More Information and Notes about Nikolai Tesla and Tesla Coils
"Collective knowledge, wisdom and insight about Tesla."
BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 12-22-93 (14:17) Number: 59 From: RICHARD QUICK Refer#: 37 To: PATRICK KIROL Recvd: NO Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil Conf: (9) Electronic In case you missed my post yesterday that included information on the coiling software that you inquired about earlier here is a brief recap: Tesla Book Company, P.O. Box 121873, Chula Vista, CA. 91912. They have a 1-800-398-2056 information, catalog, and ordering service. In addition to the books they carry, they are a source of the TESLA COIL DESIGNER. This is a computer program written by my friend Walt Noon. I use this program to determine ball park frequencies and inductances in mathematical simulation before I wind any coil. This software is menu driven and Walt has been very helpful in working out the bugs and adding features with me. It works and saves hours of designing time. As I mentioned in my personal letter to you, this is worthy investment even if you only build one coil. The software is generally first class. ... And if all else fails... Put another megavolt through it ___ Blue Wave/QWK v2.12 --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4)
BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 12-23-93 (14:49) Number: 60 From: RICHARD QUICK Refer#: 59 To: ALEXANDER BILAN Recvd: NO Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil Conf: (9) Electronic * Originally By: Richard Quick * Originally To: Dave Lyle I thought I would take a minute and expand a little more on the subject of harmonics in Tesla systems. This should give you a better idea of how these harmonics can be used, and help me to better organize my thoughts on this very interesting subject. I talked yesterday about theory. Today I would like to discuss a little more practical application. Let me look at a system that I have actually built and fired. I have a normal Tesla secondary that resonates at about 200 kHz with a discharge ternminal. When this coil is placed in a primary and critically coupled, it will fire when the tank circuit is tuned to 200 kHz. No problems here, this is a normal 1/4 wave system. The tank circuit oscillates at 200 kHz, the secondary coil with discharger resonates at 200 kHz, and the output from the system is the 1/4 wave peak of a 200 kHz signal. Now we remove the secondary from the primary and replace the secondary with a coil that is 1/4 wave resonate at 400 kHz. Take a heavy wire or pipe from the top of the 400 kHz coil and make a connection to the bottom of the 200 kHz coil, now placed some distance away. Leave the tank circuit alone. When we fire the system, the secondary (or "driver" coil) is still excited by, and resonating at, 200 kHz. The frequency of the system has not changed. What has changed is the output of the driver coil: It is no longer a 1/4 wave peak at 200 kHz, nor is it a 1/4 wave peak at 400 kHz (the natural 1/4 wave resonate freq. of this coil) it is 1/8 wave CURRENT at 200 kHz which contains significant voltage. The frequency of the system has not changed, nor has the natural frequency of any coil in the system. What we have done is forced a shift in a 400 kHz 1/4 wave output coil to a lower harmonic. In this case the coil is quite able to resonate for 1/8th wave current output at 200 kHz. The natural frequency of the coil does not change, nor does the tuned fre- quency of the system change. The 200 kHz 1/4 wave coil at the end of the system recieves high current 1/8th wave signal at 200 kHz. Now we have set up a system that opens up many opportunities for specialization and improvement. First thing that will be noticed is that the transmission line is highly energized but runs at a fairly low voltage by Tesla standards. We have removed the high voltage 1/4 wave peak from the secondary in the system, and the 1/4 wave peak is now located on the discharge terminal of the end resonator (the 200 kHz 1/4 wave "extra" coil). Simply removing the 1/4 wave peak from the top of the secondary has really reduced the stress on the system and allows for substantial increases in throughput. One of the most important factors here is that the 1/4 wave resonator (the extra coil) is allowed unrestricted VSWR. In a normal 1/4 wave system, with the 1/4 wave peak located on top of the secondary, the VSWR in the 1/4 wave coil is restricted by the field flux interaction between the primary and secondary. This field flux damps some of the VSWR resonance. Now the resonator is able to "ring" freely, without magnetic interferance. The secondary in the system (driver coil) is still damped by field flux, but we are no longer looking to this coil to perform substantial VSWR voltage gains. What we want from this coil is heavy 1/8th wave current. We are more than happy to get a simple ratio of turns transformation from this coil, but as it turns out we do get a significant VSWR voltage rise even on a coil forced into 1/8th wave resonance. However since we want current and not high voltage, we can couple this coil much much tighter to the primary. Increases in coupling coefficients by a factor of four may not be out of line in primary/secondary drivers fired under oil. Even in air, coupling coefficients may be doubled or even tripled. We may also use much heavier wire for higher Qs. As coupling coefficients (magnetic interaction between coils) are increased, energy transfer is increased. All of the sudden you can squeeze in nearly twice as much power, without drawing a single additional watt. In a normal 1/4 wave system, increasing the coupling would force a destructive breakdown of the 1/4 wave secondary, as all energy must be processed by the single resonator. But, with an extra coil, and an 1/8th wave driver, stress in the system is greatly reduced. The driver hands off current to the extra coil as fast as energy is pumped in from the primary, there is no high voltage 1/4 wave "pressure point" on top of the driver coil to stress the windings, and the VSWR is divided between two coils, not burdened on a single secondary. Another gain is realized by the fact that the output of the 1/8 wave resonating driver contains 20% greater energies than a 1/4 wave output. Why? Well the total energy in a wave form at any given point is a product of current and voltage. The 1/4 wave output has voltage, but theoretically has 0 current, as it is a peak on the wave form. The 1/8 wave harmonic however has voltage and current both, and both are porportionally at their highest value. In other words the 1/8 wave point is the location of the greatest energy available anywhere on the wave form. Here you find the highest value of voltage * current. It works out to 70% of the wave energy as opposed to 50% available at the 1/4 wave peak. So lets look again at what we have gained. Greater coupling between the primary and secondary for more efficent throughput. Higher VSWR in the 1/4 wave resonator (extra coil) by removing this coil from the damping effects of the magnetic field flux. Higher energy transfer between the driver and extra coil by using 1/8th wave current in the transmission line. These gains are easily realized before specific modifications are made to the tank circuit and coils to take advantage of the setup. Improve- ments can include higher break rates for more frequent excit- ation; heavier wire, higher Q coils; higher input voltages; and balanced capacitor tank circuits. This is (I believe) the post you were referring to. If you have been having feed problems (this has been a very common complaint as of late) you may opt to log on here locally to pick up this conference; I know of at least one other person who calls here from halfway across the country to get good feed on this thread. I also have archives on this thread dating to 10/5/93. I have been working on cleaning them up, and getting them organized for several days now. The archives are available free if you mail me a blank disk and a SASE or mailer. The archive is also available on this board (TESLA1.ZIP) for download. My address is: Richard T. Quick II, 10028 Manchester Rd. Suite 253, Glendale, MO. 63122 --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4)
BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b -
Date: 12-23-93 (15:59) Number: 61
From: RICHARD QUICK Refer#: 60
To: ROBERT TAYLOR Recvd: NO
Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil Conf: (9) Electronic
RT> Just out of curiosity, are you familiar with anything
RT> regarding Tesla's connection with the "project
RT> invisibility" & the U.S.S. Eldridge? Ran across something
RT> that connected him with the project, but everything that
RT> I've seen is vague. An impression was left that he may
RT> have had something to do with the building of the alleged
RT> field-generator.
OK, I don't usually do this, and I will not make any claims about
this material. Caveat Emptor!!!
THE PHILIDELPHIA EXPERIMENT: PROJECT INVISIBILITY
By William Moore with Charles Berlitz, 88 pages, indexed and
illustrated. $4.95 from:
21st Century Books
P.O. Box 2001
Breckenridge, CO 80424-2001
Book dealers handling quality Tesla material also cater to the
reading habits of space aliens, fruitcakes, and nutbars. You will
find top notch Tesla references from 21st Century Books along
side "scalar wave", "free energy", and other such garbage which
in my opinion is not worth the paper the printing is on. In my
opinion it does further dishonor to the man that his work is
listed so far from the mainstream.
But you did ask, and since I was looking through the catalog
anyway, I thought I would post you. The book description mentions
the U.S.S. Eldridge and describes a few Destroyer Escorts as
being driven by three phase propulsion generators rated at 4,600
kva per shaft. Presumably generators of this size would have
produced sufficient energy for high power pulsed field
experiments. The goal of the project as stated was to make the
ship invisible to RADAR.
Being of the decidedly practical type, I would prefer to fire a
few HARM missles and smart bombs to make myself RADAR invisible;
it seems to have worked pretty well in Iraq, and you stayed
invisible whether your power generators were on or off.
But if you decide to pop $4.95 (plus $2.00 S&H) please let us
know what you think. If you could point to one concrete piece of
evidence that Tesla was involved after reading it, I would be
happy to follow up on it.
... And if all else fails... Put another megavolt through it
___ Blue Wave/QWK v2.12
--- WM v3.10/93-0100
* Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4)
BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b -
Date: 12-28-93 (05:56) Number: 145
From: PATRICK KIROL Refer#: 133
To: RICHARD QUICK Recvd: NO
Subj: Re: 10KVA Tesla Coil Conf: (9) Electronic
-=> Quoting Richard Quick to Patrick Kirol <=-
RQ> In case you missed my post yesterday that included
information on the coiling software that you inquired about
earlier here is a brief recap:
RQ> Tesla Book Company, P.O. Box 121873, Chula Vista, CA.
