Hi all! Are you ready to craft? Today we will make a wood burner with our own hands from scrap materials. Despite the simplicity of the design and materials from which we will make a wood burner, it has enough power to burn a hole in a piece of wood 1 cm thick.
This will be a pocket burner that runs on a 2A phone charger. If you need to quickly put an inscription or logo on a tree, or also try your hand at pyrography, don’t rush to the store. Use these instructions, spend a little time, and assemble a pocket wood burner from scrap materials.
We will need
- Phone power supply (at least 2A)
- Syringe needle
- Sewing needle
- Wooden skewer (sushi stick)
- Heat shrink
- Soldering iron, flux, solder
Making a wood burner with your own hands
So, have you made sure that the list necessary details is in every home. And if you are missing something, ask your neighbor, he definitely has it.
Bite the needle tip off the syringe. And bite off the eye of the sewing needle.
Pin on wooden stick, using thread, two needles parallel to each other. Leave the lower ends of the needles open; we will solder the wire from the charger to them.
Bend the sewing needle so that it barely touches the syringe needle.
Apply flux and tin the needles as shown in the photo.
Bite off or disassemble the charger connector. We will need a red and black wire (plus and minus). Solder the red and black wire to the needles, the polarity does not matter.
The wood burner is almost ready. Use heat shrink or electrical tape to insulate the contacts.
Conclusion
So we figured out how to make a wood burner with your own hands. There are burners different types and varying complexity of execution. Today we have collected the simplest and cheapest option. At the same time, we used readily available materials and did not spend a lot of time.
We make an electric wood burner from a pulse transformer. Once upon a time as a child, it was considered a given to have an electric wood burner at home. And now, I thought about making a similar device for my son (4 years old). After all, a drawing on paper may not be preserved, while one burned on wood will delight you years later. Yes, and it will be useful for me, as a radio amateur. They can be used to cut plastics when making cases, they can also be soldered, and even cut out PCB. Also, carefully cut the ropes (if you are a climber :-).The device has two operating modes. In the first position of the switch " norm"(I), it operates at half power: approximately 30-35W. In the second " turbo"(II) - 65-70W. The yellow LED shines in both modes, red only in the second. Indication LEDs are any, not bright ( AL307).
In order to make an electric burner, you will need a cheap ($2-2.5) Chinese-made switching power supply (UPS), 50-60 W, for halogen lamps. You can find them in stores around furniture fittings or in hardware stores.
Burner circuit
Schematic diagram of an electric burner based on ET
On the Internet, I came across a modification for making a pulse soldering iron. In the case of a burner, minimal modifications to the UPS will be required.
First, remove the board from the case and solder the output transformer. A lot has been written about these schemes, so I won’t go into details. It copes well as an electric burner. Let me just say that bipolar transistors MJE13003 (TUVE13007) can be replaced with more powerful current ones - MJE13005, MJE13007(last digit means operating current). At choosing a UPS, you need to take into account the fact that it should not have short circuit protection!
So, having removed the transformer from the board, it must be disassembled. A lot has also been written about disassembling ferromagnetic transformers. But, I will share my experience. First of all, remove the film and use a knife to remove the glue on the core connection. Afterwards, heat the water in a small container until it boils. But we don’t immediately throw it into boiling water, but heat it first warm water. Due to the fact that the quality of these trances is very low, they can break. Therefore, after warming it up a little, we put it in boiling water and leave it there for a few seconds. The procedure can be repeated and try to loosen the winding body, and also run a knife along the seams of the ferrite halves. In the end, you will be able to disassemble it, but do not rush, do everything with caution. In my case, even after breaking such a trance, I did not despair, and connected the four pieces of the core with tape. Some glue the cracked slices, but even without that it works just fine, tightly compressed with adhesive tape.
Having disassembled the transformer, remove the secondary winding, and in its place we wind 3-4 turns of stranded wire with a cross-section of 2.5-4mm2. An electrical cable (mains cable) is suitable for this. The insulation is first removed, and in its place a heat-shrinkable casing of suitable size is put on. Why heat shrink tubing? Because she takes less space, regarding cable insulation. Now, we wind four turns, with a branch from the third. The voltage on the last turn will be approximately 9.0-10.5V. All that remains is to put the transformer back together and remove the leads, as can be seen in the photographs.
It's time to work on the body of the electric burner. For this we need an aluminum furniture leg. Yes, yes, furniture again! It is very cheap (less than a dollar), but most importantly it is made of 1 mm thick aluminum. Thus, the case will serve as a heat sink for transistors, which get very hot. Square leg height =100mm. The issue of the front panel is also resolved. To do this, we disassemble the leg and leave a plastic plug with which we cut off a part - so that all the components of the product fit. Further, the radiator for transistor switches is also aluminum.
