Re: Superiority of the magnifier

["Gavin Dingley" <gavin.dingley-at-astra.ukf-dot-net> (by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-uswest-dot-net>)]

Hi Adam,
I  have built a magnifier, only a little one, and these are the practical
advantages. First the HV output is far removed from the primary circuit, so
poor
craftsmen such as my self don't have to worry to much. Second, things don't
seem
that critical, i.e. I used any old secondary and any old extra coil, but
got some
good results. Generally, I have found, if you coil is not up to much, then
stick a
bigger secondary on top. Of course, make a real effort, and the effects are
very
good!

As for the technical side, well higher coupling means more power transfer
into the
secondary system. But it also means tuning problems through mutual
inductance, the
magnifier gets around this by keeping the free resonator well away from the
primary
field. Personally I feel that it is no different to a base fed resonator
powered by
a low impedance ac source.

However, I built a low power one where the secondary top was hi-Z, so I
made the
extra coil 1/2-wave resonant, this worked rather well.

Just my 1.33 pence worth (going by the average exchange rate).

Gavin

Tesla List wrote:

> Original Poster: "Adam Parker" <park_e_r-at-hiwaay-dot-net>
>
>
>
> For those on the list who have fiddled with a Tesla coil until they have
> squeezed every last possible inch of spark out of it, and those who have
played
> around with magnifiers, what is the general theory among list members on the
> advantages of a magnifier (if any)?
>
> It seems that even after quite e few of us have experimented with a three
coil
> arrangement, the specicifics on "just why should we build one" still remains
> indecisive and sketchy. Some people even argue that the extra coil principle
> offers no real advantages over the "classic" system at all.
>
> Just to quench my curiosity, I'd like some opinions from list members on what
> they think gives the magnifier the upper hand in performance.
>
> And of course, here's my own two cents:
>
> It seems to me that the main advantage comes from the huge coupling
coefficient
> between the primary and secondary coils. This means a great deal more of the
> power is making it to the spark than is in a regular two coil system.
There are
> plenty of claims that support the "de-coupled" theory, saying the the absence
> of mutual inductance between the extra coil and the rest of the system makes
> the difference. It may make a difference. It may make a big difference. I
> certainly believe from my experiences that most of the gain comes the the
> higher coupling.
>
> What does eveybody else think? I sure hope I haven't stepped on anyone's
toes.
>
> Adam