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I found this in the loft, it's a Meccano toy induction coil. The idea is you connect a 4-5v battery to it then get people to hold the metal cylinders and they get a decent electric shock. Great fun 😀 For some reason they stopped making them can't think why...
I know it used to work as when I was a kid I quite liked holding onto the handle things and feeling you wrist muscles sort of lock with the electric shock.
Only thing is I can't get it working now and not sure what to check. Theres a little adjuster wheel in between the + and - terminals but can't remember what it's meant to do.
Anyone help me get it working or tell me what to check on it?
Have you tried putting the battery on your tongue?
Possibly the coating on the coil/capacitor has broken down. Does it get warm?
Ha haven't done the battery on the tongue for ages, I'll have to go find a 9v one!
I've only got about 8 ohms if I test between the "handle" contacts, would this mean the coil is knackered?
did it buzz when it operated? It could be that the piece of metal going across is a bimetalic strip that heats up and you adjust the wheel until the point where it just vibrates to make and break the connection. At that point the coil will change the current through that strip into a nice high voltage across the handles
maybe
Coil is probably OK
Does it click when you connect the battery?
If not, you could try carefully cleaning the contact where the knurled wheel thing meets the strip of metal (just use a piece of clean card, or something - don't go mad with sandpaper or anything).
If it does click, try unscrewing the adjustable contact slightly until it just loses contact as the strip is drawn to the magnet.
(It's called a 'trembler coil' btw)
Yeah I think it did buzz a bit when it was working and I'm sure I remember seeing tiny sparks at the tip of that wheel, so the strip vibrating makes sense.
No click when I connect the battery, I'll try and hook it up to an old model railway transformer set at 4v
It's working! Cleaned the metal pin and bar where they toich with card as suggested. My 7yr old daughter just tried it and went whoo electric shocks, again again 😀
If it does click, try unscrewing the adjustable contact slightly until it just loses contact as the strip is drawn to the magnet.
Ah that makes more sense, excellent
Kids toys were so much better before the advent of elf 'n' safety! 😄
Wet or sweaty hands make it sooo much better!
Just found the instructions for it online, although a very hard to read copy
These days waterboarding is all the rage I hear, but if you're going to use that as intended surely you need a fresh 12V car battery and some jumper cables?
I had no idea meccano did a line of sex toys đŸ˜¯
It’s working!
Yay! đŸ™‚
Now let your imagination run riot đŸ˜‰
I once met a chap on the maintenance dept at a midlands factory who swore by the beneficial effects of the old style scalextric power supply attached to his nether regions, his wife would use the hand controller to adjust the power.