Small TC using "found" parts

KeeDx3, Sun Mar 12 2017, 08:42PM

So I found this xenon lamp ignitor which came out of a movie projector. The transformer is labeled 10,000v at .200KVA, which I believe works out to around 20ma.

Edit: I just ran ".200KVA" through a calculator and got 1.667 amps.

I have no idea about the specs of the caps, other than the 20KV voltage rating, but I like how it appears to be all the drive circuitry I need already assembled.

Basically, my plan would be to remove everything except the potted coil and connect it to a standard 25' (or 50') 1/4" copper tubing primary. The secondary I currently have is 3.5"x18" wound with #26 magnet wire. I plan on a ~12" topload. The problem is that I'm fairly new to tesla coils, so I'm really just applying theory relating to NST's.

Would this have any chance of working, or should I throw in a 15/30 NST with MMC instead? The transformer shown here draws a good arc, so I don't have any doubts about that (other than duty cycle). It's the [unknown] capacitance and spark gap I'm worried about; and whether my primary/secondary would work. The wiring also seems to stray a little from traditional TC use, but it looks like it would work.