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Re: Hurray, I destroyed my homemade cap!
From: Rick Holland[SMTP:rickh-at-ghg-dot-net]
Reply To: rickh-at-ghg-dot-net
Sent: Saturday, November 29, 1997 5:36 PM
To: Tesla List
Subject: Re: Hurray, I destroyed my homemade cap!
Tesla List wrote:
>
> From: Adam[SMTP:absmith-at-tiac-dot-net]
> Sent: Thursday, November 27, 1997 12:56 PM
> To: Tesla List
> Subject: Re: Hurray, I destroyed my homemade cap!
<SNIP>
> So then, how about solid corona protection, like paraffin wax? I could
> get this cheaply at the grocery store, melt it in a double boiler and pot
> the cap. This would make the cap a lot more difficult to repair, but if
> I over engineered it in the first place it should survive a few years of
> Tesla use, right?. I am using 120mil of very high quality LDPE (4 x
> 30mil) and operating at 9kV, so my cap is not likely to blow anytime
> soon. Mostly I just want to make something without that horrible oil!!!
Adam,
I don't know from personal experience, but all the old texts I've read
recommend a 50/50 mixture of paraffin and bee's wax, applied just as you
describe. They all warn against scorching, though. The nice part to this
approach is that when melted and hot, the combination flows like water,
and should be much easier to wick than oil. As a matter of fact, it just
occurred to me that heating the capacitor oil might improve wicking.
Hmmmm.
--
Rick Holland
The Answer is 42.