Welcome new members, come say hello and tell a little about yourself :)

[Linda aka MethelinaPills]

'Ola, noble and kind people of the community!
My name is Linda and im mostly a DIY-laser enthusiast But it needs a HV to feed so i make my small steps over the HV-world.
In the basic reality im a ECLSS worker and Game Designer. My hobby is electronics, ants, chemistry, DIY, PC-gaming and martial arts.



For now im workin' on the Laser PSU for my DIY Ruby laser:




And the ZVS in progress 


Test flyback transformer with DIY 3D printed bobbin sec:9x1mm, 65kHz, 38v 

It works, so i added a big flyback trans from TV to check the arc for proof of concept

At the end i will need to feed the greed of this little guy till 5kV:

...Via a new Flyback transformer from this core: hope it will work...

[JTaddeo]

Hello everyone I'm Jim with very likely a cliche introduction. I'm new around here but quite the "older" veteran in the wonderful world of electronics.

I've long had an interest in Tesla and his work (many others as well but...Nikola Tesla was one very interesting man, his work pioneering) and my current focus has turned towards the pancake coil.

I love reading and exploring old literature and technologies and I am definitely a hands on builder, tinkerer, and explorer. Many of my passions have been sitting on a shelf as my wife and I raised the children but now we have reached a place where the last will enter her junior year of college (chemistry major) and I'm about to play again. I have a pretty cool collection of devices and surplus parts, discrete components, and test gear. Recently I had the great fortune to inherit some HV capacitors, all of them are from the Condenser Products Corp. that were going to be "discarded" otherwise. Which, of course to my wife's dismay, I simply could not let happen. 

I scored on:

• 0.25 MFD 8KV "can"
• 0.01 MFD 10KV Oil Filled
• 0.001 MFD 20KV Oil Filled

Ancient but well kept, I wonder what their ESR's measure?

Professionally I am a Controls Engineer (I used to couldn't say it, but now I are one) which surely betrays a trait of "pack-ratting" all manners of geek looking stuff that very few people recognize let alone understand or have interests in. That of course, again much to the irritation of my gentler half, is OK with me. I will provide a good and stable environment for wayward devices of many types and test equipment, Ham Radio gear, and old motorcycle parts too....the list is looooong.   

I intend on continuing my explorations of impulse driven, spark gap and solid state, and broad banded excitation of resonant circuits and masses. One of my favorite "parlor tricks" has been a very interesting wireless electrolysis that I saw and experimented with on other forums in another life.

Below is a shot of 96 LED's in series running on single wire RF input, very little input power,  and just a few hundred volts...still, it's great fun (occasional, though not too frequent, RF burns aside)
 

Single wire broadband excitation of large LED loops...just for fun.

Don't do this at home boys and girls, I'm a licensed professional.

In any case, Hello again!....I'll be reading and looking at what you all have posted here...for now.

Best regards,

JT

   

[Crated]

Guess I'll take a turn!

My name is Matthew, I finished an associates degree about 3 years ago and have been working as a computer tech at a school district since then.
I've been buying tools here and there, starting a few hobbies.

I do a bit of graphic designing, I've gotten a decent handle on 3d printing/3d modeling and have started a bit of blacksmithing. My endless curiosity has led me here as well.

I intend on going back to college at some point, but at the moment I'm getting certified for stuff here and there.

[Mads Barnkob]

It is wonderful to see so many new members taking their time to say hello and showcase a bit. You are all ready for posting your projects, never wait until it is all done, there is so much help to get when posting the work in progress

[Download]

Hello everyone.

I used to frequent 4hv many years ago. Not sure what has happened there, but it seems quite dead now? Found this forum today and it seems quite lively, and I am glad to be here.

I got into HV stuff as a (probably too young) teen. I built a (terrible) SG Tesla Coil when I was 12 or 13 and then built a far nicer VTTC when I was 16 based on Steve's single 833A compact design. Said VTTC is currently in parts in a box in my shed, unused in about a decade now. But for some reason (probably because of being employed and having money now), I find myself in the scene again. My first project — sort of a litmus test to see how serious I am about getting into this again — is to rebuild my old VTTC into a presentable unit rather than the jury-rigged nonsense I ran with years back. After that I have some crazy idea to build a 5 or 10 kW VTTC from a transmitting triode. It's probably crazy, but aren't we all here?

My other hobby that might interest some people here is about all nuclear things. It currently looks at nuclear weapons design, focussing on the idea that a British nuclear device - codenamed Super Octopus - greatly interested the US and was extensively used in US nuclear weapons. I am currently writing a history paper on the topic and hope to get it published in a journal and am currently at the stage of "do I look for more info or run with what I have?". Hard choices. I also have a blog on it. I don't mind discussing the topic with those who are interested. I've looked at other nuclear topics as well and my thesis for my (unfinished) degree was looking at manufacturing challenges in advanced nuclear power.

