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In this article I want to discuss the pickup winder 1.0 design that I built. This pickup winder is very cheap and easy to build. Being cheap is great but there are a few limitations. One being the speed at which this winder can wind a pickup is limited to 1000 to 1200 rpm. The limitation falls solely on the ability of the counter to be able to count at speeds above this rpm. The counter for the project states that its limitation is 20 rounds per second or 1200 rounds per minute. Some pickup winders wind closer to 2000 rounds per minute. Now, starting out and using this pickup winder as an introduction into pickup winding, 1200 rpm’s is probably more speed than a novice winder will feel comfortable at. When I started winding, I can’t say that I reached 800 rpm. So, if you’re just wanting to start building pickups and you are not worried about speed, then this is the project for you.
The first component I want to discuss is the motor. https://amzn.to/2MDXekZ It is a 1000 rpm geared 12 volt motor. The motors speed specification is 1000 rpm without a load. I’d say under load the motor may spin at 850-950 rpm. One downside to this motor, in my time with it, is that it is fairly loud. Winding pickups is supposed to be a stress-free operation and this motor can destroy that with its noise. Now you can go for a nicer motor. One like I used in the pickup winder 2.0. https://amzn.to/2zoNX7z It’s very quiet but you will have to reduce the speed from 3420 rpm down to one that is manageable for the slower counter.
The second component I want to discuss is the Pulse Width Modulation speed controller. You may have asked yourself, “why can’t I just wire in a current limiting potentiometer to accomplish the speed reduction for the motor?”. The short answer is you can but you will not like the result. The way a pulse width modulation speed controller works is, if you can imagine, it is like a switch that cuts on and off many times a second. The power stays a constant voltage when on. the speed controller uses the pause or the off time to regulate the speed of the motor. This design helps keep the motor in full current draw while reducing its speed.
As you can see in the diagram the difference in the on and off times compared to the duty cycle. The 25% duty cycle uses shorter on cycles with longer off cycles which slows the motor. The 75% duty cycle uses longer on cycles with shorter off cycles. This creates a motor controller that keeps close to specs on its torque rating. If you were to use just a current limiting potentiometer you would decrease the speed of the motor by lowering the current but you would in turn lower the torque of the motor causing it to stall under a very small load. This is why the PWM is very important in the pickup winder design.
https://amzn.to/2KZezT4
The counter is a cheap device that uses a AA Battery as its power source. The counter is basically a hall effect sensor that opens and closes a circuit to add a tick to the counter every time a magnet passes in front of the sensor. This is a very efficient and an easy way to count rotations for the pickup winder. Now it is easy and efficient but as stated above it has a very specific limitation in that how fast it can actually count without missing rotations. The counter states its limitation is at 20 counts per second or 1200 rpm. This is the one area for the pickup winder 2.0 that I had to contend with because I wanted to be able to count up to 2000 to 3000 rpm. To accomplish this task for the Pickup Winder 2.0 I used an OPTO interrupter switch to count upwards of 3000 rpm. One of the tests I conducted with the switch was using it to count a 5500-rpm motor. It completed the task with no problem. So, with that being said, I have no idea of the limitations of the OPTO switch counter. If you want to look at this design click here. https://www.cwkshop.com/projects/pickup-winder-2-0/
https://amzn.to/2zsxjnq
The last component of the Pickup Winder is the switch. This is one spot that many people have had questions about and I understand why. It is easy to scratch your head at how this thing works but it is very simple once you see how it works. We all know that to reverse a dc motor all you have to do is reverse the polarity or flip the positive and negative wires.
This switch does this by flipping the polarity. In the up position it connects the lower 2 terminals with the middle 2 terminals flipping the polarity. Moving the switch in the other direction sends power directly from the input to the terminals of the motor reversing it to its normal polarity. Also, one thing to consider is to make sure your switch is a double pole double throw (DPDT) switch in an (on off on) configuration.
The only other component of this design is the power supply which is just a 12–volt wall wart that you probably have lying around your house. One thing to consider is putting a fuse between the power supply and the speed controller board. A one to two amp fuse is sufficient for this pickup winder.
I hope this helps you in getting stated in building a beginner pickup winder. It‘s very simple and very cheap. As always if you have any questions, I’m always here to help you along the way. Please feel free to email me anytime with questions. Thanks for Viewing.
Chase Weatherford
WeatherfordWoodcrafts@gmail.com
How to build a pickup winder. We will take a trip through how I built my pickup winder. Ill be going over all the parts, where i got them and how much i paid for them. See link below for products similar to what i purchased. Thanks for watching!
How to build a pickup winder. We will take a trip through how I built my pickup winder. Ill be going over all the parts, where i got them and how much i paid for them. See link below for products similar to what i purchased. Thanks for watching!
How to wire the Pickup Winder. In this video I go through the process of wiring up the motor, speed controller, switch and power supply for the DIY Pickup Winder. I also discuss the punch counter and how it is battery operated. Hope you enjoy the video. If you have any questions let me know thanks for watching.
How to build a pickup winder. We will take a trip through how I built my pickup winder. Ill be going over all the parts, where i got them and how much i paid for them. See link below for products similar to what i purchased. Thanks for watching!
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