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Re: Pole pigs -- costs



Tesla List wrote:
> 
> >From chip-at-grendel.objinc-dot-comThu Aug 29 22:49:49 1996
> Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 13:25:39 +0700
> From: Chip Atkinson <chip-at-grendel.objinc-dot-com>
> To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
> Subject: Pole pigs -- costs
> 
> Greetings all,
> 
> One thing not mentioned in the pole pig purchasing discussion is that
> they cost much more than just the transformer.
> 
> With a neon transformer, you just need the neons and a variac of about 20-30
> amp/120V capacity.
> 
> With a pole pig, you need the following items that you don't need for
> neon based systems: (Your prices may vary)
> 
> A pole pig ------------------- $300
> 50A/220V worth of variacs ---- $200
> Arc welder ------------------- $200 (new)
> Oven elements ---------------- Free (salvaged at recycling center)
> Wire for power cabinet, etc. - $100
> Power cabinet (contactors,
> circuit breakers, wire,
> meters, etc, no variacs) ----- $150 (est.)
> 
> Rotary gap
> (materials: G10, Plexiglas,
> polycarbonate, shaft,
> bearings, nuts, bolts, motor - $180 (est.)
> --------------------------------------------
> Total:                         $1130
> 
> There are probably some items you can do without, but if you have kids,
> you will want a cabinet to enclose the dangerous/delicate stuff, and
> with resistive load, the performance is not as great (I hear).
> 
> Basically don't expect to plunk $300 down for a pig, take it home and plug
> it in.
> 
> Flames are always "welcome".
> 
> Chip

Chip,
	Below is a list of my pig driver console.

1)	10 500W Halagen bulbs. $4.00 ea.(Kmart)			$40
2)	10 260 VAC 10 Amp. 12 VDC coil Relays. $4.00 ea.	$40
3)	10 toggle switches. $1.00 ea.				$10
4)	Powerstat, 120 VAC - 44 Amps, 240 VAC - 22 Amps	(R&D)	$195
	(Variable transformer for voltage control)
5)	20 Amps circuit breaker. (On/Off switch)		$10
6)	220 Power card, 30 Amp.	120 Power cord 10 Amp.		$25
7)	2 Drawer, filing cabinet, metal. (Walmart)		$30
8)	4 Casters (wheels), scrap.				$5
9)	100', AWG 12, 40 KV, Silicone cable. (R&D Electronics)	$25
10)	2 Cooling muffin fans, $8.00 ea.			$16
11)	120 VAC Pri. 14.4V Sec. 4 Amp.Control Transformer.(R&D)	$8
12)	Full Wave Bride Rectifier, 600V 10 Amps. (C&H)		$3
13)	AWG 14, stranded wire, red (250') and black (250')(R&D)	$9
14)	Red neon light, with panel mounting hardware		$3
15)	120 line cable relief, 220 line cable relief		$1
							--------------										$420

16)	High current amp meter, 0-800 Amps (C&H)		$70
17)	Voltage meter, 	0-300 Volts (Newark)			$60
18)	Key lock switch, 12 VDC. (Walmart)			$5	
							--------------	
								$615

18)	5 KVA, 12470/7200 Pri, 240/120 Sec, Oil Immersed, ABB	$465	
	Pole Pig
							--------------
								$1080	

	Prices taken from surplus catalogs, estimated high.

	The toggle switches are attached to the 12 VDC relay coils,
to control one Halagen bulb each. The Halagen bulbs are connected in
parrellel and serve as my resistive load. This allows me to turn on
500W of load per Halagen for a total load of 5000 Watts. At 220 this
measures out to 2 Amps of draw per Halaogen, for a total of 20 Amps.
The circuit breaker I just bought is a fast blow of 21 Amps, Measured.
My two muffin fans are mounted on top of the cabinet to remove the 
heat Generated by those Halagens. I used two peices of scrap Lexan,
1/4" thick, mounted to the inside of the top drawer, in a vertical
fashion. And on the top of the 2 Lexan peices (1/2") at 1" intervals
a 3/32" screw was mounted with washers and nuts. These mounted screws
press into the detent pins of the Halagen bulbs on either side and
hold them secure. The screews also provide a nice electrical connection
to the halagen bulb. And, I also cut venting holes in the bottom of both
drawers. All circuits where mounted to scrap lexan sheets. I used
the bottom drawer as my main circuit drawer. The Powerstat was connected
externally for testing purposes only.

Caution: Halagen bulbs emit UV radiation. A Metal enclosure is needed.
	 And Make sure everything is overwired. AWG 12 will do 23 Amps
	 but I still double wire my main busses and pig connections.

	A nice feature about using Halagen bulbs as a load, if you are
stressing things to much, they're usually the first things to go. 

Oh and yes, pig driving is expensive. But most coilers have many of
these scraps anyway.

Happy Coiling.

D. Gowin