Re: MMC or Maxwell? Which is better?

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

Original poster: Mark Broker <mbroker-at-thegeekgroup-dot-org> 

Ken,

I understand your disdain for under-rating components, but I don't 
understand your disdain for MMCs in general....

Not that you'll change your mind, but some rebuttal below.

On Fri, 27 Feb 2004 16:11:01 -0700, Tesla list <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com> wrote:

>Original poster: "Crow Leader" <tesla-at-lists.symmetric-dot-net> Here is my main 
>point.

<snip>

>  > One other thing about MMCs ;-))  They were designed from the ground up for
>  > "Tesla coils".  So all the fudge factors and over design was directed
>  > toward the common mistakes and mishaps "coilers" make.
>
>Wrong. I don't see "designed for tesla coil use" in the cornell dublier
>catalog anywhere.

I believe Terry means the MMC, not the CDE capacitors.  I don't believe 
you'll find "designed for Tesla Coil use" in most capacitor catalogs 
anymore, either.  In fact, I think the only manufacturer that makes "Tesla 
Coil Capacitors" is Plastics Capacitors.


>  > Another thing "I" always stress is that MMC have (should have) drain
>  > resistors which I think vasty increases safety...  No worries about
>  > residual charges on an MMC...
>
>I recall they catch on fire alot, burning people's circuit boards. It shifts
>the problems elsewhere.

I recall two instances in which people placed resistors against (or near 
enough) the capacitor body causing problems.  I also recall at least two 
instances in which a Maxwell, Arctronics, Plastics Capacitor, etc, 
"designed for TC use" ruptured, spewing hot, messy oil all over the 
room.  By your logic I will claim that commercial caps explode a lot and 
get oil all over everything.  If I had to choose between a small fire on a 
PCB and having to replace several $3.00 caps and cleaning up an oil slick 
from a ruptured cap and spending several hundred bucks on a new cap, I'd 
choose the former every time.


>Again, cornell dublier only makes residential and recreational capacitors.

Actually this is utter rubbish.  They make a myriad of commercial and 
industrial grade components that even a casual glance at their products 
pages shows.  They also have a lot more OEM products not 
listed.  "Recreational capacitors?"  Please....


>This nonsense "commercial pulse cap" term needs to go away, it has no
>meaning on this list. Like on ebay, people assume anything that says "tesla"
>or "high voltage" is somehow "commercial" and "a pulse cap", or that
>anything from Maxwell is rated the same. I'm pretty certain they make more
>than one capacitor, and they all have different ratings. Try substituting "I
>want to buy a Maxwell" with something as silly as "I want to buy a
>Nichicon".

"Commercial pulse capacitor" = a self contained pulse-duty capacitor 
purchased from a capacitor supplier like Maxwell, Plastics Capacitors, 
etc.  An MMC is not a "commercial pulse capacitor," but a "home-made pulse 
capacitor."  At least, this is my interpretation.  Perhaps we should come 
up with more suitable terminology?

Best regards,

Mark Broker
Chief Engineer, The Geek Group