[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]

Re: Railroad counterpoise



Tesla List wrote:
> 
> >From DamDeName-at-aol-dot-comFri Jul 12 21:56:33 1996
> Date: Thu, 11 Jul 1996 23:38:53 -0400
> From: DamDeName-at-aol-dot-com
> To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
> Subject: Re: Railroad counterpoise
> 
> Hi Richard ,
>    Not to be overly paranoid ----- BUT
> Since TBO max. is con-current with
> S*** happens  & Murphy's Law ---
> 
>    I'm thinking of Jeff's question  with regard
> to hobo's or whatever along the "insulated" track.
>     I'm curious about the electrical characteristics
> of the railroad counterpoise ----
>     If it were ~ a quarter wave-length
> wouldn't  the whole system then behave
> like an Oudin resonator  ,with high voltages
> at both ends of the system ?
> 
> 
> Thank you
>                  Sandy
> 

Sandy,

In theory Yes, but it would swamp the power applied due to the sheer mass 
of the railroad track system.  That is why it is a counterpoise.  When 
you get spark coming off your counterpoise, it is no longer functioning 
as one.  Richard Quick has shown this on one occasion where her used a 
large, heavy metal plate under or near his system.  I hope I get this 
correct, Richard!  When he ran a small coil, the system did just 
fantastic.  The plate acted as an effective ground and counterpoise.  
When he connected a beefy coil's resonator base onto the plate and ran at 
a KW or two the plate started issuing sparks too.

This is why Tesla got sparks off of water mains and his arrestors arced 
over in Colorado.  He had such a powerful system and the ground was so 
dry, he was able to power up the local ground, showing that he had 
defeated his counterpoise.  He spent a number of days mproving his ground 
there.

The 5Kw system proposed for the track would not come close to over 
powering it for counterpoise use.

Richard Hull, TCBOR