RQ> 91912. They have a 1-800-398-2056 information, catalog, and
RQ> ordering service.
Richard, I received your tape and disk today in the mail,...
WOW that thing packs a wallop! Makes me want to go out and get
to work on building a couple of your caps and getting things
cracking! You could work out the rough edges and turn it into a
"how to" film or maby a "school demonstration" film for
HS/College level physics classes. Have you received any requests
for coils to power other devices, lasers etc.? I realy think you
should package the tape and some instructions into a how to thing
for beginners. I was wondering about the shape/path that the
sparks take esp the ground strikes. Are they in some way an
expression of the way the charge is stacked up on the secondary?
When you run the coil outside does wind have any effect on where
the coil strikes?
I realize from your discussion that my coil lacked so many
things, notably a regulated power input, adequate tank circut,
grounding, dimensions I had about 70 ft #10 coper wire as a
primary, 1500 feet of secondary on a 2.5 inch pipe (that stood
too tall from the primary). I had no way to measure if I was
getting anything off the secondary, the neon lights were a good
idea. I will read through your disk files and try again. Thanks
for your time. My dad would have loved your garage setup. Don't
melt any nails!
Pat Kirol (also on the net Patrick Kirol@lambada.oit.unc.edu)
`
--- Blue Wave/Max v2.12
* Origin: The Federal Post -{*}- Spring-Lake, NC (1:3634/2)
BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 12-30-93 (16:41) Number: 226 From: RICHARD QUICK Refer#: 145 To: ALL Recvd: NO Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil Conf: (9) Electronic For the beginner: The best sized coil system for those of you who are interested in building your first really "hot" Tesla coil is based on a 6" diameter secondary coil. A coil this size runs very well at 1500 watts and can be driven to 2000 watts without much problem. Spark lengths of 55-60" can be easily obtained with such a coil. The parts for a unit like this can typically be accumulated for around $150.00 as I have posted before. Figure your designing and construction time will run from 40 to 80 hours depending on the shop facilities available. Most people who build a coil do not go on to design and build a second unit. The reason for this being that the first effort more often than not fails to work as the designer/builder had hoped, and the project gets relegated to a dusty corner somewhere. I lay blame for this on coil plans and designs advertized, published, or sold in the last 20 years that were based on plans and designs popularized in the 1920s and 30s. These plans made use of what I call "classic" coil componets, which includes: long skinny secondary coils with space wound or insulated wire windings, plate glass capacitors, solid copper wire primaries, needle type spark gaps, and small sphere or knob type dischargers. "Classic" coils of this type are miserable performers frequently using unsafe tank circuits and grounding techniques. The prevalence of these coil designs persists to the present day and are responsible for many a budding coiler to quit in disgust after getting nothing but a nasty shock or two from what was advertized as a clean RF spark output from the secondary. That is if they got even that. My first coil was a huge effort to build while I was in high school. The plans for the coil came mail order from a company that advertized in the back of Popular Science some years back, and was plagued with every possible design fault I listed above. I never was able to get a single spark from the discharge terminal. I thought "performance" Tesla coils were nothing but a myth, and felt I had been taken in by a dream. Years later I bought another set of plans, and had similar results. But I associated myself with a group of people who were intent on bringing the 1/4 wave Tesla coil and the Tesla Magnifier out of the pages of history and into current practice. As a result of many many hours winding coils, building capacitors, and researching Tesla's original notes, I am happy to report sucess in bringing the Tesla coil into the 1990s. It is efficient, inexpensive, and capable of enormous peak powers off the discharge terminal. The modern design "reinvented" by trial and error is a very worthwhile project for anyone interested in high voltage or high energy RF. Since October I have been posting information and answering questions regarding coiling, and the modern designs that we have evolved from Tesla's original work. I have recieved many positive responses from regulars in this conference regarding my work, and have done my best to "set the record straight" regarding Nickola Tesla and his place in history. Much of the information regarding the coils themselves has appeared in print here for the first time, and my posts have added up to over 100 pages on this subject. So I guess what I am saying is: If you have built a coil, or you are thinking about building a coil, grab the archives from this thread. If you can't build a really hot coil system from the information that has been released here, you never will. ... And if all else fails... Put another megavolt through it ___ Blue Wave/QWK v2.12 --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4)
BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b -
Date: 01-04-94 (23:38) Number: 237
From: RICHARD QUICK Refer#: 221
To: DAVE HALLIDAY Recvd: NO
Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil Conf: (9) Electronic
Hey Dave!
Glad to have you back, and glad you had a good vacation. I wonder
how you fanangled such a trip???
