That is the best foam cutter I have see anywhere. And with all the accessories it’s definitely the best system for wire foam cutting , professional grade top notch 👍👍
Hi Geoff, great vid but most importantly, yours is the best design for a DIY hot wire cutter that I've seen anywhere on You Tube... very well done Sir! Also, your exlpanations are first class... I particularly liked your highly instructive and easy to follow demo of the electrical circuitry ... I'm no electrician either but I reckon I could follow your explanation and diargram easily enough. I love your attention to detail... there's some real junk out there... I reckon your design will last for ever. I'm looking into building a hot wire cutter as I need to reline and refurbish a guitar case for a very expensive guitar... but I can also see uses for other bits of my band's gear... cutouts for microphones and in-ear monitors and any other electrical stuff etc., which needs protection. Well done on a great design and build. Cheers, Kevin from Southport (it's not in the South and it's not a port... go figure). Here's a link to some live performances of my band. Enjoy! ruclips.net/video/p-WE3mEkgGI/видео.html
Great job. Although it is possible and too much for a hot wire, but I enjoyed it until the very end of the video. And something I will use. Большое спасибо.
You did a great job! I am now making something of a kind, but even more crazy - adding a microcontroller to calculate and show the actual temperature of the wire based on the volt/amp data on it
You have wired the ammeter shunt to the positive side of the power supply and not the negative, that's why it doesn't work with the same power supply. There is a diagram on the amazon page.
mimiminied thanks! I found two different diagrams on Amazon. Thought I had followed them in a prototype set up , but couldn’t get it to read Amps, just volts. I am certain it is down to my error, but for the life of me I was sure I tried it to the negative. Must have been something else I had wrong as well! Electrics is not my strong point ;) Anyhow thanks for pointing out my mistake!!! I will get round to trying it the right way.
Thanks! I didn’t put the degree angle on the back because I had too much flexibility in adjusting the wire, so when changing/ replacing the wire and setting it back to 90° I didn’t have the confidence in the accuracy of the locked position at the back. I preferred to check the Angle each time to be certain. Maybe a future version will have more of a positive stop and therefore degree markings. It is something that was on my feature list originally.
Wicked build definitely the best iv seen by far. Any chance of doing another vid and going into abit more detail on the wiring and foot pedal and also i am very intrigued as to what have are you using as a hand held attachment this i would really like to see
Thanks for the message! To be honest I have so many more ideas for other projects that I don't really have the time, especially because I also have two kids. I am prioritising the new projects over revisiting old ones but am happy to answer any specific questions you may have. I have taken it easy in the workshop for a while but will have some cracking videos coming out later in the year, so watch this space.
Geoff, (Jeff?) - was wondering whether you wired it with 20A circuitry for need, or would 10A be sufficient? I am definitely not an electrics guy, and can't find many 20A components locally here in Cairo, but can find equivalent 10A ones pretty readily. Do you think those would be sufficient? For example, I can get a 10A PWM Motor Speed Control Switch Manual (12Vdc to 40Vdc) but can't find a 20A one, can get a 10A Volt & Amp meter but not a 20A one, and so on. Thanks for the great build video!
Matthew Miller first spelling was correct ;) Geoff. 10amps will be more than enough for this, I rarely go above 5amps, some dense thick foam then 8amps depends on the speed I want to cut at. But obviously I am no electrician so do this at your own risk ;)
I don't have access to exactly the same materials as Geoff (I have 30mm extrusion, instead of 20mm, for example) but here are my Sketchup model & plans (open the Scenes to see the plan layouts). It includes the basic structural elements and excludes the electronics, accessories, guides, etc. drive.google.com/open?id=1LI7r76zzzlpL5m2SMb9QHb3kT6kSxgEE
Really like the design of this, of all the hot wire cutters I've seen thus far. Working on building one like yours as close as I can get it. Many of the links for parts are obsolete, but are still available here in the U.S. I looked in Instagram for the schematic, but no where to be found. I can figure it out but if you have something it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for posting this excellent design for all to use. I look forward to getting started on this project as soon as the parts arrive..
