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Metalworking (rec.crafts.metalworking) Discuss various aspects of working with metal, such as machining, welding, metal joining, screwing, casting, hardening/tempering, blacksmithing/forging, spinning and hammer work, sheet metal work. |
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Droplight Solution?
Having had many, many droplight bulbs go over the years from dropping or
even just bumping them, (the cage keeps the glass from breaking, usually, but the filament goes anyway) I finally discovered an improvement. NJ is currently offering an instant rebate on compact fluorescent "bulbs". These are really cheap right now, so I put one in my droplight the other day while looking for a new bulb. Works fine, stays very cool (which is always an advantage under the car with the light next to your head), and gives 100W equivalent light. I haven't dropped it yet, but I suspect that it will be a lot more robust. Sure a lot cheaper than the ruggedized "drop light bulbs" they sell for this application (which are not a lot more rugged than ordinary bulbs, in my experience. Metal content: (1) The cage on mine is made of metal. (2) The cars I work on with it are mostly metal. :-) -- Bob (Chief Pilot, White Knuckle Airways) I don't have to like Bush and Cheney (Or Kerry, for that matter) to love America |
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"Bob Chilcoat" wrote in message ... Having had many, many droplight bulbs go over the years from dropping or even just bumping them, (the cage keeps the glass from breaking, usually, but the filament goes anyway) I finally discovered an improvement. NJ is currently offering an instant rebate on compact fluorescent "bulbs". These are really cheap right now, so I put one in my droplight the other day while looking for a new bulb. Works fine, stays very cool (which is always an advantage under the car with the light next to your head), and gives 100W equivalent light. I haven't dropped it yet, but I suspect that it will be a lot more robust. Sure a lot cheaper than the ruggedized "drop light bulbs" they sell for this application (which are not a lot more rugged than ordinary bulbs, in my experience. That's funny. I've always used "rough service" type bulbs and have had excellent luck with them, even when dropping. The only negative I've experienced with them is that the bulb darkens considerably as the filament evaporates and deposits on the inside of the bulb. Mine usually die from old age, and by then I'm happy to see them gone because the light I'm getting is quite poor. Thanks for the tip on the fluorescent light, though. I do prefer the nice, white (and cool) light they provide. Harold |
#3
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Harold & Susan Vordos wrote:
"Bob Chilcoat" wrote in message ... Having had many, many droplight bulbs go over the years from dropping or even just bumping them, (the cage keeps the glass from breaking, usually, but the filament goes anyway) I finally discovered an improvement. NJ is currently offering an instant rebate on compact fluorescent "bulbs". These are really cheap right now, so I put one in my droplight the other day while looking for a new bulb. Works fine, stays very cool (which is always an advantage under the car with the light next to your head), and gives 100W equivalent light. I haven't dropped it yet, but I suspect that it will be a lot more robust. Sure a lot cheaper than the ruggedized "drop light bulbs" they sell for this application (which are not a lot more rugged than ordinary bulbs, in my experience. That's funny. I've always used "rough service" type bulbs and have had excellent luck with them, even when dropping. The only negative I've experienced with them is that the bulb darkens considerably as the filament evaporates and deposits on the inside of the bulb. Mine usually die from old age, and by then I'm happy to see them gone because the light I'm getting is quite poor. Thanks for the tip on the fluorescent light, though. I do prefer the nice, white (and cool) light they provide. Harold Well I've been running a 12W fluorescent for about 4 years in my inspection lamp. As we have bayonet fittings over here the additional mass of the ballast on the base of the bulb worried me a bit as it wasn't snug in the fitting, so I fitted a rubber O ring as packing between the bottom of the ballast and the top of the holder. No more blown bulbs :-) Also if anyone has a failed tubular inspectin lamp with the resistive cord instead of a proper ballast, if you nick the circuit board out of a 9W bulb, it will run the tube in the inspection lamp just fine. Just match up the filament connections and fit a new mains lead. I pulled one out of a skip in a marina, and found that the lamp had a blown filament at one end as well. I put a 33 ohm resisor accross the blown filament which let the ballast get enough current through it t warm up the other filament enough to start. Its been running like that for about 9 months of occasional use now (probably a week or two of continuous duty) -- Ian Malcolm. London, ENGLAND. (NEWSGROUP REPLY PREFERRED) ianm[at]the[dash]malcolms[dot]freeserve[dot]co[dot]uk [at]=@, [dash]=- & [dot]=. *Warning* SPAM TRAP set in header, Use email address in sig. if you must. |