Good Luck at Boeing with getting the heavy variacs, sounds like
you will need the pair eventually. If your like me, and got bit
by the bug, these suckers will come in more than just handy.
You made some good choices on picking up the heavy 1" strap and
teflon wire. Building up supplies took me months before I got to
the point that I did not have to run out every 15 min. looking
for such and such as I expanded my coiling.
Your ground idea sounds great. Space the pipes about 5' min
distance apart and wire them together with the 1" strap using
soldered connections. Water pumped into the pipes is an excellent
idea. If you are going through the effort of pressure water
injection into the ground site go a step further and drill a few
small holes into the pipe sidewalls and get as much surface area
wet as possible. Salt added to the water (or poured into the pipe
before it is pressurized) will increase the local conductivity
and improve your ground. A larger pipe or tin can may be set
around the grounding pipe where it enters the earth and may be
filled with water to trickle down around the ground. Use your
imagination.
Constructing a good ground is very hard work, but essential to
performance coiling. You are wise to choose this often neglected
area as your starting point, and your neighbors will be thankful
(it really does limit the RFI). Nothing ruins a guys day like the
neighbors showing up at the door with torches in their hands
a la Frankenstein...
... If all else fails... Put another megavolt through it.
___ Blue Wave/QWK v2.12
--- WM v3.10/93-0100
* Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4)
BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b -
Date: 01-05-94 (10:57) Number: 238
From: DAVE HALLIDAY Refer#: NONE
To: RICHARD QUICK Recvd: NO
Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil 1/2 Conf: (9) Electronic
RQ>Hey Dave!
RQ>Glad to have you back, and glad you had a good vacation. I wonder
>how you fanangled such a trip???
I finagled it the old fashioned way, called up the tour agent and
charged it. I like to get as far away from the telephone at
least once a year wether I need it or not. Keeps me sane ( relatively )
RQ>Good Luck at Boeing with getting the heavy variacs, sounds like
RQ>You made some good choices on picking up the heavy 1" strap and
>teflon wire. Building up supplies took me months before I got to
>the point that I did not have to run out every 15 min. looking
>for such and such as I expanded my coiling.
I will be going to Boeing today ( office person was also out of town and
her plane did not get in on time yesterday ) They have a really funny
pricing on stuff, some things are absurdly low, other things are way
over what they should be. The good thing is that if you catch someone in
a good mood, they will be open to any offer just to move the item. I am
keeping my fingers crossed on this one!
Also, re: running out every 15 minutes... I know that feeling.
I get to the point where I think that I have a good parts collection and
then my next project needs something that I never even heard of...
My basement is getting to the point where space *is* the final
frontier...
RQ>Your ground idea sounds great. Space the pipes about 5' min
>distance apart and wire them together with the 1" strap using
>soldered connections. Water pumped into the pipes is an excellent
OK - the garage is in the basement and the driveway slopes down to it.
It is only 12 feet wide, I was thinking of spacing them closer than
that. Another idea is that since the garage is on one edge of the
house, I could just run pipes along that edge and bring the strap in
through a window. My power panel is also in the garage so I could use
it for the house ground as well...
>idea. If you are going through the effort of pressure water
>injection into the ground site go a step further and drill a few
>small holes into the pipe sidewalls and get as much surface area
>wet as possible. Salt added to the water (or poured into the pipe
Very good idea! Seattle is kinda wet most of the time but we do have a
couple weeks in the summer when it gets dry. You can see the locals
running around with spray bottles misting down the mildew and moss on
the houses...
>before it is pressurized) will increase the local conductivity
The salt is also a really good idea! I could pack the pipes with sea
salt or make an "injector" out of some large diameter PVC with a hose
fitting on each end. I have a nice garden ( yet another #$%^&* hobby )
but that edge of the house is nowhere near it so there would not be any
damage to plants.
>and improve your ground. A larger pipe or tin can may be set
>around the grounding pipe where it enters the earth and may be
>filled with water to trickle down around the ground. Use your
>imagination.
Just thinking that there is a gutter runoff is on that side too - divert
the water from that...
RQ>Constructing a good ground is very hard work, but essential to
>performance coiling. You are wise to choose this often neglected
It does make sense - I was into ham radio a while ago and know a little
bit about antennas and can appreciate what a good ground plane can do.
I shudder to see some boats with fiberglass superstructures and see that
people have mounted ground-plane whip antennas on them and they then
gripe about how poor their radio is, can't get a good signal out of
it... Also cars where the antenna is mounted on one corner of the
roof - nice omnidirectional radiation pattern there...
>area as your starting point, and your neighbors will be thankful
>(it really does limit the RFI). Nothing ruins a guys day like the
>neighbors showing up at the door with torches in their hands
> a la Frankenstein...
