STEFFAN'S TESLA COIL SITE

TESLA COIL BY BEACHLEY
Base:
-4' of 1.5" PVC

-8 pieces of 5"x5" plywood
-2 pieces of 3'x2' plywood
-4 wheels
Transformer:
-15kV 60ma transformer with no GFCI
Spark Gap:
-1' of 3" PVC

-2 bolts the same size, plus 2 nuts and 2 washers that fit the bolts
-1 Computer fan
-1 battery holder
Capacitor Array:
-40 Cornell-Dubillier capacitors, (Model# 942C20P15K-F)

-40 6MΩ resistors
-Material to mount your capacitors to (I mounted mine to lexan, with ceramic stand-offs as legs.)
Primary Coil:
-4 pieces of 10"x3" plywood

-50' roll of 1/4" copper tubing
-20' of 3/8" copper tubing
Secondary Coil:
-2' of 4" PVC
-1 piece of 4.5"x4.5" plywood
-~1200 ft. roll of magnet wire
Toroid:
-2 aluminum pie pans

-Aluminum dryer duct
Miscellaneous:
-3 copper lug terminals

-High voltage wire
-Gorilla glue
-Drill press
-Table saw
Steffan's Tesla Coil Site

This is a developing web site dedicated to learning about Nikola Tesla's high frequency, high
voltage coil and related technologies.
This web site is provided to offer assistance and information to anyone that is wanting to
construct their first Tesla Coil. I encourage you to make use of the other resources we offer on
this page. I live in the United States, and in this country the electrical line voltage standard is
110V at 60Hz. However, once you are passed the high voltage transformer, it is all pretty much
the same. All of my measurements are in inches, but those can easily be converted to
centimeters.
Your Tesla coil will ultimately be an expression of you and the finished product will reflect
information and techniques you have gathered not only from this page but perhaps from many
others. Most of the tesla tutorials I find out there only provide a fraction of the information you
really need to build your coil. Or the information is way to technical and one gets lost in a see of
numbers and calculations. Feeling overwhelmed can be one's greatest stumbling block to
building a Tesla coil. As long as you have some general woodworking and soldering skills, you
can do it! I do not plan to include exact measurements of everything, as I wish to leave some
creative effort to the builder to come up with his or her own solutions and designs. I will do my
best to offer a comprehensive tutorial that if followed precisely, will render a very nice Tesla
Coil. There are many details involved to having a finished tesla coil, so just start on one part and
continue step by step and you will be successful. If you don't have the skills or tools yourself to
build a Tesla coil, perhaps there is someone (maybe a teacher or relative) who does and would be
happy to assist in the construction.
If you have any questions, would like to leave a comment or engage in tesla related discussion,
please click hear.
I decided to use this short article by Hank Mills as an introduction to my presentation. It really
lays out Tesla coil basics in a way that I believe most people will be able to understand. I hope
you enjoy reading it.
Introduction by Hank Mills
Pure Energy Systems News

http://pesn.com/2011/04/29/9501818_Tesla_Coils_for_Dummies/
More and more people are becoming interested in Tesla Coils these days.
This makes sense, because there are many reasons to be fascinated with
them. These systems can produce "longitudinal" impulses that can
transmit power and information through solid metal containers (Faraday
cages), travel long distances without any drop of intensity, and produce
"overunity" gains of energy. With a simple set of Tesla Coils, you can
perform experiments that will perplex even the most skeptical folks you
may run into!
To be clear, these exotic properties of Tesla Coils are not myth, but
established facts that have been replicated countless times by researchers,
engineers, and scientists around the world. One such scientist is Prof.
Konstantin Meyl from the University of Applied Sciences in Furtwangen,
Germany. He has experimentally confirmed the above mentioned
properties of Tesla Coils, and has demonstrated his setups many times.
Additionally, he has published a number of books and papers detailing
how they work. Another researcher in the field of Tesla Coils is Eric
Dollard, an absolute expert in the fields of electronics, antenna design, and
radio. He built many systems utilizing Tesla's technology, and has verified
Tesla's claims.
You do not have to be a genius to build a Tesla Coil. They are fairly
simple devices. What is required is the willingness to do research, the
ability to learn, and the common sense to take all proper safety measures.
Safety must always be a priority!
The purpose of this document is to give an overview of Tesla Coils, their

components, their construction, and their special properties. A special
emphasis will be placed on Steve Jackson's Tesla Coil plans that have
been open sourced at PESWiki. By the time you have finished reading this
document, it is hoped you will have a very good idea about what is
involved in building a Tesla Coil
What is a Tesla Coil?
Over a hundred years ago, Nikola Tesla discovered that when a high
voltage circuit is opened or closed, a brief pulse of high voltage is created.
In his age, these pulses of high voltage were killing linemen and
technicians who were working on early electrical transmission systems.
He also noticed that these pulses of high voltage created discharges of
"something" that could be felt on the skin. At first he thought these
discharges could be tiny particles of physical matter, because in some of
his experiments he vaporized thin wires with these high voltage pulses.
However, if these discharges were composed of matter, a physical barrier
should stop them; but no such barrier could stop them. Next, he thought
that these discharges were of an electrical nature. However, even a shield
composed of a conductive metal would not stop them. He concluded these
discharges or impulses were truly unique.
Before long, Tesla went from simply opening and closing a high voltage
circuit to allowing a high voltage to cross a gap between two electrodes.
Eventually, he produced a system where these impulses flowed across the
surface of two stout bars of copper. By placing light bulbs between these
bars he could make them illuminate without any wires. He noted many
other interesting effects in his lectures and notes.
Tesla concluded that these impulses attracted by and flowing over the
surface of the copper bars, were a pure type of voltage decoupled from
electron flow or "current." In his opinion, voltage in an electrical circuit
was a form of compressed "aether." The aether is considered to be an
atmosphere of very tiny (smaller than an electron), very energetic
(traveling faster than light), and penetrating (capable of moving through
matter) fundamental particles. These particles of aether not only fill the
vacuum, but also compose the elementary particles found in atoms.
The final step that resulted in the creation of what we call a "Tesla Coil"
was the placement of a flat spiral coil of wire between the two bars of
copper. The two bars of copper became a "primary" and the additional coil
was considered the "secondary." The high voltage produced by the spark
gap would flow up the primary, and then be increased to an even higher
voltage by the secondary. He would connect one end of the secondary
winding to a ground and the other end to a sphere elevated above the
setup. The "Tesla Coil" was born!
Over the years, Tesla would improve and add to this setup. He used it to
transmit information and power over long distances. In addition, he could
transmit through any barrier, including Faraday cages! Although
additional Tesla Coils were frequently used to "receive" power and
information, they were not always required. He devised systems in which
the output of a Tesla coil could be channeled into a tube which would
produce a laser like "ray" of aether. When this ray hit certain electrical
conductors, electrical current could be generated. This electrical current
could then be used to power lights, motors, heaters, etc.
Not a Transformer
Despite the fact a Tesla coil utilizes a "primary" and a "secondary", a

Tesla Coil is NOT a transformer. This is a fundamental and important
distinction that must be made! If it was a transformer, none of the
astounding effects it produces could be possible.
First of all, a transformer utilizes a *tight* coupling of magnetic fields to

manipulate voltage (volts) and current (amperes). A Tesla Coil is very
different, in that the windings of the primary do not have to be extremely
close to the secondary coil. In fact, Tesla incorporated a significant gap
between the primary and secondary coils. This represents a very loose
coupling.
Secondly, the secondary coil of a Tesla Coil is "open" and not "closed." In
a conventional transformer the primary and secondary coils must both be
"closed" for any effect to take place. If a winding in a transformer is open,
then no current can flow through it, no magnetic field can be produced by
it, and no coupling can exist between the primary and secondary! The
transformer is completely non-functional with an open coil. Conversely, a
Tesla Coil is designed to utilize an "open" secondary. One end of the
secondary is connected to the ground and the other end is connected to an
elevated sphere. The ends are not physically connected. No closed circuit
for electron flow is present!
Third, conventional current or amperes (electron flow) does not flow

through a Tesla Coil. Tesla measured this, and determined it to be the
case. The electron flow cannot keep up with the massive build up of
voltage passing over the conductive material. Voltage is continually
increased without any conventional transformer effect making it happen.
The fact that no current flows can be proven beyond any doubt by
building a Tesla Coil out of glass tubes which provide a wave guide effect,
but are completely non-conductive.
Basic Tesla Coil Components and Design
There are many plans for Tesla Coils on the internet. Many of them are
high powered and utilize a spark gap like Tesla's system. A few of them
(such as Steve Jackson's open source plans) do not utilize a spark gap, but
use solid state components. Later in this article I will discuss Jackson's
plans. For now, I will try to describe a more typical system.
A Tesla Coil setup needs a power source. Tesla and many "coilers" today
utilize high voltage transformers. Many folks track down older neon sign
transformers or "ignition coil transformers" to produce the high voltage
they need. These transformers convert the fairly low voltage of mains
power (120 volts) into high voltage (many thousands of volts). Although
these high voltages can allow for very high powered setups, they also
present safety risks. They must be used with care.
There are lots of high voltage transformers that can be used as the first
stage in a Tesla Coil, but please research each possibility before making
any purchase. For example, some types of transformers such as ignition
coils may require a special method of limiting input current to be utilized.
Otherwise, they could burn up quickly, start a fire, and destroy the wiring
in your home. Additionally, older and newer transformers (even those
built for the same purpose) can have important differences. Some older
ignition coil transformers can be used for extended periods at a time,
while some newer ones can only be used for limited periods.
Capacitors
The next step is connecting one or more of the high voltage transformers
to one or more capacitors. A capacitor is a device used to store and release
electrical charge. In a very simple form, it can be composed of two plates
of conductive material with a plate of insulating material (dielectric) in the
middle. When a difference in voltage is placed across the two conductive
plates a charge is built up between them. This charge can be released to
power a load; or in our case, produce a spark between two electrodes.
There are all sorts of capacitors out there. It can be difficult to figure out
exactly what you need. This is another example of when it makes sense to
contact someone who has previously built Tesla coils and/or review the
plans on the internet that have already been used to build successful
systems. For example, is important to match the specifications of your
capacitor to the specifications of your transformer. The transformer is
being used to charge up the capacitors, and you do not want to damage
them!
Capacitors can actually be made yourself. There are plans on the internet
that explain how to build home made Leyden Jars (the earliest form of
capacitor) that can be used in a Tesla Coil setup. Nikola Tesla built some
of his capacitors in a similar manner!
The Gap, Electrodes, and Quenching
After obtaining the proper transformers and capacitors (some circuits

