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Re: Re: Got Shocked
In a message dated 1/3/99 1:49:18 AM, you wrote:
<<> Original Poster: gweaver <gweaver-at-earthlink-dot-net>
>
> I have seen pics of other people doing this so I tried it myself. Take a
> look at this pic and you will see what I mean,
> http://members.aol-dot-com/krampf/watt.html. I got zapped. I have done this with
> a VDG several times but this is the first time with a TC. I stood on a 5
> gallon plastic bucket, the plastic bucket is my insulator. I turned on my
> 750 watt TC and set the variac to about 150 watts. I can get 6" sparks to
> my hands and fingers but I can not feel them at all. I turned the power up
> some more and still I can barely feel a 18" sparks. With my hand on the
> toroid I can not get any sparks to radiate off of my other hand into the
> air. Tried retuning the TC but still can not get any sparks to radiate from
> the other hand. I turned the power down to 150 watts again and with one
> hand on the toroid I held the other hand out to a target. ZAP, knocked the
> -at-#$% out of me. Glad I had the power turned down. I know by touching the
> toroid with my hand my body acts like a top load and changes things so the
> primary will have to be retapped. I don't think I will try this again until
> I learn how its suppost to be done. Does anyone know how this works? I am
> gun shy now, not sure I want to try it again.
>
> Gary Weaver
>>
Hi Gary,
I have been doing this demo for 13 years, and the first thing I want to say is
BE CAREFUL! I have had quite a few people ask me to train them for this and
I have had to refuse, for liability purposes. There is a lot of debate about
everything from internal nerve damage to its impact on your reproductive
future. This is especially important for museums, where an employee may come
back years later, saying that the demo caused cancer, three headed children or
premature baldness. If you are going to try this, don't tell your insurance
company, as they will cancel you or raise your rates. It ranks high above
skydiving on their list. You will also get strong reactions from the medical
profession. Neurologists are horrified by it.
I will say to be very sure that the spark does not jump directly from your
skin, as that hurts and causes RF burns. Also, be sure that the spark does
not jump to ground from you, as that will give you quite a jolt (as you found
out), the potential for some serious burns ( I have a very nice scar on my
butt.), and could be fatal, depending on your coil. You are very lucky that
you had the power turned on low. Be especially careful not to let the sparks
jump from you to the primary of your coil!
In spite of what other people may say, there can be quite a bit of sensation
with this demo. Depending on how your coil is tuned, it can range from a
strong tingle to an intense "funny bone" type sensation. Gave me headaches
until I got used to it. Please be careful. When I mentioned my photos on the
list, I did not intend to start everyone experimenting with potentially fatal
experiments. It was just in response to the questions on photography. I had
professional help (Thanks to D.C. Cox) when I was learning. It is not
something that I recommend for trying on a Saturday afternoon in the garage.
Robert Krampf
Science Education Company
http://members.aol-dot-com/krampf/home.html
Get my Free Experiment of the Week by sending an e-mail to krampf-at-aol-dot-com