Neon signs

[Grahame]

Contains neon and glows:

https://www.uniqlo.com/jp/en/contents/lifewear-magazine/hit-the-lights/

A short magazine article.

[jb-electronics]

Thanks for sharing!

Jens

[Mac Doktor]

Nice. I learned at least one thing in neon school: I'll never be a decent tube bender let alone an artiste. 8/

I was really good at processing. 8D

Terry Bowman, KA4HJH
"The Mac Doctor"

https://www.astarcloseup.com

“Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away.”–Philip K. Dick, "I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon"

[gregebert]

>  I was really good at processing. 8D

And you survived to tell about it. Bombarding is pretty dangerous, and it's the main reason why I decided not to get into neon art, the other being toxics such as mercury and who knows what other nasty things come out of phosphor-coated tubes being heated.

A couple was recently killed (electrocuted) while making woodburning art with a microwave oven transformer.

I'm happy to say I've only been tingled with high voltage once over the past 10+ years, and it was very low current (less than 1mA) because of the circuit design.

[Mac Doktor]

On May 12, 2022, at 1:17 PM, gregebert <greg...@hotmail.com> wrote:

>  I was really good at processing. 8D

And you survived to tell about it. Bombarding is pretty dangerous, and it's the main reason why I decided not to get into neon art

If you're not comfortable with something don't do it. That advice is for everyone. I was lucky to have a very talented, experienced and safety conscious instructor who took every precaution. The processing bench was set up in such a way as to keep body parts as far away as possible. No nails or screws anywhere. The mains switch was well away from the bench.

the other being toxics such as mercury and who knows what other nasty things come out of phosphor-coated tubes being heated.

The real danger is broken tubing (this includes fluorescent lighting). Fabrication can be done safely. We worked in a large, well ventilated area and he amount of mercury required is very small, a tiny drop. The transfer from the bottle to the special tabulation was done as rapidly as possible, immediately spliced and tipped over into the finished tubing.

As for some of the toxic phosphors, let's just say that you should keep an open cut well away from them. We threw broken lead glass in one barrel, everything phosphor coated in another. I can't remember how the latter was recycled but it was definitely hazardous waste. As for the lead glass, well, it has lead in it.

A couple was recently killed (electrocuted) while making woodburning art with a microwave oven transformer.

Unfortunately the body count is higher than that. I don't know the number of accidental deaths so far but it's incredibly stupid and irresponsible on the part of the people explaining how to do this on YouTube. It may have something to do with the fact that they don't appreciate the danger, either. FAIL.

I wonder how many people have gotten zapped by the capacitor while attempting to remove the transformer. Then there's holding a wire up to a Tesla coil. Also on YouTube. And if you ever build a Jacob's Ladder remember that the rods can get quite warm so when you reach out to adjust the angle...well...

I'm happy to say I've only been tingled with high voltage once over the past 10+ years, and it was very low current (less than 1mA) because of the circuit design.

The one for me is HeNe laser tube power supplies.

Terry Bowman, KA4HJH
"The Mac Doctor"

Male voice: "That accident over in Red Sector L destroyed another 63 personnel, giving them a total of 242 lost to our 195. Keep up the good work and prevent accidents. This shift is concluded."—THX 1138

[Adrian Godwin]

In the region of 30 dead ..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBeSKL9zVro&t=3s

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[liam bartosiewicz]

High voltage like that from a microwave oven transformer terrifies me, I’ve only just begun to make things that take power directly from mains and not a wall wart. It’s no wonder why people say MOTs kill more electronics hobbyists than anything else.

On May 12, 2022, at 10:17 AM, gregebert <greg...@hotmail.com> wrote:

>  I was really good at processing. 8D

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[Charles MacDonald]

On 2022-05-12 13:38, liam bartosiewicz wrote:
> High voltage like that from a microwave oven transformer terrifies me,
> I’ve only just begun to make things that take power directly from mains
> and not a wall wart. It’s no wonder why people say MOTs kill more
> electronics hobbyists than anything else.

"big clive tobin" on you tube explains it well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBeSKL9zVro


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Charles MacDonald VA3CPY Stittsville Ontario
cm...@zeusprune.ca Just Beyond the Fringe
No Microsoft Products were used in sending this e-mail.

[gregebert]

It's the current that kills (100-200mA). I acquired a 5kV / 30mA neon sign transformer when I was a teenager, did a lot of experiments with it, and never got shocked. Every now-and-then I still fire it up for a few zaps, but I'm not scared because I'm cautious. Due to it's construction, it's not supposed to be capable of producing a fatal current so even if I did make a mistake, it probably wont cause me to die.

On the other hand, the 2 MOTs I have are terrifying despite being much lower voltage, and I've only fired them up twice with 5-foot hotsticks. One tiny mistake, and I'm dead. Period. Game-over; no extra lives. The arcs are pretty wicked, but it's far better to watch someone else do it on youtube. The only reason I've kept them is for a possible Tesla coil project, or neon-tube bombarder, but that hasn't happened even after 20 years and probably never will.