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High voltage ignition coil supply

by skuitarman on March 2, 2009 Table of Contents High voltage ignition coil supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Intro: High voltage ignition coil supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Step 1: Danger High Voltage!!! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Step 2: Getting an ignition coil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Step 3: The driver circuit scematic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Step 4: Gather all your componments... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Step 5: Solder all your components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Step 6: Hook it up to the ignition coil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Step 7: Finished! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Related Instructables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5

http://www.instructables.com/id/High-voltage-ignition-coil-supply/

Intro: High voltage ignition coil supply

In this Instructable I will teach you how to build a High voltage power supply using an Ignition Coil.This project uses a 555 timer based circuit.We use a 555 IC because an ignition coil needs a squire wave signal to power it. so basically the 555 timer is making pulsed DC electricity which powers the ignition coil.

Step 1: Danger High Voltage!!!

This project shows how to make a High voltage power supply which produces about 30 or more MA, which is enough to Kill you! so Don't try this if you are not experienced with high voltage!

Step 2: Getting an ignition coil

The first thing you need to do is to get an ignition coil,I got mine from a friend who's dad works on cars,but you can buy a new one for like $30, Or you can get one from the junkyard for about $5.The reason we use an ignition coil is because ignition coils are what power the spark plugs with high voltage. so instead of hooking it to a spark plug you can use it as a high voltage supply. here is a pic of the two ignition coils I got.

Step 3: The driver circuit scematic

This is the driver circuit that powers the ignition coil . part list: two 10k ohm potentiometers two 1k ohm resistors one 555 timer IC one 8-dip IC socket one 100 ohm resistor one .1uf 12v capacitor one 2n3055 power transistor and heatsink 12v 6amp DC power supply

http://www.instructables.com/id/High-voltage-ignition-coil-supply/

Step 4: Gather all your componments...

There are a few components that are missing from this image because I ordered them and they are not here yet.

Image Notes 1. 2n3055 power transistor 2. 555 timer ic 3. solder 4. 10k ohm pot's 5. prototype circuit board 6. 1k ohm resistors

Step 5: Solder all your components

now you need to solder all your components using the schematic.

http://www.instructables.com/id/High-voltage-ignition-coil-supply/

Step 6: Hook it up to the ignition coil

now you need to hook up the the power supply to your circuit,and then the out put of the circuit to the ignition coil

Image Notes 1. This is the High Voltage output 2. positive input 3. negative and High Voltage return

Step 7: Finished!
now your finished! now just turn on the supply and adjust the frequency using the potentiometer until you get a good arc! you can use this to: power a Tesla coil, power a Jacobs ladder, and much much more!

http://www.instructables.com/id/High-voltage-ignition-coil-supply/

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MAKE A HIGH VOLTAGE SUPPLY IN 5 MINUTES by Biotele

How To Make A Jacobs Ladder by fatboyslim

Jacob's Ladder with Display Case by LargeMouthBass

Variable voltage ignition coil power supply by pyromadness

How to make a Jacob's Ladder! by duct tape

MINI TESLA COIL by Jimmy Proton

Comments
50 comments Add Comment view all 90 comments

ARJOON says:

Nov 26, 2010. 7:11 AM REPLY i used an irfp250 instead for the 2n3055. i got far much bigger spark and also when i used 32v of input to the mosfet the ignition coil was sparking to the concrete. the was super crazy. like a tesla coil. haahahahaha

yamaha_dodge says:
becuase it basically is a mini low voltage tesla coil If you think about how it wroks they are both very similar.

Jan 22, 2011. 8:53 PM REPLY

ge6aaaa3 says:
How can i make bigger spark?

Jan 2, 2011. 8:32 AM REPLY

hinmung says:

Nov 27, 2010. 10:38 AM REPLY can replace the car ignition coil with motorcycle ignition coil ??? and any bad things happen such as the 555 timer explosions.

bcantley2010 says:
a motorcycle needs roughly the same voltage too and no changing the coil is not going to blow the 555

Dec 16, 2010. 1:53 PM REPLY

mbainrot says:
You do know that the image on step 1 is in breach of copyright?

