Big Joule Theif

[Vaporizer]

Hi Tec & all.
Glad to hear of your success Tec.
Is that one of the 3" from the place you listed above?
Also, what resistance was used for the base and how many winds on the core?
I've tried the MJE3055 and I like it.

I tore down one of the new smaller spiral 13w cfls. I tried it on an untuned circuit and it looks promising. Good even illumination brighter than the 9w "U" and I think it may be brighter than the larger 13w spiral. I was hoping for this from the shorter tube length.

[Tectalabyss]

12 Volt JT

Hello All.

I've gotten a JT to work with 12 volt's using a 3 inch toroid & a MJE3055T transistor and am running a 10mm white Led off the E/C . I have to use a current limiting resistor to protect the Led & Transistor sofar I have not had to add a heat sink to the transistor.I am going to see how many Led's will run on the secondary and will post the results.Here are some Picture's. Tec

[Tectalabyss]

Not very sunny Here

What I'm up to now is to see which big Jt circuit works best, runs longest, and puts out the most light. SkyWatcher had some nice tests going at one time not long ago, about that. But where did he go?

@Vapor- I think that it may be hard to beat the CFLs when it comes to putting out some big light. I have seen them now in warm white also. But when they are used with batteries, they are hogs. If there is a solar panel to charge the batteries, even running the CFLs would be free of any costs also, so any higher costs or less efficient of CFLs compared to Leds would be no big deal.
But, the new warm white leds (Straw Hat) even feel good to sit under, and can be used to sunbath with, as they have a warm sunlight or flame color, as opposed to the regular white Leds cool moonlight color. Can't wait to try the new Ultra Violet leds, especially in combination with other colors and the regular white leds, to produce the RIGHT color combination led light.
Merry Christmas to All....

@ NickZ.
Hello NickZ You've made some very good points.but where I live on avg there are a lot more cloudy days than sunny ones so the more efficient the circuit the better.That's why I lean more to Leds than to cfls. I would like to see them light up knowing it doing it only with a AA or AAA but knowing that someone's already done it is good enough for me at this point.Because I am after something different.Keep us posted. Tec

[NickZ]

What I'm up to now is to see which big Jt circuit works best, runs longest, and puts out the most light. SkyWatcher had some nice tests going at one time not long ago, about that. But where did he go?

@Vapor- I think that it may be hard to beat the CFLs when it comes to putting out some big light. I have seen them now in warm white also. But when they are used with batteries, they are hogs. If there is a solar panel to charge the batteries, even running the CFLs would be free of any costs also, so any higher costs or less efficient of CFLs compared to Leds would be no big deal.
But, the new warm white leds (Straw Hat) even feel good to sit under, and can be used to sunbath with, as they have a warm sunlight or flame color, as opposed to the regular white Leds cool moonlight color. Can't wait to try the new Ultra Violet leds, especially in combination with other colors and the regular white leds, to produce the RIGHT color combination led light.
Merry Christmas to All....

[Vaporizer]

@ Watson,
Sorry I missed your post.
Oh..I'm a scrounger by heart. I lived in NYC when I was 10yrs old and built my 1st circuit. I wandered the streets on garbage day drooling with a screwdriver & pliers. My 1st little light flasher was made from parts off the street.
Canal St had surplus stores that you could go through barrels of circuit boards and get them 3 for 0.10 or 0.25 depending on size.
I have boxes in the garage now sorted of stripped stuff. Electronic boards go in one others have sorted aluminum heatsinks, plastics, motors. It goes on & on. I found a ferrite rod from an IF tv transformer I had saved 20 yrs ago!
That was the reason for my question on the "magical" 30ga if it was unique. It doesn't seem to be. I have wire as fine as 50ga. Surplus or failed relays & solenoids are a great source too. Most just have a head that needs ground off and the spool of goodies is ready to use. Gauge can be a toss up but they can be as low $1 ea from surplus houses.

Waste not, want not.

[Vaporizer]

@ Nick & all,
I think it's a matter of what you want from the JT as to how you build it. I was amazed by it lighting a cfl initially, had the wife get a couple, and I'm obligated to use them since I cut them up. Heck, she brought home 2 more last night that are 13watt(60watt visual) that spiral, but a smaller diameter and the glass tube is shorter. I'm anxious to see if the same power is brighter with that style. Besides, I think it's neat to do with a AA or AAA. I don't care for the "warm" ones and they do not put out as much light.
All of my present LEDs are 10-15* and don't seem to diffuse well for emergency "sit around the house" lights. Jenna had put plastic over hers and a globe on it and it did look pretty nice. I am also still awaiting the 140,000mcd LEDs from HK.

Light output vs current? The easiest way I know is to test each setup in a dark room with a solar cell to a meter. Reflect it all back to the cell with foil. Read the volts generated vs the current used and you should know pretty quickly. I plan on making a small JT to go into a flashlight. I can get better output and If I use the type that has the 3 AAA holder, I can have one battery, a spare and the other slot for the circuit. Or I can use it as 3v. The higher voltage just raises the current so much, reducing time, it seems counterproductive at times.