Actually, considering the neighborhood, that's a fun image! The area I
am in was built in the 50's and has a lot of the original owners in
there. I can see my next door neighbors in particular. They are really
good people but the guy retired about 20 years ago ( Boeing engineer )
and does not have any real hobbies except snooping into what I am doing.
I'll have the garage door open and be working on something and he will
totter over and talk for a long time, grousing about the state of the
world in general.
We are talking about placement and construction of a heavy RF
ground using two 10' lengths of copper water pipe...
DH> OK - the garage is in the basement and the driveway slopes
DH> down to it. It is only 12 feet wide, I was thinking of
DH> spacing them closer than that <5' apart>.
Your ground will have lower resistance to heavy RF current
(higher Q) if you space the pipes out about half of their length.
If the placement does not allow separation you are better off
just using one pipe. The reason for this is closely placed
grounding points will effectively act as a single point. The more
you space, the bigger the electrical ground produced.
DH> My power panel is also in the garage so I could use
DH> it for the house ground as well...
Don't make permanent connections from the coil (RF) ground to the
house ground. This will allow RF bleedover and RFI problems. You
may make connections here when coils are not being fired, but
keep the control cabinet and the house ground at lower potential
than the RF ground. In other words when the RF ground is in use
grounding a coil it is "powered up" and full of RF current and
hash (RFI). If you connect your power cabinet to it then RF will
bleed into the house through the power cabinet 60 cycle ground
connection. Isolate the RF ground from other equipment.
... And if all else fails... Put another megavolt through it
___ Blue Wave/QWK v2.12
--- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4) BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-05-94 (16:40) Number: 242 From: DAVE HALLIDAY Refer#: NONE To: RICHARD QUICK Recvd: NO Subj: Tesla goodies Conf: (9) Electronic Hi Richard - just got back from Boeing Surplus. I took a good look at the high voltage supply. Made by HiPot, rated for 60KV at about 100-200 milliamps. It would have been really nice to get but it was *huge*. The main transformer tank stands about four feet tall and then there is the control unit, an eight foot tall enclosed rack. But the good news is that I also saw a triple-gang, motorized 50 Amp Powerstat unit there, priced at $300. I offered $100 and we settled on $150. Since it is motor controlled, I will just put it right near my main breaker panel and then run a conduit out to where I will be running the coil. This will be really nice too in that my control box can be smaller. For safeties sake, I will probably have a relay to disconnect the Powerstat and have a pushbutton switch on it that needs to be pushed every time I want to fire the coil. That way, if I have a small hand-held control box, I will not have the chance of it firing up accidentally. Also, going through the back mail from when I was away, I got the January issue of the TCBA News and my membership certificate. Looks really well written, I will send away for some back issues. I will keep you posted - Dave þ QMPro 1.51 þ Wench: What you use to turn the head of a dolt... --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4) BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-05-94 (16:40) Number: 242 From: DAVE HALLIDAY Refer#: NONE To: RICHARD QUICK Recvd: NO Subj: Tesla goodies Conf: (9) Electronic Hi Richard - just got back from Boeing Surplus. I took a good look at the high voltage supply. Made by HiPot, rated for 60KV at about 100-200 milliamps. It would have been really nice to get but it was *huge*. The main transformer tank stands about four feet tall and then there is the control unit, an eight foot tall enclosed rack. But the good news is that I also saw a triple-gang, motorized 50 Amp Powerstat unit there, priced at $300. I offered $100 and we settled on $150. Since it is motor controlled, I will just put it right near my main breaker panel and then run a conduit out to where I will be running the coil. This will be really nice too in that my control box can be smaller. For safeties sake, I will probably have a relay to disconnect the Powerstat and have a pushbutton switch on it that needs to be pushed every time I want to fire the coil. That way, if I have a small hand-held control box, I will not have the chance of it firing up accidentally. Also, going through the back mail from when I was away, I got the January issue of the TCBA News and my membership certificate. Looks really well written, I will send away for some back issues. I will keep you posted - Dave þ QMPro 1.51 þ Wench: What you use to turn the head of a dolt... --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4) BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-05-94 (17:25) Number: 243 From: DAVE HALLIDAY Refer#: 241 To: RICHARD QUICK Recvd: NO Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil Conf: (9) Electronic RQ>We are talking about placement and construction of a heavy RF >ground using two 10' lengths of copper water pipe... RQ> DH> OK - the garage is in the basement and the driveway slopes > DH> down to it. It is only 12 feet wide, I was thinking of > DH> spacing them closer than that <5' apart>. RQ>Your ground will have lower resistance to heavy RF current >(higher Q) if you space the pipes out about half of their length. >If the placement does not allow separation you