Re: Static Gap question.

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

Original poster: robert & june heidlebaugh <rheidlebaugh-at-desertgate-dot-com> 

ANTONIO; I mount my pipe sections inside PCV pipe and adjust my spacing by
the number of pipes used.  Each mounting bolt is a connection point or
another gap space. 10 pipes is 10x spacing.
      Robert   H
-- 


 > From: "Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>
 > Date: Thu, 12 Feb 2004 20:16:05 -0700
 > To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
 > Subject: Re: Static Gap question.
 > Resent-From: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
 > Resent-Date: Thu, 12 Feb 2004 20:27:05 -0700
 >
 > Original poster: "Antonio Carlos M. de Queiroz" <acmq-at-compuland-dot-com.br>
 >
 > Tesla list wrote:
 >>
 >> Original poster: Ed Phillips <evp-at-pacbell-dot-net>
 >
 >> I'm not experienced in this area but did built one "parallel
 > pipe" gap
 >> which worked quite well.  Used 3/4" couplings for copper pipe and
 >> rounded the ends a bit by chucking the pieces in the lathe and using a
 >> fine file until things "looked right".  I was surprised that when the
 >> pipe was reasonably parallel there didn't seem to be any particular
 >> tendency to spark at the ends only.  My gap has 7 pipes, with spacing
 >> which will just "note break down" with the 12 kV NST connected open
 >> circuit.  I found that by mounting the gap so the axis of the pipes was
 >> vertical I had enough convection cooling to permit 30 second runs at
 >> around 600 watts input to the transformer.  When I originally ran the
 >> thing I had problems with fairly hard black "stuff" building up on both
 >> sides of each gap.  Once I cleaned the pipes the first time this effect
 >> almost disappeared.
 >
 > I found a (bad) picture of a parallel pipe gap that I use:
 >
 > http://www.coe.ufrj.br/~acmq/tesla/567gap.jpg
 >
 > My original intention was to be able to adjust the gap spacing by
 > rotating all the pipes to the same angle. But this would require
 > very precise positioning of the screws that hold the pipes at their
 > centers, what was not the obtained result. Anyway, I can adjust the
 > gap easily, but the angles betwen the pipes become irregular. It uses
 > 3/4" brass tubes, and becomes too hot after about 30 seconds too,
 > without forced ventilation.
 >
 > It can be observed that the gap sparks at the edges when the pipes
 > are not very parallel, but shows no big preference when they are
 > almost parallel.
 > Maybe because the sparks push the hot, or ionized, air to the sides,
 > and then the spark keeps running along the pipes randomly, or because
 > other elements close to the pipes distort the electric field.
 >
 > Antonio Carlos M. de Queiroz
 >
 >