A general description of the characteristics of the force coefficients, plus the effect of parameters such as free-stream turbulence and surface roughness in the form of stranding, is given. A resume of all the known suggestions for the origin of the lift force is listed and a series of experiments, attempting to test these suggestions using simple methods, is described. These methods consist mainly of force measurement, involving force measurement on the leeward conductor using different shapes for the leeward and windward bodies.