Re: Discharging HV Caps

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

Original poster: "Gregory Hunter by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <ghunter31014-at-yahoo-dot-com>

In my many years of maintaining and teaching airborne
nav & weather radar, I always used a short bakelite
rod (perhaps 18") with a couple of inches of copper
rod sticking out of one end connected to a fat copper
braid with an aligator clip on it.  I'd clamp the
aligator clip to the radar chasis and touch each PFN
terminal with the copper rod.  The firecracker-like
bangs were most gratifying.

These days I always approach my UNPLUGGED Tesla coil
with a long, fat screwdriver, and short the gap
electrodes together with the screwdriver blade before
I touch anything.  The transformer secondary has
already discharged my tank gap by this time, and I
don't get the satisfying BANG! of cap discharge, but
I've found the habit impossible to break.

Cheers,

Greg
http://hot-streamer-dot-com/greg

--- Tesla list <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com> wrote:
> Original poster: "Ben Murrell by way of Terry Fritz
> <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <benmurrell-at-att-dot-net>
> 
> WHat is a convenient way to dischage HV caps that is
> still safe?
> Ben
> 
> 
> 


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