[Shop-talk] Converting a lamp from U.S. to European voltage

[Doug Braun]

> The current will be fine, but I have some doubts
> about doubling the voltage.
> Plus, if I remember right, their light bulbs don't
> use the same base as
> ours.


The European light bulbs use the same socket as us,
but they also have a bayonet style that is sometimes
used.  That just means that a shop has to carry more
varieties of bulbs.

Once when I was living in Greece I found an American
light bulb in some of my stuff.  As an experiment I
tried putting it into a lamp to see what it would do
with 2X the normal voltage.  I expected that it would
blow instantly.  But it didn't- it was REALLY bright,
much like those photoflood bulbs that studio
photographers used to use.  I turned it off after
several seconds, so I have no idea how long it would
have actually lasted.

Doug


> The current will be fine, but I have some doubts
> about doubling the voltage.
> Plus, if I remember right, their light bulbs don't
> use the same base as
> ours.