Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « on: April 13, 2022, 01:09:20 AM » Author: WorldwideHIDCollectorUSA
Since many countries in the world are banning traditional light sources, I am imagining that in the near future, there will be a time where any light source other than LED will be considered unobtainium. Because of this, I am beginning to wonder if there are are any light bulbs, ballasts, and fixtures that were once a common sight in their heyday but are unobtainium nowadays.
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Desire to collect various light bulbs (especially HID), control gear, and fixtures from around the world.

DISCLAIMER: THE EXPERIMENTS THAT I CONDUCT INVOLVING UNUSUAL LAMP/BALLAST COMBINATIONS SHOULD NOT BE ATTEMPTED UNLESS YOU HAVE THE PROPER KNOWLEDGE. I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY INJURIES.

	Re: Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « Reply #2 on: April 13, 2022, 01:25:47 AM » Author: WorldwideHIDCollectorUSA
From what I see, secondhand stores for lighting seem pretty much nonexistent outside of North America. For example, I seem to find that many European market T12 fluorescent tubes are considered unobtainium within less than 10 years after their discontinuation possibly due to the lack of lighting based secondhand stores in European countries.
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Desire to collect various light bulbs (especially HID), control gear, and fixtures from around the world.

DISCLAIMER: THE EXPERIMENTS THAT I CONDUCT INVOLVING UNUSUAL LAMP/BALLAST COMBINATIONS SHOULD NOT BE ATTEMPTED UNLESS YOU HAVE THE PROPER KNOWLEDGE. I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY INJURIES.

	Re: Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « Reply #3 on: April 13, 2022, 03:53:33 AM » Author: AngryHorse
I don’t know, I went into our local wholesale a few weeks ago for some 6 foot HF fluorescent ballasts (of which I knew they had shelves full of them), only to be told, “well no one was buying them, and hasn’t for age’s, so we got rid of them all”! Electronic HF fluorescent ballasts! something that was widespread a couple of years ago that was an energy efficient alternative to magnetic switch start chokes!, now unsaleable as the electrical industry is no longer using them! I don’t know if by ‘getting rid of them’ means shipping them back to a main warehouse, or binning them off as obsolete electrical waste? But the only fluorescent things they stock now are tube’s and starters for replacement purposes only!
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Current: UK 230V, 50Hz
Power provider: e.on energy
Street lighting in our town: Philips UniStreet LED (gen 1)
Longest serving LED in service at home, (hour count): Energetic mini clear globe: 57,746 hrs @ 15/12/24

Welcome to OBLIVION

	Re: Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « Reply #5 on: April 13, 2022, 08:14:12 AM » Author: AngryHorse
The belt driven ones were a pain in the ass if you couldn’t find a replacement belt!  , but the modern LED multi program ones are pretty good, I’ve just put 2 on our forklift and road sweeper at work
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Current: UK 230V, 50Hz
Power provider: e.on energy
Street lighting in our town: Philips UniStreet LED (gen 1)
Longest serving LED in service at home, (hour count): Energetic mini clear globe: 57,746 hrs @ 15/12/24

Welcome to OBLIVION

	Re: Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « Reply #7 on: April 13, 2022, 07:24:48 PM » Author: Medved
@AgentHalogen: Sure, you can replace the belt, lamp or service the worm gears. About 5 times. Then the plastic body starts cracking from all the disassemblies and you have to replace the whole lantern. The thing is, even the cr@#iest sequencing LED rotating beams you do not have to replace due to their failures as often as the plastic on the revolving mirror halogens when these break from all the servicing. The point is, at least with the weather here (so not the dry deserts like in the US south-west) the screws tend to rust in so badly it is even impossible to take off the cover without breaking it. Then the thing becomes a LED lifetime vs a single halogen bulb lifetime thing.
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No more selfballasted c***

	Re: Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « Reply #8 on: April 14, 2022, 12:38:27 AM » Author: HomeBrewLamps
Judging by how hard it is to find Edison wax cylinder players (once ubiquitous) I can only imagine something as disposable as light bulbs becoming unobtainable. So. COLLECT. As many as POSSIBLE. (Without cluttering your house in an unhealthy way ofcourse).
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~Owen

Scavenger, Urban Explorer, Lighting Enthusiast and Creator of homebrewlamps

	Re: Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « Reply #9 on: May 09, 2022, 10:07:39 PM » Author: 108CAM
In Australia, new T12 fluorescent tubes can only be purchased online. They are now unobtainium at hardware stores due to ELMA closing in 2002. All the remaining stock is now long gone and people started using T8 tubes and more recently, LED retrofit tubes
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Fluro starter pings combined with a 50hz ballast hum and blinking tubes is music to my ears.

Rest in Peace Electronic Lamp Manufacturers of Australia
1925-2002

Bring back the AJF Zodiacs!

Total incidents since joining LG: 18
Lamps accidently broken or smashed: 15
Ballast explosions/burnouts: 3

	Re: Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « Reply #10 on: May 09, 2022, 10:08:49 PM » Author: WorldwideHIDCollectorUSA
On which websites can I get new T12 tubes intended for the Australian market?
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Desire to collect various light bulbs (especially HID), control gear, and fixtures from around the world.

DISCLAIMER: THE EXPERIMENTS THAT I CONDUCT INVOLVING UNUSUAL LAMP/BALLAST COMBINATIONS SHOULD NOT BE ATTEMPTED UNLESS YOU HAVE THE PROPER KNOWLEDGE. I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY INJURIES.

	Re: Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « Reply #11 on: May 10, 2022, 05:16:14 AM » Author: 108CAM
I'm not really sure as T12's haven't been made in Australia since 2002. All the remaining stock is long gone.
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Fluro starter pings combined with a 50hz ballast hum and blinking tubes is music to my ears.

Rest in Peace Electronic Lamp Manufacturers of Australia
1925-2002

Bring back the AJF Zodiacs!

Total incidents since joining LG: 18
Lamps accidently broken or smashed: 15
Ballast explosions/burnouts: 3

	Re: Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « Reply #12 on: May 12, 2022, 10:04:19 PM » Author: 108CAM
700w MV lamps & ballasts used to be fairly easy to find when they were new but are now extremely rare and sought after by collectors
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Fluro starter pings combined with a 50hz ballast hum and blinking tubes is music to my ears.

Rest in Peace Electronic Lamp Manufacturers of Australia
1925-2002

Bring back the AJF Zodiacs!

Total incidents since joining LG: 18
Lamps accidently broken or smashed: 15
Ballast explosions/burnouts: 3

	Re: Once ubiquitous lamps, ballasts, and fixtures that are unobtainium nowadays « Reply #13 on: May 13, 2022, 08:29:15 AM » Author: Bulbman256
I'm gonna say the 4 foot and 3 foot T12 energy saver lamps, you almost never see them nowadays, I know others think of them as worse than Full power lamps but i quite like them and have had a hard time even finding any. On a side note if you don't like your energy saving lamps lemme know.
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Collecting light bulbs since 2012, a madman since birth.