Qs on Using Modern TV Flybacks

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Original poster: "Jeff Bullock" <jeff@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>

Hi All,

I'm new to this list.

I've been researching Tesla coils for awhile, looking at other folks
websites, etc. I'm interested in building a battery powered HV power supply
for an application which is very similar to TCs in its requirements. I
haven't made one yet, but I may even try to build a portable TC that uses
it. They look fun...in a dangerous sort of way :)

Anyway, I'm particularly attracted to the HV supplies designs I've seen that
use a TV flyback transformer. I happen to have 4 that I salveged from two
color TVs and two color CRTs.

Problem is that they are not like the old ones described in most of the
plans I've seen. They don't have an exposed primary on the opposite side of
the ferrite core, so you can't replace it with the two small coils shown in
schematics I've seen. They are the types that have two knobs on one side for
adjusting focus and screen (intensity?). One site does identify such as the
split diode type and says that the secondary coil is divided and that the
output is already rectified to be DC.

Now they do have an exposed core arm which one could use to add windings to.
But if this doesn't work out, one could use a 555 chip to chop the power and
feed it to the existing primary. I have no idea how to find the correct
contacts to do so, however.

Budget being limited, I would like to try to use thes coils that I have on
hand for my experiments. Does anyone have experience with them or know where
I can find more details on using them to generate HV? The diode rectified DC
output would be fine for what I have in mind since I will be charging caps
with it.

Regards,

Jeff