require only one of each, and others require a pair of each) the spark gap
needs to be designed. This is where the action begins! The gap represents
an insulative barrier for the high voltage released from the capacitors to
cross. An increased length of gap represents a more insulated barrier that
requires a higher voltage. A reduced length of gap between the two
electrodes represents a decrease of insulation that allows less voltage to be
applied. You will have to vary the length of your gap to find the distance
that matches the amount of input voltage from your capacitors.
The material that composes your electrodes is also important. Copper

electrodes seemed to produce qualities that polluted the "purity" of the
aether radiated from the gap. Eventually, Tesla started using carbon and
other materials for his electrodes instead of copper.
When the spark crosses the gap between electrodes, energy from the
capacitors is pushed into the primary. This energy can try to flow back and
bounce back and fourth between the electrodes. Just like the giant sparks
produced by some Tesla Coils, this is a waste of energy. To reduce this
loss mechanism, Nikola Tesla would utilize methods to "quench" the
spark between electrodes. These methods of quenching would allow the
energy to pass between the electrodes, but would not allow it to flow in
reverse. There are many ways of accomplishing this. One way is by
allowing a stream of air to flow between the electrodes to removed the
ionized gas molecules. Another method is by placing a magnetic field
from a permanent or electromagnet between the two electrodes. Tesla also
placed his electrodes in various types of oil or other liquids.
Primary and Secondary Coils
The primary coil needs to be connected to the circuit that powers the spark
gap. In some setups, the ends of the primary coil are connected to the
capacitors of the circuit. How the primary coil is connected will be
different depending upon the construction of your setup.
The function of the primary coil is to guide the pure voltage (unbound
from the current or electron flow), aether, or longitudinal waves along it's
surface and then resonate with the secondary. Resonance is a phenomenon
in which energy transfer is maximized if each impulse of energy is
properly timed. For example, consider pushing a child on a swing. If you
push at the proper moment it's easy to make the swing go very high.
However, if you push at random times it can be very difficult. The same
basic concept applies here.
Resonance between a primary and a secondary in a Tesla Coil is a

function of many variables. Two of these variables include the physical
length of the primary and secondary windings, and the frequency at which
the primary is pulsed. There are mathematical equations that can allow
you to calculate these factors ahead of time. With this information you
could design a setup that will resonate at a specific frequency. Otherwise,
you would have to experiment to determine at what frequency your
primary and secondary resonate. You may or may not be able to achieve
this frequency with your setup. At resonance, the voltage from the
secondary will peak and when completely out of resonance it will drop
tremendously.
Note: In order to gain more clarity on what resonance is and how it

pertanes to the Tesla coil, please view the Geek Group YouTube video on
'Resonance'.
As already mentioned, to transmit power, Tesla often utilized a second

Tesla Coil as receiver to collect it. For power to be efficiently transmitted,
the receiver needed to be in resonance with the receiver. One way of
accomplishing this is by making the receiver an exact copy of the
transmitter. This can simplify the process. However, receivers and
transmitters of different sizes can resonate with each other. Modern day
testing has proven this, similar to how certain notes resonate musically.
This is an area that needs further research and testing!
Another factor Nikola Tesla discovered was that the mass of the primary
and secondary coils work best if identical. This would result in a thick and
larger diameter wire being used for the primary, and a thinner or smaller
diameter wire being used for the secondary. When matching the mass of
the wire he would produce the best results. Today, many people think that
the actual wire mass does not need to match, but the surface area of the
primary and secondary windings need to be the same. [Editor's note: these
relationships will probably be shown to work in harmonic patterns similar
to music, and that exact matches are not the key, but harmonic pairing is.]
Bifilar Wound Secondary
An interesting issue to consider is whether to use a single wire wound or a

bifilar (two wire) wound secondary coil. You can see a bifilar wound
secondary in one of Tesla's patents here. He determined that a bifilar
wound secondary would allow for a much more rapid increase in voltage.
Modern experimenters have determined a bifilar wound secondary allow
for an exponential increase in voltage while a single wire wound
secondary only allows for a linear increase. Here is a quote from his
patent:
"Let A, Figure 1, designate any given coil the spires or convolutions of

which are wound upon and insulated from each other. Let it be assumed
that the terminals of this coil show a potential difference of one hundred
volts, and that there are one thousand convolutions; then considering any
two contiguous points on adjacent convolutions let it be assumed that
there will exist between them a potential difference of one-tenth of a volt.
If now, as shown in Figure 2, a conductor B be wound parallel with the
conductor A and insulated from it, and the end of A be connected with the
starting point of B, the aggregate length of the two conductors being such
that the assumed number of convolutions or turns is the same, viz., one
thousand, then the potential difference between any two points in A and B
will be fifty volts, and as the capacity effect is proportionate to the square
of this difference, the energy stored in the coil as a whole will now be two
hundred and fifty thousand as great. Following out this principle, I may
wind any given coil either in whole or in part, not only in the specific
manner herein illustrated, but in a great variety of ways, well-known in the
art, so as to secure between adjacent convolutions such potential
difference as will give the proper capacity to neutralize the self-induction
for any given current that may be employed. Capacity secured in this
particular way possesses an additional advantage in that it is evenly
distributed, a consideration of the greatest importance in many cases, and
the results, both as to efficiency and economy, are the more readily and
easily obtained as the size of the coils, the potential difference, or
frequency of the currents are increased."
The "Extra Coil"
In addition to the secondary winding, Tesla sometimes employed an

additional coil. This coil would be positioned in series between the
secondary and the elevated sphere. It is usually wound not as a flat
pancake like the secondary, but often as a solenoid. There is a lot of
speculation as to why exactly he utilized this extra coil, but the consensus
is that it was important. Although a Tesla Coil can function and produce
truly anomalous effects without one, such an extra coil allows for an even
larger increase in voltage.
If the primary and secondary have a loose coupling, the "extra coil" has
almost zero coupling with the primary or secondary. As the longitudinal
waves of aether of flow across the windings the voltage increases even
more. By this stage, any tiny quantity of conventional current flow that
may have existed in the circuit is removed. Only a pure longitudinal flow
of aether remains that is focused or enhanced by this coil.
In at least a few of his tests, the "extra coil" was wound in the shape of a
cone. This shape is claimed by many experts to be the most optimum. It
can produce huge increases in voltage, which is of course what we want!
The more aether from the environment we can tap into with this system
the more power it can produce or transmit (or waste in the form of giant
sparks or "streamers.")
Spheres and Grounds
Tesla determined that many benefits could be produced by adding a

sphere to the very top end of the secondary wire. One of these benefits
was the prevention of sparks and streamers which waste energy. The sharp
tip of the wire could easily produce such streamers, but by utilizing the
smooth surface of a sphere such beautiful displays were prevented. Hence,
losses were minimized and more power could be transmitted.
Just adding any sphere was not enough. Tesla determined that even a
metal sphere at extremely high voltages could produce streamers, sparks,
and even "darts" of energy. He learned that by coating the sphere in an
insulator such as wax, these losses could be reduced even more.
Eventually, he found that by using a carbon shell as a sphere, the losses
could be reduced dramatically. Glass globes filled with different inert
gases (or vacuum) were also tested and found to help prevent the loss of
energy.
The sphere (regardless of the material it was constructed from) also served
to evenly distribute the transmissions of the system. Instead of the
emissions having some directional component, they were emitted in all
directions. This was important, because he wanted to power the entire
world with such a power broadcasting system!
In addition to the sphere, he connected the bottom portion of the

secondary to a "ground." Quite often, he used the Earth itself as a ground.
Since he considered the Earth to be a giant reserve of aetheric energy, it
could have been attempting to tap into it to make his transmissions that
much more powerful. This seems to be the case, because receiver units
with a ground collected more energy than those without one. Tesla seemed
to be broadcasting energy both through the air and through the Earth. By
tuning into both broadcasts, a receiver could become more efficient!
Shattering Physics
With a set of Tesla Coils (one transmitter and one or more receivers) you
can produce many effects that are considered to be "impossible" by
mainstream science. For example, you can put a transmitter in a metal box
(Faraday cage) and a receiver in another metal box. Modern science would
claim no transmission could be made between the two. However, it has
been demonstrated repeatedly that the longitudinal (non-transverse) waves
emitted by the transmitter can penetrate any material. In this case, power
would be transmitted directly through the metal boxes!
Another interesting feature of a Tesla Coil based power transmission

system is that the signal does not weaken over distance. This is far
different than transverse waves weaken rapidly over distance, due to the
inverse square law. However, the power transmitted between two Tesla
Coils can remain constant regardless of distance! This transfer of power
without losses will continue, regardless of distance between the units, as
long as the transmitter and receiver stay in resonance.
Longitudinal waves can also travel at superluminal speeds. This has been
tested by multiple scientists and researchers. The exact speeds measured
vary. Some researchers claim the speed is almost infinite and others claim
1.5 times the speed of light. Probably, the speed of longitudinal waves of
aether depends on the "pureness" of the impulse. If it contains any
transverse components, it probably does not travel at a near infinite
velocity.
Finally, flows of aether seem to have a sort of momentum. Once you get
the aether moving it wants to continue. Tesla was able to cut off power to
his systems and they would continue operating for a period of time. In
addition, he once produced a ray of aether from a tube connected to the
output of a Tesla Coil. He used this beam to power light bulbs and other
loads. After he turned off his coil and removed the tube, light bulbs would
still illuminate in the path the ray had been traveling. This effect continued
for hours!
This momentum effect was also demonstrated by a glow that would grow
around his devices. The longer his giant transmitters were active, the
larger this bubble of illumination would become. In one experiment, he
connected the output of a large transmitter to a wire lifted into the sky by a
balloon. A glow was produced along the wire which grew in volume over
time. Eventually, the glow illuminated the entire area!
Free Energy from the Aether
Tesla's system could also produce gains of energy. If a certain quantity of

energy was used to power his transmitter, much more energy could be
collected by receivers. From the moment his primary was pulsed it seemed
a gain of energy was taking place. As the voltage increased along the
secondary coil the total energy of the system was increasing. When the
flow of aether collected and magnified along the windings of the "extra
coil" there was another gain. The transmission of this flow of aether
through space to the receiver also seemed to produce a gain. This gain was
also magnified after it was collected by the receiver, and traveled across
it's coils.
These gains of energy have been verified by countless replicators. At

