SSTC SSmoke!

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

Original poster: "Shaun Epp" <scepp-at-mts-dot-net> 

  Well, i was testing my Plasmasonic II board in single ended mode, First
light in single ended mode. I was getting lots of power and sparks off the
breakout when low and behold; I SMELLED SMOKE!.   My Cousin who was standing
behind the coil pointed out flashing inside the primary coil PVC form.  I
was getting flash over between my primary and secondary.  It may have ruined
my good secondary.  I could cry!! To build that one I dried out the PVC form
before coating it inside and outside, then winding with a jig, then I coated
that thing with 13 coats of polyurithane letting it dry fully in between
sanding lightly, I spend 3 weeks making that my secondary as perfect as I
could.   The primary was wound around a 5 1/4 inch white PVC pipe, I made it
a foot long to prevent flashover.  The arc went through all the polyurithane
on my 4 1/4 inch secondary, and burned into the inside of the primary form
which is about 3/16 inch thick, wow.   Before I noticed flashover I was
getting loud humming and buzzing off of the  discharge at the top of the
coil.  14 inch bushy discharges, it was really  neat. II could draw a fiery
plasma arc with a grounded stick, It must have  been close to a 3/8 inch
thick.

  An interesting thing happened when I started.  I still had the spiral
primary mounted for spark gap use, and some leads with spade connectors
comming off the spark gap mounted under the coil.  Anyway one of the spades
was touching the lenolium on the floor and it arced through the floor.
Oops!  I was only 30% on the variac when this happened.  There's alot of
induced power here!

  What are the chances of fixing my secondary?  Have other people fixed them
before after flashover?  Mine is burned!, some carbonized poy about a 1 1/2
long strip 4 inches from the base of the coil.  I sanded down some burnt
poly away, but it's hard to tell if I got it all.  There is heat marks in
the polyurithane from the arcing.


  Shaun Epp