Heated jacket for $zero

[CookMySock]

I found some thin (0.25mm dia) insulated wire and threaded 6 meters of it through my DriRider jacket liner. Hook it up to 12V and it draws about 4 amps, or 48 watts. The wire doesn't get so hot it will damage the jacket. Dropping the soldering iron on it will though..

Zip it back into jacket and do a ten minute open road test 4pm this afternoon - its not a large quantity of heat so it can be left running. Maybe it can be a bit more powerful. Longer road test required.

It won't last very long coz the wire is solid 0.25mm dia so it will snap real easy (already broke it once). I need 12m of stranded wire about 0.4mm dia.

But it works, and it was fun!

DB

[Number One]

Tinkering bugger too much time on yer hands man

[Winston001]

Hmmm...well done. I just looked at an old electric blanket a few minutes ago, how would that it go? Probably need a bit more amperage than a bike would produce?

[enigma51]

Hmmm...well done. I just looked at an old electric blanket a few minutes ago, how would that it go? Probably need a bit more amperage than a bike would produce?

OOOOOOR you can just harden the fuck up!

[chester]

try copper wire ......

[CookMySock]

Hmmm...well done. I just looked at an old electric blanket a few minutes ago, how would that it go? Probably need a bit more amperage than a bike would produce?

Electric blankets run on 230V so if you put 12V into them you will get 12/230 of the heat outa them, ie, piss all.

You MIGHT be able to yank the wire out of them and cut a length of it so it draws about 4-5 amps. That will work, but the wire might only be 1m long. Worth a crack if someone has an old electric blanket.

edit

try copper wire ......

Yeah the wire I'm using is copper.

The wire resistance needs to be about 2.5-3 ohms for 30-40watts.


Steve

[skelstar]

Awesome, I love shit like this and will be having a go myself next winter. Was wondering about insulation of the wire melting in the heat, but hadn't investigated it closely enough.

Been playing around with making a Heated Grip controller at work... that Drew will benefit from in the next couple of weeks since I won't be riding. Heater wire (nichrome wire, about 1.7Ohms/ft) wrapped around grips and covered with Mountain Bike Innertube for the elements.

[CookMySock]

Been playing around with making a Heated Grip controller at work...

Good fun. Do you want a fried Oxford grips controller ? Looks like my H.I.D inverter fried it (and about three others) so you are welcome to it. Dunno if its just bricked it or actually damaged it physically.

DB

[skelstar]

Cheers but no ta. Have made a micro-controlled PWM type unit, driven by one button and one LED. Quite trick, you can set the 'default' startup mode by holding the button down in your prefered power mode. Has a 30sec timeout at the start too so the poor battery isn't cranking a big twin AND the heated grips... just gotta teach Drew how to drive it yet

Anyway, geeking it up a little too much there

[CookMySock]

Anyway, geeking it up a little too much there

heh, not at all. Lemme know if you need a beta tester. an you fit two controllers in one housing ? One for my jacket and one for my grips ?

DB

[BASS-TREBLE]

Why not try some of this kinda stuff?


http://search.dse.co.nz/search.php?s....y=0&submit=Go

[P38]

Hmmm...well done. I just looked at an old electric blanket a few minutes ago, how would that it go? Probably need a bit more amperage than a bike would produce?

Or you could plug it into a really long extension lead.......

Well it seems to work on the cartoons

[CookMySock]

Why not try some of this kinda stuff?

http://search.dse.co.nz/search.php?s....y=0&submit=Go

The resistance is too great. The whole jacket needs about 3 ohms, and that stuff is 6 ohms / meter.

DB

[Steam]

What happens when the wire breaks? Do you get smoke and flames and screaming as jacket burns?

[CookMySock]

What happens when the wire breaks? Do you get smoke and flames and screaming as jacket burns?

Pfft, I wish!! Nah it just stops.

DB