Tesla coil
j
be bought? or do I need to make my own?
Corey872
and may put out a foot or so of arc distance. For that same couple of
hundred dollars, you could probably build one that will arc 5 feet or
more.
Some links of interest:
TC SAFETY (READ FIRST!! Some dangers may not be totally apparent)
http://www.pupman.com/safety.htm
Tesla coil mailing list (good info to build your own)
http://www.pupman.com
Tesla Coil Ring (web pages of people who have built their own)
http://nav.webring.yahoo.com/hub?ring=TeslaRing&list
Shameless self promotion of my page
http://coreyonline.tripod.com/newtesla.html
Tesla Technology Research (High end coils)
http://www.ttr.com
Then, of course, one is always popping up on ebay from time to time.
http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?MfcISAPICommand=GetResult&ht=1&SortProperty=MetaEndSort&query=tesla+coil
(Yes, that probably wrapped, so use cut and paste)
Corey
"j" <jsw...@hotmail.com> wrote in message news:<tv06j7c...@corp.supernews.com>...
Fre...@liberty.com
>I am thinking of getting a tesla coil for my haunt next year. Where can they
>be bought? or do I need to make my own?
Enter the following string into a search engine (I used HotBot)
"make your own" "tesla coil"
There were about 300 matches.
To buy a Tesla Coil:
http://www.edmundscientific.com/Products/Search.cfm?query=tesla+coil
Michael Wallace
250,000 volt coil (BTC3). It's a great first coil and if you buy it in kit
form, you won't have to wind the secondary! The kit comes with everything
for $350.00 It's interesting. I built my in 1986. The price for the kit
has almost doubled since. They are getting quite popular.
As the others have mentioned, be sure to heed all safety warnings. The
primary voltage of the coil is unforgiving!!
Michael
"j" <jsw...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:tv06j7c...@corp.supernews.com...
Corey872
hundred bucks that would make arcs a foot long or so, but these seem
to be going for $200+ and may arc only an inch or so!
In all honesty...before anyone goes to buy one of these, consider
getting an old neon sign transformer. Ask at a local neon sign shop,
you can probably get a used one very cheap or even free if you talk
nice. A 12 KV neon will shoot arcs farther than that little TC and be
a ton cheaper to boot! Plus if you get tired of the neon, you have
the cornerstone to build a Jacobs Ladder or a REAL Tesla Coil!
Corey
Fre...@Liberty.com wrote in message news:<3bf12b21...@news2.ripco.com>...
Fre...@liberty.com
posted:
>Looks like I was wrong! I thought you could buy a coil for a couple
>hundred bucks that would make arcs a foot long or so, but these seem
>to be going for $200+ and may arc only an inch or so!
>
>In all honesty...before anyone goes to buy one of these, consider
>getting an old neon sign transformer. Ask at a local neon sign shop,
>you can probably get a used one very cheap or even free if you talk
>nice. A 12 KV neon will shoot arcs farther than that little TC and be
>a ton cheaper to boot! Plus if you get tired of the neon, you have
>the cornerstone to build a Jacobs Ladder or a REAL Tesla Coil!
With such voltages, it would probably be safest to use a Van de Graaff
Generator instead of a Tesla Coil.
George Johnson
news:3bf2ab67...@news2.ripco.com...
I agree, he can buy a Van de Graaff for about $100 and do live bits with
the wand tether. Not to mention the "cool" factor that Van de Graaff's and
kids enjoy (can't let the people with pacemakers, heart surgery, or expensive
electronic devices near it though).
T'Pol
lighting. The only danger with a Tesla is in the primary coil (the same
danger applies to Van De Graffs). The bolts that a Tesla puts out are
relatively harmless.
T'Pol
Fre...@liberty.com
<matr...@voyager.net> posted:
> I agree, he can buy a Van de Graaff for about $100 and do live bits with
>the wand tether. Not to mention the "cool" factor that Van de Graaff's and
>kids enjoy (can't let the people with pacemakers, heart surgery, or expensive
>electronic devices near it though).
Van de Graaffs are good because they can supply some incredible
voltages - I've seen one, a more expensive one, rated at 500KV,
although the cheaper ones are in the 100 to 200KV range, but best of
all, they have a built-in current limiting characteristic endemic to
their design whereas a Tesla coil can be most 'unforgiving', a nice
Euphemism for Deadly. I've been 'zinged' by a Van de Graaff before,
stings real good but at least it's a low current capacity static 'zap'
and literally hair-raising.
Corey872
A VDG genrator compared to a TC is about the equivalent of a black and
white photo compared to a wide screen HDTV presentation, respectively.
With the VDG you get one arc every 10-20 seconds or so depending on
how dry the air is? With the TC, you get a continuous stream of
lightning like arcs for as long as the switch is on (or untill
something blows!) I'm not trying to knock down either one, just
saying, know what you are getting into if you decide to go with either
one. I guess I have an over-blown sense of disappointment from
childhood. I remember all the cool science and computer toys that
were essentially cheap (or expensive) JUNK. The box looked really
cool, but the actual item was a piece of sh$#^. Remember how cool the
Atari games always looked on the box?
