I got Coral Vue's 150W electronic ballast to drive the CDM 150/TD/942, but the lamp still flickers after 7 hours burn in. The ballast is rated at 1.46A and I've seen from Elken's thread that he recommends 1.8A.

I have no size or placement restrictions. Can I safely go with a magnetic ballast so long as it is rated and has an ignitor? Or should I stick with an electronic ballast. My first mag ballast has worked like a charm.

You can even nicely overdrive it with a 250W magnetic ballast, just like I did. MH bulbs -with ceramic arc- doesn't really like the electronic ballasts (as Elken mentioned in his topicius). Also, Silversurfer had an unsatisfying experience with a Powerball and electronic ballast. So, you better stick with magnetic one .

How about quad-taps that are rated for M59 (175-250/320)?

Actually I'm not competent on ballasts, but whole magnetic ballasts should work well with CDM-TD series bulbs in theory.

sorry,, quick answer,,,, use mag ballasts with cdm and hci lamps,, they give more juice

Apparently, CDM150SA/942's (and the-like) need a M142 MagBallast.
?
The only 'cheap' and tested-operational one I've seen is:
http://www.prolighting.com/15mehabakitq1.html

Has anyone seen a less-expensive and/or 'better' 150w-equivalent, stateside?
[For that matter, has anyone seen a CDM150SA/942 -- G12 for less than 46.?]

Or...a good-deal on base?

I bought a G12 base for $8.90 plus shipping here.

There seems to be a specific electronic ballast for the CMD lamps, here:

Listed here:
http://www.lighting.philips.com/in_en/arch...res&lang=en

Just search the page for CMD.

Cheapest I have seen it is $180 :/. Im looking for a Mag in this thread: http://www.lumenlab.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=18004

Cheapest EBall I've seen here is 41. -- fellow who bought it for a CMD150 had to send it back...it 'flickered' and lost color-quality. ? $180. ('real' money or that lb.-stuff?<g>) is outrageous...MagBallast should be around 40.--including cap./ignitor.
Have you looked at those UK-groups linked in the InternatForum here?

150W Prices quoted to me in August last year Aus$

Bulb: HCI-TS 150W/942 NDL PB RX7S-24 FS1 1.8 A 144 W $90
Ballast: OGS150-110(TH) $42
Ignitor: AZRM1.8ES $29
Capacitor: CP20-06 $10

for the CDM 150 i dont Recomend magnetic ballasts..
i recomend this..
i have done allot of testing and this will hold longer and better..
i work lighting for a living..


Edit: by Dazzzla
Reason: Direct Advertising. (Sorry the rules are there for a reason)

I certainly appreciate the response. I went ahead and got the SOLA mag ballast for $42 USD and it has lit the CDM every time with no brightness issues. It runs hot as blazes, so I don't know about it's longevity. I guess time will truly tell if there is a longevity issue. Again, thanks!

Any familiarity with these...from V-S?
http://www.bltdirect.com/product.php?pid=5...50+Watt+Ballast
Or their use with 150w-CDM's, and the-like?

i dont know it doesnt say the ballast code..


for the philips cdm lamp
M102, M142 or Equivalent Ceramic Lamp Ballast....

not only should it say the code but certin ballasts like the one i mentioned are specificly desinged for Ceramic lamps....

the Mag ballasts will not hold lumens or be as bright as a elec ballast....

thats why i had made my post to save everyone a bit of hassle..

elec ballasts cost more but there worth it.. the bulb will last for the full life.. etc

Well, I already bought a Mag ballast for mine. But I guess if it doesn't turn out right later on, I'll just go all out and buy a Electric one.

Would it be possible to use the 400w m59 ballast with a different capacitor to power the cdm150?

im going to have to say no..
i dont want to see a fire..

if theres one thing not to skimp on its the bulb and ballast..
cheap bulbs can blow..
cheap or rigged ballasts can catch fire... and its just not worth it..

since your going 400 watt..
i recomend this lamp..
http://advancedtechlighting.com/cdmed18.htm

we arent selling them yet so im not advtersing but you can get the part number from our page and look it up....
theres also a pdf link on the site..

its a 400 ceramic metal halide that runs in a hps ballast..

i havent decided yet but im either going to run the

400 watt

http://advancedtechlighting.com/cdmed18.htm

or the 150 watt

http://advancedtechlighting.com/cdmrx7.htm

i should point out

you want the Double-Ended RX7 Lamps.. they have higher lumen vs the G12 Base ones..