#4
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In article ,
"Harold & Susan Vordos" wrote: "Bob Chilcoat" wrote in message ... Having had many, many droplight bulbs go over the years from dropping or even just bumping them, (the cage keeps the glass from breaking, usually, but the filament goes anyway) I finally discovered an improvement. NJ is currently offering an instant rebate on compact fluorescent "bulbs". These are really cheap right now, so I put one in my droplight the other day while looking for a new bulb. Works fine, stays very cool (which is always an advantage under the car with the light next to your head), and gives 100W equivalent light. I haven't dropped it yet, but I suspect that it will be a lot more robust. Sure a lot cheaper than the ruggedized "drop light bulbs" they sell for this application (which are not a lot more rugged than ordinary bulbs, in my experience. That's funny. I've always used "rough service" type bulbs and have had excellent luck with them, even when dropping. The only negative I've experienced with them is that the bulb darkens considerably as the filament evaporates and deposits on the inside of the bulb. Mine usually die from old age, and by then I'm happy to see them gone because the light I'm getting is quite poor. Thanks for the tip on the fluorescent light, though. I do prefer the nice, white (and cool) light they provide. Harold I also use rough service bulbs that are dipped in some sort of translucent rubber like material... they don't shatter when/if they get splashed. I've also had excellent life spans with them. I've also drilled two holes in the reflector, and installed two short 1/4-20 bolts from the inside out, with nylock nuts on the outside that act as 'anti roll' feet. My droplight will lie stable on it's back or either side. A most handy modification. I can put up a dropbox photo if anyone's interested. Erik |
#5
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On Fri, 03 Dec 2004 21:19:46 GMT, Erik wrote:
BIG SNIP I also use rough service bulbs that are dipped in some sort of translucent rubber like material... they don't shatter when/if they get splashed. I've also had excellent life spans with them. Also called "Food Service" bulbs. Fluorescent can be purchased with that same coating, and the idea is that if they break (get hit) they won't fall in food, or in the case of elevators, onto people. Neither of these are very common though, as in both the food and elevator service, full lenses (lites) are used instead. |
#6
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"Erik" wrote in message ... snip-----. I've also drilled two holes in the reflector, and installed two short 1/4-20 bolts from the inside out, with nylock nuts on the outside that act as 'anti roll' feet. My droplight will lie stable on it's back or either side. A most handy modification. Damned good idea! Nothing irritates me more than my light turning over when I'm under a car and can't reach it easily. Needless to say, it's always pointing in the wrong direction. I think your description is more than adequate without posting a pic, at least for me. Thanks for the tip, Erik. Harold |
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In article , Harold & Susan Vordos says...
Damned good idea! Nothing irritates me more than my light turning over when I'm under a car and can't reach it easily. Needless to say, it's always pointing in the wrong direction. .... Translation: 'directly *away* from what I'm working on, and directly *at* my eyes!!' Jim -- ================================================== please reply to: JRR(zero) at pkmfgvm4 (dot) vnet (dot) ibm (dot) com ================================================== |
#8
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"jim rozen" wrote in message ... In article , Harold & Susan Vordos says... Damned good idea! Nothing irritates me more than my light turning over when I'm under a car and can't reach it easily. Needless to say, it's always pointing in the wrong direction. .... Translation: 'directly *away* from what I'm working on, and directly *at* my eyes!!' Jim Chuckle! So that was you under there. Couldn't tell. Light was in my eyes. Harold |
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Excellent idea.
