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Testing a strobe tube ?

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gilles(at)elixir-aircraft
Guest

Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2020 3:26 am Post subject: Testing a strobe tube ?

Hi all,



Due to illness, one buddy is selling some hardware.

What would be a simple way to test a Whelen strobe tube he bought some 

time ago ?



No strobe power supply available, unfortunately..



Thanks for any input.



-- 

Best regards,

Gilles

http://contrails.free.fr

http://lapierre.skunkworks.free.fr

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nuckolls.bob(at)aeroelect
Guest

Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2020 8:50 am Post subject: Testing a strobe tube ?

At 05:24 AM 2/4/2020, you wrote:

  	  Quote: 	
		  --> AeroElectric-List message posted by: Gilles Thesee <gilles(at)elixir-aircraft.com>



 Hi all,



 Due to illness, one buddy is selling some hardware.

 What would be a simple way to test a Whelen strobe tube he bought some time ago ?



 No strobe power supply available, unfortunately..



 Thanks for any input.

 	


   Used, new old stock? How does the

   tube look? Any signs of darkening

   glass at the electrodes within

   the tube?



   These are simply xenon filled tubes

   and have a VERY long shelf life.

   Unless there are obvious signs of

   usage, odds are that the tube

   is fine.



 

 

   Bob . . .

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gilles(at)elixir-aircraft
Guest

Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2020 9:34 am Post subject: Testing a strobe tube ?

Le 04/02/2020 à 17:44, Robert L.       Nuckolls, III a écrit :

     

      	  Quote: 	
		                

             Used, new old stock? How does the

             tube look? Any signs of darkening

             glass at the electrodes within

             the tube?

           [...]

             Unless there are obvious signs of

             usage, odds are that the tube

             is fine. 	
     



          

Hi Bob,

       Thank you for responding.

       Actually - I believe - new old stock.     

Did not see the tube myself, however here is a link to the link       he - actually his wife - put on the Web :     



        https://www.leboncoin.fr/sports_hobbies/1724492264.htm     

Thanks again,

          -- 

       Best regards,

       Gilles

       http://contrails.free.fr

       http://lapierre.skunkworks.free.fr

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echristley(at)att.net
Guest

Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2020 10:23 am Post subject: Testing a strobe tube ?

On Tuesday, February 4, 2020, 6:27:02 AM EST, Gilles Thesee <gilles(at)elixir-aircraft.com> wrote:                 

                 



What would be a simple way to test a Whelen strobe tube he bought some 

time ago ?





You need thousands of volts across the terminals.  Do it wrong, and you might not wake up next week.  You might be able to hook it into a spark plugs circuit, counting on the coil to limit the power. . .but I wouldn't do that unless I was willing to throw it away.

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nuckolls.bob(at)aeroelect
Guest

Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2020 2:53 pm Post subject: Testing a strobe tube ?

 	  Quote: 	
		  

 You need thousands of volts across the terminals.  Do it wrong,

 and you might not wake up next week.  You might be able to hook

 it into a spark plugs circuit, counting on the coil to limit

 the power. . .but I wouldn't do that unless I was willing to

 throw it away. 	


   Few xenon flash tubes operate at such

   voltages . . . those are usually

   industrial sources of UV light.



   Our a/c strobes, vehicle emergency strobes,

   camera strobes operated in the 250 to

   400v range. To test them, you need both

   a steady source of flash-voltage paralleled

   with an energy storage capacity -PLUS- a

   much higher (1 to 3 kv) trigger pulse

   feed to the trigger electrode. In cameras,

   this takes two transformers. One to provide

   a 200-400v charge on a capacitor . . .

   a second to develop the higher voltage

   trigger.



   One of the simplest strobe circuits was

   used in low-cost, timing lights . . .



 [img]cid:.0[/img]



   My first one plugged into the wall and

   developed about 350 volts on the energy

   storage capacitor. The trigger pulse came

   from connection to the engine's #1

   plug.



   There's no really quick/n/dirty way

   to test these critters other than to

   plug it into a functioning system.



   Given that its an out-of-the-box offering,

   the risks are low.



 

   Bob . . .

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gilles(at)elixir-aircraft
Guest

Posted: Wed Feb 05, 2020 3:16 am Post subject: Testing a strobe tube ?

Le 04/02/2020 à 23:50, Robert L.         Nuckolls, III a écrit :

       

      	  Quote: 	
		                       

                      There's no really quick/n/dirty way

                          to test these critters other than to

                          plug it into a functioning system.

           

                          Given that its an out-of-the-box offering,

                          the risks are low.

           

         	
     



          

Bob and Ernest,     

Thank you for answering.     

Passing on the info to my buddy's wife.

          -- 

       Best regards,

       Gilles

       http://contrails.free.fr

       http://lapierre.skunkworks.free.fr

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