Re: electrocution experiences

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

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

Hi All,   
    Well, at the risk of being flamed by all, I will tell my tale.  I was
building coils before I had a computer or internet, and everthing I learned was
from books, two of which I got from the International Tesla Society museum in
Colorado Springs.  I also have the National Geographic issue that has Bill W
sitting on a platform, holding a metal rod with streamers flying from it.  Of
course, I had to do this and had done it many times. 
  Using my 5.5 inch coil powered by a 15/60 NST I would do this for friends all
the time.  I would stand on a milk crate with metal rods in each hand, and put
one to the toroid and have streamer emit from the other one.  I have never felt
a thing from doing this except a warm rush feeling afterwards.  I theorize that
the reason I didn't feel anything is because I had my coil tank circuit
arranged with the cap across the NST-  not the spark gap therefore not getting
a 60Hz wave superimposed on the primary circuit. 
   I did once, while showing off my 8 inch coil get an accidental hit.  I was
holding a aluminized mylar pinwheel (with a plastic rod) near the edge of the
streames to see if I could get it to turn from corona emission.  Well of course
it had to happen that a streamer flashed past the pinwheel and right up my
arm.  Fortunately, I was not grounded, but I sure did feel it.  I made my whole
arm twitch.  This coil was configured with the spark gap across the NST bank
unlike my 5.5 inch coil was. I was quite luck that I was a couple of feet
beyond the normal streamer length.  I might have been lucky that it was only
running on 1800VA as well. I was not injured, but got a whole new respect for
the danger that night. 
   Well, that's enough for this subject 
Mike