Thanks for the kind comments! I never actually got time to produce a schematic sorry! Hopefully everything you need is in the video, but feel free to ask questions and I will try to answer them. Would be interested to see pictures of your build and the final Hotwire foam cutter! Good luck!
Jeff, I've started the assembly portion of the hot wire cutter, but still waiting on other parts to arrive. I would like to send you pictures of the assembly, and also maybe post a video of it on my youtube channel. This of course is with your permission as the design is of your making, and again excellent well thought out design.
Hey Jeff, finally completed the Foam Cutter Video. Here is the link, hope you like it. Not nearly as professional as your videos, but I think the message gets across. Let me know what you think. Again, thanks for the excellent base design... ruclips.net/video/cIHLlx4zLJM/видео.html
What type of wire are you using? I used Nichrome 28 gauge, i think this is key. As for the power supply, i have a 12volt, variable up to 15 amps. I generally have it set at about 15amp. but then vary it on the potentiometer only using about 4 amps. I think all of this is dependant on the the length of the wire. You can use this calculator to work out what you need for the gauge wire you have: www.easycalculation.com/engineering/electrical/nichrome-wire-calculator.php Good Luck!
Stuff I Made ,well I like to see a video of your work space, and to see a short video of all the tools u got there. At least your main tools, Im sure others will like to see it aswell
How much was your estimated total cost and how many labor/research/procurement hours to build this near perfect foam slaying system? My estimate is $350 & 40 hours making this around a $10,000 product at $250/hr (in my opinion). If this was on the market, as a consumer I would say yeah that looks like an $800 hot wire foam cutter and then click buy as my life in architecture school just got hundreds of hours less difficult and frustrating.
To be honest I have no idea how many hours, but for the sake of conversation, lets assume that your estimate is somewhat close... I suppose this would be only for the prototype stage, I.e where I got to with the one in the video... to make it in to a product I could sell would likely take three times that amount, not including production, packaging, marketing etc. I am not sure people would pay $800 for it, perceived value vs more cost effective solutions out there. The main purpose for me really was to go through a process of prototyping, ideating and researching all the features and innovation I would want out of such a product, I didnt quite include all of my ideas in the final version, maybe 90%. Some comments say it was over engineered, but that was my goal, make it feature rich and how close could I get to a vision in my head. Was fun. The sad part is I don't often use it now ;) Glad you enjoyed the video!
Strange thing people don't make these with weight attached to the hanging wire instead of a spring for tension. There must be a good reason for it, and I don't see it? Perhaps a water bottle (adjustable tension).
Hi Geoff thanks again for this amazing video on your own Top of the Range Hot Wire Table Top this is the best Model i have seen and I have been using the Proxxon Hot Wire Table Top Model and I just hope you might be able to contact me please I am really interested to speak with you regarding your Model please Greetings from the South West of Ireland 🇮🇪 Teady
That is the best foam cutter I have see anywhere. And with all the accessories it’s definitely the best system for wire foam cutting , professional grade top notch 👍👍
Darrell Huneycutt such kind words! Thanks very much for taking the time to say so!
Very nice clean build.
Love the epoxy fix, looks pro! Seriously impressed, subbed!
Nice build!
Hi Geoff, great vid but most importantly, yours is the best design for a DIY hot wire cutter that I've seen anywhere on You Tube... very well done Sir! Also, your exlpanations are first class... I particularly liked your highly instructive and easy to follow demo of the electrical circuitry ... I'm no electrician either but I reckon I could follow your explanation and diargram easily enough. I love your attention to detail... there's some real junk out there... I reckon your design will last for ever. I'm looking into building a hot wire cutter as I need to reline and refurbish a guitar case for a very expensive guitar... but I can also see uses for other bits of my band's gear... cutouts for microphones and in-ear monitors and any other electrical stuff etc., which needs protection. Well done on a great design and build. Cheers, Kevin from Southport (it's not in the South and it's not a port... go figure). Here's a link to some live performances of my band. Enjoy! ruclips.net/video/p-WE3mEkgGI/видео.html
Kevin Hookham
Thanks a lo,t some very kind comments, much appreciated. I will check out your your music and good luck with your hot Wire cutter!