Dec 3, 2010. 3:34 PM REPLY

http://www.powerlabs.org/highvoltage.htm is the owner of the image, you've just cropped it so the "(C) http://www.powerlabs.org" Do you have permission to use that graphic?

http://www.instructables.com/id/High-voltage-ignition-coil-supply/

ARJOON says:
what can i do if i want 400v from it

Oct 12, 2010. 9:45 PM REPLY

Jimmy Proton says:

you cant get 400v from it, its a high voltage transformer

Nov 26, 2010. 6:55 AM REPLY

gafar musa says:

Sep 27, 2010. 10:57 AM REPLY wow,this is interesting but am thinking of 1 how to measure d output, 2 how to use this circuit to power electronics or two or more bulbs. is d output voltage AC or DC?. Any one with idea should help me send d contribusion to gaftech03@yahoo.com

carebare47 says:

Jun 4, 2010. 4:43 AM REPLY When I run this the transistor gets hot very quickly, and the spark generated is minuscule and only happens every second or so. Any ideas?

electronic boy says:

Sep 6, 2010. 10:05 AM REPLY on car ignition coils there is always a special capacitor called a condenser and if u add this to ur circuit and put a heat sink on the transistor then you will have a good high voltage power supply

electronic boy says:

(removed by author or community request)

Aug 31, 2010. 6:21 AM

electronic boy says:

(removed by author or community request)

Aug 31, 2010. 7:49 AM

electronic boy says:

(removed by author or community request)

Aug 31, 2010. 7:51 AM

N3v3rm0r3 says:
How do you connect the power transistor? It has two pins and I don't what they are for. Also, is it my idea, or it lacks a pin?

May 26, 2010. 8:12 AM REPLY

skuitarman says:
the other conection is the transisters metal cover

Jun 9, 2010. 9:10 AM REPLY

N3v3rm0r3 says:
thanks, the two pins are the collector and the emitter of the transistor and the cover the base?

Jun 10, 2010. 1:48 AM REPLY

coolfordy says:
http://www.jaycar.com.au/products_uploaded/2N3055-D.pdf this has a diagram of what is what on the transistor

Jun 10, 2010. 9:06 PM REPLY

coolfordy says:
how many watts are the 10kohm pots rated for ? and what would be the best diode to prevent kickback?

May 29, 2010. 6:24 PM REPLY

joinaqd says:
can it light up a strobe light from a disposable camera??

Apr 7, 2009. 5:54 PM REPLY

Plasmana says:
Yes

Apr 16, 2009. 4:05 PM REPLY

http://www.instructables.com/id/High-voltage-ignition-coil-supply/

-max- says:
not as u would expect from it though... it would look like just a bunch of small sparks inside.

May 24, 2010. 5:41 PM REPLY

mark-c94 says:

Apr 15, 2010. 12:35 PM REPLY got a few questions here, why does the 12v + go to the negative side of the coil? and surely with that design you're going to have a few thousand volts going to the ground of your power supply, your transistor and everything else connected to ground? Mar 31, 2010. 10:50 PM REPLY

ushirmaharaj says:
can i use this to power a tesla coil

shadowdude77 says:

Dec 11, 2009. 8:15 AM REPLY Can I run this off a converted computer PSU? It generates in the tens of amps on the +12V rail, so how would I go about getting just 6A out of it? Do I put in a resistor/potentiometer right after the power supply? Also, how long can the circuit be run? Can it be run indefinitely, or should I only run it for say, 5 minutes before turning it off and letting it cool down? Can I make a "singing arc" using this? I've heard mixed results about using an ignition coil as the HV supply in a plasma speaker. Thanks in advance if you can answer my questions!

skuitarman says:
i computer power supply will work without having to put a resistor on it. it can only run for i little bit before it starts to over heat, just check the transistor every little bit.

Dec 12, 2009. 7:33 PM REPLY

TheDoci says:

Mar 30, 2010. 12:48 PM REPLY My own cerket was abel to run for 20 min withaut overheating, 20 min was the max becose my experament was done. You just nead a larg colling device like a cpu cooler from a celeron, or pentium 4. Dec 13, 2009. 4:37 AM REPLY Alright, thanks! How well have you heatsinked the transistor? It might be possible to get longer runtimes if you give it a huge heatsink. Or maybe even put it in contact with a thermoelectric cooler (Peltier junction) and heatsink the cooler? Feb 1, 2010. 6:24 AM REPLY

shadowdude77 says:

robot797 says:
hi i build this and after a wile it stops working (if it is off for 1 day) and i cant get it working again what am i doeing wrong?

robot797 says:
fixed it my 555 was fryed erm i rebuilded it now it drives a flyback and plays music

Mar 7, 2010. 8:14 AM REPLY

dumfart says:
will this thing work on rodents? shoe-sized rodents? how long should it fire to do-in the rodent?

