Altstar parts anyone?

brucek

Well-Known Member
Doing some cleaning.....I think I'm ready to eliminate my Altstar parts bin - just a few connectors, hall-effect sensors, etc.
Does anyone know of a good home for them? Does anyone remember Altstars? These are spares from when we toured with Phish in the 1990's. Altstars were the first mover Phish toured with. They were also the first available mover with continous pan and tilt - built by a division of Altman Stage Lighting. I think their downfall was the 600w lamp just wasn't bright enough post optics.

Does anyone know where the Altstars have gone? Museum? Might be nice to have spare parts for them? God knows I dont have the will power to trash the parts....


Bruce
 
I remember pulling spares for Phish over the years, but none for the Altstar, or any such fixture in stock. Parts is parts and at times I fear purging parts, but also wish I had those parts I got rid of - often years later. Funny, while one can "I know I have it" parts, one has to search to find, getting rid of them is often painful years later in needed again, but recycled.

Mostly for me if Management is bearing down on me for how much gear I have in storage is a purge. I try to save say five of each type part for a few more years as down size.
 
The parts purge is always hard. And without fail, parts not needed for years are always needed days after the purge - last year I recycled about 1000 lbs of autotransformers.....and had a request for brushes the week after.

The historical parts are the ones I struggle with - I dont expect to need them for actual repairs.....but once they are gone.....they're gone. How to find a home for them where they are appreciated is where i am now. The Altstars were a part of lighting history...that might be in danger of being lost/misplaced. Where have all the Altstars gone?.....

You never really notice when parts become obsolete. One day you notice that it has been years since you have seen a piece of equipment that was common. And now the expected life of gear is much much shorter - when is the last time you encountered gear in the field still working that was over 20 or 30 years old?

Does anyone need parts for TTI MDS dimmers? I didn't think so. But do I trash them? I kept about 6 working modules...but the bin of new parts? These include custom wound xformers, etc. Once they were the cutting edge of electronic dimmers....
WHERE IS THE MUSEUM OF OLD PRODUCTION TECHNOLOGY?

My wife told me when I die, she's going to put all my crap in the coffin with me, and then I can enjoy them forever....and they will be out of her way....finally.
 
WHERE IS THE MUSEUM OF OLD PRODUCTION TECHNOLOGY?
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Our top men are working on it right now, Dr Jones.
 
That's what happens when a manager has nothing to manage. He'll find something to do.
I have worked for one or two exceptionally good managers who recognized when they did not need to manage anything and stayed out of the way, but were available and willing to help when needed. But not all managers are of that caliber....
 
the 'what to do with the parts' question is an old one, but maybe not THAT old. i remember seeing, in the basement of the original
Four Star stage lighting plant in The Bronx 50, 75 maybe 90 or a hundred piano boards, all of which, i was told, had belonged to David Merrick, or maybe still did. no doubt the financial arrangement dealing with 'why' and for 'how long' was complicated, but there they were. i think that technology went back to the 1920s, but i'm just guessing. hence, the parts problem existed but was not overwhelming like it probably is now. the biggest parts problem i ever experienced with them was where to get a handful of copper cut nails with which to fix the resistance plates when contacts failed. sometimes the repair could be made without even removing the plate.
 
i remember seeing, in the basement of the original
Four Star stage lighting plant in The Bronx 50, 75 maybe 90 or a hundred piano boards, all of which, i was told, had belonged to David Merrick, or maybe still did.
I've heard a similar story, that concludes with someone at Four Star, one of the DeVerna s, saying "See these [referring to the piano boards]. Why would we spend money on those new-fangled computer boards?"

It is thought that Grease, which opened in 1972 and closed in 1980, was the last show on Broadway to use piano boards.

I've used or seen a lot of early stuff, but don't think I've ever heard of AltStars. If LightParts don't want them, I'd trash them.
 

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