times, it seems the energy collected by a receiver can be ten times more
than the energy consumed by the transmitter. If you have more than one
receiver this gain can be multiplied! Somehow, energy is being collected
from the aether, which is everywhere, unlimited, and inexhaustible! The
reason people should build and test Tesla Coils is not to produce beautiful
light shows, but to develop methods of producing free energy to power
our world!
Specific Plans
There are many plans for Tesla Coils on the net. Most of these setups are
used to waste energy and produce long streamers or sparks. However, they
could work well for wirelessly transmitting energy if modified to prevent
such losses. By doing some simple online searches you will find a wealth
of information that can help you design your own setup. Also, you will
find many words on safety guidelines you should follow!
Hopefully, this guide has given you an outline of how a Tesla Coil is
constructed, it's components, how it functions, and the physics busting
feats it is capable of performing! Next, I will be providing a few
comments on Steve Jackson's open source plans.
Steve Jackson's Open Source Plans
Steve Jackson has developed a set of plans for a Tesla Coil setup. Instead
of using extremely powerful high voltage transformers and capacitors, a
solid state arbitrary function generator is used to pulse the primary. This
provides a vast improvement in safety (using a few volts instead of
thousands). Despite the fact this is a lower power system than many Tesla
Coil setups, the anomalous effects of Tesla Coils can still be
demonstrated.
An additional benefit of his system is that by utilizing an arbitrary

function generator, it is much easier to find the resonance frequencies of
the primary and secondary coils. Downloadable software can allow you
quickly search through the frequencies, and an oscilloscope can allow you
to see the voltage peaks that occur at resonance. Tesla did not have these
advanced electronics to aid his research. Thankfully, we do!
A PDF containing details plans can be found by clicking on this link.
Please download and open the document, because I will be making a few
comments about it and providing additional thoughts. I will be listing my
comments according to page number.
His plans allow for the construction of a low power (safer) system that can
allow you to confirm the wondrous effects of Tesla Coils. I advise anyone
interested in Tesla Coils to start by following these plans to build a small-
scale and low-power unit. By doing so, a lot can be learned (in a safe way)
before you experiment with higher powered setups.
Tesla coil built by Steffan
during the spring of 2013
How I Built My Tesla Coil
Even though Hank Mills recommends building a solid state Tesla coil as one's first, I wanted to
go as traditionally as I could for my first coil. The Tesla coil you see below, was the culmination
of 20 years of desire to build. I offer gratitude to my friend Daniel Perkins, a long time Nicola
Tesla enthusiast and tesla coil builder, for his gentle and steady encouragement over the years to
not give up, and to http://www.thegeekgroup.org for putting together a wonderful video series on
how to build a tesla coil and to "beachley" at instructables.com for his comprehensive 'how to'
tutorial on how he built his tesla coil. I used information from all three of the above sources and
more to build my first coil which you see below. Lastly, I would like to offer my gratitude to
Larry Desario and crew of Santa Maria Neon Sign Company for contributing 3 - 15,000 volt
60mA neon sign transformers to my cause. Two of these are now powering my Tesla coil and
one of them I fried because I did not have a safety gap in place. So be forewarned... Have A
Safety Gap!
Just FYI: The three transformers that I received for free except for a core charge of $5 each
were considered DEAD! They were sitting on the scrap pile waiting to go to the salvage yard.
All three of the transformers had GFI (Ground Fault Circuit Interrupt) circuits which normally
renders an NST unusable for a Tesla Coil. All were rated at 15,000V 60mA. Two of the
transformers were made by 'France' and had GFI circuit boards that were easily removed and
bypassed. Both of these transformers worked after the GFIs were bypassed. The third
transformer was also considered dead. In this case the GFI was not removable as everything on
the inside was encased in tar. I decided to attempt to de-pot the NST. There are a number of
ways to approach de-potting a transformer. The safest way is to carefully cut as much metal as
possible off of the NST housing, and then soak it in mineral spirits. It may take up to 5 gallons of
mineral spirits and about a week to complete the job. In other words, there are free used NST's
out there. One just has to be resourceful.
Useful & Fun Tesla Links
All of thegeekgroup.org videos on Tesla coils

We recommend reviewing all of their Tesla
material. I found a wealth of information there
that aided me in building my Tesla coil.
Tesla,Books
Plasma Displays, Plasma Columns, Plasma Disks,
Jacobs Ladder, Plasma Tornado, Plasma Burning
Pen, Plasma Gun, Plasma Globes
Javascript Tesla Coil Designer
Pupman.com
Phasing Neon Sign Transformers for Tesla Coil
Use Part-1 - YouTube
Tesla Coil Design Guide
Javascript Tesla Coil Designer
Tesla Coils, Plans, Parts, Kits
Tesla Coil Design, Construction and Operation
Guide
Terry Blake Spark Gaps
Asynchronous rotary spark gap analysis
Richie's Tesla Coil Web PageAsynch To Sync
motor conversion
Richie Burnett Tesla Design Theory
Shunts - Determining Proper Loading for Neon
Sign
Shunts PHOTO - NST Bank
High Voltage - Fusor Input Power - Download
complete thread
Tesla Coil WebRing.org
Building a Tesla Coil In 9 Easy Steps!
Square Tesla Coil 3000V power supply
Repairing neon xfrmrs - Pupman.com
Depotting HV Power Supply Units
Rebuilding NSTs (Depotting)
Eastern Voltage Research - Electronic Kits, Tesla
Coil Kits, LED and LED Driver Kits, Home of
the DRSSTC
www.capturedlightning.com/photos/HVStuff/Ho
wToPart01.pdf
Transformer to Capacitance Calculator
Nikola Tesla Universe
A web page describing one person's use of MOTs
(Microwave Oven Transformers) in Tesla Coil
Construction
Safety:
Electric Shock Hazard! This device uses 110V AC, High Voltage and a bank of capacitors that
stores a deadly charge. If this device is not built in a safe manor, or is not operated in a safe
manor, there can be a risk of lethal electric shock. A professor at Penn Engineering
recommended that I keep one hand in my pocket. In other words, keeping one hand in my pocket
would prevent an electric shock from going across my heart! The most dangerous part of a tesla
coil is the "Primary Coil". TOUCHING THE PRIMARY COIL WHILE THE TESLA COIL IS
IN OPERATION WILL KILL YOU. Always unplug your tesla coil before making adjustments.
One can even put the extension chord plug into ones pocket. Tesla coils are fun, but they require
mindfulness and sincere respect for high voltage. Before building your own tesla coil. I
recommend watching all of the geek group videos that deal with tesla coil building and tesla coil
safety..
Cost:
If you plan to purchase all of the components to build "THIS" Tesla coil new, expect to shell out
about $1000 before you see sparks come off of the top load. It is possible and even
recommended to use recycled components when you can, This can greatly curb the cost of
building a tesla coil.
The high voltage transformer and the capacitors, will be your greatest expense. A new 15000V
60mA NST costs about USD $400 and the capacitors will cost about USD $170.
I noticed that on instructables.com there were quite a few tutorials for building tesla coils and
some of those were definitely budget oriented. It may be worth checking out.
Where and how to find cheaper parts. I certainly do not have all of the answers, but first let
me ask if you have a salvage yard or a recycled building materials store in your area? If you do, I
would start there.
Salvage Yards:
• 1/4" copper tubing
• 12 amp Variable Transformer
• 15,000V 60mA Neon Sign Transformer
• Braided Copper Wire (for grounding)
• 22 Gage Copper Magnet Wire
• Top Load parts
Recycled Building Material Outlets: These establishments can be a great resource for finding
cheap, recycled building materials. (plywood, copper tubing, nuts and bolts, wire, PVC pipe etc).
Garage Sales, Swap Meets, Flea Markets: These are always good sources to find Tesla coil
parts, transformers etc.
Neon Sign Builders: Please see the info on NSTs below.
Tools Needed:
The basic power tools I used in making my tesla coil were a cordless drill motor, a variable
speed 110V drill motor (Skill Classic), table saw, drill press, band saw, spindle sander, hot melt
glue gun and a soldering gun. I'm assuming that you have all of the other basic hand tools
available to assist in the construction. Examples of such are screw drivers, crescent wenches,
hack saw, wire stripers, needle nose pliers, diagonal cutter etc.
I am fortunate in that I have a full wood shop at my disposal. As you can see from from the
photo above, I was wanting to go a step beyond the ordinary and add some artistic creativity to
my tesla coil. However, if you look at beachley's Tesla coil, you can see that that the support
platforms can be made of the relatively inexpensive 3/4" particle board or chip board. You don't
need to go fancy if you don't want to. I created my design to be a piece of art and to allow for
maximum accessibility of the primary coil which is important for tuning the Tesla coil.
You will also need a work space like a large table or a work bench throughout the entire
construction process.
Main parts for my coil include:

• 1/2 sheet of nice 3/4 inch plywood.
• 4 fairly heavy duty castors and steel bolts, washers and nuts for mounting.
• 15,000 Volt 60mA (milli-amp) NST (Neon Sign Transformer).
• 1/8 inch Plexiglas (for MMC capacitor Construction).
• 40 Cornell Dublier 0.15 microfarad, 2000VDC (#942C20P15K-F) capacitors in a series/parallel
configuration.
• 33" of winding for my secondary coil with 22 gage heavy coated magnet wire. (3 pound role).
• 48" length of 4" Schedule 40 PVC Pipe.
• 2 - 4" SCH 40 PVC Caps.
• 1 - 4" SCH 40 PVC Coupling.
• 1 - 4" PVC or ABS toilet flange with knockout plug (base for secondary coil).
• 1 - 50 foot role of 1/4 inch soft cooper tubing.
• One grounding lug. Aluminum or copper, either is fine.
• 20" bicycle rim (for toroid). Also see alternate method in the Toroid section below.
• large box of flexible aluminum dryer duct.
• A large role of aluminum foil tape.
• 1 role of vinyl electrical tape.
• 1 role of rubber splicing tape.
• Various bolts and threaded rod ranging from 1/4' to 3/8", including nylon bolts for the toilet
flange.
• 12 Amp Variable Transformer (Variac) to regulate input voltage to the transformer. (optional
but highly recommended).
• 1 small box of 1 1/2 inch self tapping utility screws. They look kind of like drywall screws but
are more heavy duty. One can also pre-drill the needed holes and use less expensive drywall
screws. I was lazy and had the others available.
• Wood Glue.
• Hot melt glue gun and glue sticks.
• 1 1/2 inch paint brush (use a good brush to avoid bristles from getting onto your secondary
coil). Either spray or brush-on polyurethane finish.
• Heavy duty soldering pencil or soldering gun.
• 1 role of silver bearing solder.
• Soldering Flux.
• 1 surface mount single gang metal electrical box.
• 5 feet of 12 gage extension cord cable.
• 1 suitable MALE plug for one end of the extension cord cable. The other end will get hard-
wired into the metal box
• 1 1/2 inch standard metal romex connector for electrical box (strain relief).
• 1 standard single gang 15 amp receptacle and metal cover plate.
• 1 grounding screw for receptacle.
• Yellow and red wire nuts (a few).
• 20 feet high voltage wire from neon sign shop.
• 1 nice, straight and clean piece of 2 inches X 8 inches X 6 feet piece of Douglas Fir for the
secondary coil winding jig.
• 1 - 4 foot piece of 5/16 inch threaded rod including various nuts and washers and 1 lock nut
(secondary coil winding jig).
• 6 - 3 inch drywall screws for winding jig.
• A set of standard drill bits up to 1/2"
• Crimp-on wire connectors
That should be pretty close to the complete tools and materials list. I have been a computer
technician, carpenter, plumber, electrician and general handyman for most of my adult life. As a
result much of the construction aspect of building a tesla coil came very easily to me. If you don't
beleive you have all the skills to build it, like I said above, perhaps there is someone out there
who does have the skills and can help you.
I built the spark gap and the base for the primary coil following beachley's design. I built the
toroid, the winding jig for the secondary coil and the secondary coil, following guidelines
provided by http://www.thegeekgroup.org videos. I also designed my MMC capacitor based on
what I saw on thegeekgroup.com videos, however I used 40 caps like beachley did in his design.
My MMC design differs from beach ley's in that I made it with two 'stackable', 20 capacitor
modules. Stacking the two modules together 'in parallel', doubles the capacitance.
The Tesla Coil Circuit
A good place to start in your construction of your Tesla Coil, is to familiarize yourself with the
Tesla coil schematic and understand how all the elements of the device fit and work together.
Then you can begin assembling the parts and constructing your Tesla coil. The floorboard of my
tesla coil is 22" square and has wheels on the bottom so it can be easily moved around the living
room floor. If I could do it over again I would make the base 25" square. But it was what we had
available in our wood storage.
The seven components are:

