5000/20 ignition trans question

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Original poster: "John Richardson" <jprich-at-up-dot-net> 

Hello,

Having always been a scrounger, I dismantled an old oil burning space 
heater (salamander) a few years ago, and took out a cute little 5000 volt, 
20 ma trans.  I am waiting for some items for my big coil ( to find out 
more about the 942's blowing), and built a small table top coil to keep me 
occupied.  The performance with the trans was rather dismal, maybe five 
inches or so, so I got the bright idea to modify the core for more 
output.  Unlike an NST, this has no shunts, just a welded together laminate 
core.  The coils are on one outside leg, and the outer core is rectangular 
in shape.  However, coming off of the core the opposite side of the coils 
is a laminate projection, much like the center leg of a capital "E", that 
comes in between the primary and secondary, and just touches that side of 
the core.  I figured that by drilling away half of this "E" area, it would 
be similar to removing half the shunts in an NST.  It certainly did work, 
as output improved several inches.  I'm just wondering, as the trans is now 
HOT after 30 seconds, if these ignition transformers are meant for 
continuous running, or only for a "single shot"  to light the space 
heater.  I am going to pick up a new 5020SE France for permanent use, as 
this little guy isn't going to live long.  I was just wondering if anyone 
has ever "drilled" the core of a similar trans, and what the results might 
have been.
Thanks,
John Richardson