Re: Sonderman Testing

To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
Subject: Re: Sonderman Testing
From: Tesla List <mod1-at-pupman-dot-com>
Date: Mon, 29 Sep 1997 22:01:17 -0600 (MDT)
Approved: mod1-at-poodle.pupman-dot-com
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Mon, 29 Sep 1997 18:19:25 -0400 (EDT)
From: Esondrmn-at-aol-dot-com
To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
Subject: Re: Sonderman Testing

In a message dated 97-09-29 01:21:51 EDT, you write:

<< Ed,
 
 Bet you didn't have any trouble hearing the cap's safety gap when it
 fired! :^) 
 
<MEGASNIP>B
 5. Have you recently made any oscilloscope measurements of the coil
 output waveform using a pickup plate or wire? Did anything look amiss?
 Could you tell where you were quenching?
 
 6. For a variety of reasons, it MAY be time to build a larger resonator
 more capable of handling the power levels you're at. A 10" resonator (or
 larger) WILL give you better performance. 
 
 Good luck, Ed! I know you've been fighting this problem for some time
 now, and it must be frustrating!! Hope this helps a bit...
 
 Safe coilin' to you!
 
 -- Bert - >>

Bert,

Thanks for the input.  Will check a few things and report.

You are correct.  The safety gap across the cap is very loud when it fires.
 Sounds like a rifle.  The safety gap across the cap is made of #10 solid
copper wire bent into 1.0" dia loops and soldered and smoothed off where the
loop meets the wire.  These are bolted directly to the ends of the cap.

I don't remember a hum or growling in the pole pig but difinitely did hear it
in the welder with various settings.

I did have arcing in the secondary many moons ago, due to either too tight of
coupling or bad tuning.  I corrected the problem at that time.  I just
inspected the secondary.  Looks like the day I finished it.  Not a mark or
burn spot on it.

Maybe I should try adding series resistance to the inductive ballast for the
pig.  I understand many folks use this.  I have not tried it because I don't
have the resistors on hand.  My present resistor bank will only go down to
about 3.3 ohms which would drop about 60 volts at 20 amps.  Might be ok to
try at 10 amps, I could always reconfigure the variac to the higher output
tap.  I think I would need about 1/2 ohm to do it properly.

I have not scoped the coil due to not having a scope at home.

Ed Sonderman