"J.B. Wood" wrote in message
news
On 5/3/2018 8:16 PM, Tom Del Rosso wrote:
The switch mechanism cracked in my magnifying lamp. No ballast. Just a
momentary and a latching switch combined, that feed the 4 terminals on
the tube. The equivalents I find are around $20. Must be a cheaper
source. Physical shape doesn't matter much, since the hole can be
enlarged.

Thanks.



That's a special purpose switch that combines the function of a
glow-starter and on/off. Not a common hardware store stocked item. I've
an old 15" tube desk lamp like that and it has an inductor (coil)
ballast in the base. Are you certain yours doesn't have an inductor or
electronic ballast? I've never seen a fluorescent lamp fixture without
one. As for the bum switch - one alternative to a new switch would be
to wire in a glow switch, space permitting, and replace the defective
switch with just an on/off one. You might have to extract the glass
envelope glow switch from its plastic or metal can. You'd also have to
determine the current rating of the required glow switch. Sincerely,

You can get electronic starters, I was quite impressed. The muppet
electrician that fitted a "D" luminair in the bog, fitted the wrong
ballast - it took ages to strike from the get go and after a week, it was
turn the bog light on, go for a cuppa and wait for the light to come on. The
electronic starter still took a while, but it just blinked on instead of 10
mins flickering. An electronic ballast was about the same price as a tube on
eBay and lasted a while - but I bodged it with a bunch of candle style LED
bulbs rather than go through all that crap again. LED GU10 lamps are also an
option - and much better chance of getting cool white.