Vintage "CFL's" pics posted

Before I throw these in the recycle bin, I wanted to post their pictures. These are some of the original CFL bulbs, but back when I got them they were not called CFL’s. That came later when they became more compact. These three bulbs were not made in China but rather Japan. 2 made by GE the other Panasonic. I guess the 2 GE bulbs were called “COMPAX” because they were actually smaller than the even older ones :bigsmile:

I remember when I first bought these, it was quite an event. There were newspaper adds and a huge tent set up at a local shopping malls’ parking lot. The State of Connecticut helped out and a hefty subsidy was applied if you registered, a form had to be filled out. I also remember that these bulbs cost $3 each after the subsidy and I bought a few cases of them. Not pictured here was a bulb that would actually start outside in frigid temperatures, as these were not suited for that. Also included in the picture is a more “modern” CFL, but even these are quickly becoming obsolete! I guess because of the much smaller size, they started calling the Compact Florescent Lights.

There, now that I have preserved their images for posterity, I can now dispose of them!

For a second there I thought you took my conserv-energy bulb, but then I realized I still had it ;)

Actually, I think you took mine, it’s missing!

I should be cleaning my workshop right now, but I have this overwhelming urge to take one of those vintage bulbs apart to see what’s inside.

No wonder I can NEVER get that shop clean. Every time I go in there to do that, I find something else to do.

Look at the size of that iron core. Any further than this would require me to break the gas tube or globe.
By the looks of things it appears that the driver components failed,



That's a nice beefy transformer there! Lots of valuable copper and iron in there.

The round ones reminded me of the Toshiba Neoballs that I bought in 1990. Used them in bathrooms. Also used the Philips 18W SL lamps. These has prismatic glass envelopes.

I’m in the remodeling business and I run across these occasionally- and sometimes they still work!

Phil

I have one Lights of America 13w “The Bulb” that still works, and two others that don’t, which I already took apart. Quite interesting construction… The tube and globe are all sealed as one unit, and the wires from the tube are pinched into pins, and the circuit board has sleeve-like sockets for those pins, so the circuit board just presses on the bulb assembly. Inside the globe there is a tube that looks like it was made as a PL bulb, but taken out of the factory before they put the bottoms on, and instead put a different bottom on, then sealed the globe on, and pressed the circuit board on.