MDF coil housing

[ripsdevala]

Trying to make a preety coil housing like other members but always fail, like this two
Full resin and with fiberglass on the right


Now Im trying with MDF, wood dust+resin as filler, I hope this will work, any sugestion will be apreciated.

[ripsdevala]

Omg... its heavy after put the filler.


What is the good average weight for ready to use coil?

[FatBob]

I have a couple of great coils that weigh too much after flooding them with epoxy so I know the feeling.

My latest is a knitting hoop with a plastic tube on it. I feed the wire in and pulled it round and round to
wind it. It is done now but needs something to fix the winding's. I'm not sure what to use that is light
and firm and will not affect the signal.

I used super glue to fix the windings on one coil and it melted the coating and shorted it out!

Most MD companies use some sort of expanding foam and sink the windings in foam for a stiff but light form.

The DB coils guy uses very thin plastic for his forms trying to keep the weight down. The inner material is
supposed to stiffen and firm it up as the coil is closed.

[Qiaozhi]

Why don't you use the simple method suggested in ITMD? ... A coil cover plus either MDF or plywood.

[ripsdevala]

Why don't you use the simple method suggested in ITMD? ... A coil cover plus either MDF or plywood.

What i see is one circle plywood, steam and some parts, how to cover housing edge, do you have a link to full construction

[ripsdevala]

I used super glue to fix the windings on one coil and it melted the coating and shorted it out.

I use it too, but not melting anything, i see other members have the same problem, maybe the glue is too super.
My glue

[Qiaozhi]

What i see is one circle plywood, steam and some parts, how to cover housing edge, do you have a link to full construction

Inside the METAL DETECTOR - Second Edition - Published 2015

[ripsdevala]

Interested yes..... but i need to study the basic electro first.

[CDI]

For coil housing, read this...

[CDI]

This is my 9" DD wooden mold for thermoforming.
U can find on google many thermoforming video's and tutorials.
This method will give u best result for sure.
As i said, it's not that easy, but not impossible.

[ripsdevala]

Ya that method I think is the best and easy, but I dont have a vacum cleaner, never see one of it in my live.

[ripsdevala]

My final finishing coil+housing.... preety but heavy
Weight 324grams

[CDI]

Looking pretty nice. But this is for pi machine.

[ripsdevala]

Yes that for my barracuda, it can reduce by half, i make it to thick inside

[Tim]

This coil is very light-255gms. You can make the mold any shape you like, then cut a length of thin walled pvc downpipe, split, then heat in oven to 180c. Lay flat and cool. Cut to shape of mold with 20mm oversize. Re-heat to 180c. Push into mold with former. Make sure former is filed down to allow for thickness of pvc- a bit more, so it's a loose fit. Trim even to depth-don't worry about the wavy edge, the silicone will cover it. Place the wire and foam inside.Cut several layers to fit inside coil, then one(or as many as needed) fullsize on top and bottom.Cut another piece of pvc for the top, and heat and flatten it. Leave it square. Clamp and glue with white silicone, inside and outside join, allow a few days to dry fully, then trim to shape, leaving 1/8 inch bigger than base, so silicone has extra to stick to.
A PI mono coil doesn't matter if the wire moves a bit during build. Just wrap with some tape. As long as enough foam is used, it won't move once clamped and glued.
The twisted Cat5 is more sensitive than enamelled wire. The red 22AWG tinned copper makes the most sensitive to gold I have found yet. It is[sold as] 17 strands, .15mm. I have read there are better types, but this is really good.
By making one wooden mold you can then salvage pvc pipe and make many coils.
Not as flash as Dons(dfbowers), but can be made with minimal equipment. My Baracuda is about the same weight as my Tracker IV, but more compact.
More comprehensive pics in the Minipulse Plus thread.
(Sorry mods-I now realise both these posts should be in the tools and techniques thread-move if you like.)