300 winds on the tan 3"er. I'll finish the wire left on that rod and it will be ready for a test this evening!

[NickZ]

Vaporizer and All:
I am on the same course as far as the solar panels to Jts. I can see that the more leds we add to a Jtc the less amount of Time the small batteries (AAs) are going to last. I'm not getting consistent recharging of the batteries from my Captret to Jt combination, but I'm still working on it, as it looks like there is some hope there.
I am still not convinced that a secondary circuit on the Jt is more economical on the batteries than just a primary C and E connection. I don't care about lighting CFLs, as I don't like their light quality, so I don't see the point in secondaries.
But, I still need more time to work on the secondary aspect to determine if there really are some benefits, other than higher voltage (with no current). Solar panels on the other hand put out LOTS of current along with their voltage.
So, the trick is to use a bigger battery, or less leds. But, if big light is what you're after, the Solar panels are definately the way to go, for now. B class solar cells can be bought for $55 (3 by 6 inch, 36 cells), and one can build the panel oneself. It outputs about 60 watts, at 18 volts. That would make alot of JTc light up, forever, and ever... if there is something that can beat that, I'd like to know about it.
Although there is no magic in using solar panels as a source, they can be combined and connected with many other different circuits.
Conradelectro has mentioned to forget the Jt, and just connect the leds direct to the batteries for the brightest amount of light from the Leds. Although this is true, I think that I'm going blind from looking at the not so bright leds that my Jtc put out, as they are still pretty bright.
Anyways, back to the lab... kitchen table.
MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE...

[Watson]

@ all,
Has anyone tried secondary windings with wire gauges other than 30ga? Seems that is a standard size used. Fuji's work well with 45ga 1750 turn secondaries is why I ask.
I've considered 36ga as it's .005 dia and would allow 2x the wraps in the same space as 30ga. 1" would allow 200 wraps vs 100 wraps per 1" of 30ga.

I need a new source for 30ga wire. Buying from RS is ok to get started but you end up with 2 spools you'll probably never use all of. lol
I found one place that has 1/4lb of 30ga for $8.??. I don't know the shipping, but it has over 800ft. That alone is way cheaper.

Any good sources?

Thanks in advance.

I've cannibalized a few microwave ovens I found in the trash bin. The MOT has some good uses but is too big for this stuff. I remove the bobbin from the fan motor and it's usually a nylon coil form with a square hole. It has the end of the winding soldered to one terminal. I cut the wire and I can unwind it just like a spool of wire from the electronics store. It's usually 28 or 30 AWG, but since motor makers get their wire in bulk, it's not unusual for them to use the odd sizes like 29 AWG or 27 AWG.

As I was posting this I thought of an idea. Remove the rotor and stuff from the motor and leave just the bobbin and steel laminations. The heavy copper around the shaded poles has to be removed or it could create a short - which is what it was designed to do. What you have left is somewhat like a toroid. But the steel laminations are made for 50 or 60 Hz, not much higher. If you wound a dozen or so turns of heavier wire around the bobbin, it would be much like the primary coil on a toroid.

Anyway, you might find microwave ovens in a thrift store, or even outside at the dropoff bins for the Goodwill stores. Neighbors might have an old unused on in the garage. Or cruise the neighborhood trash bins, you might find even some other source, such as a table fan which has a similar motor.

Persevere...

[Vaporizer]

@ syncro,
I didn't look at all the details. 416ma is a respectable output @ 3.6v. The garden type solar cells will put out abt 5-10ma from the lights I have now in a dark room. Not much, but it is "return" to be used from the back side. Little bits add up in our world.
$70 sounds like a lot, but when you live where I do and average blackouts can be 4-6hrs through the year and one last year from an ice storm had some out for 8 days! $70 is a cheap price for light and safer than oil lamps when you have 2 cats and a dog.
I have the Bedini charging all my batteries from a 12v. If it gets low after a month , 15 min on the car with jumper cables and we're good to go again. I should have 8 emergency lights when I'm done. Also have a 12v solar panel. 6 of the lights will be low power for sitting around the house and 2 will be full brightness 60-75watts. That's my goal for now, then I'll be adding 555's for extended run times.
If they work well enough, I'm usually up hrs later than anyone else in the house and I could use one each evening. Eventually it will save a lot of money over time. Rooms that usually have a low watt light on in the evening could be replaced with these too. We've used rechargeables for yrs now so a supply of batteries isn't a worry. The Bedini even keeps all the alkalines charged that wander through now.
Once I get these done then its on to better efficiency.

I'm off to watch that video. So much going on its a shame the world doesn't take more interest.

Merry Christmas All!

[Tectalabyss]

Magnet wire

@ all,
Has anyone tried secondary windings with wire gauges other than 30ga? Seems that is a standard size used. Fuji's work well with 45ga 1750 turn secondaries is why I ask.
I've considered 36ga as it's .005 dia and would allow 2x the wraps in the same space as 30ga. 1" would allow 200 wraps vs 100 wraps per 1" of 30ga.

