Agreed 100%I use stings of 1N5403 (1kv 3A) overkill here is really cheap and I've never lost a diode stack in either the 1kW or 10kW DC coils. In my case I've used about twice as many diodes (no equalising R/C) than the theory suggests is the bare minimum.
Good luck Ted in NZ <SNIP>
Biggest piece of advice by far that I have learned about level shifters driving Tesla coils is this - *use lots and lots of voltage headroom on your level shifter diode*! Filtering helps too, but for example I use 301N4007 diodes in series for my single stage level shifter
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