I used a 5mm thick plate radiator. It already had threaded holes, which I later used. But if you find a copper plate, it will definitely serve as a better heat sink. You can also use any other radiator of a suitable size. In addition to this radiator, I connected an aluminum U-shaped profile - you guessed it, also a furniture one, which fits tightly into the square profile of the case.
The radiator must be in close contact with the body! This way the heat will be distributed evenly, with greater efficiency throughout the body, without requiring bulky radiators. The U-shaped profile is connected to the radiator plate with a small gap (2-3 mm) through small washers and then we screw this “sandwich” to the plate included in the impulse generator kit. Transistors and the board must be attached through an insulator, also from the UPS. It is preferable to ground the burner body.
Don’t forget, the device is connected to a mains voltage of 220V, so we take all safety measures during assembly and commissioning!
Now, we drill holes in the plastic front panel for the electric burner operating mode switch - for wires and for LEDs red And yellow glow. We connect the LEDs with limiting resistors with hot glue, as can be seen in the photo.
Next, twist the switch and solder all the wires together (see figure). Switch – P2T-21(Soviet production, maximum switching power up to 660 W with active load). It is necessary to use the most powerful toggle switch possible, otherwise the contacts will overheat! Maximum power electric burner reaches 70 watts.
To the body, as legs (anti-slip), we glue self-adhesive cork or silicone (available from glaziers and furniture makers). As a handle, I used a ready-made handle from a burner industrial production. And if you make it yourself, then a handle from a burnt soldering iron will do. Or we cut it out of textolite, wood with a fluoroplastic tip of suitable thickness. Fastening for nichrome - the terminals of electrical blocks are just suitable for these purposes.
I found nichrome for tips with a diameter of 0.8-1.5 mm on the radio market. Suitable for different heating devices. It must be bent as in the photographs and the tip flattened with a hammer. I made two types of tips: one from millimeter nichrome - for burning and cutting, the other from one and a half millimeter, for rougher work. Accordingly, the second one will effectively heat in a more powerful operating mode of the device (turbo).
The wire for the electric burner must be selected with a large cross-section and the most flexible. Otherwise it will get warm. Naturally, the electric burner will work intermittently, approximately 15-30 minutes.
Firstly, the efficiency is very low, which leads to large heat losses. And secondly, the handle will heat up, which forces you to work with it cyclically. For more convenient use, I advise you to adapt a push-button pedal (from sewing machine or from some machine) or a push-button power switch, etc. I did not make additional holes in the case or radiator for heat removal. This is at your discretion, depending on the radiator used.
The device is very easy to manufacture, thanks to ready-made solutions to assemble it. It can be made by any beginner with minimal electronics skills. The main thing is to follow safety rules when working with it. After all, the tip temperature reaches 500-600 degrees.
If you make an electric burner for a child, then the presence of an adult when working with it is mandatory. I hope it brings joy and creative success! ).
Discuss the article ELECTRIC BURNER
Why exactly homemade burner? There are many domestic and imported models of electric wood burners on sale: Orbit, Pattern, Elm (ours), Stayer, Qiddycome (Chinese) and others. But lovers of artistic painting with a hot needle on wood are not always happy with this available choice.
Domestic devices usually have only one needle, imported ones have from 4 to 21 nozzles with different needles, but suffer from fragility. And you can’t always buy the right device in the right place in right time. Here we will talk about the experience of one Siberian enthusiast, an amateur, making a high-quality homemade electric wood burner with 39 (!) needles (see photo). Let's conduct, so to speak, a master class on his behalf.
First of all, we set three basic design requirements:
1. Sufficiently high power of the power supply unit, allowing the use of needles of large cross-sections.
2. The possibility of stepwise voltage adjustment for working with needles of different sections and smooth adjustment to change the temperature of the needles in a wide range.
3. Convenient change of working needles.
Simple electrical diagram device is shown in the figure. 
Now let's move on to the process of its manufacture.
We take any transformer with a power of at least 200 W (other characteristics are unimportant), for example, OSM 380/36V (250 kW). At lower power, the transformer will overheat when operating with needles of large cross-sections. Completely remove the secondary (upper) winding. The primary (network) remains in place.
We rewind the secondary winding: one or two layers of flexible insulated wire with a cross section of 6 mm 2 (for example, PV-3). You should first calculate the number of turns per 1 V of output voltage (by selection: wind several turns, connect the transformer to the network and measure the output voltage).
