Gene Camp Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 Hello, I have a 10 inch Westinghouse Style 457678. It has, what I now understand to be, a nichrome wound speed control. The control didn't work when I got the fan. I found the winding on the control bad (had a break and very burned looking). I was able to measure the diameter and number of wraps and in my ignorance rewound it with copper magnet wire which I now know does me no good. So, the motor has a two lead wire and reads 40 ohms, and runs good. Can I rewind the speed control with some other sort of resistance wire? And, what ohm readings would I look for between the speeds? Any info could help, thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Dunlap Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 Cheap as chips, Nichrome is all over ebay in a variety of gauges, mainly used for vape machines these days. One spool will last you a very long time for about 6$. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gene Camp Posted August 27, 2022 Author Share Posted August 27, 2022 Thanks I know about this wire, but need an insulated type and not necessarily nichrome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Cunningham Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 Nichrome was a trademarked name. I doubt it is now. We just say resistance wire. These folks have lots of materials, gauges, resistance. https://pelicanwire.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Olson Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 I may be mistaken, but if my memory serves me correctly, Tony Clayton made some insulated nichrome wire. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Dunlap Posted August 28, 2022 Share Posted August 28, 2022 I'd like to know what kind of insulation could take the heat of this wire. This wire just smokes if there is anything on it at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Clayton Posted August 28, 2022 Share Posted August 28, 2022 17 hours ago, Bill Dunlap said: I'd like to know what kind of insulation could take the heat of this wire. This wire just smokes if there is anything on it at all. Nomex up to 700F is what I used with sucess by several members. The use of fiberglass thread would be good for 1000F if so desired. Thread on the old forum in reference to the sucessful use of it. http://afcaforum.com/forum1/64370.html 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gene Camp Posted August 28, 2022 Author Share Posted August 28, 2022 Thank you Tony In reading the old thread I noticed you mentioned 30AWG, 7 ohms per foot. Would that be a good wire size for my project? My concern is not knowing the ohm readings between speeds. I definitely don't want to damage the motor. I counted the wraps when removing the old wire, so I should be able to go from there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Clayton Posted August 28, 2022 Share Posted August 28, 2022 (edited) Yes 6.6 ohms rings a bell. Although I myself have yet to have any time to work on any of my own nichrome projects. This was a shelfed idea I had sometime before Jan had the need, intent for myself . Jan's need made me make it reality. Originally purchased for a 16 3 speed Westinghouse DC tank nichrome switch. This was original size to my 16 inch tank. With that said I think it can handle your 10 inch Westinghouse. Other than asking for someone to give you readings from a good like fan. The wrap counts should be good. Best of luck fixing your Westy. Edited August 28, 2022 by Tony Clayton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Dunlap Posted August 28, 2022 Share Posted August 28, 2022 I use fiberglass cloth on the plates the wire is wrapped around and It works great. I'm not sure about any flexible insulation over the wire itself that would work. In any case, I've wrapped a number of speed coils for a variety of fans, ie. Northwinds and Marellis. I set up an experiment on these and just use an alligator clip on the wire and move it around until I get the desired speeds. Then wrap the selected lengths. Cheers, Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gene Camp Posted August 29, 2022 Author Share Posted August 29, 2022 Thank you This is helpful information. I'll get back to work on it soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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