are better off >just using one pipe. The reason for this is closely placed >grounding points will effectively act as a single point. The more >you space, the bigger the electrical ground produced. OK - got that. Thanks for the info. I will probably put the ground on the outside wall of the house alongside where the garage is. There is a property line there so I have a good long run to play with. I will need to get some more of that braiding but Boeing seems to always have a lot of it on hand. They charge $1.50 / pound. RQ> DH> My power panel is also in the garage so I could use > DH> it for the house ground as well... RQ>Don't make permanent connections from the coil (RF) ground to the >house ground. This will allow RF bleedover and RFI problems. You >may make connections here when coils are not being fired, but >keep the control cabinet and the house ground at lower potential >than the RF ground. In other words when the RF ground is in use >grounding a coil it is "powered up" and full of RF current and >hash (RFI). If you connect your power cabinet to it then RF will >bleed into the house through the power cabinet 60 cycle ground >connection. Isolate the RF ground from other equipment. Got it! That makes a lot of sense - even though there is a good ground, there is still a *lot* of current flowing into it and there could be some problems with bleedover. Nothing like being able to draw a three foot long arc from my refrigerator. It would be a great hit at parties... I will just keep the electrical panel just as it is and make the Tesla ground completely separate. I am also thinking of this summer, renting a generator and setting up a coil at the pier near Lake Washington and using a couple foot square aluminum sheet in the lake for the ground. The park I live by is used a lot for picnickers and such so it might get a bit of attention... A Seattle man was arrested today for...TTYL for now - Dave þ QMPro 1.51 þ Proofread carefully to see if you any words out. --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4) BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-06-94 (12:34) Number: 248 From: RICHARD QUICK Refer#: 243 To: DAVE HALLIDAY Recvd: NO Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil Conf: (9) Electronic DH> But the good news is that I also saw a triple-gang, DH> motorized 50 Amp Powerstat unit there, priced at $300. I DH> offered $100 and we settled on $150. Since it is motor DH> controlled, I will just put it right near my main breaker DH> panel and then run a conduit out to where I will be DH> running the coil. This will be really nice too in that my DH> control box can be smaller. For safeties sake, I will DH> probably have a relay to disconnect the Powerstat and have a DH> pushbutton switch on it that needs to be pushed every time I DH> want to fire the coil. That way, if I have a small hand- DH> held control box, I will not have the chance of it firing up DH> accidentally. Your looking good. You should have no problems with current overload with these units even running a pole pig. Powerstats are commercial cont. duty rated and will handle a run at twice the plate rating for 5 min. or more before they warm up. If required you can use a cooling fan for real high current experiments. Good job on hunting down the right componet for the job. Power relay safety interlocks are a very very good idea. I run two in my power cabinet, one before the variac and one after the variac. The first power relay interlock is tripped by key switch to prevent unauthorized powerup of the cabinet, the second interlock is switched with a toggle (cont. operation) and push button (manual pulse operation). Be sure to ground the variacs to the breaker box with #6 copper min. and to the water pipe with some more of that 1" strap. I use a separate 240 v breaker box with plug-in replaceable breakers (60 amps currently) on the feed to my cabinet/variacs. DH> Also, going through the back mail from when I was away, I DH> got the January issue of the TCBA News and my membership DH> certificate. Looks really well written, I will send away DH> for some back issues. Collecting back issues of the news is a good idea. I have issues dating back to 1988 and pop for another years worth of back issues every time I renew. I have seen some dynamite articles (I have been published here as well) and some really excellent coil projects... One issue had a guy's coil powered by a 455 Olds engine running a three phase 480 volt generator. The coil design was unfortunately "classic" in origin though modern construction and materials were used, but the article published the complete schematic for the generator/control circuits. You will find some really interesting stuff here. Back on that ground for just a second. Make sure the pipes are driven in away from basement foundation walls by at least 5'. If you are putting the pipe in near a garage (built on a slab with no basement foundation) it will be no problem to place ground pipe right near the structure. The reason for this of course is that a basement foundation wall only contacts earth on one side, and grounding rod or pipe driven here will only conduct 180 degrees of a circle instead of all 360. Keep up the good work! ... And if all else fails... Put another megavolt through it ___ Blue Wave/QWK v2.12 --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4) BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-06-94 (15:37) Number: 249 From: DAVE HALLIDAY Refer#: NONE To: RICHARD QUICK Recvd: NO Subj: tesla stuff... Conf: (9) Electronic Hi Richard - I was wondering if you had Walt Noon's address. You had mentioned that he had a