Originally published on Medium

Coup de Foudre has one of the largest dual resonant solid state Tesla coil (DRSSTC) that I know of … with no project documentation! This page is the starting point for a number of bite sized of write-ups (eventually links at the bottom) about the anatomy of our largest coil, Orage. These write-ups will include both high level details and analysis of pathology and issues we faced in design, construction, and operation of this beast over the last 5 years.

SERIOUS Disclaimers

Neither these write-ups, nor an advanced engineering degree will prepare an individual to build a coil of this class. This was a daunting project by any assessment, but here are a few of the highlights:

Electrical — Recognize that the standard warnings of “electricity is dangerous and will kill/maim/damage you” apply to coils of approximately 1/50 the power draw. The maximum continuous power dissipated by Orage could equivalently bring a liter of water to boiling, every second. You are made of water.

Financial — Orage has conservatively cost to the tune of $50,000, from well over 200 supporting community members, several arts grants, and countless fundraisers. Fundraising and community outreach alone represents nearly a half-year of shared effort.

Logistic — Orage travels with a half-ton of support cabling/transformers, requires a minimum of 4 people to assemble, and is optimally transported in a 16 foot box truck with powered lift-gate.

Every part of this undertaking was a team effort, I feel insanely fortunate to have worked with several experienced “smaller” (~8ft) coilers, who in turn consulted with several other groups during the design phase. To quote a collaborator from another large coil building group: “I have no desire to work with giant Tesla coils ever again… what a fucking pain in the ass.”

It takes a village to design, build, and support a coil of this size, I am incredibly lucky to document the work of over a dozen of the most talented and hardworking people I know!

Outline (Articles coming soon!)

  • High Level Design
  • Input Power and Rectification (+ failures)
  • Primary LC (+failures)
  • Secondary LC (+ failures)
  • Switching and control electronics (+ failures)
  • Modulation and Musical control