Hi Brandon,
Yeah, I just installed a standard 8' ground rod bought from
homedepot. I was able to get the rod down about 4' by hand using
water to soften up the soil, but for the rest I used a big rock
(didn't have a sledge hammer). Not very efficient but it got the job
done. I'm also in Arizona, so as long as you don't have a rocky yard
then you should be able to get it down. Are you attending the
Teslathon this coming weekend on March 6 at Black Canyon City? I
will be there with my coil.
-Tai
________________________________
From: Brandon Hendershot <brandonhendershot@xxxxxxxxx>
To: Tesla Coil Mailing List <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Tue, March 2, 2010 6:59:18 AM
Subject: Re: [TCML] First Tesla Coil Problems and Questions
Hi Tai,
You said you just installed a ground rod for your coil? Standard 8'
real ground rid right, not just a 10' copper pipe? Anyway, I'll need
to be installing one of my own here real shortly. Just a 10lbs
sledge hammer and a bit of elbow grease I assume?
I think someone on the list already suggested attaching a garden
hose to the end if the pipe, but that's what I'm going to use. I got
some real dry soil here in Arizona, so I think I'll leave the hose
fitting on so I can moisten up the dirt (maybe) prior to running my
coil. Think this could work? Or would the dirt packed around the tip
just not let the water do anything?
Thanks,
Brandon
On Mar 1, 2010, at 11:25 PM, tai o <taimaster2005@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Hi Norm,
I would like to add another few turns but I simply don't have
enough room on my setup to do so. JavaTC shows that the coil is
tuned at 7.5 turns but it seems to do better at 8. I can add about
another 0.8 turn to make 8.8 turns max but it would require
remaking the pvc holders for the primary (which was a big pita) and
purchasing more copper tubing. Even then it still wouldn't
guarantee better performance and it may be not worth the extra
effort. Thanks for the suggestion though. As of right now, I'm
pleased with the performance and that it works reliably. I
installed a ground rod today and that seemed to lengthen the sparks
a little. I'm getting on average about 2ft streamers and the max
i've seen is 2.5ft.
-Tai
________________________________
From: Norman Stepp <ndsteppii@xxxxxxxxx>
To: tesla@xxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Mon, March 1, 2010 4:15:36 PM
Subject: Re:[TCML] First Tesla Coil Problems and Questions
Tai,
since you are maxed out on turn 8 w/ the best performance yet,
maybe if you add a couple of turns to your primary you would get
even better performance on say turn 9 (maybe). It's defiantly
worth a shot, worst case you would have a couple of more turns
to experiment w/ different top load sizes. Looking good so far.
Norm
Demotte, IN
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