Incredible performance
Brilliant simply brilliant, beautiful craftsmanship
Great job. Although it is possible and too much for a hot wire, but I enjoyed it until the very end of the video. And something I will use. Большое спасибо.
You did a great job!
I am now making something of a kind, but even more crazy - adding a microcontroller to calculate and show the actual temperature of the wire based on the volt/amp data on it
Andrey Abramov wow sounds amazing! Be sure to share! Are you doing a video?
Stuff I Made no, i'm not into that. Maybe some day
great work for great tool
Very well done. Excellent stuff
Great work! Thanks you. That wire clamping system is very usefull.
You have wired the ammeter shunt to the positive side of the power supply and not the negative, that's why it doesn't work with the same power supply. There is a diagram on the amazon page.
mimiminied thanks! I found two different diagrams on Amazon. Thought I had followed them in a prototype set up , but couldn’t get it to read Amps, just volts. I am certain it is down to my error, but for the life of me I was sure I tried it to the negative. Must have been something else I had wrong as well! Electrics is not my strong point ;)
Anyhow thanks for pointing out my mistake!!! I will get round to trying it the right way.
nice video.... awesome result. I am surprised you didn't put the degree angle on the back of the unit - adjustment point. :)
Thanks! I didn’t put the degree angle on the back because I had too much flexibility in adjusting the wire, so when changing/ replacing the wire and setting it back to 90° I didn’t have the confidence in the accuracy of the locked position at the back. I preferred to check the Angle each time to be certain. Maybe a future version will have more of a positive stop and therefore degree markings. It is something that was on my feature list originally.
Great job also ;) Im going to make copy. ;) mi wife want to this machine 🙂😊
Wicked build definitely the best iv seen by far. Any chance of doing another vid and going into abit more detail on the wiring and foot pedal and also i am very intrigued as to what have are you using as a hand held attachment this i would really like to see
Thanks for the message! To be honest I have so many more ideas for other projects that I don't really have the time, especially because I also have two kids. I am prioritising the new projects over revisiting old ones but am happy to answer any specific questions you may have. I have taken it easy in the workshop for a while but will have some cracking videos coming out later in the year, so watch this space.
How do you put it, "built like a brick dunny"? And you certainly "gilded the lily"! :-D I love it though, great build!
Awsome
Geoff, (Jeff?) - was wondering whether you wired it with 20A circuitry for need, or would 10A be sufficient? I am definitely not an electrics guy, and can't find many 20A components locally here in Cairo, but can find equivalent 10A ones pretty readily. Do you think those would be sufficient? For example, I can get a 10A PWM Motor Speed Control Switch Manual (12Vdc to 40Vdc) but can't find a 20A one, can get a 10A Volt & Amp meter but not a 20A one, and so on. Thanks for the great build video!
Matthew Miller first spelling was correct ;) Geoff.
10amps will be more than enough for this, I rarely go above 5amps, some dense thick foam then 8amps depends on the speed I want to cut at. But obviously I am no electrician so do this at your own risk ;)
I don't have access to exactly the same materials as Geoff (I have 30mm extrusion, instead of 20mm, for example) but here are my Sketchup model & plans (open the Scenes to see the plan layouts). It includes the basic structural elements and excludes the electronics, accessories, guides, etc. drive.google.com/open?id=1LI7r76zzzlpL5m2SMb9QHb3kT6kSxgEE
Matthew Miller looks good
hello good!!! How have you calculated the power of the adapter that you have installed for your thread?
Ottimo tutorial. Complimenti
Grazie molto
Really like the design of this, of all the hot wire cutters I've seen thus far. Working on building one like yours as close as I can get it. Many of the links for parts are obsolete, but are still available here in the U.S. I looked in Instagram for the schematic, but no where to be found. I can figure it out but if you have something it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for posting this excellent design for all to use. I look forward to getting started on this project as soon as the parts arrive..
Thanks for the kind comments! I never actually got time to produce a schematic sorry! Hopefully everything you need is in the video, but feel free to ask questions and I will try to answer them. Would be interested to see pictures of your build and the final Hotwire foam cutter! Good luck!
Jeff, I've started the assembly portion of the hot wire cutter, but still waiting on other parts to arrive. I would like to send you pictures of the assembly, and also maybe post a video of it on my youtube channel. This of course is with your permission as the design is of your making, and again excellent well thought out design.
jeromejt62 yep please do send pics and of course you should post a video! Really looking forward to seeing it!
Hey Jeff, finally completed the Foam Cutter Video. Here is the link, hope you like it. Not nearly as professional as your videos, but I think the message gets across. Let me know what you think. Again, thanks for the excellent base design...
ruclips.net/video/cIHLlx4zLJM/видео.html
@@jeromejt62 Any change you can post your build video on you youtube?
Fabuloso!!!!
Bravo....from Macedonia
100% positive
Thanks a lot Dragisa!
What kind of PSU did you use? I tried a 12v 6a PSU, but I didn't get very much heat. 0.3 mm wire. PSU got very hot in short time.
What type of wire are you using? I used Nichrome 28 gauge, i think this is key. As for the power supply, i have a 12volt, variable up to 15 amps. I generally have it set at about 15amp. but then vary it on the potentiometer only using about 4 amps. I think all of this is dependant on the the length of the wire. You can use this calculator to work out what you need for the gauge wire you have: www.easycalculation.com/engineering/electrical/nichrome-wire-calculator.php Good Luck!
Could you do a video about all the power tools you own :-)
Angelo Gunatilaka anything specific?
Stuff I Made ,well I like to see a video of your work space, and to see a short video of all the tools u got there. At least your main tools, Im sure others will like to see it aswell
How much was your estimated total cost and how many labor/research/procurement hours to build this near perfect foam slaying system? My estimate is $350 & 40 hours making this around a $10,000 product at $250/hr (in my opinion). If this was on the market, as a consumer I would say yeah that looks like an $800 hot wire foam cutter and then click buy as my life in architecture school just got hundreds of hours less difficult and frustrating.
To be honest I have no idea how many hours, but for the sake of conversation, lets assume that your estimate is somewhat close... I suppose this would be only for the prototype stage, I.e where I got to with the one in the video... to make it in to a product I could sell would likely take three times that amount, not including production, packaging, marketing etc. I am not sure people would pay $800 for it, perceived value vs more cost effective solutions out there.
The main purpose for me really was to go through a process of prototyping, ideating and researching all the features and innovation I would want out of such a product, I didnt quite include all of my ideas in the final version, maybe 90%. Some comments say it was over engineered, but that was my goal, make it feature rich and how close could I get to a vision in my head. Was fun. The sad part is I don't often use it now ;)
Glad you enjoyed the video!
Hi dude, may I know the purpose of using Motor control board in this project? Is it necessary or any optional component we can use for this purpose?
Yogesh D It had everything I needed in one board, enough through put and a potentiometer so I could adjust the amps running through the wire.
Strange thing people don't make these with weight attached to the hanging wire instead of a spring for tension. There must be a good reason for it, and I don't see it? Perhaps a water bottle (adjustable tension).
Not sure why that would be better but open to being convinced
Can I ask, how quick does the wire heat up and cool down with the footswitch?
Super quick. A second or less
Hi Geoff thanks again for this amazing video on your own Top of the Range Hot Wire Table Top this is the best Model i have seen and I have been using the Proxxon Hot Wire Table Top Model and I just hope you might be able to contact me please I am really interested to speak with you regarding your Model please Greetings from the South West of Ireland 🇮🇪 Teady
I am not making these for sale. I do have the three videos to help you make your own though. Good luck
Works???
Ariel L. Reyes ? Not sure what you mean. Yep it works.
i don't understand the electric work
Either do I 🤷🏽
You are a good craftsman but this is overkill for a hot wire cutter
cartmanrlsusall Why?
Depends on what you use it for and the accuracy you need from your wirecutter i suppose.
@@StuffIMade I take it back if you want dead on accurate a heavy stiff structure would probably be a good idea
from 10 or 20 dollar foam cutter going to 100 dollar foam cutter.. : )
zulkarnainkarim good luck 😉