Re: nst shock or OBIT shock!

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-qwest-dot-net>" <Tesla729-at-cs-dot-com>

In a message dated 7/2/01 8:35:01 PM Central Daylight Time, tesla-at-pupman-dot-com 
writes: 


>
> This was ABSOLUTLY the worst electical shock I have 
> endured ever , I'm 38 yrs old now and the incident is still very fresh in 
> my 
> mind! 
>
> Mike Church (CHURCHMON)-at-aol 
>



Hi Mike, all, 

I got a pretty nasty shock from an OBIT around 15 years ago, 
when I was fairly new to coiling. I was using a plastic handled 
filleting knife to probe the 'hot" electrode of the transformer. I 
assumed that the plastic handle would surley insulate my 
hand from the 6kV -at- 23 mA. It would have, except there was 
one small problem of which I wasn't aware -- the shank of the 
steel balde ran all the way through the plastic handle and came 
out flush with the end that was resting in my hand. Consequently 
the ~ 1/8" square of the steel shank was touching my hand, and 
I recieved a very painful, teeth-chattering electric shock that left 
a small pin-point of charred skin inside my palm. I'm not exactly 
sure of the grounding situation of this incident, but I must have been 
grounded somewhere to actually receive a burn! I could actually 
smell burnt flesh at the burn site, although thankfully, it was quite 
small in surface area. 

I learned a very important lesson with this incident and I just thank 
the good Lord that this happened with an OBIT and not a pole pig! 
I suppose this is what concerns me when I read letters from young 
novice coilers on the list who want to build a pole pig powered, 12 ft 
spark-spouting monster for their very first coil project! They are trying 
to short-circuit the learning curve that most of us must go thru (no pun 
imtended). I was already an adult when the OBIT incident occured 
(I turn 39 this month) but I still had to learn a lesson thru a painful 
shock. Because I went thru the common learning curve, I received a 
painful lesson, but not a lethal lesson! I fear some of the cocky novice 
coilers who try to build a large coil for their first project may receive a 
lethal lesson! My advice to beginner coilers is to start small and work 
your way up as you become more familiar with it. NST and OBIT coils 
are plenty hazardous but will probably let you escape with your life 
if you mess up. Pole pig or PT systems are positively lethal if you 
touch the wrong thing! 


Coil Safely, 
David Rieben