OK, I'll convert the rear wheel of my bike into a Wimshurst generator and collect the output into a couple of 4 gallon Leyden jars. I'll drag a grounding strap and have a large spike out the front as a corona emitter.
What it would lack in portability it would gain in "What the #$%^ is that?!?"
I've often thought an electrophorus mounted in the soles of jogging shoes could generate a non-trivial electric charge. The action of of lifting your foot from the ground while walking or running would be the activity that separates the top plate from the dielectric cake, where you could then take the charge off. When you put your foot down, an electrical contact could be made between the top plate and the base to reset it to deliver another charge.
I remember being told in school (as have many others) that "static" electricity and an electric current were two different things, and "static" electricity wasn't useful for anything. Both of these 'facts' are quite wrong, but science books continue to spread the LIES.
I remember being told in school (as have many others) that "static" electricity and an electric current were two different things, and "static" electricity wasn't useful for anything. Both of these 'facts' are quite wrong, but science books continue to spread the LIES.
They are two different things, static electricity is potential difference (e.g. across the charged plates in a capacitor) and current is the flow of electrons (i.e. in the coils of an inductor), the principles of static electricity and current flow are used in all circuit so they are both useful.
What you've described is a Marx generator. The trick in getting them to shift from series to parallel are arc gaps. You could also use transistors in lower voltage Marx generators.
Caution: The energy storage in these guys can be a LOT. Keep your caps small.
A 1:mu:F capacitor charged to 180V wouldn't hurt that much unless you moistened the skin with saline solution or stabbed the victim with the electrodes.
A high current makes a spark when wires are touched together. Your shocker circuit has a very low output current.
You might get a voltage of 100V from that transformer. It steps up the voltage 9.5 times or 19 times. It might give a 1000V spike each time the current in the transformer is turned off.
1000V makes an arc with an air gap of about 1mm. 10kV makes an arc with an air gap of about 1cm.