Re: Coil costs $0.00? and $,$$$,$$$+++?

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <Rscopper-at-aol-dot-com>

This can be an expensive hobby.......let's see....... 
Go back 5 years or so...... 
Let's build a Tesla coil 
First find out how other people make them...requires a PC upgrade with a fast
modem to get on the "Internet" $500+$20 per month for 2M Home Page space 
Get on a Tesla coil mailing list and learn as much as you can $$Time 
O.K..........hunt for parts...... 
Go get (beg) some NSTs from the sign shops $10 (gas money) 
Be sure to beg some high voltage hook-up wire also $0 
One 4-foot chunk of 4-inch SCH40 pipe for a secondary form $10 
Unwind an old transformer for some magnet wire - $0 
Get some of that fancy epoxy pour-on $20 
Get some 1/8-inch tungsten welding rod $7each 
Get 50-feet of 1/4-inch copper tubing for primary coil $17 
One 4X8 sheet of 1/2-inch plywood $15 
Duct tape and drywall screws (can't live without them) $10 
Spend 4+ hours winding secondary $$Time 
Spend 4+ hours turning secondary so pour-on doesn't sag $$Time 
Yell out loud profane language when secondary falls on garage floor and picks
up sawdust from cutting plywood. 
Caps...........hmmmm.....need tomake some.... 
Go to every fabric store around and fine some plastic $10 (gas) $20 (9mil)
plastic 
Get some AL flashing $10 
Get some 6-inch SCH40 $30+ SCH40 caps $5 each + PVC glue $4 
Get some mineral oil $3 per pint at drug store 
Put all this stuff together and make it work (somewhat) $$2+weeks 
Blow up NSTs - buy some new ones $175 
Blow up new NSTs - go back to sign shop and beg some old ones again 

That was just the first coil.......skip ahead 4 years..... 
$300 on Delphi software and 4 years of collecting info to write WinTesla 
Build the fifth generation coil project..... 
Drive to Resonance Research and pick up 2 pigs + gas $120 
Get some good magnet wire $50 
Find some 12-inch SCH80 PVC (ha...got a chunk donated from a construction
company) $0  - looked it up in catalog $300 per 20-foot length 
Spend 2 hours sanding PVC $$Time 
Buy an old 1952 South Bend lathe $1700 - couldn't pass it up 
Turn parts for rotary spark gap on new lathe (disk, hubs, shafts, gaps, etc)
$$Fun 
Turn secondary on lathe - $30 for fixture parts, 1 hour to wind - saved 3 hours

Still have 4-hours of turning secondary to let pour-on dry 
50 feet of 3/8-inch copper tubing $40 
6 x 1uf GE caps - donated $0 
30 feet of 6AWG $40 
125Amp electric service in garage + 50feet of 2AWG AL wire + Connectors $200 
16 feet of 8-inch AL duct for topload $40 
4 rolls AL tape $40 
Much more plywood $80 for primary form, and packing crates to take coil to Geek
Group Teslathon (oops need to build a trailer also $300) 
Donate/trade first 4 coils to Geek group - make space in garage for new
projects 

+ oscilloscope parts, HV probe parts, variacs, misc wire, special tools, tube
coil stuff, old microwave parts, more time, various caps, lots of solder, lathe
tools, more plastic, PVC, LDPE sheets, AL foil, sonotubes, more time, more duct
tape, more drywall screws, glue, 35mm camera mods + lots of film and
developing, Web site construction, I give up............time to cash in that
401K 

Tell your kids.....just say no...It's hard to quit, once you're hooked..... 

R. Scott Coppersmith