design program and I just saw that the Tesla Bookstore in Chula Vista, CA carries it. I would rather get it directly from him because he probably wholesales it to the bookstore and I would rather have him get the money. I got the PowerStat temporarily hooked up and it runs fine! The motor takes about 30 seconds to go from one end to the other. I didn't really throw a load on it, just a 500 watt quartz-halide floodlamp but it seems to be in like-new condition. Thanks again for all the info - I will be keeping you posted - Dave þ QMPro 1.51 þ Bureaucrats are the meat loaf of humanity. --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4) BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-06-94 (15:47) Number: 250 From: DAVE HALLIDAY Refer#: NONE To: RICHARD QUICK Recvd: NO Subj: tesla Conf: (9) Electronic Hi Richard - forgot to mention in the last message but I just realized that two days from now we will have the 50th anniversary of Tesla's death. ( 7 Jan 1943 ) Maybe coilers around the world should power up for a minute in commemoration... Dave þ QMPro 1.51 þ In New Guinea: cargo cults. In the U.S.: vaporware. --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4)
BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-06-94 (17:47) Number: 145 From: DAVE HALLIDAY Refer#: 109 To: RICHARD QUICK Recvd: NO Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil 1/2 Conf: (9) Electronic RQ> DH> But the good news is that I also saw a triple-gang, > DH> motorized 50 Amp Powerstat unit there, priced at $300. I > DH> offered $100 and we settled on $150. Since it is motor RQ>Your looking good. You should have no problems with current >overload with these units even running a pole pig. Powerstats are >commercial cont. duty rated and will handle a run at twice the >plate rating for 5 min. or more before they warm up. If required >you can use a cooling fan for real high current experiments. Good >job on hunting down the right componet for the job. I kinda figured they would do the trick when I saw them. I'll have to include a shot of them when I send you the video. They are *huge* The whole assembly must weigh at least 250 pounds! RQ>Power relay safety interlocks are a very very good idea. I run >two in my power cabinet, one before the variac and one after the >variac. The first power relay interlock is tripped by key switch >to prevent unauthorized powerup of the cabinet, the second >interlock is switched with a toggle (cont. operation) and push I think so too. I have had some near misses because I *knew* that everything was turned off and safe... I am very cautious. When changing the blade on my table saw, I will un-plug it from the wall and drape the cord over the saw table so I can look at it while changing the blade... There is no one else at the house ( except for two shepherds ) but something could fall on the switch or I could trip and put a hand out on the wrong thing... The key switch is one idea I hadn't thought of and the idea has just been swiped!I can imagine my leaving the garage door open some day and having a neighborhood kid walk in out of curiosity... The idea with the relay was that whenever the coil was powered down, the relay would drop out and I would have to walk over to the PowerStat and hit a button to reset it. That way, if I have a hand-held remote, there would be no way I could fire it from the remote without first engaging the relay. The same relay would also be connected to the kill button on the remote. I have also been thinking that since I use the little five-amp Variac on my test bench at the store but I do most of my home-brew electronics at the house, I could also run a line from the PowerStat to my workbench for testing electronics stuff. Kill two birds with one stone - blow things up with the coil and then fix them on the bench... >button (manual pulse operation). Be sure to ground the variacs to >the breaker box with #6 copper min. and to the water pipe with >some more of that 1" strap. I use a separate 240 v breaker box >with plug-in replaceable breakers (60 amps currently) on the feed >to my cabinet/variacs. Yeah - I was thinking of putting a 60 amp breaker in the main box, then coming off of that to a smaller box ( maybe with a couple of 60 amp fast-blow fuses ) and using that box to connect to the PowerStat. I would then have a commercial ( Industrial grade ) electronics box conduited to it holding the relays and the control electronics. I was also thinking of picking up two current shunts so I could instrument the puppy a bit. RQ> DH> Also, going through the back mail from when I was away, I > DH> got the January issue of the TCBA News and my membership RQ>Collecting back issues of the news is a good idea. I have issues >dating back to 1988 and pop for another years worth of back >issues every time I renew. I have seen some dynamite articles (I >have been published here as well) and some really excellent coil I noticed that the quality of writing was really good. Much better than Boarderlands or any of the "fringe" types. Actual legible circuit diagrams... Stuff like that... >projects... One issue had a guy's coil powered by a 455 Olds >engine running a three phase 480 volt generator. The coil design >was unfortunately "classic" in origin though modern construction >and materials were used, but the article published the complete >schematic for the generator/control circuits. You will find some >really interesting stuff here. That would be something to see! RQ>Back on that ground for just a second. Make sure the pipes are >driven in away from basement foundation walls by at least 5'. >If you are putting the pipe in near a