Hey Hey!!!,
While not exactly exceptions, there are wys around expensive TX's. The manufacturing costs are a major factor in stuff like vlave output transformers. For power Iron, it is a fine line between spending more money researching how cheap you can go v. getting something a bit on the big side for a bit more money.For example NC winders v. 'by hand'. let alone the antics of what must be built like an electronic card shuffler to stack the lams v. 'by hand'. THe NC machine can be told how to handle TFE wrapping, or what ever the wire gage is, and it will do it quite well. Contrast this with soe knuckle-head who has either run out of pot the day before or has been indulging in the weed whilst winding your TX. I think I'll stick with the NC machine. Just need to tell it how to interleave, so get a good model and take it apart if you're in a big hurry. The R&D which would have to get spent on a new design makes things more expensive again.
Anybody have a Harman Kardon Citation II with a toasty opt? Think Homer SImpson's cloning hammock, put the bad one in( along with some money for the winder ) and out pop two new copies. Or one of the properly useful UTC Linear Standard series....name your fav, it can be copied and modified for new circuits. Put the tap for U-L just where you need it for what ever vlave you decide to use...
regards,
Douglas