* The support mechanism for your Tesla Coil.
* The High Voltage Power Supply. In most hobbiest cases, this will be a neon sign transformer.
* The top load or toroid.
* The primary coil or winding.
* The secondary coil or winding.
* The MMC (multiple mini capacitor) capacitor. (HV Capacitor).
* The Spark Gap.
Tesla Coil Circuit For Dual Output Neon Sign Transformer
At the left of the diagram the circuit begins with '110V power in' or "AC Mains" as the diagram
calls it. Next in line is the high voltage neon sign transformer (NST). The NST shares its total
voltage with two secondary coils. So if your NST is a 15,000V device, it will have two 7,500V
outputs, one on either side. This is done mainly to avoid having to shield and insulate for higher
voltages. One of each HV outputs from the NST will go to each side of the Spark Gap. From
there, one wire from either side of the spark gap will go to the first winding of the primary coil.
From the other side of the spark gap, a wire will go to one terminal of your MMC capacitor. The
other capacitor terminal has a wire that will clip onto one of the primary coil windings. On my
coil it was the 11th winding. That it is! The secondary coil is not physically attached to the
primary coil. Energy is transferred to the secondary coil from the primary coil through
inductance (an induced electromagnetic field). The wire coming off of the bottom of the
secondary coil goes to ground. The top of the secondary coil connects to the top load. The top
load acts as a capacitor with the atmosphere and the earth. Imagine the top load as being one
plate of the capacitor, the atmosphere as being the dielectric, and the earth as the other plate of
the capacitor. That is exactly what is happening and it is the top load that provides us with that
wonderful lightning display. Very cool stuff.
Note: There is an alternate wiring diagram for Tesla coil circuits that use a 'single HV output'
transformer. Observe how one whole side of the circuit connects to ground.
Tesla Coil Circuit For Single Output High Voltage Transformer
The Spark Gap
"The Spark Gap is the Brain of the Tesla Coil"

Daniel Perkins
First let me say there are many types of spark gap designs. Three of these are most commonly
used by Tesla coil builders. The simplest and easiest to build, and which also happens to be the
one used in my design, is the static spark gap (photos below). The other two are Quench Gaps
and Rotary Spark Gaps. I will not go into these in this tutorial, but I do recommend searching the
web and learning more about them.
One way to add a quenching effect to a spark gap is to draw fresh air over the gap while the
Tesla coil is in operation. This helps remove ionized gases that reduce resistance between the
spark gap and drastically limit performance. It has been my experience so far, that maintaining a
negative pressure (sucking) inside the spark gap housing is better than positive pressure
(blowing). The static spark gap design that I borrowed from beachley, incorporates a fan which
in essence adds a quenching effect to this spark gap. I mounted my fan differently than beachley.
You can choose which design is best for you.
If you use this spark gap design for your coil, be sure to lightly sand the interior of the 4 inch
PVC pipe and apply a couple coats of clear polyurethane finish. After running my Tesla coil for
a while using this spark gap, I began to notice carbon tracking on the interior surface of the PVC
pipe. The carbon tracking originated from the electrodes and was heading to the grounded fan
motor. Coating the interior surface of the PVC pipe took care of the problem.
Be sure to construct the spark gap and the support structure for your tesla coil such that there is
at least 5 inches of space between the top of the spark gap houing and the toilet flange (base for
secondary). The total height of my spark gap is 6 inches.
The spark gap electrodes are made of 5/16 inch stainless steel threaded rod. Electrode ends are
capped with stainless steel cap screws. Behind the cap screws are 2 fender washers separated by
nuts. These serve as cooling fins. The housing for the electrodes is made of 4 inch SCH 40 PVC
pipe. A 120 Volt computer cooling fan is mounted to the top of the housing and is positioned to
suck air. This fan is very useful in quenching the spark gap of ionized gasses. My spark output
increased by a third using this fan. This is a very safe, effective and ultra-simple spark gap
design. The PVC pipe helps to shield harmful UV light from viewers.
In order to mount the fan I used two 1 1/ 8 inches slices off of a 4" SCH 40 PVC coupling. The
fan fit nicely into the piece of coupling but rested on top of the actual PVC pipe (spark gap
housing). I used this to my advantage. I built a round mounting bracket for the motor out of 1/8'"
plywood. The motor is screwed to the bracket with two screws and nuts, and the bracket was
glued into 1 1/8" long piece of PVC coupling. I had to drill a 1/4" hole for the motor wires. Then
to see how things fit, I slipped one of the PVC rings over the top of the spark gap housing and
pushed it down to the top edge. Then I took the other PVC ring that has the motor mounted in it
and set it on top of the spark gap housing. Then I pulled the lower ring up to the upper ring until
the two pieces met. That was how I needed to glue the lower piece in place; so that when the top
piece with the motor is placed onto the spark gap housing, that it forms a good seal with the
lower ring. The joint is shown clearly in this photo, but I have it taped with electrical tape for
operation. If this is not making sense, please have a look at the spark gap photos below.
Above: You can see I included a ground wire to the motor housing. Electrical tape at the bottom
is covering holes that are not being used. The electrical tape at the bottom is no longer needed, in
fact it impedes performance. See details under 'Modifications' below.
Note: It is is very important to clean the spark gap electrodes after every 3rd or 4th run. Light
sanding with fine sand paper may be necessary to remove carbon buildup and any rough spots
that may develop. I find the stainless steel cap screws work really well so far.
Above and Below: These two photos clearly show the 1 1/8" long PVC rings cut from a 4" PVC
coupling.
They worked nicely to cerate the fan mount for the spark gap.
Above: A view showing how I set up the spark gap electrodes.
FYI: I now use a 12 Amp Variable Transformer (variac) to manually control the input voltage to
the NST. I highly recommend this to anyone who has a tesla coil. Mine was about $65 including
shipping from ebay.
The High Voltage Power Supply

Above is the 15,000V 60mA neon sign transformer I am using to power my Tesla coil. This used
to look like any other NST. It originally had a GFI and was considered to be dead. I decided to
try my hand at de-potting an NST. It is a messy job for sure, but I have a beautiful working
transformer. After de-potting, I was able to remove the GFI and the unit worked just fine.
What Types of "FREE" NST's to Look For From a Neon Sign Builder. It is quite common
for a so called dead NST to actually still be in tact. What seems to kill most NST's is that the coal
tar pitch encasing the transformer begins to develop cracks. Hi voltage electricity can then leak
through these cracks to ground. Over time these cracks become carbonized and begin conducting
electricity and shorting out one of the secondary coils in the transformer. Most of the time, if one
heats the transformer up to 200 degrees F, the tar will melt and the cracks that were shorting out
one of the the secondary coils will disappear and the transformer is again fully functional.
Another culprit that can kill an NST is a faulty GFI (Ground Fault Interrupter). GFI's are now
required by law to be present in all higher powered NST's. An NST with a GFI circuit CAN
NOT be used to power a tesla coil. That is the reason why many coilers are looking for "OLD"
NST's. Some GFI NST's are made in such a way that the GFI can be easily bypassed. Most can
not.
The best NST I have found so far that allows one to remove and bypass the GFI, is made by
France Power Solutions. France is one of the best known manufacturers of NST's in the US.
Some Franceformers have the GFI neatly contained in its own little accessible compartment. The
black NST in the photo below, is such a transformer. It takes a diagonal cutter (dikes), 3 wire
nuts and about five minutes of your time to remove and bypass the GFI in this transformer. This
seems to hold true so far, for all France NST's that have a black a metal housing. France make
other types of NST's as well. Some have a white housing and a different appearance. I do not
know if these can be modified in the same way.
Above: 05/01/13 It seems we get used to what we have very quickly and I found myself longing
for bigger sparks. Well according to thegeekgroup.org, the only way to accomplish that is to add
more current to your system with an additional NST. The NST must be rated exactly the same as
the other! The NST must also be hooked up in parallel. In my case I added another 15,000V
60mA NST to my Tesla coil circuit. Adding the additional NSTs in parallel, increases the
amperage to 120mA but keeps the voltage the same at 15KV. If you plan to add another
Transformer to your tesla coil circuit, it will be necessary to phase your transformers before you
can hook them up together. Instructions for phasing neon sign transformers can be found on the
thegeekgroup videos. After I added the new NST to my Tesla coil, I only had to adjust the safety
gap. Everything else seemed perfect. The system is definitely louder and the streamers are longer
and fatter, which is more what I originally imagined the output to be.
How to Protect your NST from High Voltage Kickback
Some Tesla coil builders, devoutly stay away from neon sign transformers. The reason being, is
that they are extremely sensitive to high frequency electricity kickback from the Tesla coil. I
have fried several NSTs while leaning about Tesla coils. If you are using NSTs to power your
tesla projects, there is a protective measure that can be added to your TC circuit that will protect
your NST. This is only needed if you are using a Neon Sign Transformer to power your T.C.
One can build a high pass filter called a Terry Filter. The Terry Filter takes its name from Terry
Fritz who came up with the concept of adding this additional protection. Terry also came up with
the idea of using MOVs in the circuit. MOVs are Metal Oxide Varistors. They have a rating so
that when a larger voltage occurs, they break down allowing the voltage to short, in this case,
harmlessly to earth. Below is a diagram of a Terry filter designed for a 15,000V NST. How you
build your own Terry Filter will depend on the size of your transformer. More information on
how to design the right filter for your system can be found by clicking on the following Link.
http://www.hvtesla.com/terry.html
Hear is a link to a Youtube video of a nice home build Terry Filter.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMh90UM4xY8
I have not built one yet, but plan to do so as soon as I have time. I have pretty much suspended
all of my high voltage experimentation until I can have the Terry Filter integrated into my Tesla
coil circuit.
The Terry Filter (For a 12KV NST)
Terry Filter: Image Curtecy of Tesla Stuff.com
Tesla Stuff Ebay Store
The MMC (Multiple Mini Capacitor)
Related Geek Group videos: Schematics and Capacitors

