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[TCML] Re: Jacobs ladder



Out of boredom a few weeks ago at work, I pulled out a solid state OBIT to 
experiment with trying to make a Jacobs ladder. This OBIT I had found early on 
was unsuitable for tesla coil use because it runs at a very high frequency, 
although I don’t remember exactly how high- it was pretty extreme. But what 
attracted me to try the Jacobs ladder use was the power output- 17.5 Kv and 
45mA. Pretty impressive for something weighing only a few ounces.  

  What I worked out was 2 pieces of stripped 10 gauge copper wire, about 18 
inches long. I made a loop on one end to attach to the posts of the OBIT 
directly, and facing towards each other. When they were about 3/4 inch apart I 
made a bend up and made an angle where the electrodes gradually increased in 
distance to the top. At the top I found that making another small loop towards 
the outside of the gap allowed the arc to “hang” for a few moments and make a 
great looking arch at the top before breaking off. At this point the cycle would 
start again at the small bottom gap. By varying the angle, you can also somewhat 
control the speed of the arc up the electrodes.  Once the maximum arc distance 
is established, I believe I could make electrodes virtually any length, as long 
as the maximum gap isn’t exceeded. 

   The only drawbacks I had is that the copper wire has to be as straight 
as possible, and the angle has to be consistent. Also the wire gets very hot 
during a run, so the terminals to the OBIT get hot as well. I also found 
sometimes on longer electrodes, you can see a vibration probably due to the 
frequency, and some flexing due to heat. But if you want something for your 
table top to make a great looking display, this can’t get any easier



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