Acme Fixer's highly efficient Joule Thief help needed.

[Legalizeshemp420]

We seemed to have posted at the same time.

I am loving the looks of that second one and 10mhz would be perfect for measuring down to the sub nH level but at 120 delivered I would just save for a RIGOL or something.  More expensive but way better imo.

http://www.amazon.com/Waveform-Function-Generator-Frequency-Counter/dp/B00D55WR0S/ref=sr_1_60?ie=UTF8&qid=1381596371&sr=8-60&keywords=function+generator

That one is way more expensive but it includes a frequency counter (I have one that I hardly ever used and has all of the original materials and box).  Model DFC-1000 that I used less times than the fingers on your hand (singular).

[Legalizeshemp420]

I can only purchase one spool of magnet wire so which is a good size to buy for winding, or rather what is mostly used in hand wound toroids?

[TinselKoala]

Well, I'd like to be driving around in a Lexus... but in the meantime my 20 year old Chevy gets me where I need to go.

People wind coils with all kinds of wire. Years ago I got a good deal on a big spool of #27.... so all the coils I wind are made from that. I still have about 3 pounds on the reel. I've made a dozen or so JTs, a few Tesla coil secondaries, a Slayer Exciter, lots of electromagnets of various sorts... even some 14-strand Litz-like wire from doubling it back and forth across the back yard and twisting it up with a drill. Nine pounds of wire goes a long way.

If you can find an old CRT TV or monitor that hasn't been scavenged yet, there is a lot of good fine wire, usually in two gauges, on the ferrite deflection yoke around the neck of the CRT. Around here, the professional scavengers open up the cases and just break the CRT necks to get the yoke off, so you have to be quick and pounce on the discarded set before they get to it.

This DFC-1000? That's a nice instrument, you should unbox it and use it. I consider my Philips PM6676 universal counter to be the Master Instrument in my lab, from which I can calibrate all the others.
http://www.bonanza.com/items/like/123005221

[Legalizeshemp420]

Yes, that is the one only mine is in pristine condition.  I originally bought it for 50-80 dollars when it was brand new (I forgot the exact price) back in the late 1980's I think it was.  I used it to measure the frequency of some negative ion generators I was making (hand wound ferrite E cores from Coilcraft).  Goes up to 1ghz I think it is (1000mhz).

My car I am doing my back brakes on today and in the morning and it is a 1998 Ford Taurus so I know what you mean.

[TinselKoala]

I'm happy to report that the high-voltage transistors 13003 that were in the CFL that I took apart to get the 3/8" toroid... they work fine in the JT circuit!

I have not yet done any power comparisons, but the battery in the photo below is the same AG1 button cell that I used in the "burst oscillation" video. It shines brightly with the 13003 transistor, but has now gone out after five minutes or so while I'm typing and uploading the photo. I'm waiting to see if it will do the "burst oscillations" on this battery like the BC337-25 did.

There are several different versions of this transistor as I have found. The pinouts could be either BCE or ECB , left to right, looking at the numbered side of the transistor. These I have are BCE. I had to solder some wires to the legs to make them long enough for comfortable installation in the clothespin.

This is a highvoltage transistor! It might be a good alternative to the 2n3055 in HV JTs. I'll be trying that, later on.