I need a new source for 30ga wire. Buying from RS is ok to get started but you end up with 2 spools you'll probably never use all of. lol
I found one place that has 1/4lb of 30ga for $8.??. I don't know the shipping, but it has over 800ft. That alone is way cheaper.

Any good sources?

Thanks in advance.

Hello Vaporizer and All.
Allied Electronics has some very small size's due to the price per roll I think there maybe enough on one to reach to another state AllElectronics has magnet wire in 1/2lb and 1/4 lb rolls.and I am sure Ebay has more. Hope this helps Tec

[Tectalabyss]

A very Merry Christmas From The USA

http://www.energeticforum.com/renewa...tml#post123033

YES!!!!

Chet

I watched the video,I hope they win!!! a big thumbs up to all involved and a very Merry Christmas to everyone here at Energetic Forum Tec

[synchro]

Solar panel

@Vaporizer,

Click on "Foldables". The AA foldable film solar charger is 1.5 Watts, at 3.6 volts. The amperage figures out to around .4166. That's over four times the
100ma. This unit unfolds like a plastic credit card manager, and costs about $70.

My cool white toroid bulb has four electrodes. I think the circuits link when the gas illuminates. A CFL with only 2 electrodes would need the mods in series, and I may try that. My 20 Watt bulb is fully lit, and enough to make a world of difference in a blackout.

[RAMSET]

Merry Christmas

http://www.energeticforum.com/renewa...tml#post123033

YES!!!!

Chet

[Vaporizer]

@ all,
Has anyone tried secondary windings with wire gauges other than 30ga? Seems that is a standard size used. Fuji's work well with 45ga 1750 turn secondaries is why I ask.
I've considered 36ga as it's .005 dia and would allow 2x the wraps in the same space as 30ga. 1" would allow 200 wraps vs 100 wraps per 1" of 30ga.

I need a new source for 30ga wire. Buying from RS is ok to get started but you end up with 2 spools you'll probably never use all of. lol
I found one place that has 1/4lb of 30ga for $8.??. I don't know the shipping, but it has over 800ft. That alone is way cheaper.

Any good sources?

Thanks in advance.

[Vaporizer]

@ syncro,
Congrats. A good outcome is always nice. I appreciate the failures posted too. Some feel it demeaning, but just as much can be learved and sometines a mistakes or fix can be seen by another set of eyes.
Your setup sounds sweet. Full charge in 3hrs! That solar charger must be kicking out some amps. Most are less the 100ma which would take 28hrs for a 2800ma AA. I went to the link and it shows 1.5W for a AA charger. Thats 1A!
2.5 to 3hrs of full sun would be 2500-3000ma. Bet it is costly. I never did see a description of the exact one you got or a schematic of your setup. Others have made dual JT's with Fuji's. One has the outputs in series. Maybe you could do a schematic for us worth the part # & cost of the specific charger?

@ Jbignes5,
Nothing surprizes me on ebay. I would think the finer grade particle size the better so if it was already powdered it would be easier to use. I wouldn't think it would grind or crush easily. I do believe it would have interesting results. Rods works well if you have read others posts. A straw would make a fine form to be packed and cut away later. Superglue wont even stick to it. I tried with my modeling projects.

Ok, I now have 2 of the 2 3/8" cores wrapped for testing. In case one had hairline fractures of a fault for some reason. Originally it had 650 30ga wraps for a secondary with a 26ga 3 & 5 turn primary. Output was 230vdc with a bridge rectifier. It barely ran 1 LED off the secondary! So, I did the test with a 22ga primary side. No diff voltage or current output noticed. Next I twisted 4 strands of 26ga to use as a primary with the same 3 & 5 wraps. Still 230vdc across the full wave bridge, as expected, but I can now feel a zing when I touch it. So, that did raise the output current. A good note to keep if you ever need a higher current from the secondary easily. The voltage held at 230vdc for the most part, but I did see 260vdc once when adjusting. Same results as before when tuning. If I increase the turns on the primary side in any way or combination the output drops off. Ratio wise, This is what I'd expect. I'm still baffled on why the primary is so bright @ the E-C junction, will run so many LEDs, but very little seems to be crossing over to the secondary. Even the expected voltage is way low. Even with a low current, I'd be expecting 400+vdc at the bridge rectifier at a minimum and I just cannot get it there with these cores. I did drop one and it shattered into abt 6 pcs. Oh well..............no crying over this. It will still be useable for testing and maybe as arc'd rods. I'm used grey primer paint as the red was only enough for 1. I may strip the paint do a Saran wrap to prevent shorting on a large piece for testing. It will wrap fast now.
I'd have to say to hold of buying these from Valley Surplus on ebay till I can try something else. If you are only concerned with using the primary side, they do well and the E-C will run 14 LED's easily with just a few wraps. Strange huh? I need to try it with a 2N3055, heat sinked, and a 12v battery too.
I am now going to start wrapping the 3" tan one which I believe to be powdered iron from MicroMetals. I read they are low permeability(powdered iron ones) and require more wraps, but I can follow Lidmotors schematic and compare the results. I'll post them too.

Carry on all and keep those results coming! Good & not so good! All info has merit.