Re: Brass or steel spheres (Oudin terminal)

• To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
• Subject: Re: Brass or steel spheres (Oudin terminal)
• From: "Antonio Carlos M. de Queiroz" <acmq-at-compuland-dot-com.br> (by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-uswest-dot-net>)
• Date: Sun, 20 Feb 2000 07:11:20 -0700
• Approved: twftesla-at-uswest-dot-net
• Delivered-To: fixup-tesla-at-pupman-dot-com-at-fixme

Tesla List wrote:

> Original Poster: "peterB" <zardoz-at-albany-dot-net>

> I have a perticular application that needs solid (or hollow) brass or
> machineable
> steel balls for a terminal on a small coil.
> The small float balls will not work. The maximum diameter is 1 1/4"
(actually,
> that is the exact size I need.)
> 
> I have tried McMaster Carr, but they only have smaller sizes available.
> They have the correct size in bronze, if this would work. I do not know
> the electrical properties of bronze, would it be a good conductor, and serve
> as the terminal on a small Oudin resonator?

Bronze is as good as brass. Somewhat heavier, and easy to machine.
For this application any metal serves.
Possible sources of small balls are furniture knobs and Chinese exercise
balls (too big?). Steel bearing balls can be softened, but I would not
even try. I make all my terminal balls in the lathe, using a ball
turning
tool for solid balls (or some calculations, lots of measurements and
patience without a tool), or metal spinning for hollow balls:
http://www.coe.ufrj.br/~acmq/spinning

Antonio Carlos M. de Queiroz

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