Second, to say the output of the tesla coil is not dangerous, is kind
of like saying that a person shooting a gun at you is not dangerous.
True, as long as the bullet misses, and as long as the TC and
associated arcs behave perfectly, there is relatively little danger,
but things CAN go wrong. My two cents again, but it's best to stay
out of the gun sights, and out of the way of an operating TC. One
time I was holding a 4' fluorescent tube and took a small 8 inch TC
arc to the end. Even over 4 feet of glass, I felt a mild jolt nearly
to the shoulder of the arm holding the tube and from my knee caps down
in both legs. That was enough for me.
There IS a certain amount of responsibility to be had if you wish to
include a TC in your haunt. I don't let people within about 15 feet
of mine. A safety factor of about 4x with respect to arc length that
I run for the show. I, myself, rarely go any closer than that when
it's running.
There are obvious (high voltage) as well as hidden dangers from
working with TC's...capacitors that hold a charge for quite some time
after the power is pulled, capacitors that charge up from the radio
frequency output of the TC even though they were not connected at the
time, etc.
To say again, SAFETY, SAFETY, SAFETY...just be aware of what you are
getting into. Kind of like fireworks, HV equipment is best observed
with a little distance...the HV can be your friend or enemy.
<steps down off soapbox>
Corey
T'Pol <Vul...@Homeworld.gov> wrote in message news:<3BF23DF9...@Homeworld.gov>...
Fre...@liberty.com
posted:
>My 2 cents:
>
>A VDG genrator compared to a TC is about the equivalent of a black and
>white photo compared to a wide screen HDTV presentation, respectively.
> With the VDG you get one arc every 10-20 seconds or so depending on
>how dry the air is? With the TC, you get a continuous stream of
>lightning like arcs for as long as the switch is on (or untill
>something blows!) I'm not trying to knock down either one, just
>saying, know what you are getting into if you decide to go with either
>one. I guess I have an over-blown sense of disappointment from
>childhood. I remember all the cool science and computer toys that
>were essentially cheap (or expensive) JUNK. The box looked really
>cool, but the actual item was a piece of sh$#^. Remember how cool the
>Atari games always looked on the box?
Yep. Then again imagine several VDGs connected in parallel for
increased current capacity!
>Second, to say the output of the tesla coil is not dangerous, is kind
>of like saying that a person shooting a gun at you is not dangerous.
>True, as long as the bullet misses, and as long as the TC and
>associated arcs behave perfectly, there is relatively little danger,
>but things CAN go wrong. My two cents again, but it's best to stay
>out of the gun sights, and out of the way of an operating TC. One
>time I was holding a 4' fluorescent tube and took a small 8 inch TC
>arc to the end. Even over 4 feet of glass, I felt a mild jolt nearly
>to the shoulder of the arm holding the tube and from my knee caps down
>in both legs. That was enough for me.
Yep, and that's the problem. If you're going for atmospheric
arc/fluorescence, you've literally got to make your own lightning, and
lightning is always dangerous simply due to the Power required for it,
power easily able to kill instantly.
>There IS a certain amount of responsibility to be had if you wish to
>include a TC in your haunt. I don't let people within about 15 feet
>of mine. A safety factor of about 4x with respect to arc length that
>I run for the show. I, myself, rarely go any closer than that when
>it's running.
So long as the audience is at a safe distance and you're comfortable
with the risks of working with homemade lightning, it should work out.
>There are obvious (high voltage) as well as hidden dangers from
>working with TC's...capacitors that hold a charge for quite some time
>after the power is pulled, capacitors that charge up from the radio
>frequency output of the TC even though they were not connected at the
>time, etc.
Those can be discharged after use.
>To say again, SAFETY, SAFETY, SAFETY...just be aware of what you are
>getting into. Kind of like fireworks, HV equipment is best observed
>with a little distance...the HV can be your friend or enemy.
Fireworks are usually a lot more forgiving than lightning.
There is another alternative - Plasma Tubes, which produce a much
safer enclosed lightning due to much lower power levels than
atmospheric lightning.
T'Pol
Thank You for correcting my error. My experience with TCs are with
small models and the short arcs they produce are very low current. I
have had no injuries (just a minor tingling) by allowing arcs to contact
my fingers.
T'Pol
Infinite Diversity In Infinite Combinations
LLAP
Corey872
> >There are obvious (high voltage) as well as hidden dangers from
> >working with TC's...capacitors that hold a charge for quite some time
> >after the power is pulled, capacitors that charge up from the radio
> >frequency output of the TC even though they were not connected at the
> >time, etc.
>
> Those can be discharged after use.