Building the MMC Capacitor
For this Tesla coil build I used 40 Cornell Dublier 0.15 microfarad, 2000VDC (#942C20P15K-
F) capacitors. At the time, I paid a $3.39 a piece. To get that price I had to purchase a minimum
of 25 caps. I purchased 50 capacitors all together. I use 40 of these caps with my Tesla coil and
why not have a few extra incase one burns out. With shipping I believe the total came out to
around $175. It was the best price I could find and the purchase was made from
http://www.onlinecomponents.com. For whatever reason they loosely require one to have a
business name to make a purchase. I say loosely, because they do not try verify it. I do have a
business, but if you don't, just make one up.
Capacitor Options: If such an expenditure does not meet your budget, you can make your own
leyden jar capacitors that will work just fine for a fraction of the cost. There is a geekgroup video
that demonstrates how to build a bucket capacitor that you can use with your Tesla coil. The
following link at instructables.com offers numerous designs for building your own leyden jar
capacitor. I really like this one by Mr. Apol.
Above: The Cornell Dublier Capacitors I used in my tesla coil

Above: The Layout for my MMC Capacitor
Above: The Layout for my MMC Capacitors with Capacitors on top
Above: A view showing the Series Hookup
Above: Top view of MMC capacitor
Above: Side view of MMC capacitor
Above: Close-up of terminal screw that connects the two MMC modules in parallel

Above: 10 mega ohm 1/2 Watt resistors are soldered across all capacitors in the MMC in
order to discharge the caps within seconds after the TC is turned off.
Above: This shows the bridge that connects the two sides of the MMC
Above: The leads of the individual capacitors are given a radius using a thin round object. A
jeweler's screwdriver is perfect
Above: Capacitor electrode with radius
\
Above: A view of the MMC capacitor array with Safety Gap going across capacitor
terminal.
The Safety Gap: After I fried my first NST within the first five minutes of operation, I installed
a safety gap going across the capacitor. (See Above) Because of my capacitor design, it was very
easy to add a safety gap into the circuit. To make the safety gap, I used two 8 inch pieces of 1/4
inch soft copper tubing. One end of each piece I pressed flat in a vice (1 ") and then I drilled a
hole through the middle of each flat surface that was large enough to fit over the terminal posts
of the Capacitor. Then I attached the copper tubing to the terminal post using washers and nuts.
Next I bent the two copper tubes toward each other at right angles, so that both pieces of tubing
overlap. Then, using a diagonal cutter, I clipped both pieces of tubing at the same time leaving
the two remaining, attached pieces just barely touching in the middle. Then I carefully cut out
enough of the tubing from either side to provide approximately an 1/8 inch gap. Turn your coil
on. If the the coil fires across the safety gap, turn off the coil and then clip about 1/16 inch at a
time until the coil operates normally without the safety gap firing constantly. Occasionally the
safety gap may fire. This is normal and is discharging current spikes produced by the primary
coil.
Capacitance Calculation
I know that at the beginning of this page I talked about not confusing people with mathematics.
HOWEVER, .... if one truly wishes to gain a clearer understanding as to how Tesla coils work,
then a little bit of math can't be avoided. I have done my best to make it as understandable as
possible. If you have had high school algebra or Algebra 101 in college, the equations below
should be easy to understand.
The Java Script calculator below, makes calculating the appropriate capacitor size for your Tesla
coil very easy and fast. The default calculation is set for a 15000V 60mA power supply. One can
change the values in the text fields to match the specifications of your power supply. After
changing values, simply click on the last field to update the results.
Tank Capacitor Calculator
50 Hz
Line Frequency (FL):
60 Hz0 Hz
Output Voltage: 15000 V
Output in Milli Amperes: 60 mA
*Click on last field (C=) to update result.
0.0106
C=: MFD (uF)
If one wishes to calculate the ideal MMC capacitance with a standard calculator,
please see the equasion below.
60Hz is the frequency of our Line Voltage

15,000V is the voltage of my NST
.06 Amp is the amperage of my NST (60mA)
π (Pi) = 3.14159265358979
C (Capacitance) =
1 1
_________________________ = ________________ = 0.00000001061033 = .
0106uF
(2π * 60Hz * 15000V / 0.06A) 94247779.6076938
Based on this calculation, .0106uF "SHOULD" be the capacitance of my MMC.

Mine and Beachley's MMC is calculated to be .015 MFD which is a little higher
than what was recommended by the above formula.
How to calculate the capacitance of capacitors connected in series:
In order to better visualize what a Series Configuration looks like, imagine a

string of 10 children hand in hand, where each child's right hand is held by the
left hand of the child to it's right and so on. All the children are facing forward.
Now imagine that each child is a capacitor. This is considered a Series
Configuration. When capacitors are hooked up in series, the voltage rating of
each capacitor is added together to create a combined voltage rating that is equal
to the sum of all of the the capacitors. This is just related to voltage. The general
misconception is that the capacitance does not change in a series configuration.
This is incorrect. The capacitance for individual capacitors hooked up in a series
string actually drops significantly. There is a formula to calculate this below.
The formula to calculate the combined capacitance of capacitors hooked up in

series is as follows:
Add the reciprocals of each capacitor. Divide that number into 1.
We can use my 40 Cornell Dublier caps as an example:
For my Tesla coil we have 2 sets of twenty 0.15 MFD capacitors in series that are
then hooked up in parallel with each other. If you are confused, just keep reading
as it will make more sense below.
1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 +
1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 + 1/.15 = 133.33
Total capacitance of each string of 20 capacitors = 1/133.33 = .0075 MFD
Connecting capacitors in parallel:
When capacitors are hooked up in parallel, add the value of each capacitor to
arrive at the total capacitance.
In order to visualize what a Parallel Configuration looks like, imagine a line of 10

children with their arms slightly outstretched. Each child standing in front of the
other facing the same direction. Add a long rope that connects all ten children
with their left hands. Now add another rope connecting all of the children's right
hands. Now imagine that each child is a capacitor and that the rope connecting
the children on either side is a copper wire. This is a parallel configuration.
For our Tesla coil we have two separate strings of 20 capacitors, each with a total
capacitance of .0075 MFD. When we combine these two strings in parallel we get
a total capacitance of .015 MFD (.0075 + .0075 = .015 MFD)
The capacitance of the MMC used in this Tesla coil is 0.015 MFD
OK, to confuse matters a little, here is a link to another web page that calculates
our tank capacitor to be 0.02 MFD. Click Here Which one is correct? How much
difference does it make?
The Primary Coil
Please follow beachley's guidelines for constructing the primary coil. I used his
method and it worked great. No need to duplicate his efforts. I glued the base for
the primary onto to the wooden support structure below using hotmelt glue. I
wanted to be able to take it off in the future if need be. As it is, it is an incredible
strong bond!
Above: View of Primary Coil. Notice I am clipped onto the 11th wind.
Above: My clip for the primary. You want something smooth with maximum
surface contact. I built this one out of 3/8" copper tubing. I pounded it flat. Then
I bent it around screw driver and clamped it in a vice to shape it.
Above: Close-up of how I came up through the wood below to meet the primary
at the beginning of the first wind. I wrapped the wire around the copper tubing
and then secured it with rubber electrical splicing tape.
The Secondary Coil
I followed thegeekgroup.org Tesla videos to learn how to build the secondary coil and
to build the winding jig. They show you how to build the winding jig, but then
later wind the secondary coil using a CNC Lathe. If you can forget that they are
using a CNC lathe and just pretend they are using the winding jig they showed
you how to build in an earlier video, you will be OK. I also actually believe the
drill motor works better than the CNC lathe for winding the secondary coil.. Use
your finger as a guide for the magnet wire. Your sense of touch is as important as
your eyes in this procedure. If a wire crosses over, you will feel it right away and
you can back up to correct the overlap. In thegeekgroup videos, they apply a helix
of double sided scotch tape onto the PVC tube prior to winding. This does a very
good job of holding the magnet wire in place and keeping it taught and from
slipping as you do your wind. All will be revealed when you watch the videos.
Above: A view of the 4" toilet ABS flange that is protruding through a hole in the
wood floor below. The Toilet flange is bolted to the bottom of the floor below
using 1/4" nylon screws and washers. Get a toilet flange that has a test plug in it.
As you can see in the above image, the test plug is serving as a base for a 1/4"
acrylic disc that is resting on top. The acrylic disk has a 5/16" bolt running
through the middle of it. The absolute minimum should be protruding into the
tube for the secondary coil when it is in place! The bolt and washer shown in the
above photo is used to connect the wire coming from the bottom of the secondary
coil.
View of the toilet flange from the bottom. One can see the ground wire that is
attached to the bottom of the bolt. One can also see the wire from the secondary
coil that is on the other side of the clear acrylic insulator.
Above: View showing how the wire for the secondary coil goes through a small
hole to the inside of the tube. Note how the bottom of the secondary coil is at the
same level as the primary coil.
Note: Observe that the secondary coil and the primary coil are wound in the
same direction. I never here anyone talk about that, but I am fairly sure this little
detail is important.
Above: This photo shows the use of a piece of tape to hold the secondary coil wire
in place for winding and finishing. After the first coat of finish, one can peal the
tape off. There seems to be some argument as to weather or not it is best to keep
the secondary wires on the outside or inside. I keep mine on the inside for
appearance purposes.
Above: A nice view showing the 1/4" nylon screws used to secure the toilet flange
to the wood above. The grounding lug for the secondary is also visible and is
attached right next to the toilet flange. From the lug, you can see a HV NST wire
that goes to ground. The wire coming off of the bottom of the secondary coil goes
to ground.
Above: Another really nice view showing how I constructed the support
mechanism for the primary and secondary coils, allowing maximum access to the
primary coil. The circular piece of wood you see is the actual base for the
secondary coil support. It is held in place with hot-melt glue and by the base for
the primary coil. No nails or metal screws were used in this area. One can see the
1/4" nylon screws I used to fasten the toilet flange to the secondary coil's base.
The Top load or Toroid

