First HID...

[Empyfree]

I've recently purchased my first HID lamp, a Wolf Eyes DragonII.

I work in the entertainment industry, and regularly use 1200W discharge lamps in big outdoor searchlights etc.

I have a couple of questions for people:

1) has anybody else got one of these lights, if so how does it compare to other flashlights (for instance my 6D ROP wipes it out...)

2) Are they supposed to settle down? I find that the lamp keeps flickering to a warmer tint then back to the HID blue/white. The hot spot when focused on a white wall is very unstable, as though the arc was shifting position in the capsule.

I like the build of the light, and it's a nice start to my HID collection but I did find it's output a little dissapointing, I probably expected too much! I work with some very very bright lights at work, 250W discharge units are our "little" lights so i suppose I've gotten a little spoilt!

Cheers!

 

[cmacclel]

Usually on the first 20 seconds or so the colors will change. You could always try a Welch Allyn lamps as I believe there a drop in replacement and are noticable brighter.

Mac

 

[Empyfree]

Mine does it untill the battery runs out.....

I might try the WA lamp, but i suspect it may be a dodgy ballast causing this. If it was one of my lights at work I'd just strip it down and take a look, but there's a lot more room to manouvre inside one of my moving lights!

Has anybody else experienced this, or does anybody know how i should test it? I've got a decent multimeter and at a push could get access to an Oscilliscope.

 

[NAW]

but I did find it's output a little dissapointing, I probably expected too much! I work with some very very bright lights at work, 250W discharge units are our "little" lights so i suppose I've gotten a little spoilt!

Looking at the specs, the Dragon II is a 10W HID. To tell you the truth 10W & 24W HIDS are actually pretty weak. If you compare the 24W AE to the 40W Helios & the 50W Xeray, you can see how the bigger guns murder.

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/140922&highlight=HID+beamshots

 

[Scott Packard]

I have a Wolf Eyes Shark II, a 14W HID, that does the same thing if I burn it lamp up.
It doesn't noticeably flicker on a nightly walk though.

 

[Empyfree]

I never thought about it being because of t being lamp up! Holding it level for a short while stabilises the beam considerably!

 

[Ra]

I think the cause may be that the bulb is slightly underdriven !

My 10watt mini HID is overdriven, and doesn't flicker, not even in upright position.
But closer to the end of a battery-charge, it begins to flicker in upright position.
Sometime later, it also flickers in horizontal position.

To me, the flicker is a reminder that the batteries are almost empty !


Edit: There is another possible cause: Instable internal gas-flows: The hot gases from the arc move upwards, and objects in the way can disturb that flow.
Example: The lamp inside Maxabeam is mounted anode-up (biggest electrode).
Pointed upwards, the gasflow from the arc becomes disturbed by the anode and causes some flicker.


Regards,

Ra.