Aussie coilers

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

Original poster: "Peter Terren by way of Terry Fritz <teslalist-at-qwest-dot-net>" <pterren1-at-iinet-dot-net.au>

Dear Chip
please consider this for posting (now updated with a web site)

Peter from Western Australia.

My first TC was 'discovered' while running spark spectroscopy project
  in high school 30 years ago.  This used about 5Kv from a multivibrator
  excited dual ignition coils through a few turns of an air cored radio
  coil to quench it. The other end of the 100 turn coil developed a
  corona visible in the dark spectroscopy room. I later developed this
  idea with an old transformer from a dump which in retrospect was an
  old NST. I used a single static gap with a 12 inch ferrite cored coil
  of perhaps 8 primary and 100 turns secondary giving 2 inch sparks with
  20 small ceramic capacitors.  It ran nicely for about 20 years! Years
  after I made it I heard that Tesla had beaten me to that discovery by
  quite a few years!

The internet changed everything and now am running 4 MOT's under oil
  with an angle grinder ASRG on 4inch coil and use a polyethylene/oil
  capacitor in a 6 inch PVC (with z folding instead of rolled)
  for around 4ft sparks.  Details and pics in website and also includes 
other HV stuff.


<http://members.iinet-dot-net.au/~pterren>http://members.iinet-dot-net.au/~pterren

My questions:
1 Anyone nearby in Australia with similar interests or am I alone out here 
in the
  wilderness?
2 Has anyone else used a ferrite core particularly for mini TC's.
3 The toroid acts as a large shorted turn. What is the effect of a toroid 
that is not a complete circle to prevent the shorted turn?

Cheers, Peter