Re: 3/4 wavelength error

To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
Subject: Re: 3/4 wavelength error
From: "John H. Couture" <couturejh-at-worldnet.att-dot-net>
Date: Sat, 10 Aug 1996 00:38:22 +0000
At 06:25 PM 8/8/96 +0000, you wrote:
>From jim.fosse-at-bdt-dot-comThu Aug  8 10:38:09 1996
>Date: Thu, 08 Aug 1996 04:08:30 GMT
>From: Jim Fosse <jim.fosse-at-bdt-dot-com>
>To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
>Subject: Re: 3/4 wavelength error
>
>
>>From: Skip Greiner <sgreiner-at-wwnet-dot-com>
>>To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
>>Subject: Re: 3/4 wavelength error
>
>Skip,
>> You are doing some
>>> things right thought. 4' at 720va!
>I'll stick by this part.
>
>>Jim
>>Sorry, my post was not clear. I use a .021 cap with the 15kv 120ma neon 
>>which delivers 1800va. The 720va unit is a 12kv 60ma and the cap used 
>>with this neon is .013. My statement still goes: I can't figure out why 
>>I cannot get much larger much larger discharges with 1800va input.
>>
>I had a thought after reading your post to Ed and this one. Could you
>be getting MORE discharges? I seem to recall a great difference in the
>number of apparent simultaneous air discharges between my neon and my
>pig; but no greater length. (I'd not gotten the pig and TC into tune
>when I blew my third and forth caps which I've still not replaced.)
>
>If you're game, try identical pictures ,say, 1, 5 and 10 second
>exposures with the same distance, viewpoint but with your 2 different
>primary drive levels. See if you can see either a greater number of
>air discharges or a larger solid area of discharges in the developed
>pictures.
>
>	just a thought
>
>	jim
>

Hi Skip -

Increasing the transformer power of a tesla coil may not increase the spark
length for several reasons. Assuming you are operating at optimun
conditions, and it appears you are, you will have to increase both the power
and voltage of the transformer so the primary capacitor will be properly
charged to give more spark. However, this will increase the losses in the
capacitor and Tesla coil unless they can handle the extra voltage without
causing additional losses. If not, you will have to redesign the Tesla coil.
This is usually done by trial and error unless you have a good computer T.C.
design program.

John Couture