[TCML] Acrylic Covers

[Brandon Garretson <garretsontech@xxxxxxxxx>]

I am nearing the completion of the second incarnation of my 4” Tesla Coil.
After a good deal of time spent polishing and cleaning the copper
primary I got the idea of installing an acrylic disk over it in order
to help protect it from dust, fingerprints, falling objects, idiots,
etc…
In searching the archives, I read about this being done before but
found nothing regarding its effect on the device.
I also found an acrylic tube that slides perfectly over the secondary
coil leaving an eighth of an inch clearance between the windings and
the ID of the tube.
Aesthetically it is all very pleasing, but will that much plastic have
a measurable impact on the performance of the coil?
It looks as though it may help prevent racing arcs due to the lack of
any direct path of air between the primary and secondary but I cannot
figure out in what way (if any) it might adversely affect the
relationship between L1 and L2.
The acrylic over the primary would be .25” and the wall thickness of
the tube over the secondary .125” for a total of .375" (3/8").
Has anyone experimented with this before or is it common knowledge
that this is just too much dielectric?

Thanks!

Brandon from Jersey
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