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*did I already post this?* I think mine started with pikachu + a magic school bus book about electricity "the magic school bus and the electric field trip" + lightning.
Registered Member #3414
Joined: Sun Nov 14 2010, 05:05PM
Location: UK
Posts: 4245
Mine started in primary school, with light bulbs and buzzers.
EDIT: thinking about it, my experiments with 'mains electricity' started before that, when I was about 6 or 7, we had a lot of power cuts.
My dad was wondering why the fusebox kept blowing everytime he changed a fuse, then he found me in the garage, poking wires into a socket, trying to 'fill up' the wires with electricity, so we'd have some to use during the next power cut.
Registered Member #3943
Joined: Sun Jun 12 2011, 05:24PM
Location: The Shire, UK
Posts: 552
When I saw one of those youtube video showing how to make disposable camera stun guns, potentially lethal ones too with no current limiting just a big HV capacitor.
After making my first one I got a taste for things that make sparks or arcs.
Then I found that pulsing a bug zapper inverter into an ignition coils primary coil made 1 inch long sparks between the two HT leads (it was a dual output with a center-tapped core, like an NST). At the time I could not work out why it only worked when I pulsed the 2kV from the bug zapper and not when I kept it connected!
Registered Member #3766
Joined: Sun Mar 20 2011, 05:39AM
Location:
Posts: 624
The first time I made plasma with an iggy coil. I was hooked, probably for life. nothing like that adrenalin rush of screeching plasma screaming at you unexpectedly...
Registered Member #152
Joined: Sun Feb 12 2006, 03:36PM
Location: Czech Rep.
Posts: 3384
Once I remembered that there's a some kind of high voltage transformer in a TV, and that I dismantled my grandma's tv a few years back. Just out of curiosity I looked at the circuit board and there was that a bit scary looking thing with redish colored secondary winding, all covered in dust. So I wound a few turns of wire on in and built a 555 + bipolar transistor driver for it. After turning it on, it made a 5mm purple plasma which screamed all over the place, drew some 7 amps from the SLA battery and the transistor got extremely hot, but that didn't matter... The purple plasma was just fascinating for me.
If I left the transformer alone, I wouldn't probably be playing with any more electricity now.
Registered Member #1403
Joined: Tue Mar 18 2008, 06:05PM
Location: Denmark, Odense C
Posts: 1968
I got totally sideways out of a catastrophic relationship with a insaner than average girl, I was pretty devastated and thought to myself.
I have to do something to get my mind away from what had happened. Early in my school years I had read a book about Tesla coils and thought "Now is the time to build one!"
Took me about a month to get a working small SGTC made from whatever items I found in my appartment :)
Registered Member #3943
Joined: Sun Jun 12 2011, 05:24PM
Location: The Shire, UK
Posts: 552
Ash Small wrote ...
Mine started in primary school, with light bulbs and buzzers.
EDIT: thinking about it, my experiments with 'mains electricity' started before that, when I was about 6 or 7, we had a lot of power cuts.
My dad was wondering why the fusebox kept blowing everytime he changed a fuse, then he found me in the garage, poking wires into a socket, trying to 'fill up' the wires with electricity, so we'd have some to use during the next power cut.
I've learned a bit since then.....
It is hard to imagine domestic wiring back then without MCB's!
Registered Member #3414
Joined: Sun Nov 14 2010, 05:05PM
Location: UK
Posts: 4245
Alex1M6 wrote ...
Ash Small wrote ...
Mine started in primary school, with light bulbs and buzzers.
EDIT: thinking about it, my experiments with 'mains electricity' started before that, when I was about 6 or 7, we had a lot of power cuts.
My dad was wondering why the fusebox kept blowing everytime he changed a fuse, then he found me in the garage, poking wires into a socket, trying to 'fill up' the wires with electricity, so we'd have some to use during the next power cut.
I've learned a bit since then.....
It is hard to imagine domestic wiring back then without MCB's!
I just remember the occasional bang and sparks each time my dad replaced the fuse. The first one scared me a bit.....then it became exciting...
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How did your HV Hobby start?
