In the beginning...
For
their time,
Geo. Stevens
coil winders
were some of
the best
available
anywhere.
They were used
to make radio
and TV
electronic
tuning coils
(inductors),
and Gibson
and other
instrument
makers also
used Stevens
winders to
wind their
pickup coils.
Here is a
1950's ad
showing their
possibilities.
I
bought these
two Stevens
coil winders
years ago on
Ebay. When
I bought them I had an
interest in
antique pinball machines, and
needed a machine to
rewind solenoid coils for them.
I had no
idea they were
missing too many parts to
restore them as they were.
The big one on its own board
is an early
1950's Stevens 120M
gang winder
originally factory set up to
wind four pinball machine
solenoids at once.
If you look
closely, the coil arbor is
still mounted in the machine
with some
partially
wound pinball
solenoids on it!
The small one by itself is my
1940's Model 20 winder.
It was basically stripped for
parts to keep the 120M running
over the years.
Today, I am studying
electromechanical engineering
at my local technical college,
where I learned about robotics
and the Arduino microcomputer.
I decided that since the
missing parts
for my winders were impossible
to find, I would use my own
Arduino and a servomotor to
convert
my Model 20 into a modern CNC
controlled pickup winding
robot. After all, if some of
my
classmates could design
'battlebots' using them
I could use the same tech to
make my pickups.
Looks
hopeless... doesn't it?
It's
not.
The castings are all
there, the shafts are
good, it still has its
original
wire feeder
(hanging
down on the traverse
feed rod),
and best of all,
the 'clock' wire
turns counter
actually still
works! I will
have to make
some parts,
but there's a
lot of
potential
here.
If
you're
interested,
you can read
about it as it
happens if you
click on the
links below.
The Missing Link (and gears, cams, etc)
Winder Theory (how it works)
The Arduino Microprocessor
The New Electronic Drive
Tensioner... The Other Half of
the Winder
Compusnags! (or
The Uno Blues)
1950's
'Meteor' Swiss
Made Wire
Tensioners
NEW A New Brain for the Winder - MEGA2560
NEW Nextion -
The Next
Generation Of
Displays!
Before
anyone asks -
I paid for all
of the parts
you're reading
about in this
blog,
and I have not
received any
compensation
of any kind at
all for
mentioning
them
in my pages. I
mention them
only because
I'm using them
myself.
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