[TenTec] Better Bulb Life in TenTec 229, 238 Tuners

[Ron Castro]

Just last night I was changing the lights in my 238 and I decided that it 
was for the last time!  I ordered some LED replacement bulbs in the 
Internet.  Should last longer than me...

         Ron  N6IE
      www.N6IE.com


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jim Brown K9YC" <k9yc at audiosystemsgroup.com>
To: "Ten Tec List" <tentec at contesting.com>
Sent: Wednesday, February 13, 2008 5:10 PM
Subject: [TenTec] Better Bulb Life in TenTec 229, 238 Tuners


>I do several things to make these bulbs last longer and get more
> brightness from lower current (long life) bulbs. First, I put white
> tape on the inner black panel below the dial and around the bulbs
> (all the black paint that isn't visible through the glass) to better
> reflect the light up to the tuning dial. That improves brightness.
> Second, I use 756 bulbs, which draw only 80 mA at 14V and are rated
> 15K hours. (The "standard" 1815 bulb draws about 300 mA and is rated
> only 3K hours.) Third, to further improve life, I run them at
> slightly lower voltage by adding one or two forward-biased 1A diodes
> in series with the DC feed from the RCA connector.
>
> If you don't have 756 bulbs, you can still add multiple diodes in
> series with the standard 1815 bulbs. That will also reduce brightness
> a bit, and improve life quite a bit.
>
> FWIW -- I've tried multiple LED's in each opening with series R to
> limit current in one 229 tuner. LED's last OK, but I have not been
> happy with the result visually.
>
> 73,
>
> Jim K9YC
>
>
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