Joule Thief

[xee2]

@ gadgetmall

I think your idea of adding the base capacitor was brilliant. It seems like it will speed up the turn-off time of the transistor which will in turn increase the output voltage. However, it also looks like it will stop the circuit from oscillating if the capacitance gets too large. What the best value is I do not know, but I would guess something like 50 pF to 100 pF.

[electricme]

@ gadgetmall
Nice find about the gouging carbon rods, its excellent leaving the last bit of copper on top of the rods to solder too.

About your iron wire coil in post 200, Perhapse if you might try this one instead, make a air coil on a toilet roll, at least 200 turns, put insulation tape around it to keep it together.

Then put the measuring instrument on it, press the button (to create the magnetic field, then release the button, the magnetic field collapses, creating the pulse of energy.
You should feel a pulse at TP

If you don't feel a pulse, put more turns on the coil, a oscillope should show the pulse, no matter how small it is.

If you get a pulse, put diode at TP position, then feed this to a cap to charge it up.

jim

[electricme]

@ amego,
Replying to your post on P203, thats right, we are all with the JT, but we are all doing it just a bit different, we went off a bit with disposable cameras, but this tought us all about capacitors, but it lead us back to the JT with different ideas again.
I posted about my mouse probs, this livened up the JT forum, and I got a ribbing, at least it was a lot of fun also.

We got posts of huge coils powering disks with magnets on board, leds on christmas trees, 400 powered by just 1 x 1.5v cell, this is awsom stuff. Just imagine, one person on this forum has been powering his house, lighting his rooms up with just 1 x 1.5v cell, wow, and this forum without doubt must be jato powered it is galloping along so fast, I'll need to ask everyone to slow down, NO put it in high gear everyone, lets have FUN FUN FUN.

@ bill,
sorry, you may have lost your $10 bet,    all the peanut burrer has been "stolen" by a mouse, the tripper is bare, the beggar, mabe I mix concrete, an glue an quick drying liquid wood to the peanur butter? might make harder for his teeth ha ha, heel have to see the mouse dentist afta that lot lol.

Gottaaaaa get this mousssssse.

Going back to catch up reading posts, I'm way behind again
jim

[electricme]

@ all
I had ahorrible thought a few days ago, here it is

If this world monetery crisis continues, what will happen to the internet, (which we rely on for this forum).
Is it possible for a satellite owner to faulter on a payment, and down she goes? or will it be OK.

jim

[gadgetmall]

@ gadgetmall

I think your idea of adding the base capacitor was brilliant. It seems like it will speed up the turn-off time of the transistor which will in turn increase the output voltage. However, it also looks like it will stop the circuit from oscillating if the capacitance gets too large. What the best value is I do not know, but I would guess something like 50 pF to 100 pF.

Thanks  . That is good for my lacking ego . Again another accidental find . I just happened to be trying Various diodes and caps on different spots  and saw the leds get brighter and the current draw go WAY down.and Soldered that sucker . I tried Various caps last night and the optimum for this coil is 680pf or 68 pf . what i tried was more windings . it detuned and raised the current draw light went dim  . i took more winding off . same thing except the current went up and the lights got brighter than bright . i did not have enuff adjustment on my pot to see if i could decrease the current and have full lit leds. i tried adding a secondary with 5 or 6 windings ,nothing on the output . and no further current draw either . so i will try winding a large secondary past the 80 windings with smaller wire and see if i can get anything off the secondary and without increasing the current draw . Also i am using an germanium Transistor . I will try a Silicon transistor today and see what happens.. Oh one more thing . the c2 on my circuit is across the battery . i removed it and the current draw went up and the light got dimmer . So with the elecro cap across the battery the current draw decreased by .20 ma and the light s got brighter . the reason i can see a different in light is i was running 4 leds at 1.15 ma total and the slightest difference is seen.In My circuit it is needed .