 2005 Report Share Posted June 8, 2005 It basically works like one of those reed switch things.. The black and white wires are basically an extension of the "=" key of the calculator.. When the circuit is completed, the calculator registers the key.. As the arm moves back and forth (or, strictly speaking, elliptically), the black wire would flick at the aluminum foil which is connected to the white wire, momentarily completing the circuit once every revolution.. ← I've recharged the camera and will post some pics later of my film rewinding/winding machine and calculator. Aluminium foil, aye!? The go really is a reed switch activated by a magnet...you could use modeling clay to mount it. Same with the counter. You can tape thin wires to the = key of a calculator and bring them out to the reed switch and it works quite well (as long as you don't go too fast that the switch bounces). This stuff really is good for experimenting though. Once you're happy with a design it wouldn't be hard to translate it into a more solid reality. Old broken printers for instance contain all manner of gears, drive belts, pulley's and even stepper motors for salvage. Threaded rod and bolts make all kinds of push rods and even could seve as a kind of worm gear moving a nut alond it's tread as it turns. Hardware stores sell some cheap small bearings for rolling windows and doors. Check out that site I posted above...he makes really nice winders...lot's of people started with an electic drill clamped to a desk! psw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LGM Guitars Posted June 8, 2005 Report Share Posted June 8, 2005 I just have to say, out of all the cool stuff I've seen built on this site, this is my favorite! I needed a laugh today, thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psw Posted June 8, 2005 Report Share Posted June 8, 2005 LGM...this thread is something special.... you should do it yourself...it links in with your little motto LGM: LGM Guitars...turning dreams into reality... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psw Posted June 9, 2005 Report Share Posted June 9, 2005 Here's a picture of my film winder / calculator counter hand pickup winder: I last used this to wind my tiny hex drivers for my sustainer project so the spinle is really small (coke bottle cap)... On the base plate you'll see two hooks...the wire threads from the spool on the floor through the first right hook...then it goes between the yellow felt which tightens via the white knob on a bolt to adjust the tension...it then goes through the second hook and up to the bobbin on the spindle. It works pretty well but it's a lot of hand winding if you wanted to do a real pickup with 1000's of turns....so I built this: You can see that I've hired some reputable consultants to look it over with a view to finishing it. It does work in the present form BTW. The display on the right is the counter and the left a tachometer...lots of LED's indicate the direction of the Auto transversing system, etc. I hope these consultants live up to their reputation born of this thread.... pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chalig Posted June 9, 2005 Report Share Posted June 9, 2005 lol, ive been reading through this topic, n last night i had a go, not at making a pickup winder, but at just seeing what ratio i culd acheive using gears... it ended up, with the technics lego and gears being 9:1 it would have been mor if not for my limited amount of lego:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stalefish Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 lol, ive been reading through this topic, n last night i had a go, not at making a pickup winder, but at just seeing what ratio i culd acheive using gears... it ended up, with the technics lego and gears being 9:1 it would have been mor if not for my limited amount of lego:D ← Yeah, I got that same ratio too.. I'm thinking that the difficulty would be the start up.. Too sudden a start may just snap the wire straight away.. That's assuming you're using some sort of motor.. For hand winding, I say the higher the ratio, the better.. Less cranking.. Hehhe.. Psw: Now there's a professional looking setup.. Maybe I'm just turned on by the LEDs.. Heheh.. Oh, and that giraffe looks like a real work horse, man.. Good to have such help around when you need it!! Does he work shifts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psw Posted June 10, 2005 Report Share Posted June 10, 2005 Psw: Now there's a professional looking setup.. Maybe I'm just turned on by the LEDs.. Heheh.. Oh, and that giraffe looks like a real work horse, man.. Good to have such help around when you need it!! Does he work shifts? ← LED's...that's what happens when you buy a mixed bag of 100 There's even more in the back: Here you can see the cream coloured sewing machine motor which drives the grinder via a belt drive. BTW...the belt drive is better than the gears as there is a bit of grip (and maybe some slip) when starting and stopping...avoiding wire breakage on starting....natural soft start! The white box to the right, is a 12volt power supply for the AT motor, counter and other electronics. On the front panel are various power sockets for 12 and 3 volts...plus PWM. The little circuit board higher up has a PWM (pulse width modulator) for controling the AT motor without loss of power at low speeds and a relay for changing directions...LED's help when things dont work cause you can tell what the circuit thinks it's doing, even if the machine isn't I have a couple of aussie 240v powerpoints at the bottom to plug