My name is Adam. I'm elated to be a new member. I was really captivated by the Tesla Coil by the you tube community and researching Nikola Tesla sparked my interest even more.
Around the beginning of 2016 I decided to try and build my own spark gap tesla coil. Before summer in May; I finally had success!!
Powered by a Transco 12,000 volt 30 mA NST into a homemade terry filter minus the MOVs. A tungsten rod static gap quenched with a vacuum pump and ceramic magnets. A homemade MMC; one string on Cornell Dubilier 942....-K connected in series. Primary coil is 1/4" soft copper tubing starting 5 & 1/2" inner diameter in a conical rise of 15-20 degrees approximately.... 50' of copper 15 turns tapped at the very end of the inner and outer turns. My secondary is a 4" PVC pipe 22" tall and the windings take 20" of the pipe. I used 28 AWG magnet wire and for a toroid I used the housing out of a ceiling fan which I sanded free of paint. It's about 14" in diameter and about 2 & 1/2" tall. It works well, but gets a lot of streamers due to the edge facing the bottom.
I've recently swapped to a 15,000 volt 30 mA NST. France brand. Also added 3 more caps to my MMC for a new total of 18 in series. It has improved slightly from the 12kV NST, but only slightly. I will soon have another 15kV 30 mA NST; Transco brand. I anticipate a big improvement in output.... Anyway, just wanted to share with the community and ask for anybody willing to share thoughts/tips/advice etc... Any constructive criticism is welcome and I appreciate all feedback. Trust that I will take it in with an open mind. Here are some pics and video... Hope u enjoy: