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Replacements for the neon




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From:  Alfred A. Skrocki [SMTP:alfred.skrocki-at-cybernetworking-dot-com]
Sent:  Sunday, April 05, 1998 2:56 PM
To:  Tesla List
Subject:  Re: Replacements for the neon

On Sunday, December 21, 1997 11:03 PM Paul Anderson
[SMTP:madhobbyist-at-geeky1.ebtech-dot-net] wrote;
 
> Finding a used neon sign transformer in my area is proving most difficult,
> so I was thinking about winding my own transformer to replace the neon.
> Any thoughts?  I was thinking a 200:1 turns ratio would be good...  TTYL!

Paul rather than going through all that why not consider a "kicker coil".
You would save on one winding, the secondary! Which frankly is the most 
difficult. A "kicker coil" Tesla coil uses a large choke to generat the 
high voltage rather than a neon sign transformer. Here is an ASCII drawing 
of a small hand held "kicker coil" driven tesla coil as is used in the hand 
held vacuum testers or as was used for the so called "Violet-Ray" coils.The 
idea is that when a large inductance has it's supply voltage cut off 
suddenly the collapsing magnetic field develops a high counter E.M.F. which 
is then used to drive the Tesla coil.
                                     ___
                                    (___)
                                      )
                                      )
                                      )
                                      )
                                      ) S
                                      )
                    __________________)
                 VG ____  _|_         )
                      | | ___C        )P
                     #( |__|__________)
                   C #(    |
                   O #(    |
                   I #(    |
                   L #(    |
                      |    |
                       115V
                     AC or DC

You have an iron core coil connected at one side of it's windings to 
the line. The other side of the coil connects to a vibrating armature 
almost identical to those found on the old induction coils. The 
stationary contact of the interrupter is connected to the Tesla coil 
primary P, the other side of the primary is connected to the Tesla 
coil secondary S. the primary also connects to the moving contact of 
the interrupter and the capacitor C is across the vibrating spark gap 
VG. There should be an adjusting screw that pushes the moving 
armature of the vibrating spark gap closer to or further away from 
the stationary contact. Instructions for building several different
size Tesla coils driven by a "kicking coil" are described in 
Thomas Stanley Curtis's "High Frequency Apparatus" 1916 in chapter VIII 
"Kicking Coil Apparatus". Lindsay Puplishing reprinted this book in 1988.

                                       Sincerely

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                                   Alfred A. Skrocki
                               Alfred.Skrocki.Sr-at-JUNO-dot-com
                           alfred.skrocki-at-cybernetworking-dot-com
                      Visit my Do-It-Yourself Aquarium WEB page at;
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