Above: Following the thegeekgroup's instruction video, I created my top load
using a 20" bicycle rim, a large box of 4" flexible dryer duct (15'), a large role
aluminum duct tape and 1 role of electrical tape. It works surprisingly well. You
will notice that the 4" cap is shorter than what you would normally see at the
hardware store. I carefully trimmed it off using a table saw. I left 1" of contact
surface on the inside of the cap. This is offers plenty support for the toroid, but at
the same time makes it easier to get it on and off. If you try this on your own, for
sure, wear safety glasses, keep your blade as low as possible, and watch your
fingers. It was the only way I could think of to get a perfectly smooth cut. The
Toroid should be between 4 and 6 inches above the secondary coil.
I removed the original axel and bearings out of the bicycle rim and replaced
them with 5/16' threaded rod that was tightened into place with washers and
nuts. You can see in the photo above that I used a fender washer and bolt over
the aluminum tape to finish the toroid. Every piece of tape going across the
bicycle rim went over the CENTER axel. I had to cut a hole into the center of the
tape for every piece. In the thegeekgroup video, the Chris Boden applies the tape
around the axel. I did not like that. When you watch the video, you will know
what I'm talking about.
If I were to do it again, I would build a different toroid (click on link) using a

more rigid fllexible aluminum duct and two aluminum plates. It will be cheaper
and much faster to build! The only thing I would do differently is to use a metal
threaded rod instead of Nylon for use with my coil. http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=z30RFaJ2bY8
The Winding Jig
The next few images are of my secondary coil winding jig. I got the idea from
thegeekgroup.org videos. It worked flawlessly. You need one person to help wind
the coil.
Above: My secondary coil shortly after it was wound and the first coat of
polyurethane had been applied. To apply the finish, run the drill motor at low
speed and paint (or spay) the finish on with a brush. This is a fantastic way to
apply the finish to the secondary coil. Once a new coat of finish has been applied,
one can simply set the drill motor on low speed and tape the trigger in place so it
will keep the secondary coil turning on its own. The weight of the drill motor
handle, keeps the drill motor from spinning around. I applied some mineral oil in
the places where threaded rod touches the wood for lubrication. To complete the
job, I put 10 coats of polyurethane onto my secondary winding.

Modifications
05/01/2013
Spark Gap Change & Additional 15KV 60mA NST
Above: I will start with the new NST. It seems we get used to what we have very
quickly and I found myself longing for bigger sparks. Well according to
thegeekgroup.org, the only way to accomplish that is to add more power to your
system with an additional NST. The NST must be rated exactly the same as the
other! In my case I added another 15,000V 60mA NST to my Tesla coil circuit.
The NST must also be hooked up in parallel. That means unless the two
transformers are identical models from the same company, it will be necessary to
phase your transformers. Instructions for phasing neon sign transformers can be
found on the thegeekgroup.org videos. After I added the new NST, I only had to
adjust the safety gap. Everything else seemed perfect. The results of adding
another transformer are amazing, greatly increasing the length and thickness of
the streamers.
I modified the spark gap by removing the tape covering all but two holes at the
bottom of the Spark Gap housing. It made another huge difference and I
recommend anyone trying this design to drill eight 1/2 inch holes, evenly spaced,
along the bottom of the spark gap housing for maximum quenching.
12/14/2013
New Additions Soon To Be Added To My Tesla Ccoil
High frequency high voltage filter to protect the NST. This is not a Terry filter.
Hopefully this will prevent my Tesla coil from frying any more Neon Sign
Transformers. I purchased it from Tesla Stuff on Ebay

This synchronous rotary spark gap will soon replace the static spark gap that is
currently connected to my Tesla Coil. As soon as I have my tesla coil working
with the new upgrades I will post new photos and video links!
12/26/2013
Determining the Resonant Frequency of a Tesla Coil
How to determine the resonant frequency of a tesla coil.

How to calculate the resonant frequency of a tesla coil.
The resonant frequency of a tesla coil is determined by the inductance of the
secondary coil and the capacitance of the Tesla coil's top load.
We will be using a total of 3 calculators found at the following URL in order to
determine the resonant frequency of my tesla coil.
http://deepfriedneon.com/tesla_frame6.html
1.) The Helical Coil Calculator

2.) The Topload Calculator
3.) The Frequency of LC Circuit Calculator
Designing The Secondary Coil
According to information on the the Deep Fried Neon web site, we wish to aim
for around 800 to 1000 turns of wire for the secondary coil. So to begin, let's just
arbitrarily say we want a 900 turn secondary coil. I did not have this information
when I wound my coil. I simply used 22 gage heavy coated magnet wire to wind
my secondary coil. I was aiming for 30 inches long and when it was all done it
turned out to be 33.125 inches (33 1/8"). The nice thing about doing these
calculations first, is that one can predetermine the secondary coil size and the
tesla coil's frequency by plugging in different variables into the helical coil
calculator. If I were to do it again, I might use 23 or 24 gage heavy coated magnet
wire to wind my secondary coil and make it just a little shorter. It would be
helpful to find accurate wire size specifications from a retailer or manufacturer
in advance so that one can easily plug wire and insulation specifications into the
calculator. If one has samples of various magnet wire sizes, one can use a precise
caliper to measure the magnet wire. Take one measurement of the wire thickness
with insulation. Then burn some of the insulation off, gently clean it and
remeasure to determine the thickness of the insulation and the turn spacing.
In my case, 22 gage magnet wire may have been a little thick, but it actually
worked out well in the end, because it made a somewhat long secondary coil
which in turn positioned the top-load a good distance from the primary coil. One
thing we want to avoid is having a secondary coil that is so short, that arching
occurs between the top-load and the primary coil. This can quickly and easily
destroy your power supply and even your MMC capacitor.
Below you will find the criteria necessary to calculate the inductance of the
secondary coil.
Variables are:
• Diameter of secondary coil form form
• Number of turns in the secondary coil
• Wire diameter
• Turn Spacing. Turn spacing is the amount of actual space between the magnet
wire created by the wire's insulation. The quick and dirty way to calculate the
turn spacing is to use the 10% rule. After you determine the total thickness of the
magnet wire, you can simply multiply that by .10. That will give you an estimate
of the turn spacing. Keep in mind that a sloppily wound secondary coil with lots
of spaces between the wires will significantly add to the overall turn spacing.
Specifications for my secondary coil are as follows. I used 22 gage magnet wire
for my secondary coil. Using a precise caliper I was able to determine the magnet
wire thickness and the thickness of its insulation. The thickness of the wire with
the insulation is .027 inches. The thickness with the insulation burned off is .025
inches leaving a difference of .002 inches. .002 divided by 2 is .001 inches, which
is the actual thickness of the insulation of a single strand of my magnet wire.
Multiply .001 X 2 = .002 and we arrive at the turn spacing, or in other words, the
insulation thickness of two wires side by side.
Using a tape measure I was fairly accurately able to determine that there are 19
turns per inch. 19 X 33.125 = 629.375. This indicates that I have
approximately 629 turns on my secondary coil.
The secondary coil was tightly wound around a 4.5 inch outside diameter PVC
pipe.
Now we have all of the variables to plug into the helical coil calculator.
Discharge Terminal or Top-Load:
There are only two variables for calculating the capacitance of the top-load; its
diameter and thickness.
The discharge terminal acts as a capacitor and forms part of the secondary LC
circuit. Its value is dependent on its shape and size, and can be worked out with
the above Top Load' Calculator.
Determining the Resonant Frequency of Secondary Circuit

To plug in the the numbers into this calculator you will first need to convert
microhenries (uH) to millihenries (mH). Use the following web calculator to
make the conversion.
http://www.unitconversion.org/inductance/millihenry-to-microhenry-conversion.html
Then you will need to convert Pico-Farads (pF) to Micro-Farads (uF). You can
use the conversion chart at the bottom of this page to do that. An Example would
be 22 pF = .000022 uF
By plugging in the inductance value of the secondary coil and the capacitance of
the top-load into the Resonant Frequency LC Circuit Calculator, we can now
determine what the Tesla coil's resonant frequency is or will be. Please keep in
mind that the resonant frequency will change depending on the proximity of
grounding sources close to your Tesla coil as this changes the capacitance of the
top-load. As you can see in the results below, the resonant frequency of my Tesla
coil is about 327 kHz.
Additional Tidbits
22 Gage Magnet Wire - 516 Feet per Lb. -

DIA with insulation .027 inches
DIA without insulation .025 inches
Insulation Thickness - .001 Inches
Turn Spacing - .002 inches (plus any human error)
AWG Wire Specifications

Measurements do not include insulation
American Wire
Diameter Diameter Cross Sectional
Gauge
(inches) (mm) Area (mm2)
(AWG)
0000 0.46 11.68 107.16
000 0.4096 10.40 84.97
00 0.3648 9.27 67.40
0 0.3249 8.25 53.46
1 0.2893 7.35 42.39
2 0.2576 6.54 33.61
3 0.2294 5.83 26.65
4 0.2043 5.19 21.14
5 0.1819 4.62 16.76
6 0.162 4.11 13.29
7 0.1443 3.67 10.55
8 0.1285 3.26 8.36
9 0.1144 2.91 6.63
10 0.1019 2.59 5.26
11 0.0907 2.30 4.17
12 0.0808 2.05 3.31
13 0.072 1.83 2.63
14 0.0641 1.63 2.08
15 0.0571 1.45 1.65
16 0.0508 1.29 1.31
17 0.0453 1.15 1.04
18 0.0403 1.02 0.82
19 0.0359 0.91 0.65
20 0.032 0.81 0.52
21 0.0285 0.72 0.41
22 0.0254 0.65 0.33
23 0.0226 0.57 0.26
24 0.0201 0.51 0.20
25 0.0179 0.45 0.16
26 0.0159 0.40 0.13
Microfarad, Nanofarad and Picofarad Conversion Chart
uF/ MFD nF pF/ MMFD uF/ MFD nF pF/ MMFD

