If you need assistance, please send an email to forum at 4hv dot org. To ensure your email is not marked as spam, please include the phrase "4hv help" in the subject line. You can also find assistance via IRC, at irc.shadowworld.net, room #hvcomm.
Support 4hv.org!
Donate:
4hv.org is hosted on a dedicated server. Unfortunately, this server costs and we rely on the help of site members to keep 4hv.org running. Please consider donating. We will place your name on the thanks list and you'll be helping to keep 4hv.org alive and free for everyone. Members whose names appear in red bold have donated recently. Green bold denotes those who have recently donated to keep the server carbon neutral.
Special Thanks To:
Aaron Holmes
Aaron Wheeler
Adam Horden
Alan Scrimgeour
Andre
Andrew Haynes
Anonymous000
asabase
Austin Weil
barney
Barry
Bert Hickman
Bill Kukowski
Blitzorn
Brandon Paradelas
Bruce Bowling
BubeeMike
Byong Park
Cesiumsponge
Chris F.
Chris Hooper
Corey Worthington
Derek Woodroffe
Dalus
Dan Strother
Daniel Davis
Daniel Uhrenholt
datasheetarchive
Dave Billington
Dave Marshall
David F.
Dennis Rogers
drelectrix
Dr. John Gudenas
Dr. Spark
E.TexasTesla
eastvoltresearch
Eirik Taylor
Erik Dyakov
Erlend^SE
Finn Hammer
Firebug24k
GalliumMan
Gary Peterson
George Slade
GhostNull
Gordon Mcknight
Graham Armitage
Grant
GreySoul
Henry H
IamSmooth
In memory of Leo Powning
Jacob Cash
James Howells
James Pawson
Jeff Greenfield
Jeff Thomas
Jesse Frost
Jim Mitchell
jlr134
Joe Mastroianni
John Forcina
John Oberg
John Willcutt
Jon Newcomb
klugesmith
Leslie Wright
Lutz Hoffman
Mads Barnkob
Martin King
Mats Karlsson
Matt Gibson
Matthew Guidry
mbd
Michael D'Angelo
Mikkel
mileswaldron
mister_rf
Neil Foster
Nick de Smith
Nick Soroka
nicklenorp
Nik
Norman Stanley
Patrick Coleman
Paul Brodie
Paul Jordan
Paul Montgomery
Ped
Peter Krogen
Peter Terren
PhilGood
Richard Feldman
Robert Bush
Royce Bailey
Scott Fusare
Scott Newman
smiffy
Stella
Steven Busic
Steve Conner
Steve Jones
Steve Ward
Sulaiman
Thomas Coyle
Thomas A. Wallace
Thomas W
Timo
Torch
Ulf Jonsson
vasil
Vaxian
vladi mazzilli
wastehl
Weston
William Kim
William N.
William Stehl
Wesley Venis
The aforementioned have contributed financially to the continuing triumph of 4hv.org. They are deserving of my most heartfelt thanks.
Registered Member #3075
Joined: Fri Aug 06 2010, 02:44PM
Location: Athens, GA
Posts: 148
Hi all,
I am just starting out with HV, and I figure my first project will be a simple spark generator. I have a few items laying around, and I am wondering if any of these would be good source for parts?
PC power supplies (150 watt and a 300 watt) Direct TV receiver 500 watt car audio amp
-forgot to add - old vacuum cleaner
any ideas on what (if anything ) could be made from these?
Registered Member #2648
Joined: Sun Jan 24 2010, 12:45PM
Location: Australia
Posts: 291
The computer PSU would work well as a power supply replacement for a 12v Battery.
Is "Direct TV receiver" a set-top box?
You might a able to get some high power semi-conductor from the amp but I wouldn't pull apart a good working 500w Car amp.
An old vacuum cleaner, I have no idea.
It might be a good idea to get an old CRT computer monitor or TV. It should contain all the parts required to make a simple single transistor Flyback and driver.
OK, I have a idea. Take the cleaner apart and there will be a BIG cap that the starter cap. take it. Take the two power supplies and connect the highest volage wires is series. Charge the cap and spark it to death. If you can get more, better caps do sow. to up grade the cap sparker, take apart two microwave ovens, connect the two transformers in series and connect the voltage doubler to that. now you have 8kv. connect it to the cap and now it will kick ass! I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR DEATH. ALL IDEAS WERE INVENTED RIGHT NOW .THESE MIGHT NOT WORK SO DON'T YELL AT ME FOR BEING WRONG!
Registered Member #2463
Joined: Wed Nov 11 2009, 03:49AM
Location:
Posts: 1546
If you are parting out the vacuum cleaner, it might have a motor with 2 carbon brushes and an armature with copper segments. and sets of coils. The stator, or stationary part will have 2 coils of fine wire.
With the fine wire, you can wind the secondary of a small Tesla coil. With the heavier wire from the armature, you can wind the primary.
