Featherburner

[Timberwolf]

Here's a couple of photos of a wood burner that I made about 22yrs ago..It uses a small 120 volt to 12volt transformer at about five amps that is driven by a small 0 to 140volt Variac...all housed in a Radio Shack accessory box..It has extremely fine adjustment features and can go from stone cold to glowing red hot in about ten seconds..The output is selectable..IOW you can plug in two separate burning pens and switch from one to the other instantly...I purchased the pens and made my own tips out of NiChrome wire that I salvaged from an old electric heater. Today we call that "re-purposing" but I just called it common sense!! ..I had seriously contemplated buying a factory made burner, but today I "rediscovered" this one on the top shelf of a cbinet in my garage that I had not opened in more than ten years!!! ..This one I feel is superior to anything you can buy today as it weighs about seven pounds and is hard wired...not solid state....Thanks for looking...

[Curlycherry]

SWMBO bought me a pair of these long ago and I've been using them ever since. The pattern she chose is more fancy than these basic ones, but they do work great. I have also used them to put permanent marks in stuff like water skis, kiteboards, surfboards, kneeboards, snowboards, stuff like that that I will never sell and want to make nearly impossible for someone to sell on CL or Fleabay.

http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.as...&cat=1,41115,44057&ap=1

[Timberwolf]

Branding the work if you're proud of it is an excellent way to let future caretakers know it's history and something about the person who built it..and it's a handy way of branding your wooden tools also..

[todayIlearned]

Featherburner? Graybeard might have a use for it.

[Doug_H]

Jack,

Very nice. Great versatility here -- a man who can make (or once could make?? ) his own tools. Not only that but it looks very professionally done. Sad to say I bought mine. I'm going to get into pyrography seriously one day but for now I just use it to sign my work.

I used to make my own audio accessories but never ventured into anything that could bite me.

Doug

[Timberwolf]

Thank you Doug...it was actually a pretty simple project..

I had a short discussion with Arlin yesterday, regarding the use of laptop computer transformers for the low voltage power supply..They can be had for almost nothing at thrift stores and flea markets and many are 8 amps, which is more than ample for any woodburner of the type used for pyrography....And for temperature control, I am considering a light-dimmer switch, which I think will be sufficient...And you can also buy them at thrifts...If it works, as I think it will, you just can't get much cheaper than that....I can make the pens also, but they are more complicated to build...If this idea works out, I will post the plans for woodnetters to build their own burners for signing their work..I think signing is a good use for one.....