Roy K. Breon wrote:
> I remember seeing several articles in the 50's that used automobile spark
> plugs as lightning arresters. That was when you could get a plug w/o a
> built in resistor. Can you do that today? Comments?
>
You can get non-resistor plugs. I've used them as vacuum HV feedthroughs.
As a spark gap, they'd work ok, but a couple pieces of sheet metal might
be easier and more compact. Things to think about with spark plugs:
1) the thread is odd, so getting a suitable nut to fit is hard.. the
plug is cheap, the nut is not. If you were doing a bunch of them, you
could get a spark plug tap and thread the chassis. Again, the tap isn't
particularly cheap ($10 ish, plus you need a tap wrench, and you need to
be careful so that the tap goes in straight).. and, sparkplugs are
designed to seat into a conical seat.
2) They're sort of big and bulky, compared to a couple of pieces of AWG
10 solid wire. They ARE rugged.
3) You want a plug brand that has the removable connection thing on the
top that leaves a threaded rod sticking out. A lot easier to put a ring
lug on than trying to solder/braze/connect to the little knobby thing.
4) you want a cheap conventional plug.. no fancy platinum wires, etc.
You're going to be setting the gap pretty close (say, 0.030 to 0.040
inch or so)
SO it's mostly a matter of fabrication tradeoffs.
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