1uF / MFD 1000nF 1000000pF(MMFD) 0.001uF / MFD 1nF 1000pF(MMFD)
0.82uF / 0.00082uF /
MFD 820nF 820000pF (MMFD) MFD 0.82nF 820pF (MMFD)
0.0008uF /
0.8uF / MFD 800nF 800000pF (MMFD) MFD 0.8nF 800pF (MMFD)
0.0007uF /
0.68uF / 0.00068uF /
0.0006uF /
0.56uF / 0.00056uF /
0.0005uF /
0.47uF / 0.00047uF /
0.0004uF /
0.39uF / 0.00039uF /
0.33uF / 0.00033uF /
0.0003uF /
0.27uF / 0.00027uF /
0.25uF / 0.00025uF /
0.22uF / 0.00022uF /
0.0002uF /
0.18uF / 0.00018uF /
0.15uF / 0.00015uF /
0.12uF / 0.00012uF /
0.0001uF /
0.082uF / 0.000082uF /
0.08uF / 0.00008uF /
0.07uF / 0.00007uF /
0.068uF / 0.000068uF /
0.06uF / 0.00006uF /
0.056uF / 0.000056uF /
0.05uF / 0.00005uF /
0.047uF / 0.000047uF /
0.04uF / 0.00004uF /
0.039uF / 0.000039uF /
0.033uF / 0.000033uF /
0.03uF / 0.00003uF /
0.027uF / 0.000027uF /
0.025uF / 0.000025uF /
0.022uF / 0.000022uF /
0.02uF / 0.00002uF /
0.018uF / 0.000018uF /
0.015uF / 0.000015uF /
0.012uF / 0.000012uF /
0.01uF / 0.00001uF /
0.0082uF / 0.0000082uF /
MFD 8.2nF 8200pF (MMFD) MFD 0.0082nF 8.2pF (MMFD)
0.008uF / 0.000008uF /
0.007uF / 0.000007uF /
0.0068uF / 0.0000068uF /
0.006uF / 0.000006uF /
0.0056uF / 0.0000056uF /
0.005uF / 0.000005uF /
0.0047uF / 0.0000047uF /
0.004uF / 0.000004uF /
0.0039uF / 0.0000039uF /
0.0033uF / 0.0000033uF /
0.003uF / 0.000003uF /
0.0027uF / 0.0000027uF /
0.0025uF / 0.0000025uF /
0.0022uF / 0.0000022uF /
0.002uF / 0.000002uF /
0.0018uF / 0.0000018uF /
0.0015uF / 0.0000015uF /
0.0012uF / 0.0000012uF /
0.001uF / 0.000001uF /
MFD 1nF 1000pF (MMFD) ………. MFD 0.001nF 1pF (MMFD)
BY TESLA COILER
Step 1: The Parts That You Will Need.

The parts you will need to build a tesla coil:
1. 6500 volt 23 milli amp transformer found at amazing1.com
2. 10,000 volt capacitor found at amazing1.com
3. Spark Gap found at amazing1.com
4. PVC Pipe 5-6 inches wide 3 feet long Found At The Home Depot
5. Copper tubing (refrigerator tubing) 1/4th inch diameter 30 feet found at The Home Depot
6. Toriod Found at Amazing1.com
7. 24-26 AWG magnet wire electronixexpress.com

8. Safety Glasses
9. Drill
10. 1/8 Drill Bit
11. Masking Tape
Step 2: Links For Tesla Coils and Other Supplies.
www.unitednuclear.com
www.teslacoil.com
www.tesladownunder.com
www.pbs.org/tesla/ins/lab_tescoil.html
www.powerlabs.org/coil2.htm
www.mos.org/sln/toe/tesla.html
www.richieburnett.co.uk/tesla.shtml
www.teslasociety.com/teslacoil.htm
www.pupman.com/safety.htm
www.angelfire.com/electronic/cwillis/tesla.html
www.tb3.com/tesla/index.html
www.teslasystems.com/gallery/index.html
www.ttr.com/index.htm
www.old-mage.com/tech/Tesla.htm
www.deepfriedneon.com/tesla_guide.html
www.qsl.net/ke5fx/tesla.html
www.tesla-coil-builder.com/double_cone_bipolar_tesla_coil.htm
www.penguinslab.com/tesla.htm
www.teslacoil.org
www.bizarrelabs.com/ind2.htm
www.tfcbooks.com/mall/more/371tcbg.htm
www.teslamap.com/guide.html
www.tesla-coil-builder.com
www.classictesla.com
www.teslamania.delete.org/frames/coilgallery.html
www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Hangar/6160/tesla/tesla.html
www.geocities.com/bob_motz/chipid
www.teslacoils4christ.org
www.lod.org
www.members.tripod.com/~mad_coiler/tesla.htm
www.hbci.com/~wenonah/tommy/td.htm
Step 3: Making The Secondary Coil.
Supplies Needed:
1. PVC Pipe
2. 24-26 AWG Magnet Wire
3. Masking Tape
4. Wire Cutters
5. Drill
6. 1/8 Drill Bit
7. Safety Glasses
1. Get your 3 foot long 5-6 inches in diameter PVC pipe.

2. Get your enameled wire
3. Next drill 3 holes in the side of the bottom of the PVC pipe (about 1-2 inches above the
bottom and a 1/4 inch along the bottom of the PVC pipe. this will hold the wire that is
wrapped around the PVC pipe.
you will have to make these holes about 2 inches below the top of the PVC pipe and 1/4
inch apart make sure that the wire comes out of the end of the PVC pipe.
4. Next insert the wire through one of the end holes that you drilled and weave it through the
other 2 holes (make sure that some of the wire comes out of the bottom of the PVC pipe.
5. Next you will have to get some tape: Masking tape, Electrical tape, Vinyl tape, or
Packaging tape will work.
6. Next wrap the wire around the PVC pipe making sure that the wire will not overlap or
have kinks or bends in it because this will greatly reduce the amount of voltage that your
Tesla Coil will produce. also (make sure that the wire is tightly wound and tightly close
together when wound.
IF YOU GET TIRED OF WRAPPING THE WIRE YOU WILL USE THE TAPE FOR
HOLDING THE WIRE IN PLACE SO IT DOES NOT UNRAVEL.
7. You will have about 1000-3000 wrappings of magnet wire after you are finished.
after you are finished wrapping the PVC pipe with wire. just put that aside but make sure
you have thread the wire through the last 3 holes a the top of the PVC pipe. and put tape
over both three holes where the wire in located this will hold the wire in place until later.
Step 4: Making The Primary Coil.

next you will need the copper tubing the copper tubing will serve as your primary coil.
you will first have wind about 20 feet of the copper tubing in a helix or in a flat spiral form
making sure not to let any of the other coilings touch each other because this will cause a
short circuit.
Step 5: Making the primary circuit.

Parts you will need:
1. 6,500 Volt Transformer

2. Spark Gap
3. 10,000 Volt Capacitor
4. Three Prong Electrical Cord (Grounded)
You will need to hook up your transformers 2 skinny leads to an electrical cord with 3
prongs and you will have to hook up your transformers 1 input lead to the electrical cord and
do the same with the other input lead. Then hookup the capacitors 1 lead to the output lead
of the transformer and do the same thing to the other lead of the capacitor. Then hookup
one of the leads of the capacitor to the spark gap. Hookup the spark gap to the outer ring
end of the primary coil. Hook up the other end of the primary coil to the other end of the
spark gap.
Step 6: Making the secondary circuit.
Find the Ground lead to the 3 prong cord it is usually green or it is bare. Then hook it up to
the lead hanging out of the bottom of the secondary coil then solder it and put electrical tape
over it to avoid short circuiting. And do the same to the other bare input leads of the
transformer. Now secure the secondary coil to the top base of the Tesla Coil.
Step 7: Adding the toriod or topload
Parts you will need:
1. Toroid
2. Secondary Coil
The Toroid is the top load of the Tesla Coil it is where the arcs form.
To connect the Toroid to the Tesla Coil just put the wire that is hanging from the top of the
Tesla Coil in the Toroid by either soldering, brazing, or with a screw.
Then fasten the Toroid to the Secondary Coil
You are finished with your new companion.
Step 8: !!!WARNING!!!
!!!WARNING!!!
!!!WARNING THIS TESLA COIL AND ALL OTHER TESLA COILS CAN AND WILL
INTERFERE OR DAMAGE PACEMAKERS, COMPUTERS, AND OTHER
ELECTRONICS.!!!
!!!DO NOT TOUCH THE COPPER TUBING (PRIMARY COIL) OR THE (SPARK GAP)
WHILE THE TESLA COIL IS IN OPERATION IT WILL KILL YOU INSTANTLY THERE IS
NO SECOND CHANCE!!!
TESLA COILS ARE VERY DANGEROUS AND SHOULD BE TREATED WITH THE MOST
CARE AND RESPECT: IF YOU DO NOT HAVE KNOWLEDGE OF HOW HIGH VOLTAGE
AND ELECTRICITY WORKS DO NOT BUILD THIS PROJECT UNTIL YOU HAVE EITHER
READ UP ON ELECTRICITY OR GET EXTENSIVE TRAINING. ALSO DO NOT LOOK
INTO THE SPARK GAP WITHOUT WELDERS GOGGLES. IT IS VERY DANGEROUS TO
OPERATE THIS TESLA COIL WITHOUT SAFTEY GLASSES. BUT MOST OF ALL
ELECTRICITY AND MIND ALTERING DRUGS INCLUDING ALCOHOL DO NOT MIX!!!
IF IN DOUBT E-MAIL ME AT jtmotz@hotmail.com I CAN GIVE YOU VERY USEFUL
INFORMATION.
DISCLAIMER:
I WILL HAVE NO LIABILITY IN ANY DAMAGE OR FATALITIES THAT THIS PROJECT
MAY CAUSE.
Step 9: Contacting Me
If there is, any questions or problems with this project email me at jtmotz@hotmail.com
Step 10: Price List
1. 6,500 Volt Transformer $59.95

2. 10,000 Volt Capacitor $59.95
3. Spark Gap with cooling fan $59.95
4. 24-26 AWG Magnet Wire $15.50
5. PVC Pipe $20.00
6. TORIOD $59.95
7. Copper Tubing $30.00
GRAND TOTAL.............................. $305.30
Step 11: How a Spark Gap Tesla Coil works.
The Tesla Coil is an air core resonant transformer consisting of a primary coil and a
secondary coil. The primary coil is the part of the device that resonates or vibrates which
when vibrating gives of a very strong magnetic field that causes induction in the secondary
coil. The magnetic field is caused by, first the power from the 120 volt wall outlet is
converted into 6,500 volts by the transformer then the power flows into the capacitor where
it gets amplified then moves along to the spark gap. The spark gap acts like a switch,
without the spark gap the coil will not function it will just burn up your transformer; next the
power goes to the primary coil and causes induction in the secondary coil thus causes
lightning or arcs to be transmitted out of the toroid or topload.
How to Make a Tesla Coil

