Warehouse 13 - The Tesla Gun

Still waiting on my tubes to arrive in the mail so I can see exactly what I have to work with. They seem to be taking a while to come from the USofA.

Another little package of two switches sent from there on 1st of July took until 25th of July to clear US customs. Still waiting on that too. I don't know what's going on. Usually stuff is here within 10 days.

Maybe they're worried about exporting secret technology to foreigners. LOL. Yeah some vacuum tubes and a couple of push button switches.
 
Screengrabs from the latest episode.

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There is actually a tube import company here in Huntsville, AL that a friend works for, plus an old-time electronics parts place that I'll be visiting looking for some of these parts. IF I find anyhting I will post what I've found.

Those grips seem like something from a early 1900s revolver but I cannot put my finger on which one. There are a couple of websites that deal in replacement grips for antique pistols that are worht checking out.
 
St Sixtus said:
There is actually a tube import company here in Huntsville, AL that a friend works for, plus an old-time electronics parts place that I'll be visiting looking for some of these parts. IF I find anyhting I will post what I've found.
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The tubes I got really aren't quite suitable so I'm definitely still on the lookout for some. I now a nice pile of them and none of them is quite right for anything I want to make using vacuum tubes. SO into the junkbox with them for later.

Those grips seem like something from a early 1900s revolver but I cannot put my finger on which one. There are a couple of websites that deal in replacement grips for antique pistols that are worht checking out.
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I think because they are a pretty simple design, that they have just been molded in situ with a part rubber compund but they could also just be a resin cast with a slight texture. Each side is quite different due to the extra pieces on one side. They might also have just been made in a simple mold as it would have been a fairly simple piece to shape.

Given that QMx now has the licence to produce WH13 stuff for sale and is going to be selling a Tesla copy, I wonder if it just might be easier to wait. On the other hand their basic Farnsworth is US$299 so I suspect the Tesla will not be cheap but it will be an exact copy as they have access to the originals.

Also half the fun in all of this is trying to make one and find the correct bits. However having access to the right equipment or even the skills to make a good quality replica is not something we are all blessed with so even having a really good kit can be a great thing. At least one can feel some sense of accomplishment as kits tend to need finishing and assembly.

The Tesla doesn't look that complicated to make; it's just a matter of finding the right tubes, knobs and that brass fitting used as a trigger.
 
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terryhimself said:
I see that a resin Tesla kit is available on E Bay. Search Warehouse 13.
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It's all out of scale. The rear vacuum tubes are the same diameter when they shouldn't be. The frame is just not the right shape in too many places.

The whole thing just looks terrible. Obviously is not someone who visits the RPF or he couldn't have gotten it that wrong.
 
Have you noticed who's selling the kit?

You can't expect to get something good from Coolmodels. Notorious recaster and very bad quality. It may be the first kit of a Tesla gun available, but I'm sure it's also the worst that you'll ever see.
 
He (or whoever) obviously spent very little time researching before scratchbuilding the original. I've looked at some of the other resin castings he has for sale and the quality is woeful. Bad enough is the fact that the shape and various proportions of the things are just not quite right but the obvious lack of detail is everywhere.

F-N-S said:
Have you noticed who's selling the kit?

You can't expect to get something good from Coolmodels. Notorious recaster and very bad quality. It may be the first kit of a Tesla gun available, but I'm sure it's also the worst that you'll ever see.
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In the latest screencaps the 6 rods and front spiral bit look distinctly copper instead of brass like the earlier photos. I'm inclined to go that direction since those were taken outside (or at least the scene is set outside, could be green screen) and the others were taken in indoor scenes. What do you guys think? Do the threaded rods in the center look copper to you as well?

Edit: I just noticed TheDoctor's original sketch had the rods copper colored.

I found a friend that happens to have hundreds of vacuum tubes sorted into boxes, most ranging from 2-4 inches. We're going to go through them this weekend to see if there's anything suitable. To PeterLC, what was the problem with the tubes you got? Wrong shape, innards, etc.? Anything in particular I should be looking out for when I go through my friend's boxes?
 
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Jhemma said:
Anything in particular I should be looking out for when I go through my friend's boxes?
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Grab anything with "TESLA" marked on it!:wacko

I've picked up a couple of 'tubed' radios, but the tubes are quite small. Getting that long one for the front will be the toughest.
 
I'm still inclined to make them from brass tubing and threaded brass rods rather than copper. I don't know that the difference seen is any more than light coming off objects of different sizes. And what the hell - I'm colour blind anyway. LOL


Jhemma said:
In the latest screencaps the 6 rods and front spiral bit look distinctly copper instead of brass like the earlier photos. I'm inclined to go that direction since those were taken outside (or at least the scene is set outside, could be green screen) and the others were taken in indoor scenes. What do you guys think? Do the threaded rods in the center look copper to you as well?
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I've not found any that are both the right size and the right shape. I figure what's inside them is far less important than the overall look. Go back to some of the screencaps and the drawing and get a rough idea of size and shape. Maybe it won't be the same tubes but you might find something close enough to use. Let me know if you find more than one of anything. LOL

The two rear tubes need to be the kind that don't have the sealing "nipple" on the top. The main bigger tube can be of either type as the wound coil shaped piece at the tip will cover anything there.


Jhemma said:
I found a friend that happens to have hundreds of vacuum tubes sorted into boxes, most ranging from 2-4 inches. We're going to go through them this weekend to see if there's anything suitable. To PeterLC, what was the problem with the tubes you got? Wrong shape, innards, etc.? Anything in particular I should be looking out for when I go through my friend's boxes?
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When you say "quite small" how small are we talking? I'm looking for some tubes about 10mm in diameter and about 35mm long.

Interceptor6 said:
I've picked up a couple of 'tubed' radios, but the tubes are quite small. Getting that long one for the front will be the toughest.
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Hmm well we haven't used imperial measurements here for 40 years so like most of the rest of the world we just tend to quote stuff in metric. I can never work out why the USofA shows so much recalcitrance about adopting what is basically the international standard for measurements.

10mm is about 0.39" and 30mm-35mm is about 1.18"-1.38". Even 40mm (1.57") would probably work.


Interceptor6 said:
Peter, I'll pry them out and measure them tonight. mm? What ever happened to inches and feet!:lol
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I'm not a model builder, but somehow I decided to try to build a Tesla Gun -- using mostly wood. It was not turning out well (again, not really a model builder), so I purchased the GoodModel garage kit at Dragon*Con. I realized right away that I would be better off using some of my pieces to substitute for the kit pieces -- the vacuum tubes in particular. Although the tubes I'm using are not perfect, they come close to approximating the right size. I bought some "baby soda bottle test tubes" ( Baby Soda Bottles - Giant Test Tubes at Steve Spangler Science ). They are thick and have a tint to them, but they're also durable, in case I drop the gun. I've already started constructing fake guts for the tubes.

I'll also need to build out the frames that goes around the readout dials and intensity control, as the resin kit has flat panels on each side. Sounds like a lot of work, but I think the melding of my stuff and the kit might be the best route for me to take.

I'm not sure I have any business posting to a site like this, looking at the outstanding work you folks do. But if it's not inappropriate, I'll try to upload some images at some point.
 
PeterLC said:
Hmm well we haven't used imperial measurements here for 40 years so like most of the rest of the world we just tend to quote stuff in metric. I can never work out why the USofA shows so much recalcitrance about adopting what is basically the international standard for measurements.

10mm is about 0.39" and 30mm-35mm is about 1.18"-1.38". Even 40mm (1.57") would probably work.
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The cost of retooling everything.
 
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