Now go find an automible ignition coil and power its primary from the 500 watt car audio amp. Feed the secondary of this coil to the primary of the Tesla coil through a spark gap made from the two carbon brushes and a 4" x 4" 6 glass plate capacitor made from tinfoil.
Power the car amp as best you can from the 300 watt 12 volt supplies.
If you feed some loud music into the car amp, such that ignition coil sparks across the gap, the Tesla coil may produce a musical arc.
Remember the first bicycle was just made; after that the engineers argued about how to make it better.
Registered Member #16
Joined: Thu Feb 02 2006, 02:22PM
Location: New Wilmington, PA
Posts: 554
If you were willing to really get creative, I'd be willing to bet that there are the necessary bits in that computer PSU to get at least 2KVDC at low current. A couple big power resistors, the transformer driven backwards, bridge rectifier. Probably wouldn't be pretty, but it would work (at least for a minute).
Anyway, no one has addressed the elephant in the room here. Obviously HM Murdock is pretty new to this hobby. Lets not send him diving into the tender bits of mains driven electronics without first ensuring he knows how to not die. Eh?
Registered Member #1361
Joined: Thu Feb 28 2008, 10:57AM
Location: Cairns, Australia
Posts: 305
The best way to start with HV is with ignition coils or a flyback. Those 2 devices can give you some pretty high potentials, but at a very low current (Flyback with the single transistor driver, not ZVS).
NST's, MOT's etc should be saved until you know how to handle HV properly. Get shocked by a ignition coil or flyback, it hurts enough to teach you, but with a NST, you are in for a very serious shock and possible death, and a MOT, almost certain death. Then once you start adding capacitors into the mix, it gets even worse.
Registered Member #3075
Joined: Fri Aug 06 2010, 02:44PM
Location: Athens, GA
Posts: 148
GREAT replies!!! Thanks to all! Warms me heart to feel the love on here...
Dave Marshall wrote ...
Obviously HM Murdock is pretty new to this hobby. Lets not send him diving into the tender bits of mains driven electronics without first ensuring he knows how to not die. Eh?
-Dave
Pretty new? Hell no...mark that extreme newb. I am ALL FOR learning how NOT to die.
I have no business going near an MOT, or even an NST until I get a firm grasp on what I am doing. I am hoping to make a simple spark generating circuit off of what I have on hand and learn from there.
Eventually I want to build a SGTC, but I am far more interested in learning to crawl first (as it were). As my youngest daughter asked me today after seeing some Tesla Coil youtube videos, "Daddy, why would you want to build something if it could kill you?" My answer was "if I learn what I am doing, take it slow, and learn how to respect the power I am generating, then I will know how to use it safely and it won't kill me".
So far the PC power supply as a DC source sounds like a decent starting point...let's hear some ideas on the PC power supplies...how would one go about modding or using those to create a simple spark gap type of circuit? Possibly coupled with an ignition coil?
Keep it simple here folks...I am starting wih baby steps first...
GhostNull wrote ...
The computer PSU would work well as a power supply replacement for a 12v Battery.
Is "Direct TV receiver" a set-top box?
You might a able to get some high power semi-conductor from the amp but I wouldn't pull apart a good working 500w Car amp.
DirectTV receiver is an older TIVO HD receiver set top box. Has some bad SMD's that prevent it from firing up past the firmware check.
And I wouldn't call it a "good working" car amp. It's an el-cheapo Lightening Audio amp which is probably only good for 150-200 watts in reality. Came free from a friend, I have no place for it in my car audio system (Soundstream 600 watt AB amp on comps and a Lanzar Optidrive 2000 watt on the subs)
Registered Member #1361
Joined: Thu Feb 28 2008, 10:57AM
Location: Cairns, Australia
Posts: 305
I'd say find a car ignition coil or a flyback, and use the computer PSU to power it. For the ignition coils, you can build a circuit to pulse it using a 555 timer. With a flyback, you can build the "Single transistor flyback driver"
In reality, that would be much easier (and a lot less frustrating) then trying to get a computer PSU to output high voltage.
Registered Member #2893
Joined: Tue Jun 01 2010, 09:25PM
Location: Cali-forn. i. a.
Posts: 2242
Pull the transformer out of a large plasma globe. That was my first HV source. It won't kill you but it will hurt like hell if it shocks you, and it's a good starting point.
Registered Member #16
Joined: Thu Feb 02 2006, 02:22PM
Location: New Wilmington, PA
Posts: 554
Yeah I dunno about what you have on hand, but a couple hours of cruising around on the evening before trash day, or a stop at a couple garage sales will probably net you a couple old console type TVs or old computer monitors. Those will usually have a flyback that will be sufficient for doing *something*.
As I clean out my electronics bins over the next week, I'll probably scare one up. If I do, I doubt I'll ever put it to use. I could send it your way maybe.
This site is powered by e107, which is released under the GNU GPL License. All work on this site, except where otherwise noted, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 License. By submitting any information to this site, you agree that anything submitted will be so licensed. Please read our Disclaimer and Policies page for information on your rights and responsibilities regarding this site.
things I have laying around...