Planning a Tesla CoilMaking a Tesla Coil
Edited by Homieg, Einar Kramer, Kanhu, Maluniu and 8 others
Developed in 1891 by Nikola Tesla, the Tesla coil was created to perform
experiments in creating high-voltage electrical discharges. It consists of a power
supply, a capacitor and coil transformer set so that voltage peaks alternate
between the two, and electrodes set so that sparks jump between them through
the air. Used in applications from particle accelerators to televisions and toys, a
Tesla coil can be made from electronics store equipment or from surplus
materials. Keep reading for detailed instructions on making a tesla coil.
Ad
Edit Method 1 of 2: Planning a Tesla Coil
1.
1
Consider the size and placement of the Tesla coil before you build it. You can build as large a
Tesla coil as your budget allows; however, the lightning-bolt-like sparks Tesla coils generate heat
and expand the air around them (in essence, creating thunder). Their electric fields can also play
havoc with electronic devices, so you'll probably want to build and run your Tesla coil in an out-
of-the-way place, such as a garage or other workshop.
o To figure how large a spark gap you can accommodate, or how much power you need to
make it work, divide the length of the spark gap in inches by 1.7 and square it to
determine the input power in watts. (Conversely, to find the spark gap length, multiply
the square root of the power in watts by 1.7.) A Tesla coil that creates a spark gap of 60
inches (1.5 meters) would require 1,246 watts. (A Tesla coil using a 1-kilowatt power
source would generate a spark gap of almost 54 inches, or 1.37 meters.)
Ad

2
Learn the terminology you'll need to know. Designing and building a Tesla coil requires
understanding certain scientific terms and units of measure. Here are some of the terms you'll
need to know:
o Capacitance is the ability to hold an electric charge or the amount of electric charge
stored for a given voltage. (A device designed to hold an electric charge is called a
capacitor.) The unit of measure for capacitance is the farad (abbreviated "F"). A farad is
defined as 1 ampere-second (or coulomb) per volt. Commonly, capacitance is measured
in smaller units, such as the microfarad (abbreviated "uF"), a millionth of a farad, or the
picofarad (abbreviated pF and sometimes read as "puff"), a trillionth of a farad.
o Inductance, or self-inductance, is how much voltage an electric circuit carries per the
amount of current in the circuit. (High-tension power lines, which carry a high voltage
but a low current, have high inductance.) The unit of measure for inductance is the
henry (abbreviated "H"). A henry is defined as 1 volt-second per ampere of current.
Commonly, inductance is measured in smaller units, such as the millihenry (abbreviated
"mH"), a thousandth of a henry, or the microhenry (abbreviated "uH"), a millionth of a
henry.
o Resonant frequency, or resonance frequency, is the frequency at which the resistance to
transfer of energy is at a minimum. (For a Tesla coil, this is optimum operating point for
transferring electrical energy between the primary and secondary coils.) The unit of
measure for the resonant frequency is the hertz (abbreviated "Hz"), defined as 1 cycle
per second. More commonly, the resonant frequency is measured in kilohertz
(abbreviated "kHz"), with a kilohertz being equal to 1000 hertz.

3
Gather the parts you'll need. You'll need a power supply transformer, a high-capacitance
primary capacitor, a spark gap assembly, a low-inductance primary inductor coil, a high-
inductance secondary inductor coil, a low-capacitance secondary capacitor and something to
suppress, or choke, the high-frequency noise pulses created when the Tesla coil operates. For
more information on the parts, see the next section, "Making a Tesla Coil."
o Your power source/transformer feeds power through the chokes to the primary, or tank
circuit, which connects the primary capacitor, primary inductor coil and spark gap
assembly. The primary inductor coil is placed adjacent to, but not wired to, the inductor
coil of the secondary circuit, which is connected to the secondary capacitor. Once the
secondary capacitor has built up sufficient electric charge, streamers of electricity
(lightning bolts) discharge from it.
Edit Method 2 of 2: Making a Tesla Coil
1.
1
Choose your power supply transformer. Your power supply transformer determines how large
you can make your Tesla coil. Most Tesla coils operate with a transformer that puts out a
voltage between 5,000 to 15,000 volts at a current between 30 and 100 milliamperes. You can
obtain a transformer from a college surplus store or from the Internet, or cannibalize the
transformer from a neon sign.
2.
2
Make the primary capacitor. The best way to create this capacitor is to wire a number of small
capacitors in series so that each capacitor handles an equal share of the total voltage of the
primary circuit. (This requires that each individual capacitor have the same capacitance as the
other capacitors in the series.) This kind of capacitor is called a multi-mini-capacitor or MMC.
o Small capacitors, and their associated bleed resistors, can be obtained from electronics
supply stores, or you can scrounge for ceramic capacitors from old television sets. You
can also make the capacitors out of sheets of polyethylene and aluminum foil.
o To maximize the power output, the primary capacitor should be able to reach its full
capacitance each half-cycle of the frequency of the power being supplied to it. (For a 60
Hz power supply, this means 120 times each second.)

3
Design the spark gap assembly. If you're planning on a single spark gap, you'll need metal bolts
at least a quarter-inch (6 millimeters) thick to serve as the spark gap to withstand the heat
generated by the discharge of electricity between the sparks. You can also wire multiple spark
gaps in series, use a rotary spark gap or blow compressed air between the sparks to moderate
the temperature. (An old vacuum cleaner can be used to blow the air.)

4
Build the primary inductor coil. The coil itself will be made of wire, but you'll need something to
wrap the wire around in a spiral shape. The wire should be enameled copper wire, which you
can obtain from an electrical supply store or by cannibalizing the outlet cord from a discarded
appliance. The object you wrap the wire around can be either cylindrical, such as a cardboard or
plastic tube, or conical, such as an old lampshade.
o The length of the cord determines the inductance of the primary coil. The primary coil
should have a low inductance, so you'll use comparatively few turns in making it. You
can use non-continuous sections of wire for the primary coil, so that you can hook
sections together as necessary to adjust the inductance on the fly.

5
Connect the primary capacitor, spark gap assembly and primary inductor coil together. This
completes the primary circuit.

6
Build the secondary inductor coil. As with the primary coil, you're wrapping wire around a
cylindrical shape. The secondary coil must have the same resonant frequency as the primary coil
for the Tesla coil to operate efficiently. However, the secondary coil must be taller/longer than
the primary coil because it has to have a larger inductance than the primary coil, and also to
prevent any electrical discharge from the secondary circuit to strike and fry the primary circuit.
o If you lack the materials to make the secondary coil tall enough, you can compensate by
building a strike rail (essentially a lightning rod) to protect the primary circuit, but this
will mean that most of the Tesla coil's discharges will hit the strike rail and not dance in
the air.
7
Make the secondary capacitor. The secondary capacitor, or discharge terminal, can be any
round shape, with the 2 most popular being the torus (ring or donut shape) and the sphere.

8
Attach the secondary capacitor to the secondary inductor coil. This completes the secondary
circuit.
o Your secondary circuit should be grounded separately from the grounding for your
household circuits supplying power to the transformer to prevent a stream of electric
current from traveling from the Tesla coil to the ground for your household circuits and
possibly frying anything plugged into those outlets. Driving a metal spike into the
ground is a good way to do this.
9
Build the pulse chokes. Chokes are simple, small inductors that keep the pulses created by the
spark gap assembly from wrecking the power supply transformer. You can make one by winding
thin copper wire around a narrow tube, such as a disposable ball point pen.

10
Assemble the components. Place the primary and secondary circuits next to each other, and
connect the power supply transformer to the primary circuit through the chokes. Once you plug
the transformer in, your Tesla coil is ready to run.
o If the primary coil is of sufficiently large diameter, the secondary coil can be set inside it.

STEFFAN'S TESLA COIL SITE

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STEFFAN'S TESLA COIL SITE

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TESLA COIL BY BEACHLEY

-4' of 1.5" PVC

-15kV 60ma transformer with no GFCI

-1' of 3" PVC

-40 Cornell-Dubillier capacitors, (Model# 942C20P15K-F)

-4 pieces of 10"x3" plywood

-2 aluminum pie pans

-3 copper lug terminals

Steffan's Tesla Coil Site

Introduction by Hank Mills

Pure Energy Systems News

The purpose of this document is to give an overview of Tesla Coils, their

What is a Tesla Coil?

Despite the fact a Tesla coil utilizes a "primary" and a "secondary", a

First of all, a transformer utilizes a *tight* coupling of magnetic fields to

Third, conventional current or amperes (electron flow) does not flow

Basic Tesla Coil Components and Design

After obtaining the proper transformers and capacitors (some circuits

The material that composes your electrodes is also important. Copper

Primary and Secondary Coils

Resonance between a primary and a secondary in a Tesla Coil is a

Note: In order to gain more clarity on what resonance is and how it

As already mentioned, to transmit power, Tesla often utilized a second

Bifilar Wound Secondary

An interesting issue to consider is whether to use a single wire wound or a

"Let A, Figure 1, designate any given coil the spires or convolutions of

The "Extra Coil"

In addition to the secondary winding, Tesla sometimes employed an

Spheres and Grounds

Tesla determined that many benefits could be produced by adding a

In addition to the sphere, he connected the bottom portion of the

Another interesting feature of a Tesla Coil based power transmission

Free Energy from the Aether

Tesla's system could also produce gains of energy. If a certain quantity of

These gains of energy have been verified by countless replicators. At

Steve Jackson's Open Source Plans

An additional benefit of his system is that by utilizing an arbitrary

How I Built My Tesla Coil

Useful & Fun Tesla Links

All of thegeekgroup.org videos on Tesla coils

Neon Sign Builders: Please see the info on NSTs below.

Main parts for my coil include:

The Tesla Coil Circuit

The seven components are:

Tesla Coil Circuit For Single Output High Voltage Transformer

The Spark Gap

"The Spark Gap is the Brain of the Tesla Coil"

The High Voltage Power Supply

How to Protect your NST from High Voltage Kickback

Hear is a link to a Youtube video of a nice home build Terry Filter.

The MMC (Multiple Mini Capacitor)

Related Geek Group videos: Schematics and Capacitors

Above: The Cornell Dublier Capacitors I used in my tesla coil

Tank Capacitor Calculator

Output in Milli Amperes: 60 mA

*Click on last field (C=) to update result.

60Hz is the frequency of our Line Voltage

Based on this calculation, .0106uF "SHOULD" be the capacitance of my MMC.

How to calculate the capacitance of capacitors connected in series:

In order to better visualize what a Series Configuration looks like, imagine a

The formula to calculate the combined capacitance of capacitors hooked up in

Total capacitance of each string of 20 capacitors = 1/133.33 = .0075 MFD

Connecting capacitors in parallel:

First of all, a transformer utilizes a tight coupling of magnetic fields to