Karl "Erik" wrote in message ... In article , "Harold & Susan Vordos" wrote: "Bob Chilcoat" wrote in message ... Having had many, many droplight bulbs go over the years from dropping or even just bumping them, (the cage keeps the glass from breaking, usually, but the filament goes anyway) I finally discovered an improvement. NJ is currently offering an instant rebate on compact fluorescent "bulbs". These are really cheap right now, so I put one in my droplight the other day while looking for a new bulb. Works fine, stays very cool (which is always an advantage under the car with the light next to your head), and gives 100W equivalent light. I haven't dropped it yet, but I suspect that it will be a lot more robust. Sure a lot cheaper than the ruggedized "drop light bulbs" they sell for this application (which are not a lot more rugged than ordinary bulbs, in my experience. That's funny. I've always used "rough service" type bulbs and have had excellent luck with them, even when dropping. The only negative I've experienced with them is that the bulb darkens considerably as the filament evaporates and deposits on the inside of the bulb. Mine usually die from old age, and by then I'm happy to see them gone because the light I'm getting is quite poor. Thanks for the tip on the fluorescent light, though. I do prefer the nice, white (and cool) light they provide. Harold I also use rough service bulbs that are dipped in some sort of translucent rubber like material... they don't shatter when/if they get splashed. I've also had excellent life spans with them. I've also drilled two holes in the reflector, and installed two short 1/4-20 bolts from the inside out, with nylock nuts on the outside that act as 'anti roll' feet. My droplight will lie stable on it's back or either side. A most handy modification. I can put up a dropbox photo if anyone's interested. Erik --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.805 / Virus Database: 547 - Release Date: 12/4/2004 |
#10
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The use of a flourescent bulb also probably removes a danger that most
people would never consider. A fella I went to college with changed trades after becoming a Tool and Die maker, and set to work as an automotive mechanic. One day, while he had a car up on a hoist, searching for a fuel leak, his trouble light fell, and the exposed filament was engergized long enough to ignite the small amount of fuel present. It wasn't much fuel, but because it was spread over a fairly large area, it was a big enough fire to burn him pretty badly. He's fine now, but it could have been much worse. -- __ Pete Snell Royal Military College Kingston Ontario The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man. - George Bernard Shaw |
#11
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"Peter Snell" wrote in message ... The use of a flourescent bulb also probably removes a danger that most people would never consider. A fella I went to college with changed trades after becoming a Tool and Die maker, and set to work as an automotive mechanic. One day, while he had a car up on a hoist, searching for a fuel leak, his trouble light fell, and the exposed filament was engergized long enough to ignite the small amount of fuel present. It wasn't much fuel, but because it was spread over a fairly large area, it was a big enough fire to burn him pretty badly. He's fine now, but it could have been much worse. Indeed! I also don't much enjoy using an incandescent light for working inside a vehicle. Damned things have a way of melting all kinds of plastics, and they're really hard on skin when you happen to lean on them. H |
#12
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Bob Chilcoat wrote:
Having had many, many droplight bulbs go over the years from dropping or even just bumping them, (the cage keeps the glass from breaking, usually, but the filament goes anyway) I finally discovered an improvement. NJ is currently offering an instant rebate on compact fluorescent "bulbs". These are really cheap right now, so I put one in my droplight the other day while looking for a new bulb. snippage I also discovered this some years ago when our electric company and Benny's stores were giving them away..Did my whole house up..except where I need to see fine detail, like in the shop. There I still use a combination of flourescent and filament to get a nice color balance. They can take a beating...I've had the same one in my droplight for three years at least and it's been dropped many times, gotten wet a few times, and it is still going .... Gotta love it! -- Paul '91 XL1200 '77 GL1000 (W.I.P.) "I feel more like I do now than when I got here" |
#13
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Recently our local power company has been recommending replacing
incandescent bulbs with compact flourescent for energy savings. I've found that the color of these are rather harsh and that the colors also vary from one manufacturer to another. Sometimes the color temperature is listed on the package but without something to reference it to, it is worthless to me. What is the color temperature of a standard incandescent? Better yet, I like the color of halogen bulbs, where do they fall? Thanks, Shawn |
#14
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I found the early CF bulbs had rather lousy spectral characteristics and
also lousy ballasts. The more recent ones have a much better output spectrum and the high frequency ballasts are much better, no flicker or problems with strobe effect. Halogen lighting is nominally about 3,200 degrees kelvin color temperature and daylight is typically considered at around 5,500 degrees (that varies a bit or course). It's a little more complicated than just color temperature though it's also a function of the output spectrum. Fluorescent lights, particularly the older ones, emit light at a few specific wavelengths where halogen and incandescent emit across a much wider spectrum. Even if the apparent color temperature is the same the light may not look the same due to missing wavelengths. The newer CF lamps have much better phosphor blends and fill in many of those gaps. The earlier fluorescents were particularly heavy on some green wavelengths. They now have fluorescents with specifically blended phosphors that have strong red, green and blue output bands to match the needs of video lighting use. Replacing 20kw of halogen studio lighting with 5kw of fluorescent is a big power savings on the lighting alone and also on greatly reduced air conditioning costs. I find the best way to select the CF lamps is to look at them in the operating display most stores seem to have to get an idea of what they look like and then bring the one that looks best home for testing. The human eye can do some very interesting color balancing so it is more important to keep the lighting in a given area consistent that to have it a specific color temperature. If you want a good test of this balancing ability, try looking into a video camera with a B&W viewfinder for 10 min or so while keeping your other eye open. You'll find the the eye that has been in the viewfinder sees it as "real" black and white while if you look at it with your other eye it appears blue and white. The only things I find that takes a little getting used to is the 1/4 second or so turn on delay and the minute or two to come up to full brightness. I have several 42w CF lamps in the cheap spring clamp reflector shades that have replaced the 500w halogen floodlights as work lights for many projects. Pete C. Shawn wrote: Recently our local power company has been recommending replacing incandescent bulbs with compact flourescent for energy savings. I've found that the color of these are rather harsh and that the colors also vary from one manufacturer to another. Sometimes the color temperature is listed on the package but without something to reference it to, it is worthless to me. What is the color temperature of a standard incandescent? Better yet, I like the color of halogen bulbs, where do they fall? Thanks, Shawn |
#16
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Now is the time to start looking seriously at LEDs.
