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Re: [TCML] Tesla Coil Winder



> Very slick.
>
> Are you going to publish some of the technical details?

That's the plan.  Main push was to get it finished and get some video
documenting the project.  I plan to release the 3D parts and cut files.

> How big are the motors (I think they're steppers, from the look)?

They are NEMA 17 motors.  Don't have the spec on the torque, but they were
ones I had bought to drive my RepRap Mendel 3D printer.  The motor itself
didn't have enough power to drive the coil with any load, so I put a 4:1 gear
ratio on it with some 3D printed double helix gears.

> Did you calibrate the lead screw, or is it consistent enough that the turns
> lay down nicely? Do you have some thing to put drag on the supply spool?

It's 8mm threaded rod.  It has a consistent thread, so no need for
calibration, though I did check that it worked as expected.

> What happens if the supply spool snags: sometimes, you get a turn that wedges
> down between the flange and the next layer on the spool?  Does it just stop
> (or you hit the stop button quickly), and then you figure out what to do to
> fix it?

I haven't had that problem at all.  Maybe I've been lucky, or the drive speed
was set low enough where it was a non-issue.

> Do you lay a piece of double stick tape on the form before winding so that if
> you get a break or a tension drop, the turns don't "sproing" loose?

I had meant to put a layer of hair spray down to help hold the wire, but alas
in my excitement to wind a coil, I didn't.  The wire spool is on bearings but
has a spring to provide constant tension.  Similar to how a wire feed welder
works.

> What's the underlying processor? Arduino? something else?

That's something I plan on documenting more, but it's running on an Arduino.
I'll be posting the code, once I have a chance to clean it up a little.

> Very interesting base panel. It looks like an optical bench, but I assume it's
> wood and drilled on some sort of NC drill?  Is that an off the shelf thing for
> breadboards? Where do you get them?

All cut out on the ShopBot we have at the hacker space (SYN Shop, in Las
Vegas, NV).  In fact, all the wood I used was scrap we had around the shop, so
building this, apart from buying a few bolts and washers I didn't already have
on hand, cost me pretty much nothing.

perl -e 's==UBER?=+y[:-o]}(;->\n{q-yp-y+k}?print:??;-p#)'

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