New coilers and caps

["Tesla list" <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Original poster: "Paul B. Brodie" <pbbrodie@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>

Justin,
You have come to the right place, as far as I'm concerned. I wish I had 
found the TCML before I had started trying to accumulate parts and 
formulating a plan. Before you do anything else, visit Richie Burnett's web 
site, I think someone else has provided the URL, and try to absorb as much 
of if, not all of the information contained therein. Also, join the 4HV 
Forum Community at http://forum.4HV.org. They cover all types of high 
voltage electronics and stuff. It is absolutely loaded with useful 
information and helpful people.

He isn't the only helpful person by a long shot and his isn't the only way 
to skin the cat but Mark Dunn is definitely one of my heroes. He does most 
things for himself, that I can tell, and he uses what appears to be the 
least expensive solutions to creating the best looking and functional 
devices. For someone new to this and especially if they like to make things 
for themselves and are on a limited budget, Mark sets a pretty good 
example. Check out his use of microwave oven transformers (MOT's) for HV 
power supplies, for instance. Had I known about Mark's web site, I don't 
think I would have gone to the trouble and expense of obtaining an NST 
(neon sign transformer). I thought I would write out some of these 
abbreviations, as they confused the daylights out of me when I first started.

If you decide to pursue obtaining and using microwave oven parts and need 
any assistance in identifying parts or need to know what parts to keep and 
which to throw away, or anything else for that matter, drop me a line and 
I'll help out the best that I can. I have just dismantled nearly a dozen 
microwaves and have a stack to work on when I recover a little more. I 
think that I have accumulated more than just a little bit of knowledge 
about microwave ovens and what to do with their parts. I will be more than 
happy to pass along what I know.

Welcome and good luck in your coiling endeavors. Always keep safety on your 
mind first! This is boatloads of fun but can be dangerous. Regards.
Paul
Think Positive
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tesla list" <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Saturday, June 04, 2005 12:23 PM
Subject: Re: Distilled water as a dielectric?

> Original poster: Just Justin <rocketfuel@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>
>
> Hi Mark,
>
> I don't know if you saw my intro a couple of days ago, but I'm new to
> HV and tesla coils.  The idea of building my own HV caps is intriguing
> to me, as I usually prefer to do things myself if possible and hopefully
> learn something in the process.
>
> I was wondering if you had any resources you could point me to in making
> my own parallel plate caps.  Also I have been wondering how one goes about
> testing the max voltage these things will handle?  My meter only shows
> capacitance ;)
>
> Thanks!
>
> Justin
>
>
> > Original poster: "Mark Dunn" <mdunn@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> >
> >
> > Greg:
> >
> > I'm the parallel plate guy.  The mmc builders would be better to answer
> > this, but maybe my comments will generate some discussion.
> >
> > Seems that the mmc guys typically use a series of .15 uF 2KV caps(others
> > are available) at $3 each.  So if you go for a rating of 30 KV then you
> > need a string of 15 caps which gives a 10 nF for the string and $45 per
> > string.  You said you wanted a 10 uF mmc(I think you meant 10 nF so one
> > string would do it).  If it is really 10 uF then you would need (1000)
> > 10 nF strings in parallel to build up the capacitance.  This would be a
> > total cost of $45,000.  Obviously, a better capacitor choice for this
> > mmc would make it a lot cheaper.
> >
> > But to compare at the "normal" Tesla Coil Capacitance ranges:
> >
> > 10 nF 1 string  $45
> > 20 nF  2 strings  $90
> > 50 nF  5 strings  $225
> > 100 nF 10 strings $450
> >
> > This does not include a box or board to mount.  Just the caps.
> > (I think they may push the voltage rating and only use a strings of 10
> > which would give 15 nF per string)
> >
> > This is why I still build parallel plates.  I can build a 50 nF parallel
> > plate unit for under $30.  Biggest cost is the food storage box.
> > Assembly time under 2 hrs.
> >
> > Mark