Ted |
#17
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"Ted Edwards" wrote in message ... Now is the time to start looking seriously at LEDs. Ted Yep! I just ordered my first LED flashlight. Harold |
#18
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Check out the LED lights at Costco. 1 watt if I remember correctly.
Karl "Harold & Susan Vordos" wrote in message ... "Ted Edwards" wrote in message ... Now is the time to start looking seriously at LEDs. Ted Yep! I just ordered my first LED flashlight. Harold --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.805 / Virus Database: 547 - Release Date: 12/3/2004 |
#19
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On Sun, 05 Dec 2004 13:53:46 GMT, "Karl Vorwerk"
calmly ranted: Check out the LED lights at Costco. 1 watt if I remember correctly. Are those new, Karl? They're not listed on the website at all. (Nothing in the search for "flashlight", printer parts and a "mood light" under the search for "LED".) ================================================== ======== CAUTION: Do not use remaining fingers as pushsticks! ================================================== ======== http://www.diversify.com Comprehensive Website Development |
#20
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"Larry Jaques" wrote in message ... On Sun, 05 Dec 2004 13:53:46 GMT, "Karl Vorwerk" calmly ranted: Check out the LED lights at Costco. 1 watt if I remember correctly. Are those new, Karl? They're not listed on the website at all. (Nothing in the search for "flashlight", printer parts and a "mood light" under the search for "LED".) Not everything that stores carry are on the web page. Stock even differs between stores I've found in the past. Lane |
#21
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Larry Jaques wrote:
On Sun, 05 Dec 2004 13:53:46 GMT, "Karl Vorwerk" calmly ranted: Check out the LED lights at Costco. 1 watt if I remember correctly. Are those new, Karl? They're not listed on the website at all. (Nothing in the search for "flashlight", printer parts and a "mood light" under the search for "LED".) ================================================== ======== CAUTION: Do not use remaining fingers as pushsticks! ================================================== ======== http://www.diversify.com Comprehensive Website Development I saw them - two in a package. Uses two double A's. Martin -- Martin Eastburn, Barbara Eastburn @ home at Lion's Lair with our computer NRA LOH, NRA Life NRA Second Amendment Task Force Charter Founder |
#22
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First time I've seen them. I bought the Streamlight 4AA LED light there
several months ago or I would have bought them. I just saw the new improved Leatherman Wave at Home Depot for $60. Karl "Larry Jaques" wrote in message ... On Sun, 05 Dec 2004 13:53:46 GMT, "Karl Vorwerk" calmly ranted: Check out the LED lights at Costco. 1 watt if I remember correctly. Are those new, Karl? They're not listed on the website at all. (Nothing in the search for "flashlight", printer parts and a "mood light" under the search for "LED".) ================================================== ======== CAUTION: Do not use remaining fingers as pushsticks! ================================================== ======== http://www.diversify.com Comprehensive Website Development --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.805 / Virus Database: 547 - Release Date: 12/4/2004 |
#23
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On Fri, 3 Dec 2004 10:48:26 -0500, "Bob Chilcoat"
vaguely proposed a theory .......and in reply I say!: remove ns from my header address to reply via email Funny! I was going to post almost exactly this post, yesterday! I had the same experience. I dropped one of thses things and to my amazement it kept working. They have every advantage. Cool, low power, robust. Not quite cheap here yet, but getting better. Well worth the dough. I actually posted here asking about 12v - 240v inverters, because I was going to be working outside. These fluoro's are ideal. I can run 6, maybe 7 "100W equivalents" off a 150W inverter, cost about $50. And get quite a few hours out of a well-charged 12V battery. No fire hazard if I drop one. Also a reflector can be any old piece of white plastic and when I switch off, I can handle the thing straight away. I now have 6 on camera tripods. Great for the BBQ as well. Duck's nuts! Having had many, many droplight bulbs go over the years from dropping or even just bumping them, (the cage keeps the glass from breaking, usually, but the filament goes anyway) I finally discovered an improvement. NJ is currently offering an instant rebate on compact fluorescent "bulbs". These are really cheap right now, so I put one in my droplight the other day while looking for a new bulb. Works fine, stays very cool (which is always an |
#24
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This thread is old so probably dead -- but ask Jerry Martes how he