garage (built on a slab >with no basement foundation) it will be no problem to place >ground pipe right near the structure. The reason for this of >course is that a basement foundation wall only contacts earth on >one side, and grounding rod or pipe driven here will only conduct >180 degrees of a circle instead of all 360. I was thinking of that. My initial plan was to run them down the side of the house but taking a walk out there made me realize that I would be loosing half of the ground. The property line is about 8 feet away so I will run it there. That particular line is the one I share with my grumpy neighbor so it should be a fun time putting them in. Your'e doing what??? For *what*??? What's a "Tesla Coil" anyway??? RQ>Keep up the good work! Thanks for the info/advice/help! TTYL - Dave þ QMPro 1.51 þ <<< Tagline deleted by Natl Endowment for the Arts >>> --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4) BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-06-94 (22:14) Number: 147 From: RICHARD QUICK Refer#: 120 To: DAVE HALLIDAY Recvd: NO Subj: tesla stuff... Conf: (9) Electronic DH> Hi Richard - I was wondering if you had Walt Noon's address. DH> You had mentioned that he had a design program and I just DH> saw that the Tesla Bookstore in Chula Vista, CA carries it. Walt and I are good friends. I have helped him debug, add features, and made other suggestions that he incorporated into the software. It works. Please do write to him and let him know I am recommending his software in the conference. I owe him a letter still, so send my regards and tell him the halloween photos were appreciated. Walt Noon III 3283 Belvedere Riverside, CA. 92507 DH> I got the PowerStat temporarily hooked up and it runs fine! DH> it seems to be in like-new condition. Cool dude, you be entering the world of high voltage soon. ... And if all else fails... Put another megavolt through it ___ Blue Wave/QWK v2.12 --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4) BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-06-94 (22:20) Number: 148 From: RICHARD QUICK Refer#: 132 To: ROBERT TAYLOR Recvd: NO Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil Conf: (9) Electronic -=> Quoting Richard Quick to Robert Taylor <=- RQ> When serious research is done with any Tesla patented system RQ> or device it becomes all too clear that Telsa's world was RQ> based on well thought out and workable systems. RT> Bingo! Couldn't have put it better myself. The guy was RT> definately a genius & at least 100 years before his time. RT> The shame is that most people don't remember him for much RT> past polyphase AC, high freq transmission, & synchronous RT> motors when there was a ton of useful stuff beyond that. RT> Later... The shame is that most people don't remember Tesla at all :-( ... And if all else fails... Put another megavolt through it ___ Blue Wave/QWK v2.12 --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4) BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-06-94 (22:32) Number: 149 From: RICHARD QUICK Refer#: 148 To: DAVE HALLIDAY Recvd: NO Subj: 10KVA Tesla Coil Conf: (9) Electronic Just read your other posts. The ground seems to be well planned and thought out. Go with it, it will work great and will be expandable when you go to put a bigger coil on it. Your safety and protection system ideas sound level headed, and should work fine. Just don't forget to wire them in for those first few test runs. The aniversity of Tesla's death should be celebrated with everyone switching off the electrical mains into their houses, then maybe people would begin to appreciate what he gave to mankind.... That HE was the one that brought power to the world!!! ... If all else fails... Put another megavolt through it. ___ Blue Wave/QWK v2.12 --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4) BBS: _The_Attic_ [301-428-1970] 14.4K v.32b - Date: 01-07-94 (11:52) Number: 169 From: DAVE HALLIDAY Refer#: 91 To: SCOTT HOFFMAN Recvd: NO Subj: Bios Oscillator Conf: (9) Electronic SH>Is there anyone out there who could tell me how to change the freuency >of a Bios-Oscillator on a tape recorder. I wish to mdify a micr-mini >recorder so that it cannot be detected by a "anti-bugging" tape recorder >detector. In case any of you are not familiar with tape recorder detectors >they "find" hidden tape recorders by receiving the bias >oscillators frequenc >that all recorders give off..some top of the line surveillance recorders.. >$4000 dollars alter the bias oscillator frequeny so they cant be picked up >by anti-tapping devices. I wish to save myself 3000 dollars by doing this >simple modification myseld..but not being familiar with tape-recorders >I do not know how to do this. The quality of the recording will be really reduced if you change the bias to the tape. The bias frequency is usually around 19KHz to 45KHz ( the higher frequencies are found on "pro" equipment ) - look at the circuitboard for some coils and you will be staring at the bias oscillator. Another ( better ) option that would preserve the quality of the recording would be simply to carefully shield the recorder. First determine what frequency the bias oscillator is operating at by use of an oscilloscope or frequency meter, then just build some notch filters at that specific frequency. Place your filters on any inputs or outputs. Also, shield the recorder with some Mu Metal ( a magnetic shielding material. Good luck - TTYL - Dave þ QMPro 1.51 þ Soldier of Fortran... --- WM v3.10/93-0100 * Origin: St. Louis Users Group BBS (314) 878-7614 (1:100/4.0) (1:100/4)
TESLA'S 'Transmision of Electrical Energy without Wires.'
