Glad you're staying. Sometimes I feel the same way but I generally have taken to scaling down in acquiring new lighting related things and instead revisiting items I already have. Regardless of who discontinues what, at the end of the day I still have the stuff I've collected over the years.

Yeah, I joined back in 2009 and some of the opinions on the site here can be summed up into electronic fluorescent, CFL, and HPS bad, magnetic fluorescent, incandescent, and MV good. At the time some cities were even looking into induction, electronic HPS, and PSMH to be next tech they upgrade their streetlights into.

@lumex120 I wish you lived closer to me. I'm pretty well versed at collecting in multiple ways. And know where to find certain gems.

Title. It's one disappointment after another now and I can no longer see it the way I used to considering that literally everything is becoming LEDs. This along with other unrelated crap I've been dealing with in the past few months (no, year now? time makes no sense anymore) is really just convincing me that there's no point in keeping all this stuff around or collecting anymore. Some days I've come pretty close to saying screw it and just giving away all my stuff for free or super cheap on here. I might keep a few of my streetlights (in fact I just got some brand new custom AEL 115s, definitely keeping those) along with spare lamps for them but I'm so tired of the constant bad news regarding discontinuation of gear or lamp brands, new regulations, increasing unavailability of non-LED items, and lighting as a whole becoming homogenized and monotonous with LEDs. Seriously, the whole reason I got into lighting was because I thought HID and fluorescent lights were the coolest thing ever and now they are all disappearing. There's nothing interesting about LEDs at all and seeing members here defend this is making me not even want to come here anymore. Decided to come here again today after a much needed long break and what's the first thing I see? Information about new regulations/conventions that could very well spell the end of manufacturing for any light source that contains mercury, as well as my favorite lamp manufacturer (Eye) discontinuing their entire mercury vapor lamp line.  For now I'm going to keep up with this but I'm seriously close to just pulling the trigger and dumping it completely. It's such a waste of time, money, space, it's a drag on my mental health and there are other things I'm interested in that don't come with the constant disappointment and frustrations that this hobby does.

Anyways sorry about the rant, if you all have any advice on how to NOT feel this way I'm all ears.

Hello Lumex120,

I don't want to give up the hobby of lighting. Unfortunately, one has to accept the current development.
The classic lighting with discharge lamps will disappear. That is sad, because we are all lovers of this technology here.
Nevertheless: the little paradise remains in my collection. I can use any of the lamps when I want to.
This is the best medicine. Do not give up.

Greetings from Hamburg

Olav

I can pretty much guarantee that if you suddenly got rid of everything that you'd totally end up regretting it in the future.
So glad to hear you've decided not to at this point. If it comes down to it, pack everything carefully away and place it somewhere its safe & out of the way.. basement? crawlspace? attic?(not lamps though)

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For me, the more likely something is to be discontinued, the more it makes me want to get/save one for myself!

Don't give up on it you will for sure regret it. I have more or less given up on collecting because I am low on space and money and I would say that I am pretty happy with it how it is and don't want to add anything new. I still involve myself with it by mucking around with stuff like this or go on this forum and have a chat.

I don't think I could give it up if I tried, for one thing I think it's in my blood now, and I just want to keep on going with collecting 
Also I don't think that Ria would let me... 

As everyone else basically says, you shouldn't quit your lighting hobby.
I'm having a pretty $h1t time right now myself for a few different reasons but you will regret it if you give up this hobby.
In many ways with everything turning to LED, I find my modest collection to be better with each day that passes as the masses dispose of their reliable and proven lighting technology with the junk that passes for lighting these days.
If you keep your collection, you are free to light whichever lamp you wish whenever you want and enjoy it!

Best wishes,
Andy

@ Andy, well said that man.!!

If you keep your collection, you are free to light whichever lamp you wish whenever you want and enjoy it!

Agreed 100%, but sadly that only applies to your own lights, nothing will stop you having to see over-excited semiconductors every time you go out 

Agreed 100%, but sadly that only applies to your own lights, nothing will stop you having to see over-excited semiconductors every time you go out 

I'll be honest, I'm at peace that others (stores, the city, etc) will have more or less converted completely to LED in the future. What matters to me more is I can keep the conventional lighting alive at home instead. And if you're fortunately enough to have a large property, even keep some forms of HID streetlighting alive. That being said, LEDs are still not that prevalent here as of this writing, yet.

Hang in there and keep your lamp collecton.
We all can go through a bad period sometimes but better to have some lamps then no lamps.
You will regret getting rid of your lamps and fixtures. Just store them for the time being and switch them on to enjoy when you feel like it. Take care.

I'll be honest, I'm at peace that others (stores, the city, etc) will have more or less converted completely to LED in the future. What matters to me more is I can keep the conventional lighting alive at home instead. And if you're fortunately enough to have a large property, even keep some forms of HID streetlighting alive. That being said, LEDs are still not that prevalent here as of this writing, yet.

Unfortunately, we're in a 1-bedroom flat, so no property to speak of. And we do sometimes have to go out, although with the current Covid situation we're limiting that. But I just get so depressed seeing them everywhere when we do go out, remembering what was there before and how they were just snatched away overnight when there was nothing wrong with them.

That in truth is my real objection to L*D, the removal of choice. No-one asked any of us whether we wanted new street lighting, or even domestic lighting. They just removed all choice from the streets and the shelves 

I know this feeling. I had it some years ago and it is one reason (though not the main) I was not active here for long. But after a few years of break, my lighting enthusiasm has come back. (LEDs/bans were not the only reasons I have been inactive, I also had some major life changes like finish studies and starting work, moving, relocated to another country even, which took lots of time). I certainly can say that if you get rid of your collection, you will regret it later.

To be honest, I was quite shocked at how far the LEDs have taken over in the few years I was inactive. A few weeks ago, I needed to get some new standard fluorescent tubes for someone and some other lamps that used to be common, and thus looking at shops (online as well as hardware stores), I made the unfortunate realization of just how many lamps that used to be common have become hard to get or more expensive. It is a whole different situation compared to a few years ago.

But try to think of it this way: the more rare something is, the more worth it is to collect. Even when HIDs are gone from common streets, you will be still able to enjoy them and the cozy hum of a magnetic ballast. I have discovered that people often find such things interesting: I have an LPS lamp and gear tray collected from a fallen streetlight in the living room. This often becomes a nice conversation piece at parties (or at least was when there still was such a thing as parties pre-covid): "What is that strange looking thing?".. a few minutes later.. "Wow that is bright for only 55W!"