Re: Sync gap test

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-xxxxxxxxxx>]

Original poster: Esondrmn-at-aol-dot-com 

In a message dated 11/30/00 4:24:27 AM Pacific Standard Time, 
tesla-at-pupman-dot-com writes:

<< > Original poster: Esondrmn-at-aol-dot-com
 >
 > Well, I fired up my new sync rotary gap last night on my 3.0" coil.  I did
 > change the electrode gap spacing to .025".  It took me 20 to 30 minutes of
 > trial and error to get the motor phase angle set correctly.  I basically
 set
 <snip>
 
 Ed,
 
 Would do me a favor? Immediately after a run or two check the temperature,
 (by feel), of the rotating electrodes.
 I went through the same basic process as you described and found that when
 my 240bps SRSG was adjusted for best spark, four of the rotating electrodes,
 (1800rpm motor), were cool to the touch, (the other four were warm). This
 indicated to me that the gap was firing at120bps. Sure enough, when I
 removed the four cool electrodes there was no change in the operation of my
 coil.
 
 Next I tried to adjust the timing of the 240bps rotor by adjusting the
 firing angle so that all eight rotating electrodes were operating at the
 same temperature. I managed to achieve this, but the spark length was down
 so I decided to stick with 120bps. I don't know why I couldn't get my coil
 to work at 240bps. (A future project)!
 
 Regards,
 
 Jon
  >>

Jon,

Will do.  As Bill Wysock pointed out to me yesterday, I really don't know if 
I am firing at 120 bps or 240 bps right now.  I have no instrumentation to be 
able to tell.  Your idea of feeling the rotating electrodes is a simple 
solution to this.  I might try running at 120 bps, which means removing two 
electrodes.  This could be difficult, they are pressed into the rotor disk 
quite firmly.  I did try increasing the capacitance last night to .013 ufd 
(should be right at resonance) but could not get it to run right.  I thought 
I had a tuning problem, even when the primary tap was set right where it 
should be - according to my calculations.  John Morawa pointed out to me that 
I needed to re-set the phase angle on the motor after increasing the 
capacitance - which hadn't occured to me.

Ed Sonderman