I've been wanting to step up the next level for my cigar box guitars and thinking about purchasing a pickup winder and making my own pickups. Can anyone give me pros or cons of this, I'm thinking cost, time, etc.
Is it cheaper to buy pickups or to make because of all the material needed to make one? How much time does it take to make one compared go online and purchase one? Any other things I need to know to help with my decisions?
Thanks everyone.
Replies
I say go for it. We learn harmonics, fine woodworking, string tension and contructural engineering, design, wood finishing,fretting, etc etc etc.. So put a bobbin on the end of a spinny thing and try it out, stick a magnet in the middle.. Try your own lace alumitone (there's a huge huge topic in here)..
If you can take a box and a bit of wood and make a guitar, then you can wind some wire around a bobbin and make a pick up.
Your first will be like your first build, your second like your second.. By the time you have built 10 I'm sure you will be able to make 100 for a couple of cents each.
It's cheaper to buy, but the ones you make will sound a lot better. The reason is hand winding is imperfect, which is good for the sound. Perfect machine wound pickups sound kind of sterile.
As the others said, there are some startup costs for materials and you need a lot of patience learning how to handle the hair thin wire. There's definitely a learning curve there.
You can get started with a drill as a winder. Here's an example from Stew Mac. http://www.stewmac.com/How-To/Online_Resources/Learn_About_Guitar_P...
The mounting plate doesn't need to be that fancy. It can be a rectangle of wood with a bolt through it. Chuck the shaft of the bolt in the drill. Make sure to recess the head of the bolt into the wood so it's not sticking out. Then use double stick carpet tape to mount the bobbin.
A calculator is just about useless for counting winds unless you're going really slow. You can just mostly fill up the bobbin and that will be in the ballpark that you need.
I'm also thinking of trying to make a few, just to say I did, though Gitty's are quite affordable and probably better than I can make.
Keep your eyes out for wall-warts from broken electronics, free source of winding wire.
Sewing machine, reed switch, and cheap calculator will do the trick! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGEjU8FC9WQ
The cost can be prohibitive to make just a couple,but i just use an old sewing machine i've adapted,wire,like most things is cheaper in larger lots. To gear up and make just a couple,would only make sense to be able to say 'i've done it', as 1st timers [and regular winders],get a few break offs etc, and have to either join the wire,or start again,the pro side of it is,you can experiment with different setups and styles,which is fun.Good eyesight or a magnifier is a big advantage,I'd recommend 1st timers to do it cheaply at 1st,and see if you enjoy it or not,some guys just use a drill as a winder,or even hand wind them,but i wouldn't like to do 6000 or so winds by hand, hope this helps