An old carriage wheel and axle were used to good advantage in the making of the pasture stake shown in the sketch. When the animal tethered to the wheel walks around the stake, it is practically impossible for the rope to become tangled, as the wheel revolves on the axle.—Contributed by W. F. Quackenbush, New York, N. Y.
Inkstand Made of a Sheet of Paper
A Sheet of Heavy Paper Quickly Transformed into a Holder for Ink Bottle and Pen
Drawings are not infrequently ruined by the spilling of ink, which might have been averted by the use of the simple inkstand cut from a sheet of heavy paper, as shown in the sketch. The upper illustration shows the method of cutting the paper to fit the ink bottle and stopper, and to produce a pen rack. The device will be found especially useful when materials for drawing are used away from a place especially fitted for the purpose, since the inkstand can be made in a few minutes from material readily available.—Contributed by Henry C. Franke, Jr., Philadelphia, Pa.
How to Wind Wire on Electrical Apparatus
When a beginner, it was the despair of the writer to try to produce in his homemade apparatus the mathematical regularity and perfection of the winding on the coils of electrical instruments in the supply stores, but when he found that this professional and workmanlike finish could be obtained by means of a simple contrivance, and a little care and attention to details before beginning, experimental work took on a new interest.
At the outset let it be stated that wire should never be wound directly on the iron core, not only because it cannot be done satisfactorily in that manner, but for the reason that it is often desired to remove a coil from a piece of apparatus after it has served its purpose. It is therefore advisable to make a bobbin, which consists of a thin, hard tube with two ends. The tube may be easily formed by wrapping a suitable length of medium-weight paper on the core, having first coated it with ordinary fish glue, excepting, of course, the first 2 or 3 in. in direct contact with the core. Wind tightly until the thickness is from ¹⁄₃₂ in. to ¹⁄₁₆ in., depending upon the diameter of the core, and then wrap with string until the glue hardens, after which the tube may be sandpapered and trimmed up as desired.
Where the wire is not of too small a gauge and is not to be wound to too great a depth, no ends will be necessary if each layer of wire is stopped one-half turn before the preceding one, as indicated in the accompanying sketch, and is also thoroughly shellacked. With ordinary care magnet wire may be wound in this manner to a depth of over one-half inch.
