Richard: I think these old accepted and recognised "benefits" (of a quenched gap) apply perfectly to TC work, IF you can get proper quenching. Of course, I have no evidence to support (or refute) this view. My own quenched "spark days" gap is presently too short (the separators have shrunk with time) for decent experiments at 12 k 12 kV. Someday I'll rebuild it and report results. Ed