Performing twins

Tesladownunder, Mon Feb 06 2006, 01:24AM

I have just returned from the Big Day Out (BDO) which is a rock concert which tours the main cities of Australia and NZ to crowds of up to 50,000. Headline acts were Iggy and the stooges, White Stripes, Franz Ferdinand, Living End and 40 or so other bands on multiple stages through the day.
After the success of Syd Klinge's coil last year at the same event they have included a Tesla coil at this one as well.
The show was done by Carlos who has Lightning for Hire in New Zealand. Carlos has previously done performances with a single coil (review here) with the performer in a conductive suit standing on the coil. For the first time at the BDO he used twin coils with duelling professional performers for a very impressive show. I imagine it is a world first as well and has now been seen by well over 100,000 people.

The performance starts with the two performers performing some gyrations with streamers coming off their extremities. Then they bow towards each other and the spark forms between their two heads perhaps 10 feet apart. Later they use metal staffs in a mock battle with sparks forming as the staffs are pointed at each other.

The power (12kVA) is from a portable generator and he has a homemade transformer running 22kV and a .07 uF mylar capacitor (for all of you 'mylar is hopeless' types). Coils are about 8ft by 18 inches with a small steel corona ring attached to an aluminium plate that the performer stands on. There are large PVC supports and a PVC ladder.

Carlos said that he was working on a 25kVA DC 3 phase system with charging greactor but he blew some expensive HV diodes and was reluctant to use a potentially unreliable system for the BDO.

The suits are made of fine steel mesh and butchers chain mail gloves are used.

All in all an impressive show (and the music was good too)

Peter