[TCML] Resistant Spark Gap

[Paul Brodie]

Brandon,
Electric arcs will jump much farther across a point gap than from a rounded surface. The difference is even documented and you can look it up. If you look up what distance a certain voltage can arc across in air, what you will find almost always gives you both the distance for points and for rounded surfaces.

Have you ever noticed on a lot of pictures of Tesla Coils that they will have some pointed object attached to the toroid with really long arcs jumping off of them?
Paul
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Brandon Hendershot 
  To: Tesla Coil Mailing List 
  Sent: Saturday, December 19, 2009 12:23
  Subject: [TCML] Resistant Spark Gap


  I found a link someone put up on the list of site that sells brass  
  balls for pretty cheap. I ordered a few for my spark gap and soon to  
  come Terry Filter. The problem is, the gap needs to be half the size  
  it was before in order to fire. Is it because the electrodes are now  
  round and have less of a preferance of where to arc to? Or are they  
  acting like a resistor on the high voltage?

  Other things I've changed are the connecting wires and the screws  
  since I needed bigger ones for the balls to screw on to. But I've  
  checked the resistance with an ohmeter and they are the same... Any  
  words on this?

  Thanks a lot, guys.
  Brandon
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