Let, for example, there be 4 turns per 1 V. Having determined the value of 2 V for the lower limit of the output voltage, we first wind 8 turns, and then make taps after every two turns. This will give a discreteness of 0.5 V for stepwise adjustment. To ensure a discreteness of 0.25 V, we will add another turn (in the diagram - the upper tap of 0.25 V).
In addition to stepwise, we also use continuous adjustment of the output voltage by inserting a variable wirewound resistor PPB-25 100 Ω into the primary winding circuit (R1 in the diagram).
In view of high power device, we will abandon the male-female connector, and we will securely connect the working handle with the needle to the body with galvanized M6 bolts. We will equip the taps and ends of the secondary winding with 6/6 tinned copper tips.
Working with needles of large cross-sections requires a current of at least 30 A. Therefore, the cross-section of the wires of the working handle must be at least 4 mm². You can take two rubber-insulated cores from a KG 4x4 cable (vinyl insulation of a wire of the same cross-section does not provide the required flexibility).
We grind the handle to lathe made of ebonite. We tightly insert a fluoroplastic plug with two brass rods into the front end of the handle for attaching the working needle (see photo). These rods fit tightly into the holes drilled in the plug. At the ends of the rods, 8-10 mm recesses are drilled. Tinned contacts are pressed into the recesses located inside the handle. A needle is attached to the outer recesses. M4 screws are suitable for clamping the needle.
You can use anything as a housing, you just need to remember safety. For example, the case from a megaohmmeter of the last century is very good: it is fantastically strong and durable.
Many people today, both adults and children, love wood burning. This hobby option even has its own name - pyrography. This type of art appeared quite a long time ago, and its essence lies in depicting drawings on hard surfaces of wood so as to capture the picture for a long time. To do this, you need a heated object that can melt the surface and leave marks.
What materials are needed? Wood is suitable as a base for the future image, since this material is one of the most inexpensive and amenable to burning.
Undoubtedly, every person has seen the result of pyrography at least once in his life. This word is translated as “image using fire.” The drawings look really very original.
Like drawing, wood burning is quite a voluminous and painstaking work. To create a masterpiece of pyrography, it is not enough to depict an element or someone's face. It is necessary to convey every touch, even the most insignificant, reflecting the expression of the eyes and mood.
How to make a burner yourself?
To create a burner with your own hands, you will need quick wits and perseverance, since this is not the easiest thing to do, and the diagram is quite confusing. During production, you will have to use different equipment that is not commercially available.
What do we need?
The list of required items depends on what kind of wood burner you want to make. The only thing you will need in any case is nichrome thread. The next required spare parts are a wire and a battery. It’s good if the battery is rechargeable, since constant use of the device will consume a lot simple batteries- it will hit you in the pocket.
There are also some requirements for the wire. A good wire will guarantee your safety, so approach the issue with all responsibility.
Where can I get the diagram?
You can develop the scheme yourself. We also present in the article several different schemes– from elementary to complex. All inventions were calculated according to the developer’s requirements, and you can choose the appropriate option.
It should be noted that each person is individual and has his own character and requirements. There are a lot of options for schemes, so you can try to make your own, even if it is more complex and demanding than those presented.
Of course, it will be easier to implement your own scheme for those people who are familiar with the laws of physics and who have encountered electrical circuits. If you don’t understand this, find information and images of circuits, understand them and find out what works and how.
Where to begin?
You should always start by modeling the burner in your head, and then you need to transfer the drawing to paper. Once you have clear ideas, you can start looking for components. This will take a little time, since the basic parts are available in almost any home. If you need a pyrograph with interchangeable attachments and temperature changes, things get more complicated.
How to make a simple burner?
Few people have enough time to create a complex burner, so let's consider a simple option.
Materials
To assemble this device you will need the following:
- sewing needle;
- needle from a medical syringe;
- double wire.
The needle is very important as its quality will affect the quality of your masterpieces. It is better to choose a thin and sharp needle. The needle from the syringe will heat up to red during operation, and the sewing needle will lightly touch it - this will cause resistance and help warm up the needle.
Build process
To make a burner you will need a syringe needle cap and a sewing needle with thread. You need to pierce the cap with a needle and pull the thread to the end so that the needle rests on the cap. To secure it, wrap it with the rest of the thread, and the needle should go beyond the cap and be placed parallel to it.
Let's return to the syringe part. We don't need the cone-shaped cap - we remove it. We wind the needle to the opposite part of the cap with another thread and a sewing needle. Now slightly bend the tip of the needle so that its tip barely touches the sewing needle. As we said, than smaller area contact, the faster the burner will heat up.