CDM150/TD/942 are the ones you want.. (mounting wil bee a simple U type setup)

there on my site for reference

Can anyone tell me for sure if it would hurt to use the Mogul(or whatever the RX7s are called) from a worklight? The base(s) say 250v/500w. I'm guessing that is the max, so wouldn't they work? Or would the startup of the bulb/ballast mess it up?

Link in my sig that has the photo's. (Webshots)

It's been done somewhere in the LL PLOGS. However, I see two issues. One is the width of the fixture being more/less than the lamp width. You may have to take a hacksaw to the worklight to adjust the width between the contacts. The other is the amount of surrounding ceramic material. The worklights are sort of slotted and the surrounding ceramic material may interfere with the round contacts on the bulb. I seen no issues from the bulb startup process.

I considered modifying a worklight's fixtures, but was able to get a couple of Rx7s bases from a local store for about $5 each. I use it on my CDM150/TD/942 lamp.

First, lol can you tell me what store you found the RX7s at? I've been all over around my house here in Saint Louis, and have yet to find anyone dealing them

Second, the bulb fits rather nicely inside the worklight connectors. The only issue is that it is around 1/4 too sort (the mount)

So I pulled them out, and modded them to work with my bulb, but as for the housing itself, I hadn't planned on using it because of the size. (too small)

Here is a picture showing how the bulb fits into the mogul.

Found them on the web, here. Turns out they were local (about 6 miles away). Price unchanged. Probably pay more for shipping.

http://www.specialtyoptical.com/catalog/us...c-8_1785703.htm

Eh, seems it will cost the same (with shipping added) as it would elsewhere. :-(

I think I'll try to use the one's I have. And I will be sure to report any ill effects.

Looks like all you need do is add some spacers (washers) to make up the 1/4" or mount the bases to some rigid metal where you can set the distance.

I noticed in your other thread that you're considering abandoning the vertical setup. Having a smaller footprint is worth the effort since the standard design takes up a lot of space. With the threaded rod set up you have an easy solution for mounting the mirror.

Take note of my set up. I cut a piece of MDF and mounted some hinges to the wood and then the other side of the hinge to a flat piece of angled aluminum. I drilled holes in the aluminum angle and placed them over the threaded rod. I put a hook in the middle of the MDF and then a turnbuckle onto that hook. The other end of the turnbuckle is mounted to another piece of angled aluminum that is similarly mounted to the threaded rods. With this set up, you can adjust the mirror up/down from the LCD/front fresnel which will help you place your triplet in the assembly. The turnbuckle allows adjustment of the mirror tilt. Then mount the mirror to the MDF using simple mirror clips.

There are hundreds of other ways, but this worked for me since everything is available at the local hardware store.

Yes, I was thinking about canning the whole project, but after some brain storming as I was laying in the bed. I figure if I get everything in there and it doesn't work, at least I can say I tried.

So, today I'll go get some parts, try a mirror mount like yours. and then just make a sled for the Triplet out of 2x1 wood pieces. It will just be a friction sled, but I don't need anything fancy.

I'll be starting my Plog tomorrow, and post pic's and other info on what I did.

there is a difference from hot restrike and standard rx7 holders..

im serching to see if we want to offer lamp holders..

Ya lost me..

Please explain.

If you-do, consider G12's, also...
[I have high-hopes for a vert-mount CDM150SA...]

I ordered the 150w MH ballast from prolighting.com. What they sent was the 175w MH ballast.
The 175 didn't come with a ignitor. Will the the 175w power the cdm150 without a ignitor?

They sent you one of their 175w quad-taps? Odd...
No, it won't work (unless it's some new variant of the Keystone--the 150w/overpriced Keystone now replacing the other Sola 150w at pc.com, that 1000bulbs.com now sells for 44.). You do need an igniotor for average MBall's/M142-lamping...including the CDM's popular now. There are a very-few MBall's, in Euro-markets, that sorta 'incorporate' some elements within, but I think you need to replce whatever it is you ended up with? [There's a 150-175w EBallast used by one member with reported-success with CDM's -- did you maybe get one of those?]

Thanks for the info. I emailed them and asked if it would work with the CDM150/sa/942, and this is what they wrote "Yes, this ballast is made to power the 150W lamp as well as the 175W. The manufacturer is in the process of changing the part number to reflect this.". After they said it would, I sent another email asking if it would work without an igniter, but haven't received a reply. Would it hurt the bulb if I tested it with the 175 w MH ballast?

