Quote:
Originally Posted by joebog1
Over the ditch its made by Tesa tape. Its available from many many sources in Asia, all over, and is cheap from there. I have used the non branded stuff and I would swear its identical to Tesa tape. Its available in perhaps 100 widths, starting at about 1/16" wide.
There is double enamelled wire. There is single enamel with single silk. There is single enamel with double silk. There is double enamel with single silk, etc etc. Some of it can be VERY expensive. Whatever enamelled wire you have will be fine in your situation as the voltage across it will be fairly small. When measuring enamelled copper wire, its normal to remove the enamel and just measure the copper NOT the insulation as well. If you have double enamel its going to measure much thicker than the copper itself. I normally burn it off with a lil gas torch, then using very soft steel wool I remove the residue and then measure. DONT be over fussed about polishing the copper, just remove the residue. Traditionally a micrometer is used to measure copper wire, but a modern digital calipers should be close enough, especially if they are good quality.
There are hundreds of uchoob videos showing transformer winding from the cheapest nastiest build to way over the top audiophoolery supreme eccentric style.
Modern insulation, ( say from last 20 years ) is mostly poly u as well and is called "solderable " enamel. You can burn it off with a hot soldering iron. I have used it mainly because good old fashioned enamel has not been available in guages I needed. There is a very old "black enamel" wire that is a disaster. Its basically shellac ( made from Lac beetles) and you can pick it by scraping the so called enamel off with your fingernail. If you have any, GET rid of it or you will end in disaster.
There is also enamelled Eureka wire which is NOT copper, but resistance wire. Different guages means different resistances!!. BUT with different chemical mixes the same guages can be very different resistances. If you have inherited this wire, it would be a good idea to check before you start.
Keep asking questions  You are about 2% into learning about transformers, wires, and laminations. I have been doing it more than 50 years and I am still a rank beginner.
Best of luck
Joe
Keep the questions coming. |
OK, thats good to know, ill burn the insulation off this stuff first, I think there wont be much in it anyway.
I know what you mean about the black shellac wire, that stuff was crap!
Ive come across the odd roll of it and it was all cracking.
Yes I know I have a lot to learn and have no idea where to begin for winding my own output transformers for a future project!
Im hoping there is some sort of chart out there with all the data for turns ratios and core sizes for common impedances.
The math for working it out is way over my head!
Power transformer theory is much more simple and there is computer software that calculates it all for you.
I forgot to mention ED, yes your right, the transformer laminations are not interleaved and there was a piece of paper separating the E and I sections.
There were also two strips of brass which is not magnetic that was holding it all together by the bolts on each corner.