I'll try dig up my old VTTC photos tomorrow.

[Benbmw]

Welcome Download!

I seem to be in a very similar boat as you, finding the HV hobby in my teens and wanting to return to it with more experience/resources.

Your nuclear hobby sounds interesting and I would love to read your blog and/or paper once released. I am currently riding the nuclear fusion startup wave that has high demand for pulsed power engineers. No background in anything nuclear before this though, so I am curious to learn tidbits of history along the way.

-Ben

[Download]

Welcome Download!

I seem to be in a very similar boat as you, finding the HV hobby in my teens and wanting to return to it with more experience/resources.

Your nuclear hobby sounds interesting and I would love to read your blog and/or paper once released. I am currently riding the nuclear fusion startup wave that has high demand for pulsed power engineers. No background in anything nuclear before this though, so I am curious to learn tidbits of history along the way.

-Ben

Blog is linked in my profile.

If you're interested in the early history of fusion, take a look at this paper: https://direct.mit.edu/jcws/article-abstract/23/2/133/101892/Ripple-An-Investigation-of-the-World-s-Most?redirectedFrom=fulltext

[Jhornel]

Hi everyone!

I am Jhornel from the Philippines and I really just love lighting and high voltage. I have been wanting to build my very first QCW Tesla Coil but I really do not know where to start and how to find the right drivers, etc. that can help me build one (like a guide, I guess.). I apologize if this is a dumb request but I am super excited to learn a lot from all of you and see your beautiful builds. I would really appreciate it if someone can help me how to start. Thank you!

[MechatEng2023]

I'm 22 years old now and 4th year mechatronics engineering student. My main hobby is high voltage experiments. I started this hobby when I was about 10 or 11 years old. You can watch some of my HV videos on my YT channel: https://www.youtube.com/@mernok2001/featured

[TXtesla]

I am TXtesla_HVF my back ground experience is in Oilfield electronics. I have built several Van de Graff generators. Working on building my first tesla coil. Reading the post and getting good education about what and what not.

[Ranni81]

Hi Everyone, I am Ranish, worked in the Satellite service industry for 18Yrs in the middle east, Now that i am free and lot of time in my hand wish to venture to explore the world of HV Plasma and the learn to device some physics experiments.

[WolfMoonshirt]

Hello! my name is Brett from Oregon in the US. While I have experience with residential wiring my HV experience is limited, I started experimenting with tesla coils about 4 months ago. My first coil was a small slayer built with scrap 30 gauge wound on a toilet paper tube, driven by my kids snap circuit kit. Just a npn with two diodes on the base to limit current and a third to clamp. It would light a CFL up to about 2" with a 9V. I was hooked the second that CFL lit wirelessly. I've since wound a 2.25" pvc pipe with 12" of 30 gauge and driven it with a cheap amazon coil kit driver, 15v at 1500mA, designed and 'tuned' with the help of JAVATC. With a 1.75 by 10 toroid it will light the same CFL up to around 3 feet and will discharge without a top load, though breakout sparks continue to elude me. No surprise here since at around 20W it just doesn't perform. I've since purchased a cheap oscilloscope and plan to build a full bridge with rectified mains via variac using the SSTC2 schematics I found after reading Mads website. I look forward to learning from the wealth of information on this forum as well as the experience I'll gain as I blow up components 😂

[davekni]

I've since purchased a cheap oscilloscope

Almost any issue can be figured out with proper scope captures.  Much harder to guess what an issue may be through just pictures and DMM measurements.

Good luck with your bridge build!  Mads site has lots of great information.  A couple tutorials I've posted here might be helpful too:
    https://highvoltageforum.net/index.php?topic=1854.msg13949#msg13949
    https://highvoltageforum.net/index.php?topic=1324.msg9795#msg9795

[OmGigaTron]

Hello everyone,
My name is Max and I am an I.T. Engineer from the US, all the way down in Louisiana.

I have been interested in Electricity since quite a young age, and have always studied it alongside all my learning.
I have also been a Musician since quite a young age, and have played many instruments and ran a small recording studio in the early 2000s.
So, when the discussion of Frequency comes up in circuits, I attribute it to my knowledge of acoustics.

I enjoy Amplifier design, especially Tube / Valve amplifiers, as they (to me) sound amazing musically.
I have studied the works of Tesla, and many others throughout my years, and I have an odd passion for Inductance, and all things in the EM field.
I have worked with speaker design, crossover design, and a little amplifier design, but I am by no means great at the Electrical Engineering side of our field.
My primary work has been with IT and for the past two decades or so, with Wired and Wireless / RF, and Network Design and Engineering.

