Joe White Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 Hi all, ive got some Martin pro 218's in dire need of TLC. The ballasts inside are wired in what is an unusual way to me, having a Live IN Ignitor 4KV IN And out to ignitor-(Ballast IN) The lamp Is connected between Ballast/Ignitor and on Neutral As usual. Firstly Why is was this done like this, Secondly can this Ballast operate with a modern Ignitor Lamp setup, or do I have to replace the Ballast Also. As a few of the ignitors are goners. As for the rest of the lights the PCBs work, Transformers and all Steppers, so just need to Upgrade all mains and lamp wiring to SIF Singles, As the old is brittle. Also does anybody have a Decent source for both 200w and 250w Ballasts and Metal Can Ignitors?? Thanks Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David A Posted November 27, 2010 Share Posted November 27, 2010 Is it worth it?, have you considered giving them a decent burial? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe White Posted November 27, 2010 Author Share Posted November 27, 2010 Is it worth it?, have you considered giving them a decent burial? Ive just Bought the 4 of them with barely used lamps for £100, Of course its worth it, 1992 Martin lights that quite clearly do the martin name proud, To be still working now, and with ballasts & Spares really not being that expensive. There Definitely worth it, But your Answer David! has nothing to do with my Question, Could anyone shed Some Light on My Question, Thanks Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David A Posted November 28, 2010 Share Posted November 28, 2010 well just go to the martin dealer in your area and get some prices,"ballasts & Spares really not being that expensive. " may not be quite accurate, I sell a generic ignitor for $40Au. I had 8 of these units many years ago and found them unreliable and low output. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrV Posted November 28, 2010 Share Posted November 28, 2010 The ballasts inside are wired in what is an unusual way to me, having a Live IN Ignitor 4KV IN And out to ignitor-(Ballast IN) The lamp Is connected between Ballast/Ignitor and on Neutral As usual. Firstly Why is was this done like this,Intriguing - I didn't understand your description so I had a look at the schematic; the ignitor appears not to be the conventional "superimposed pulse" type, where the lamp current continues to flow through the ignitor, but one which simply produces some pulses and then makes itself open circuit. Further, the ignitor appears to expect a different supply voltage, hence the reason for running it from a tap on the ballast. If anyone knows more about this type of ignitor I'd be interested, from a purely academic point of view!Secondly can this Ballast operate with a modern Ignitor Lamp setup, or do I have to replace the Ballast Also.It looks to me as though you could wire it up using a conventional ignitor but when making a change like that I'd want to check very carefully the value of the current through the lamp. If it were mine I'd connect one up using a conventional ignitor and give it a try but I'd stick a scope type current clamp on the lamp leads. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe White Posted November 28, 2010 Author Share Posted November 28, 2010 well just go to the martin dealer in your area and get some prices,"ballasts & Spares really not being that expensive. " may not be quite accurate, I sell a generic ignitor for $40Au. I had 8 of these units many years ago and found them unreliable and low output. Im intending on putting 250Watt Ballasts into the fixtures to allow the use of the msd250/2 and the recommended msd200 & as im sure plenty of you are aware martin parts are not cheap! The fan, The fixture & the lamp holder are more than capable off handling this upgrade of a brighter and better lamp Thanks Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niclights Posted November 28, 2010 Share Posted November 28, 2010 I really don't think you'll be able to use either lamp. They work at different voltages. Personally I would cut and run. You have to source and fit different ballasts & overcome any other potential issues - ie. fuse, thermal sensor. Totally not worth it. As with David I bought some of these when new and they were rubbish back then, both in terms of output and build quality. You say they're still working now, but clearly not?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe White Posted November 28, 2010 Author Share Posted November 28, 2010 I really don't think you'll be able to use either lamp. They work at different voltages. Personally I would cut and run. You have to source and fit different ballasts & overcome any other potential issues - ie. fuse, thermal sensor. Totally not worth it. As with David I bought some of these when new and they were rubbish back then, both in terms of output and build quality. You say they're still working now, but clearly not?! Fitting them isn't a problem, its not exactly hard to do, Fuse is easy to calculate, Thermal sensor is Fairly easy to Calculate.Ballasts can in-fact run a slightly smaller lamp, The Pro 218 is designed for both the msd 200 and the msd150. But as I said before My question is NOT weather you think its worth while doing! But more who, what ,Where. Others recommend buying the necessary parts and Advice on using the old Ballasts with Modern Igniters, Which so far Ive only had 1! useful answer! Thanks Dave Regards Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenalien Posted November 30, 2010 Share Posted November 30, 2010 Have you checked out RadioSpares? RS carry a lot of ballasts and ignitors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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