Update 1

Over the long week end we have been doing a variety of things for the project.

First off, sparks were flying today but they weren't electrical! We sorted out the extra long screws by cutting them down to size using a Dremel.

I also went back to B&Q to pick up all of the electrodes for the rotary spark gap.

Finally, I got the voltage multiplier circuit working. We are now getting about 8kV RMS and 10kV peak. The current is around 300mA but have yet to calculate it properly. Photos of this in action are coming soon!

Next: Update 2

Wood Work 3

27/09/14

This week we finished up most of the wood work. We also did a demonstration of my small Tesla Coil at a local school. 

We sanded and painted the other stand and fitted castors to both stands and the control cabinet. We then had the difficult task of wheeling them all from the wood work house to the electrical work house where they will stay. Construction on the control board has already begun.

Next: Update 1

Wood Work 2

Day 8 - Saturday 20/09/14

Today we went and got PVC piping for the secondary coil. We also spray painted the door with the Halflife390 logo, added the handles and bolt/ Apart from the wheels, the control cabinet is done!

Day 9 - Sunday 21/09/14

Fundraising!

Next: Wood Work 3

Wood Work

There are a total of 4 big wood projects: the control board, the control cabinet and 2 stands. After this there are some small things that will need to be made from wood but have not yet been designed.

Day 1: Saturday 13/09/14

We got the wood from a building site, this wood was going to be thrown away.

We took the wood back and started to remove the nails.

Then it was time to measure it up and cut it out.

Then the drilling and assembling for the first stand began.

We worked well into the night, fueled by Monster of course!

By the end of day 1, both stands were assembled!

Day 2 - Sunday 14/09/14

Day 2 was all about the control cabinet, the heart of the Tesla Coil. We began to build and sand it. We also sanded one of the stands.

Day 3 - Monday 15/09/14

Today we fitted the back plate to the control cabinet. The plate was not originally big enough so we needed to extend it using some other wood planks we had. Finally we used filler to fill in any holes and chips in the wood. This was necessary as it was waste wood so some of it was damaged.

Day 4 - Tuesday 16/09/14

On this day we started to varnish the shelf's inside the cabinet. Most of the cabinet will be painted but the parts where the electronics will be will not be. Those parts will need to be insulated as wood conducts at high voltages Instead of painting it we simply varnished it.

It was time to paint it, but we did not have any paint. So it was time for a short trip to B&Q to get some. We started adding the first coat that same day.

Day 5 - Wednesday 17/09/14

Today we painted all of the control cabinet with 2 coats. We also painted 2 coats onto the sanded stand. A large part of the work was nearly complete.

Day 6 - Thursday 18/09/14

On this day we finished all of the varnishing. We also took a quick trip to get some green spray paint, I will not tell you yet what this is for =D. We then went out to get some more wood for the doors to the cabinet. After acquiring some hinges, a bolt and a padlock hinge we painted and cut the doors and fitted them on. The whole cabinet is nearly complete.

Day 7 - Friday 19/09/14

Day off, no work done, planning was done instead.

Next: Wood Work Continued