RE: [TCML] Biography and projects Chris Boden - The Geek Group

["Chris Boden" <cboden@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Who: Chris Boden, Age 37


Where: Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA


Contact: www.thegeekgroup.org or walk in the door at 902 Leonard NW. We do public tours saturdays at 1pm.

Experience: Working with Tesla Coils since 1995, been a member of Pupman since somewhere in 94-99, not sure when. 
Founder of The Geek Group, the largest Hackerspace/Makerspace organization in the world. Our main facility is 43,000 square feet and is a Geek's concept of heaven. We have (as of this moment) 13,343 members worldwide.
Operate the only professional-level High Voltage/High Energy lab that's open to the public in the world (both labs located at The Geek Group's headquarters, address above).

Have built/been personally involved with building such things as;

Project Thumper - 
http://youtu.be/eUCOjKHczAw - Blowing up full cans, just for kicks.

http://youtu.be/IcQuuUX03bY - High power testing

Project Stomper - 
http://youtu.be/C_5myKEarfg - Basic overview

http://youtu.be/vxWgqRA0868 - First Light with the production unit.

http://youtu.be/4teseTOMWZM - First crushing with the prototype

Project Gemini - 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJL0tg9m_mc - Repairs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7ge1BvgwV0 - Control panel upgrades
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFJB7CY33Wg - 100kVA power testing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXsDfuVctFk - And just for fun. :)

Recently released a line of SSTC kits aimed at the amateur coiler market specifically to help gets kids interested in HV/Coiling/Electronics/Science - 
http://youtu.be/7q2mRUKPGZU
This is part of a large new series of kits for SSTC projects.

I also work to teach people about a lot of other things in the areas of Science, Engineering, and Technology, like this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2N_UCNRJn7E

Here's some of our more "Corporate" videos - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNvSS_fI1Qc


What started out back in 94 with me and a couple weirdo friends is now my fulltime job (and the fulltime job of about 25 other people as well). We have a professional video production facility in our new lab, with 4 main studios and infrastructure to shoot in every lab and workshop in the entire building. We have 4 YouTube channels (the largest of which with over 22,000 subscribers and over 6,000,000 hits), a live television station (broadcasting through IPTV worldwide), a broadcast radio station, an amateur radio station (ARRL), live events, tours, classes, shows, and god knows what else they're doing that they don't tell me about. 

Best TC -  Project Zeus, currently under construction. We have a pair of 250kVA power supplies, the 25" coilforms, and most of the other parts in stock. We're negotiating the deal to get the site donated so we can begin construction hopefully sometime in the 2015 season.

Largest operational TC is Project Gemini, currently vastly overpowered (for its space) at a maximum input of 200kVA (though we never turn it up that high and it's heavily throttled with current limiting).


Website: http://thegeekgroup.org If anyone wants to know the hits, look them up, I quit counting a long time ago.

Youtube videos: 
Main Channel - http://www.youtube.com/user/thegeekgroup?feature=watch

Captain's Blog - http://www.youtube.com/user/Physicsduck?feature=watch

AV Blog - http://www.youtube.com/user/ThoseAVGeeks



Media: World domination through media saturation. :) We're everywhere.

Social media: 

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/thegeekgroup
Twitter - https://twitter.com/thegeekgroup

We're on a ton of other places too, but I don't know them all. Google is your friend.

Interests other than Tesla: Science (pick one), Professional A/V Production, Adventuring and exploring.

Plans: Finishing the newest lab, building Zeus and a million other projects, and getting more people interested in science! :)


I started out in coiling here on Pupman. I don't post much these days, but I'm out here, sitting quietly in the background. If anyone is interested in coming up for a tour (or more) feel free to contact me. There's a lot of people in here that would find an incredible resource in The Geek Group, indeed, many of them already have.

Have fun guys, play safe and keep rocking.




Christopher Boden
President, C.E.O.
The Geek Group
www.thegeekgroup.org
We Build Awesome!




_______________________________________________
Tesla mailing list
Tesla@xxxxxxxxxx
http://www.pupman.com/mailman/listinfo/tesla