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Re: [TCML] Spark gap for first TC



John Byström wrote:

 jimlux wrote:
Almost anything will "work".
I like a gap made of three pieces of 3/4" or 1" diameter copper pipe about 2" long arranged with the long axes parallel. So you effectively have 2 long skinny gaps in series. You have a small fan blow air through the pipes (along the axis of the pipe. If you arrange them in a sort of squashed triangle, you can permanently mount the two end ones, and adjustments only need to move the middle one.

The other easy gap that works fairly well is a couple of copper pipe caps facing each other, with a shop vac blowing between them.

You could even do the two bolts thing, but I've found that the bolt is so small (even if you use carriage bolts and the gap is the head of the bolt) the spark always goes from exactly the same spot on the electrode and you get a hotspot. Once you get that glowing hot spot, the gap characteristics change (it breaks down more easily), and the output of your coil drops.

The first gap you mention, when I use the long side of the copper tubes facing each other, how do you mean it would be (like a squashed
triangle)?

I'm probably going to start with the "two bolt thing" because of the time limit. If I have time left, I'll try another spark gap, like the one you mentioned or the classic RQSG (I believe it's called)




Imagine stacking three logs in a triangle.
 O
O O

If you put the lower two tubes, say, 3/4" inch apart (actual gap, not center to center), then the upper tube can be used to adjust the gap width (you actually have two gaps in series).

The small fan blows down the length of the tube (both inside and outside) so the cooling is really effective.

YOu can also turn this on end and have the axes of the tubes vertical, which opens up some alternate mounting techniques.


The RQ gap is similar.. but not so easily adjustable. If you want to get into multiple gaps, then one of the "laid out flat" multiple gaps is probably better. They're a whole row of tubes parallel to each other with a small fixed gap between tubes. The gap is adjusted by chosing "how many gaps".
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