Nutrition
We take a good double wire - it should be stripped on both sides and two holes should be made in the cap to bring the wire out. After this, connect each wire to the needles - screw them as tightly as possible, since the quality of current flow will depend on this.
For quality and safety, finally secure the wire with electrical tape.
Finally, use an unnecessary button, for example, from an old tape recorder, and a battery. The main thing is not to reverse the polarity, otherwise the device will not warm up.
Let's sum it up
It should be noted that burning today is not just a hobby, but can become a way to earn money. Every day the demand for burning landscapes and portraits is increasing - this activity competes with wood carving. Initially, it was created to diversify the interiors of ancient houses of the 19-20 centuries. When you couldn't buy it in stores beautiful furniture, it had to be created with your own hands.
In fact, you can make any type of wood burner in no time. A drawn drawing or sketch will simplify the assembly process and creation of the device.
It doesn't matter how complex your device is - the main thing is to get the tip right. The quality of all created paintings depends on it. If the burner draws patterns on wood as accurately as possible, you will be able to draw images of any complexity.
Wood burner diagram:
If you need an inexpensive but very convenient and reliable wood burner, then pay your attention to Figure No. 1.
Figure No. 1 - Wood burner diagram
C1 - 27 nF or 273 nF / 300 V
C2 - 22 nF or 223 nF / 300 V
C3 - 47 nF or 473 nF / 300 V
FU1 - Fuse 0.5 - 1.5 A
VS1 - Dinistor DB3 / 30 V
TP1 - Step-down transformer 220/3…8 V Current depending on the load (resistance of the nichrome wire).
Operation of the wood burner circuit and its settings:
Even a novice radio amateur can make such a circuit or home handyman, you need primitive skills in the ability to solder and configure circuits (if all the elements are selected adequately and the circuit is assembled correctly, it will immediately work as it should). However, several subtleties should be highlighted separately:
1) Please note that the adjustment of the output voltage of transformer TP1 (and therefore the filament temperature of the nichrome wire) is carried out via the primary winding, do not be confused by this innovation! Since the power regulator circuit for a soldering iron is taken as a basis, you should understand that for any heating element (in this case, a piece of nichrome wire) the shape and quality of the sine wave are not important.
2) However, I draw your attention to the fact that the secondary winding of the transformer must withstand the current consumed by the nichrome wire (you can easily calculate it using Ohm’s law).
3) You should also use thick wires leading to the handle of the wood burner, and well insulated ones; failure to follow electrical safety rules when assembling or using the device can lead to injuries!!!
Nichrome wire holder for wood burner:
Surely, assembling the power supply for the burner will not be difficult for you, but what to do if you do not have a convenient holder handle (electrode)? I offer you a very simple but very convenient option handles. You will need a thick wire, a dielectric (or wooden) handle from an old burnt soldering iron, a piece of PCB or carbolite or other dielectric heat-resistant material, electrical tape, nichrome wire (you can bite off a piece from an incandescent coil for an electric stove) Figure No. 2, and electrical terminals Figure No. 3 .
Figure No. 2 - Necessary materials for burner handle
Figure No. 3 - Electrical terminals
You need to remove the terminals from the insulation and screw them to the PCB as shown in Figure No. 4,5.
Figure No. 4 - Handle assembly
Figure No. 5 - Explanation of how to properly screw the terminals
Then all you have to do is tape the wire with electrical tape (or attach it with a plastic clamp or thread) to the textolite pad and to the terminals (the ends of the wire must be soldered) and press it into the wooden handle (Figure No. 6).
Figure No. 6 - Wood burner handle
Working with such a wood burner is a pleasure because, firstly, you have a comfortable handle in which you can quickly and easily replace a burnt-out nichrome wire since it is screwed to the terminals, unlike simple burners. Secondly, it is possible to adjust the temperature of the filament wire (Figure No. 7), which is quite important when working with various types of wood.
Figure No. 7 - Red-hot nichrome wire
(Explanation for Figure No. 7: my version of the handle has a special tip that will be quite difficult for you to reproduce, which is why I offer you a simpler version with terminals)
Well, thirdly, the assembly of such a burner is relatively simple and not expensive. The only thing that will be difficult for you to choose is a step-down transformer because, despite the low voltage (3-8 Volts, depending on your needs), the secondary winding must be designed for a high current (from 3 Amperes).
When you have assembled all the details of the wood burner, all you have to do is stuff it all into a neat case and start burning out various kinds of pictures and works of art, Figure No. 8.
Figure No. 8 - Wood burner ( appearance) and an image burned on wood.
P.S.: I tried to clearly show and describe not tricky tips. I hope that at least something is useful to you. But this is not everything that can be imagined, so go ahead and study the site
