Phil,
Not too sure what you meant by "(... while keeping the required primary
inductance to about 90% of the primary coil's capacity.)".
Basically I was wanting to design the secondary to require almost all of
the available primary coil when tuned properly.
It's all about having a balance, that's why using an aspect ratio that has
been determined as sensible by countless coilers over the years (4 / 5:1),
combined with a turns ratio centred around 1200 (900 - 1500), means the
both the secondary inductance and inter-turn capacitance should work out
ok.
Based on this (and other advice) I'm thinking of making it like this:
1237 Turns of 24 AWG, 28" x 6.6" (4.25:1) yielding 54.5 mH Inductance and
12.0pF Capacitance.
Based on popular opinion I believe we can all agree on this being somewhat
optimal, right?