Thanks.

kewl...You also are testing the 150SA...I have yet to see anyone else post of it.
Prolighting still links their now-single offering in 150w-MH to Solas-.pdf...but the Keystone they substituted for others has its own .pdf -- also showing an ignitor (and no-mention of 175w).
Sorry, I can't affirm the suitability of your new-ballst (maybe Keystone-can, if prolighting is vague?) [Or is it a Sola? If so, I've called them on another-matter, and they were 'less than helpful to a non-distributor'...just pointing to their .pdf]
And yes, I think any mis-matched ballast used _could_ damage-lamp, or shorten its lifespan and/or affect future-use/spec/output.

I received a reply from prolighting.com concerning whether the ballast they sent will be able to power the CDM150/sa/942 without a ignitor and this is what he wrote." An ignitor makes the ballast operate at a high power factor instead of a normal power factor. All this means is the ballast will draw slightly less amperage. They only time this is really an issue is when multiple ballasts are wired on a circuit, and with the lower amperage you're able to put more fixtures on a circuit. This really doesn't matter for you since I'm assuming you have one fixture. And you don't pay for amperage, you pay for wattage, so you're not saving money either."

I guess I'll have to test it with the 175w mh ballast and see what happens.

Now I'm curious...
Can you scan the label of this this, list model#, link .pdf?
You ordered the 150w MH quad-tap, M142?

Tested it and it did not work. The bulb did not light. Even if it did work the ballast is so loud I would have returned it anyway. I seems that prolighting.com no longer caries the 150w ANSI m142 rated ballast.

Well, that is just utter crap! If that advice came from a lighting 'expert' then i'd be looking for another source real quick!

Read this before you eletrocute yourself or start a fire. Doesn't your ballast have a wiring diagram printed on it? All of the ones i've seen have.

Well, 'something learned', and no real-loss for LL-builders (seeing as how they charged 20. more than 1000bulbs.com, with same shipping-rate, for the Sola 150w MBall/M142).
Hope the 'experiment' didn't bother the 150SA (where is your SA from...best I could locate was 46.+6, off EBay)? Some dealers were asking up-to 120.!<g>
Spec's are interesting. I've read-here it has a 6mm-arc (but it looks-longer, maybe 9mm?).
Many consider the one-enders inferior to similar for RX7S-basing, but I figured if Philips charges a premium for a designated 'small arc' bulb, it may have-advantage for our purposes (and I could find no plog/write-up on this bulb). Was that your 'rationale'?
Will you orient the return-wire perpendicular-to-path, or towards-reflector?

It was the ballast. I've wired 2 other MH ballasts before and they worked fine.
The bulb I tested arrived unharmed and was packaged very well, so I doubt it
was the bulb. The so called lighting expert was more likely a salesman and
probably thought the cdm150/sa/942 was just a regular MH bulb. The ballast just wasn't compatible.

I think the bulb was unharmed but won't be sure until l I can test it with the proper ballast. The cdm150/sa/942 came from bulbamerica.com. When held up against the light the distance between the electrodes looks to be about 6mm. I've read in the forums that the smaller the arc the better. I'm currently using the LL65k and it raises the room temp by almost 10 degrees which is going to suck in the summer.

HEya all sorry been away..

so i setup up one of our VS ballasts and ran it about 24 hours. no flickering..
we sell these ballasts for these lamps in retail settings..

is the flicker you speak of visable just by looking at the bulb..
or only in a PJ.. as i cant test in a PJ but direct view of the bulb shows ok...

as far as hot start r Holders..
im not sure 100% of the Dif however there is one..
we have it on our site.. (also for g12)

Vertical operation of these bulbs is not recommended
Rx7 have Max Lumen .. you will see in the Philips PDF on these Lamps..

the g12 is the only universal burning.. however i think it will be like below..

one of my TOYS is 35watt D2s HID headlight bulb and ballast..
its suposed to be Horizontal, if i rotate the bulb (Return lead goes from bottom to top) the color changes dramatically and if i go verticle i see issues and Flickering..

the reason for the change is there is a EFI field around the Return lead and somehow it holds or pushs the Ball of fire around in the capsual...




Tom

if anybody is interested, the 110V worl may use the Advance eVision ballast the 230V guys can use the philips PrimaVision gear.