likes his 1-watt Luxeon LED floodlight he received today. Eric Snow will probably be making one like it pretty soon. These are the ones using a 35-cent lens from AxMan surplus. Not as much light as from a fluorescent, but the lamphead is only 1" dia x 1" deep and it can illuminate everything hands can reach with enough light to read fine print. It won't break if you drop it. "Lamp" life is 50,000 hours. It cost under $10, plus a bit of machining. It would cost more than that for entry dues because of minimum order and set exorbitant shipping charges from Future, the sole distributor of Luxeons. The lux was $6.50, the lens was 35 cents. Batteries and dropping resistor are left as an exercise. On Fri, 3 Dec 2004 10:48:26 -0500, "Bob Chilcoat" wrote: Having had many, many droplight bulbs go over the years from dropping or even just bumping them, (the cage keeps the glass from breaking, usually, but the filament goes anyway) I finally discovered an improvement. NJ is currently offering an instant rebate on compact fluorescent "bulbs". These are really cheap right now, so I put one in my droplight the other day while looking for a new bulb. Works fine, stays very cool (which is always an advantage under the car with the light next to your head), and gives 100W equivalent light. I haven't dropped it yet, but I suspect that it will be a lot more robust. Sure a lot cheaper than the ruggedized "drop light bulbs" they sell for this application (which are not a lot more rugged than ordinary bulbs, in my experience. Metal content: (1) The cage on mine is made of metal. (2) The cars I work on with it are mostly metal. :-) |
#25
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One thing to keep in mind is the size of the fluorescent
bulb. I have found that the higher wattage bulbs can be larger than the "equivalent wattage" incandescent. I have had them be either too long or too large in diameter to fit some reflectors or cages. And they don't drop too well when they're in contact with the cage!!! I've found that they work well in my swing arm lamp on the drill press and mill. By the way, does anyone know if the bulb type florescence will create a strobing effect like the old ballast and tube types do? |
#26
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In article , nic "user wrote:
One thing to keep in mind is the size of the fluorescent bulb. I have found that the higher wattage bulbs can be larger than the "equivalent wattage" incandescent. I have had them be either too long or too large in diameter to fit some reflectors or cages. And they don't drop too well when they're in contact with the cage!!! I've found that they work well in my swing arm lamp on the drill press and mill. By the way, does anyone know if the bulb type florescence will create a strobing effect like the old ballast and tube types do? The ones which I have taken apart (after failure) have a printed circuit board hosting a high frequency inverter to ionize them, instead of depending on filaments to start the ionization. So -- the variation in ionization will probably be too fast to show up relative to the decay time of the phosphor. But the thing to do, for any given lamp. is to test it. A variable speed drill motor with a Jacobs style keyed chuck should suffice. Vary the speed and watch for the pattern of the gear teeth slowing down or standing still. Enjoy, DoN. -- Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564 (too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html --- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero --- |
#27
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#28
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In article ,
Ned Simmons wrote: In article , says... [ ... ] The ones which I have taken apart (after failure) have a printed circuit board hosting a high frequency inverter to ionize them, instead of depending on filaments to start the ionization. So -- the variation in ionization will probably be too fast to show up relative to the decay time of the phosphor. The compact fluorescents with electronic ballasts typically run in the tens of kHz range. Surprisingly, the phoshpor is not persistent enough to smooth out the peaks. I was able to measure the frequency of several lamps with a phototube and scope. Hmm ... are you sure that you weren't seeing ultraviolet coming through the phosphors. The UV is what excites the filters, and you might try a low-pass filter (say red or orange) to see what it looks like on the scope. If that looks smooth, perhaps the next step would be to get a tunable optical filter (like a B&L Monochrometer) and check on the other side of the tuned filter to see just where you get the ripple. This was working on an illuminator for a high speed machine vision application. With very short exposures it was possible for the vision system to get confused if the exposure did not average enough on-off cycles of the lamp. Was the system sensitive to UV? Perhaps a haze filter would have helped. CFs with replaceable lamps usually have magnetic ballasts, I don't know why. Hmm ... not all of them. Some of those "monkey's fist" coils of tubes plug in. Enjoy, DoN. -- Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564 (too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html --- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero --- |
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