in a soldering iron or whatever...so you can see the design is actually a kind of workstation for quite a few experiments... Anyway...a work in progress...these consultants don't say much but apparently the girraffe long neck is used to see into tight spaces...he's got limited neck movement and none to the side but apparently he's immune to electric shock...bar a little melting on the nose It could possibly be a little over designed...maybe...a little...let this be a warning, too great a plan and you'll never get the thing finished!!!!!! psw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarGuy Posted June 11, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 11, 2005 Finally done it! Link to build your own. Its just the basic crank version but im sure you guys can adapt the motor to it. Maybe I'll write that one later. Lego Pickup Winder Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Marossy Posted June 11, 2005 Report Share Posted June 11, 2005 psw- I love the pickup winder - nice work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psw Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 LK posted this in the Sustainer Thread.... Not for nothin', but the June issue of Nuts & Volts has a computer controlled coil winder/counter project in it, if one of you driver-winding maniacs wants to go totally automated (might be applicable to pickup winding as well) - no stores in my area carry it (of course), so if one of you checks it out, let me know if it's worth hunting down somewhere outside this literacy-free zone I live in. ← Here's a pic of what they've got to offer: It's a computer controlled coil winder using a pair of stepper motors. One is used to spin the bobbin and the other to "transverse" from side to side. Stepper motors can be salvaged from old printers and the machine is controled via computer with a Visual Basic Program. The Computer would be able to keep count accurately by the number of "step" instructions it sends. Now the thing isn't a pickup winder and would need quite a bit of modification but with a little help from the lego knowhow team, it probably wouldn't be hard to adapt. Problem is...there is no chance that I'll be seeing this mag down here in Oz but I thought I'd post it here also to give you some other ideas...sorry no lego psw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Posted June 18, 2005 Report Share Posted June 18, 2005 (edited) Wouldn't this have problems with uneven wire tension? (talking about the Lego version) Pete Edited June 18, 2005 by Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarGuy Posted June 19, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2005 (edited) Wouldn't this have problems with uneven wire tension? (talking about the Lego version) Pete ← Possibly, but thats the whole point of hand wound pickups. The variation. Edited June 19, 2005 by GuitarGuy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Posted June 19, 2005 Report Share Posted June 19, 2005 Ok, that's a good thing then!! Have you installed and played any of the pickups you've wound? Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkey69962000 Posted June 19, 2005 Report Share Posted June 19, 2005 (edited) i just made my own lego one in about 10 min. Maybe less. What people who have mindstorms invention systems dont realize, is that you can get a rotation sensor. I put my rotation sensor on the motor where the bobin will spin, and then program the RCX brick to how many wraps of wire i want. ITs that easy. ITs only fastening a tensioner, fastening a spinning wheel for the wire, and then putting a place for a motor connected to a place for a bobin with the rotation sensor at the end. Oh, just got a digital camera so ill upload pic by end of the day. LATER: the yellow wheel hub stands for a bobin, i couldnt make one becuase i dont have the cd cases and wood to make it right now. The black wheel (little hard to see becuase it blends in with the black bricks surrounding it) that is closest to the camera represents a spool of wire. The grey wheel is the tensioner/spacer and acts as itself. The blue brick next to the bobin is the rotation sensor, hence it has a wire coming out. The motor is the grey thing on the opposite side. The big yellow brick is the programable RCX brick and controls the sensors and motors. Well hope you all like it. ANY QUESTIONS? Edited June 19, 2005 by monkey69962000 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarGuy Posted June 19, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2005 (edited) Just FYI to enyone else building this. You can't really unspool the wire like the tire is representing. The reason is, the spool it too heavy and the wire can't provide enough force to turn it before breaking. It's best to put the spool straigt up on the floor and let it unravel itself off the top. This way there is no tension. Edit: And i know what you're going to say....what about the picture above. It appears to be a heavier wire. Even so, once it gets spinning it remains spinning and when you stop the spool....same deal keeps spinning and then you have a mess of tangled wire. (this is from experience) Edited June 19, 2005 by GuitarGuy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkey69962000 Posted June 19, 2005 Report Share Posted June 19, 2005 i know how heavey the spool is. I tried a spool on the toy wheel, and the motor i have can pull it. Stoping it is an issue. i can solve that with a motorized brake. Im going to give my lego mind a rest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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