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Ganging Caps
From: Malcolm Watts[SMTP:MALCOLM-at-directorate.wnp.ac.nz]
Sent: Thursday, September 25, 1997 3:39 PM
To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
Subject: Re: Ganging Caps
Hi Barton,
> From: Barton B. Anderson[SMTP:mopar-at-mn.uswest-dot-net]
> Sent: Monday, September 08, 1997 12:27 AM
> To: Tesla List
> Subject: Ganging Caps
>
> Hi all, wanted to say thanks for the "welcomes" and responses via
> personal email. Also, a few of you let me know I forgot to give my
> personal web page, so if any are interested here it is: Bart's High
> Voltage Lab (www.geocities-dot-com/capecanaveral/hangar/3108). I know it's a
> bit long but it will have to do for now.
>
> Yes, I do have a real question to any and all. I am thinking about
> ganging caps. The idea is to make one "huge variable cap" (or a few). I
> have "several" CSI (manf.) caps rated at 100uF and 1500vdc. Tearing one
> of these apart, I found 5 cap-rolls paralleled. Each roll of course is
> it's own cap measuring 20uF. I did the math and found I had enough to
> get down to 0.001uF if series'd up (yes, I have a bunch). I could even
> create up to 160 or so tap points for varying capacitance's. The idea,
> is a cap that could be used for almost any coil, robust, etc... The
> voltage rating (ac not dc) should be "null" so to speak with this many
> rolls series'd. Of course, the voltage rating and capacitance would vary
> depending on tap configuration.
>
> Has anyone tried something like this or have any
> ideas/suggestions/CONCERNS? It's very probable it takes this many caps
> in your garage to even consider it.
My major concern is that it would have a high ESR and have quite bad
effects on primary Q. Other things like voltage sharing being unequal
when integrated over time due to minor differences between
capacitances would also be a worry I think. My personal preference is
to use as few caps as I can get away with.
Malcolm