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Re: Inductor question



Hi Steve,
          My two cents....

> I don't really have the right wire to wind it with yet, so I just wound it
> with some heavy wire (2 or 4 gauge maybe with fairly thick insulation) 
> that I had to see how it works.  There aren't a lot of turns in the 13"
> winding length, so the inductance is pretty low, but I noticed that the
> difference between the core being totally out of the winding and totally
> in is less than a factor of 5.  Is this reasonable for 20 lb of iron
> welding rods or could something else be screwed up?  Using Wheeler's
> formula for the inductnace of an air-core solenoid, I compute a value
> that's pretty close to what I measured with the core out, but I would have
> thought that the iron would have made much more of a difference.  Would
> winding a coil with 6 gauge magnet wire (which would give me a much higher
> inductance to start with) make more of a difference?

There is a huge airgap in the core (end to end). Sounds about right.

Malcolm