Safety Considerations

["Tesla list" <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Original poster: "Chris Fanjoy" <zappyman@xxxxxxxxxxx>

  After months of work, my VTTC is almost ready to power. But before 
I prepare to bring it to life, there are a couple of important safety 
issues I'd like some info on.
  First of all, some specs: the coil uses two 813 tubes, powered by 
a (massive) MOT and voltage doubler. Frequency is 157KHz, and the 
expected spark length is anywhere from 1-2 feet. It will be run by a 
staccato controller, rather than continuous wave. Currently I do not 
have a topload on the secondary, save for a long bolt to which a 
toroid could be attached.
  Question 1: what precautions should I take to protect nearby 
solid-state devices? (TV's, VCRs, my wristwatch, etc). Is it enough 
simply to keep them a good distance away, or are other precautions needed?
  Question 2: how hazardous is the output of the secondary itself? I 
know very well that the primary side carries lethal current and must 
be avoided at all times. But I've seen pictures of people touching 
the sparks from their coils, and this looks very fascinating to say 
the least. I actually tried it with a small, crudely-rigged VTTC a 
few months ago. It used a single 6146 tube powered by a 400VDC power 
supply. The spark was only about 1/2" long, but was run 
continuous-wave since I didn't yet have a staccato controller. 
Curiousity got the better of me and I just *had* to touch it and see 
what happened. It was a new, and exciting experience, to touch a 
high-voltage arc and NOT receive a painful shock! However, because of 
the CW operation, it would quickly start to burn my fingers if I held 
them in place too long.
  So before I go touching the sparks on this thing, I'd like to 
advice on safety first. And I'd also like to know how to keep my 
other gadgets from getting fried as well.
  Thanks for any advice.