EXPERIMENTAL Are Furnace MELTS ANYTHING How to wind a simple coil reactance that controls the current, protects the fuses, and cuts down greatly the cost of the electric power EAT so tervtic that no knowin sub stance is able to withstand it for long can be developed in your home laboratory with nothing more than a pair of electric fight {Usmall crucible, and some mea trolling the Row of the electric current from the house mains through the arc Most electrical expetitaenters attempt to use an old toaster or electric grill in series with the arc. This works all right, Inut the current flow is limited to three ot four amperes and is greatest when the carbons are in contact and the ar Giucing the feast amount of heat Adding nother tonster of geil in parallel with the first one doubles the cure ent through the arc, doubles the cost of oper” ation, and still is open to ‘the objection that the current. flow is greatest when the are is least effective “The dlificulty is that a carbon ate, operating on the ordinary 60-cycle HO-volt current, actual- Jy requires only about 33 volts, The difference is wasted in useless heat from the grill or toaster. You can avoid such troubles by building a current limiting reacte ance to take the place of Operating frlia copmecred in parsilel Te ie praenca the makeshift resistances, The reaetance Upsets the power factor of the dine in such away that the current flowing through the are actually is in the neighborhood of 10 amperes although the meter runs only as fast as though 314 amperes were flow- ing. “The homemade reactance shown was designed especially, for amateur arc fur- ace experiments, The core is made of runsformer steel lanninations or amneated iron. strips_measur- ing 1% by 6 in Enough of them are used “fo make. the some 136 i thick, "Afler the core Bis been tightly wound svith four oF five Lay 1s of Friction tape, the ‘winding canbe started. Use No. 12 ehameled, colton covered wire. The first layer should be Sin, fong. and the end of cach succeed. layer shell be stepped hack half the width of the wire. This gives a Soa drawing tan gives ‘the. dimensions of the Be tarapad down frais small are furnace with 2 renctance that le as elective a4 fa 800.wate electric oF de sorenceables nna wiepedourntranafoerer ELECYIC HGH Ane eno mee nee wet woven enos TaDFOUMENEAL ARC FODRACE oomaut garreme cup ABC CONTIOL DEACTARICE ica How the connection can flow without mate, No eutrent ie ireugh the. coll cone-shaped effect and avoids the use of retaining disks, Continue winding till the outside of the coil measures 5% in, in diameter, Then apply several. layers of friction (ape to protect the winding and Keep it froma coming loose at the en, Be sure that the notches in the upright end pieces of the wooden frame are slightly less than 13% in. deep so that the tepnieces vil clamp mls on the ends the core Connections are made 10 the coil by drilling a hale in the upright, passing the ent of a flexible coed through it, and soldering the coil endl wires to the bared ends of the cord. soldered oop should be formed in each wire 59 they may be firmly clamped to the inside of the up: right by means of small, roundhcaded ‘Afler the reactance fs finished, give it 8 coal of black paint oF lacquer. A hansly sviring harness for arc experi ments fs suggested in the diagram above, The metal or other substance to be melted can be pliced ina smaller crucible 1 suspended within the onter ye. Ob- viously, any desired type of fumace raay Iie built vo suit the works, Beat ia mind, however, that the heat ¥s immense enough to melt iten ged porcelain und must be cautiously used. Du not look directly at the art without wearing gogeles ‘This reactance is for use only on Hoayele, Ll0-velt A.C. current