[Noisebridge-discuss] Projector bulb

[Jake]

Projectors such as the one at Noisebridge use a mercury-vapor bulb, which 
is actually quite small compared to what is usually thought of as the 
"projector bulb", which is actually an assembly of a bulb, a mirrored 
glass parabolic reflector, a glass UV shield, a plastic frame and handle, 
and some high-voltage wires and a connector.

A "grow light" style light bulb of the appropriate wattage and formulation 
can be had for $15-25 [citation needed] which contains the same type of 
bulb as our projector uses.  This bulb is the actual quartz object inside 
what is actually a glass "envelope" which protects the bulb from the 
effects of high temperature in our dirty atmosphere, and it also blocks 
the UV to prevent sunburns and blindness.

Since a projector uses forced air, the quartz bulb can operate without a 
sealed envelope.  It is cemented into the parabolic glass reflector (which 
we already have, in the projector) with something like tile grout.

I have a few projector bulbs salvaged from "dead" projectors, and I would 
be willing to transplant one of them into the noisebridge projector as a 
skillshare, when its bulb gets bad enough to be officially dead.  Although 
I would prefer if someone (other than me) would go out and get a Mercury 
Vapor lamp of the appropriate wattage and bulb size.

To counter skepticism that such a bulb would actually work, we can connect 
said bulb to the projector's bulb circuit without actually installing it, 
and we will see that it lights up and makes everybody curse and look away.

-jake

P.S. keep in mind that we will not only save a couple hundred dollars on 
making our own bulb repair, but we will be propogating an essential 
primativist survival skill.

> I will be showing a classic foreign film at 8:00 p.m.
> Saturday,December 25, 2010.
>
> Nick P.

Hi Nick,

As you're aware, the projector bulb is approaching its end-of-life, and
is much dimmer than it used to be.

Is there any interest in getting some money together to get a new bulb
for the projector, so that it rocks more?   Hopefully people who get
some enjoyment out of the equipment can kick in, as well as people who
use it for Real Work (tm).

-andy