Coil Calculator for those who prefer to "roll their own"

[Vortex Joe - N3IBX]

cut and paste this URL: http://www.crystalradio.net/professorcoyle/

Kewl!
      Joe N3IBX

[KE1GF]

Good find Joe, It's more advanced than my air-core calculator because it accounts for the parasitic capacitance.

-Bill 'GF

[Vortex Joe - N3IBX]

Good find Joe, It's more advanced than my air-core calculator because it accounts for the parasitic capacitance.

-Bill 'GF

Bill,
    Happy Thanksgiving! I thought the coil calculator looked FB and thanks for the comment.
 
BTW, do you have a coil winding machine or do you do it the old fashioned way? I see coil winders from time to time on epay; but they command Gi-huge-ic sums of money.

If you don't have one, do you have any thoughts on rolling your own to roll your own, so to speak - hi? I have an old hand drill I'd fancy making a coil winer with. No turns counter on it, but it's better than nuthin.

Regards,
           Joe N3IBX

[KE1GF]

Joe I don't. I have made a few jigs to wind some heavy gauge stuff in the past. Someday I'll have a metal lathe so I can make forms etc...

I hope your turkey day was good.

[W1RKW]

Joe,

I once had to wind a coil for a control solenoid for a A/C system in one of my previous cars.  Because it was a dealer only item and the dealer wanted nearly $100 I ended up rewinding the solenoid myself. I peeled apart the injected molded plastic and discovered probably 2000 turns of fine wire on the solenoid bobbin.  I fabricated a crude winder out of metal rod, barstock and a few other items I had layin' around and came up with something like this:

http://home.att.net/~w1rkw/winder.gif

I chucked the winder into a variable speed drill and held the drill in a vise.  For the most part it worked OK fine.
Obviously for other types of coils this won't work.

[W2VW]

Joe,

I once had to wind a coil for a control solenoid for a A/C system in one of my previous cars.  Because it was a dealer only item and the dealer wanted nearly $100 I ended up rewinding the solenoid myself. I peeled apart the injected molded plastic and discovered probably 2000 turns of fine wire on the solenoid bobbin.  I fabricated a crude winder out of metal rod, barstock and a few other items I had layin' around and came up with something like this:

http://home.att.net/~w1rkw/winder.gif

I chucked the winder into a variable speed drill and held the drill in a vise.  For the most part it worked OK fine.
Obviously for other types of coils this won't work.

What kinda car and where in the system was that used? Just curious.

[Vortex Joe - N3IBX]

Joe,

I once had to wind a coil for a control solenoid for a A/C system in one of my previous cars.  Because it was a dealer only item and the dealer wanted nearly $100 I ended up rewinding the solenoid myself. I peeled apart the injected molded plastic and discovered probably 2000 turns of fine wire on the solenoid bobbin.  I fabricated a crude winder out of metal rod, barstock and a few other items I had layin' around and came up with something like this:

http://home.att.net/~w1rkw/winder.gif

I chucked the winder into a variable speed drill and held the drill in a vise.  For the most part it worked OK fine.
Obviously for other types of coils this won't work.

Bob - Many thanks for the info and the picture. I saved it for future reference. It may just do the trick for what I'm looking for. I have an alternate design to do spiderwebs; and most of what I'd like to do will be on a standard round bobbin (big tank coils exempt - they need copper tubing).

I'm curious with Dave, APE. What part did you repair?
Very Best Regards,
                         Joe N3IBX

[W1RKW]

I don't remember exactly but I believe the problem was a defroster and A/C issue.  There was a flap that directed air for the defroster and A/C in the ventilation system.  The flap was controlled by a vacuum servo. The servo was controlled by a valve that was controlled by this particular solenoid.  When the A/C was running there would be no air flow from the A/C vents.  The dead solenoid prevented the flap from moving to the proper position when the A/C vents would be selected.  I think that was the problem.  We're going back 15 years or so. Things are little foggy.