Jun 30, 2009. 6:26 AM REPLY

chriskarr says:

Jan 12, 2010. 11:44 PM REPLY This 'thing' will work on rodents and on children and on you. Don't even think of using high-voltage as a pest control, unless that pest is yourself. Why would you even think of such a horrible, abusive and torturous method of pest-disposal?

dumfart says:

Jan 22, 2010. 6:14 PM REPLY Sorry if i offended your sensibilities, I may have freely used the term rodent when I meant - rats. I tried cage traps, snap traps, and glue traps and i'll tell you, I don't want to use poison bait. I don't want to use glue traps anymore, as its even more torturous than electrocuting them. I'm on the other side of the world and on the radio this morning, I heard that a farming town not far away from ours had a been attacked by rats. You yourself mention that this is a pest. Yes it is and it has killed millions with the plague and continues to distribute other diseases to this day. I know high voltage is dangerous not only to them but to anything else that touches this circuit.

chriskarr says:
Well, I suppose, then, I understand. I apologize if I was a bit critical. ;) For future reference, rats did not carry the plague - fleas did. Rats simply carried the fleas. =) Also, I wouldn't recommend this as pest-control, anyways. The current is far too low. Have a nice day.

Jan 22, 2010. 7:56 PM REPLY

http://www.instructables.com/id/High-voltage-ignition-coil-supply/

robot797 says:
doesnt it be posible to audiomodulate this circut by adding a 10 micros farat capacitor at the pin 5 (plus from audio on the capacitor) and the min on the accu's minus.

Jan 13, 2010. 5:32 AM REPLY

robot797 says:
fix the circut please

Apr 23, 2009. 5:29 AM REPLY

skuitarman says:
ok

Apr 24, 2009. 1:57 PM REPLY

chriskarr says:
I 'lol'ed.

Jan 12, 2010. 11:49 PM REPLY

physicas says:
How do you determine the 6A and is it important? Cheers

Oct 7, 2009. 11:30 PM REPLY

skuitarman says:
i dont know what you mean by determine. but the reason 6 amps is important is it gives it alot more output

Oct 9, 2009. 8:28 AM REPLY

physicas says:

Oct 9, 2009. 4:46 PM REPLY Well how do I create 6A, I thought electronics just drawed the current it needed. e.g, a parallell circuit, adding a light bulb will draw more current from a battery.

chriskarr says:

Jan 12, 2010. 11:41 PM REPLY In DC circuits, you can determine the current using Ohm's Law (V=IR, where V = Volts, I = Current in Amps and R = Resistance in Ohms). The current drawn is limited by the load and not every component will be able to limit its input to the maximum rated current - transistors will pull as much current as you can feed them, and some will live with this much current. In DRSSTCs (Dual-Resonant Solid-State Tesla Coils), people commonly use their transistors at currents four times what they are rated for, but can only do so because their on-time is low, and thus their duty-cycle is low. The average current is well-below the maximum rating.

billdan says:
I would like to use this as an ignition for an old engine but I am not sure what to use as the trigger. Do you have any ideas?

Dec 2, 2009. 9:43 PM REPLY

chriskarr says:
The contacts which typically close the circuit in all engines..

Jan 12, 2010. 11:34 PM REPLY

lukej says:
I've got a feeling that the high voltage return is on the chassis.

Dec 12, 2009. 5:01 AM REPLY

k2d2 says:
does the coil run off AC or DC?

Oct 18, 2009. 10:04 AM REPLY

skuitarman says:
dc

Dec 9, 2009. 8:55 AM REPLY

zuperzoim says:
can this circuit produce 50kV. if it ca't be, how can i make it ?

Nov 19, 2009. 9:19 AM REPLY

http://www.instructables.com/id/High-voltage-ignition-coil-supply/

skuitarman says:
it produces from 30kv-50kv

Dec 8, 2009. 6:38 PM REPLY

bodo says:

Jun 4, 2009. 5:30 AM REPLY it is also posible to use a car reley for12 volts vith a tuning it makes pulses like sqare vaves and high frequenses like some hundreds of khz how long it works unknown

view all 90 comments

http://www.instructables.com/id/High-voltage-ignition-coil-supply/