Roll Your Own Spark Coil

By John Roy Doggett
September/October 1970
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The following antique gas engine repair tip will help you roll your own spark coil in one hour or less. Please don't waste your time and question my values or measurements, just rely on my experience - amateur radio license call sign WA4DVV - and get right to work.

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Buy or use your own methods to secure a common carriage bolt that is 7/8 or 1 inch in diameter and 4-3/4 inches in length. Cut off the head of the bolt and leave on the squared part of the bolt so that you have the full 4-3/4 inches in length. Threads on other end of bolt do not harm so forget them and continue to work.

Purchase one-half pound roll of 18 AWG Single Beldsol Magnet Wire (number 8049). This should be your total cost to make the coil. Wrap the bolt with two layers of plastic electrical tape from end to end. Measure 3/4 inch in from each end and on top of the electrical tape make a mark at the measured points with Band Aid tape. Put one end of bolt in a vise with the mark even with the vise-jaws. Now take the coil of Beldsol wire and roll some off. Measure six inches from the end of the wire and put this measured point against the bolt tight against the vise-jaws. Proceed to roll the rest of the wire by hand tightly around the boll working toward the mark at the other end of the bolt. Now start winding a second layer on lop of the first layer and work your windings back to the vise-jaws. Keep your winding tightly spaced, but if some of the windings keep slipping down into the layer below the layer you are winding, don't worry, but keep winding as the coil is not that critical. Continue your windings from end mark to mark until you have used up the whole coil of wire. You should end up with a second 6 inch pig-tail of wire at the vise-jaws, which is your point of beginning, but many layers deeper. If you cannot make the last layer and have a 6 inch pig-tail, then unwind this layer back to the vise-jaws and measure out  6 inches from the jaws and cut off the excess, as one layer is not that critical.

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