I plan on building a Plasma Toroid circuit, and after studying quite a bit of the works of people who have built, and designed similar circuits, I figured this would be a great place to document and share these designs.
Hopefully, this is a good place for this and there are still active members.
If so, I'll create a large build thread with lots of useful information for others who wish to build one of these circuits, and hopefully collaborate with others to improve and maximize the circuit qualities.

Thanks,
Max
OmGigaTron

[davekni]

I plan on building a Plasma Toroid circuit, and after studying quite a bit of the works of people who have built, and designed similar circuits, I figured this would be a great place to document and share these designs.
Hopefully, this is a good place for this and there are still active members.

Yes, there are certainly active members and discussions here.  Would love to learn about your build.  Plasma toroid experimenting is on my list of future some-time projects.  At least initially I'll use argon because it is cheap and I can easily play with pressure.  Do you have a good source for a glass globe filled with xenon or other gas mixture?

BTW, my sister lives in Lafayette, LA, so I'm a bit familiar with Louisiana.

[Mads Barnkob]

As always, it is great to see more people join the HVF community! Young, old, experienced, new learners and great to see the eager to build and share

Thanks for taking the time to give an introduction of yourselves

[OmGigaTron]

I guess I better start my build thread then.

I purchased my globe from Wayne Strattman
https://strattman.com/
I ended up going with a 2-liter Globe filled with Xenon.

I am quite excited about this project, as I have always been fascinated with HV, Tube electronics, EM Theory, and amplification.

I'll be basing my design on the work that so many other amazing people have already contributed.

I plan on building a Plasma Toroid circuit, and after studying quite a bit of the works of people who have built, and designed similar circuits, I figured this would be a great place to document and share these designs.
Hopefully, this is a good place for this and there are still active members.

Yes, there are certainly active members and discussions here.  Would love to learn about your build.  Plasma toroid experimenting is on my list of future some-time projects.  At least initially I'll use argon because it is cheap and I can easily play with pressure.  Do you have a good source for a glass globe filled with xenon or other gas mixture?

Also,
Which forum would be best for my project?
It is mostly based on the DRSSTC Design,
Using the basic design theory of Steve Wards Type E Self Resonant design.
But I plan on doing a lower-power version and using Mosfets / IGBT.
Eventually, I'm gonna power it with tubes.
Because Tubes powering tubes is well rad.
But for now, I am going to mostly copy designs that are previously created,
And if it is allowed, I would love to involve the community in a discussion of the theory involved.
I have so many wild questions, and don't mind being corrected, especially by competent engineers, who can teach me how to do it properly.

[davekni]

I purchased my globe from Wayne Strattman
https://strattman.com/
I ended up going with a 2-liter Globe filled with Xenon.

Looked at that web site.  Didn't find any specs other than xenon and 2-liter.  Is fill pressure listed?  Glass thickness?  If you have a scale, weight would allow an estimate of average glass thickness.  I gather that typical xenon pressure for toroids is 15 to 50 torr.

Which forum would be best for my project?

Good question.  Hope others will respond here.  I don't see an obvious fit.  Some previous plasma toroid posts are within the SSTC topic.

But I plan on doing a lower-power version and using Mosfets / IGBT.

Frequencies for plasma toroids are generally far too high for IGBTs.  Most use either standard Si or faster SiC FETs.  I'm planning to use an SiC FET when I eventually get around to experimenting.

Eventually, I'm gonna power it with tubes.

Tubes are more forgiving of mistakes.  They don't fail as instantly as do FETs.  Might be less frustrating to use tubes from the start if that is final goal.

And if it is allowed, I would love to involve the community in a discussion of the theory involved.

Yes, definitely.  There are physicists on the forum, at least one besides myself, probably more.  There is some theory discussion in this existing plasma toroid thread:
    https://highvoltageforum.net/index.php?topic=2247.0

I have so many wild questions, and don't mind being corrected, especially by competent engineers, who can teach me how to do it properly.

Yes, the forum is definitely for questions, not just display of projects.

Looking forward to seeing your progress.  The more I learn before trying one myself, the easier it will be.  My goal is to generate a sufficiently strong initial magnetic field that toroid ignition occurs from magnetically induced field, not requiring capacitive coupling to start.

[unrealcrafter2]

Hi I'm Ben! I'm a College student. Some of you might know me as Temmie on discord. I've been into HV for a few years now and it's been a real fun hobby! My plan is to get an EE degree and work for NASA!