Chokes vs Safety Gaps

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: Mark Broker <mbroker-at-thegeekgroup-dot-org> 

I fail to see how a ~1mH choke in series with a ~1kH iron-cored transformer 
secondary will provide any protection whatsoever.  If used in conjunction 
with an RC circuit, then that could be bad, too.

http://hot-streamer-dot-com/TeslaCoils/MyPapers/rlcfilter/rlcfilter.html

A properly-set safety gap will just barely not fire at full operating 
voltage without the primary capacitor connected, so I fail to see how a 
properly-set safety gap with a properly-tuned and operated TC will be 
ineffective or affect performance....  IME a safety gap will not fire 
unless the TC is out of tune or the power supply is overvolted via an 
overvolting variac.

My 2 cents.

Mark Broker
Chief Engineer, The Geek Group


On Sun, 08 Feb 2004 21:24:41 -0700, Tesla list <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com> wrote:

>Original poster: "Gary  Weaver" <gary350-at-earthlink-dot-net>
>If you adjust the safety gap so it won't fire then it doesn't do anything so
>why have it.  If you adjust the safety gap so it fires then it takes power
>away from your coil and the discharge sparks get shorter don't want that
>either.  A choke coil provides all the protection needed to protect the
>transformer from feedback so the safety gaps are a waste of time.
>
>Gary Weaver