RE: A Coiler's Intuition (fwd)

["Tesla list" <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, 10 Oct 2007 17:42:54 +0000
From: "Lau, Gary" <Gary.Lau@xxxxxx>
To: Tesla list <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: RE: A Coiler's Intuition (fwd)

The story is incomplete without details, like the exact construction of
the capacitor, the NST voltage, gap construction and width.  It's also
unclear what it was that changed to increase the power, beyond moving the
primary tap(?).

I also had a cap go boom, but it was a rolled cap in oil, naively built in
a sealed PVC pipe with no provision for pressure relief.
http://www.laushaus.com/tesla/rolledcap.htm

Regards, Gary Lau
MA, USA

> From: Michael Robinson <muze801@xxxxxxxxx>
> To: Tesla list <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: A Coiler's Intuition
>
> Well everybody I've decided not to increase my coil's power. (at least for now)
>
> While I was running it tonight and was getting some of my best
> streamers yet, I was overcome by a great feeling that something was
> going to finally fail on me very soon.  I was thinking this as I was
> fine tuning it, so i felt my caps, and to my surprise they were
> somewhat warm which I had never noticed before.
> After moving my tap an inch or so I decided to do one more run for the
> night, and got good results, but as I powered it down I heard a very
> faint hiss.  I decided to check everything out and looked at my NST,
> Caps, Gap, and anything else it could be, but nothing looked wrong.
> This prompted one more test run, so I came to my variac and fired it
> up once more.
> After less than 5 seconds...BOOM!!!...One of my capacitors exploded
> (my ears are still ringing)
>
> And so ends a beginner coiler's first 'disaster'.
>
>