[TCML] Secondary Troubles

[G Hunter]

No need to bash yourself, or to be discouraged.  Coiling involves employing materials and components in a purpose for which they were never intended.  PVC pipe is formulated for plumbing, not to hold off 100s of kilovolts of RF.  Hardware store varnishes and sealers are meant to finish furniture, not block corona.  We routinely expose magnet wire to conditions waaayyy outside the performance envelope of their insulation system.  Failures are part of the deal.  I'm amazed hobby-grade coils work as well as they do.  They sure are fun to tinker with though.  So enjoy the sparks...and keep a fire extinguisher handy!

Happy 4th,

Greg


--- On Thu, 7/3/08, Phillip Slawinski <pslawinski at gmail.com> wrote:

> From: Phillip Slawinski <pslawinski at gmail.com>
> Subject: [TCML] Secondary Troubles
> To: "Tesla Coil Mailing List" <tesla at pupman.com>
> Date: Thursday, July 3, 2008, 10:17 PM
> I set up my TC today to 'play'.  I think I made a
> big mistake.  I
> accidentally had the ungrounded low voltage lead from the
> secondary inside
> the coil form.  To make a long story short my secondary PVC
> form now has
> some nice tree-like black tracks on the inside of it.  The
> TC still works,
> and puts out streamers to about three and a half feet or
> more.
> 
> Is there a way to clean up these tracks?  Should I just
> abandon that
> secondary and wind a new one?  I've got plenty of wire
> and plenty of PVC.
> Should I stop coiling for making such a stupid mistake?
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