RE: To cut or not to cut

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "terry oxandale by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <toxandale-at-cei-dot-net>

None of my 1256's were cut. I used about 25% of the windings with one, two
paralleled used about 50% of the windings, with only a slight improvement in
the saturation problem. Yes, I could easily get 40 amps out of a single or
dual set-up, but the ammeter would indicate all or nothing with very erratic
power flow. Then I would go back to my other fixed air core reactor (lots
and lots of turns) and everything is smooth as glass again.

(un)Terry
-----Original Message-----
From: Tesla list [mailto:tesla-at-pupman-dot-com]
Sent: Wednesday, August 08, 2001 1:06 PM
To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
Subject: Re: To cut or not to cut


Original poster: "by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>"
<FutureT-at-aol-dot-com>

In a message dated 8/8/01 1:58:34 PM Eastern Daylight Time, tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
writes:

> Original poster: "Basura, Brian by way of Terry Fritz
<twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>"
<
> brian.basura-at-unistudios-dot-com>
>
>  (un)Terry,
>
>  Something sounds wrong. I run a 1256D as a variable inductor and it
handles
>  40-amps without any problem (after I swapped out the 30-amp fuse that
is)...
>
>  Regards,
>  Brian B.

Brian, (un)Terry, all,

I suspect that some folks have good results with un-cut
variacs and other do not because of the overall coil design.
If the transformer and cap value is such that a large
ballast inductance is needed, this will permit more turns
of the variac to be used, and saturation problems are less
likely.  I also suspect that folks who are able to use about
50% of the variac winding for normal TC operation will have
no problems, but folks who use only about 20% of the
variac winding will have problems.  The breakrate of the
coil might have some effect too on all this (maybe).

John Freau