Yes, but...if you have caps in series and discharge at the ends of the
string, the caps can actually take on equal and opposite chares! The
string can take on a net charge of zero, but you can still get zapped
by individual caps! It's also sometimes not blatantly apparent that a
cap sitting in the corner, or even in an adjacent room can take on a
charge from running a TC! These are just a few instances of why I
preach safety so much! (Plus not wanting to see anyone get hurt while
involved in one of my favorite hobbies!)
> >To say again, SAFETY, SAFETY, SAFETY...just be aware of what you are
> >getting into. Kind of like fireworks, HV equipment is best observed
> >with a little distance...the HV can be your friend or enemy.
>
> Fireworks are usually a lot more forgiving than lightning.
Not the ones I make :) I wouldn't be caught within 15 feet of any of
my creations on the 4th of July!
>
> There is another alternative - Plasma Tubes, which produce a much
> safer enclosed lightning due to much lower power levels than
> atmospheric lightning.
This does bring up a good point about neon, plasma, and other safer
forms of lightning. I was in a haunted house a couple of years ago.
They had a part where you stumble around in a totally dark maze of
hallways for a while. At one point, I came to a dead end, but just
before I found the wall "KA--BOOM!" A Giant bolt of lightning from
floor to ceiling.
The effect was this:
They had rigged a series of photo-strobes behind a lexan sheet. The
sheet was blacked out all except for a lightning shaped space. As I
approached, I must have triggered a motion or proximity sensor that
played the ka-boom through a (very) loud speaker and lit all the
strobes in rapid succession from top to bottom.
The result:
I jumed up and back about 4 feet, screamed like a school girl, and
nearly wet my pants! The old heart rate jumped to about 185, too.
All this, and I usually don't get that excited at the haunted houses.
I guess the things that really make this attractive are the fact that
it is relatively safe and the mark can be right on top of it before it
triggers to make sure you get a face and eyes full of lightning!
Corey
Frogz
and it is safe enough to use with the younger crowd that we cater to.
--
Visit Bay County Reptile & Amphibian Society's sites at:
http://bcras.homestead.com/
http://clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/bayreptileandamphibianclub
Fre...@liberty.com
>
>Yes, but...if you have caps in series and discharge at the ends of the
>string, the caps can actually take on equal and opposite chares!
Then keep the distributed values down and keep them shorted when not
in use as some of those larger 'cans' can be really nasty should they
happen to pick up a charge nobody is aware of, until they get zapped!
>The
>string can take on a net charge of zero, but you can still get zapped
>by individual caps!
Individual shorting jumpers when not in use may be necessary then.
>It's also sometimes not blatantly apparent that a
>cap sitting in the corner, or even in an adjacent room can take on a
>charge from running a TC! These are just a few instances of why I
>preach safety so much!
Strong fields can do some nasty things to the unwary.
>(Plus not wanting to see anyone get hurt while
>involved in one of my favorite hobbies!)
I've always enjoyed playing with fire, but high voltage is another
matter. I've worked with them but because of their properties, the
require even more respect and vigilance than fire. At least with fire,
there's some time to bring it back into control should it ever get out
of control, but a fatal blast of wayward electrons don't even afford
enough time to even think about it, one must already know far in
advance.
>> >To say again, SAFETY, SAFETY, SAFETY...just be aware of what you are
>> >getting into. Kind of like fireworks, HV equipment is best observed
>> >with a little distance...the HV can be your friend or enemy.
>>
>> Fireworks are usually a lot more forgiving than lightning.
>
>Not the ones I make :) I wouldn't be caught within 15 feet of any of
>my creations on the 4th of July!
I'd rather take my chances with that than high voltage.
>> There is another alternative - Plasma Tubes, which produce a much
>> safer enclosed lightning due to much lower power levels than
>> atmospheric lightning.
>
>This does bring up a good point about neon, plasma, and other safer
>forms of lightning. I was in a haunted house a couple of years ago.
>They had a part where you stumble around in a totally dark maze of
>hallways for a while. At one point, I came to a dead end, but just
>before I found the wall "KA--BOOM!" A Giant bolt of lightning from
>floor to ceiling.
Cool.
>The effect was this:
>
>They had rigged a series of photo-strobes behind a lexan sheet. The
>sheet was blacked out all except for a lightning shaped space. As I
>approached, I must have triggered a motion or proximity sensor that
>played the ka-boom through a (very) loud speaker and lit all the
>strobes in rapid succession from top to bottom.
Sounds like an excellent and safe alternative.
>The result:
>
>I jumed up and back about 4 feet, screamed like a school girl, and
>nearly wet my pants! The old heart rate jumped to about 185, too.
>All this, and I usually don't get that excited at the haunted houses.
>
>I guess the things that really make this attractive are the fact that
>it is relatively safe and the mark can be right on top of it before it
>triggers to make sure you get a face and eyes full of lightning!
Simulated lightning is a lot safer.