Final Preparations fo Tesla HD Project, Questions

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

Original poster: "by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-uswest-dot-net>" <ArcStarter3-at-aol-dot-com>

Fellow Tesla Enthusiasts, 

Being that the regional competition for National History Day is this weekend, 
I felt that I should ask a question that's been bothering me for a while 
(moreso these past few hours, I discovered something...). 

A couple hours ago, I noticed that an interesting "force-field" effect can be 
produced with the 15,000 V 60 mA NST i'm going to use for a Jacob's Ladder 
for the exhibit on Tesla for HD (the title of my exhibit is "Nikola Tesla - 
The Legacy of Alternating Current"). I was experimenting with a length of 15 
kV rated wire attached to one terminal of the NST when I discovered that a 
weird sensation can be felt when moving my hand over the surface of the 
insulation. It is really weird though as it reminds me of a force field 
surrounding the wire. About an inch away I can feel a buzzing electrical 
feeling in my hand, similar to static, only constant, more powerful, and it 
somewhat restricts the movement of my hand the closer it gets to the surface 
of the insulation. 

I've hypothesised that this is a capacitive effect; the wire and my hand 
being the plates of the virtual capacitor and the insulation being the 
dielectric. Further evidence that supports this conclusion is that the 
sensation intensifies as more of my hand is exposed to the wire. 

So my main concern is: will it be a problem when running the Jacob's Ladder 
around many people? I have only tried it with the wire connected to one 
terminal, and not arcing to the opposite terminal or ground, and yet the 
sensation was quite strong. Will this "force-field" become a problem with the 
full 900 VA flowing through the wires, possibly presenting a shock or fire 
hazard? 

I've already planned out everything i'm going to do to prevent mishaps during 
the competition, such as a crude lockout mechanism (it won't work without the 
fuse ;-)), HV wire, insulated terminals, etc. Plus, i'm not planning on 
leaving the HV stuff anytime during the competition. The Jacob's Ladder will 
also be run with a fairly low duty cycle (5 seconds on, 30 off) to reduce 
electrode heating. 

Also, if any of the list members would be so kind as to let me interview them 
(telephone, online, etc.), I would be eternally grateful. Contact me off list 
and we may be able to work something out. Thanx!!! I would also like to thank 
those that have already helped me with this project, I really appreciate it. 

Regards, 

Josh Hunsaker 
---------------------- 
Denver, Colorado 
ArcStarter3-at-aol-dot-com