For years now I have been saying Radial Lekos and other fixtures such as the box spot can be upgraded to MR-16. In the past it was up to 50w/12v MR-16 lamp in box spots. They do work and was a useful shop lighting solution for my home workshop in use of box spots for upgrade to MR-16 low voltage lamps that are just as efficient.
Took it to the extent of a radial Leko in also working and it does - darned if that even if out of bench focus Leko for spot only bench focus - something I needed to re-visit, wasn’t as bright as or more so than the 500w lamp designed for it. I used a 120v/250w ENH lamp in not wanting to transformer my Leko. Worked for a while and than I expected in it no longer working, it after 50 hours in not yet going the 10H version for 1,000 hour but a little less output... would work fine.
Took the bad lamp out of the Leko tonight and noted that indeed the lamp was bad but that also the entire juno light track light housing it was mounted on was also melted down. Serious amount of gimbal ring for mounting a track light lamp melted away in bubbled up paint and melted away aluminum. (Gee, it was only a 50w/12v fixture that was doing a 250w/120v lamp.)
My Wife probably did use this fixture a lot as a primary fixture for her new hobby - beading in providing light to the dining room table for it's 50 hour lamp life. And it’s light output even if it would only really at this point bench focus for spot, was superior to any other lighting for the area. It was a good lighting. Bit hot for it's mounting perhaps.
Still though as a warning and something I saw today, the gimbal ring Juno style MR-16 track light type holder for a lamp won’t hold up for an extended period of time in use. Gonna melt down. It will stand up to 50w/12v use in low voltage use, and even color changing LED in use, but not line voltage 250w.
Could have been in part because I didn’t yet remove the fixture reflector as not needed from the fixture and in the way in seating the lamp housing. Could have played a role in over heating of the gimbal ring, but I doubt it. A track light gimbal ring as set up for 50w/12v perhaps won’t do a 250w/120v lamp unless short in lamp usage.
That’s a problem in original assumptions with such radial fixtures. For this fixture, I’ll make my own gimbal ring mounting that is bench focused and will take the ENH/10 version of the lamp. But that’s me in fabricating parts. For anyone else in doing such a thing... think still possible to do a radial Leko with MR-16 lamp and track lighting fittings. Won’t be as bright if only 50w/12v, but can do with some use
This all given that I did upgrade some Halo PAR 36 fixtures to DWE lamps in the past by way of cutting some cooling vents into them. But also these were not used hours on end, they were for a few minutes at a time in use.
Learned some stuff and a caution. Both if upgrading the Radial Leko, remove the reflector, and go low voltage for them. Don’t know what the highest wattage low voltage will work, but 50w/12v might be useful somewhat.
Still a can do thing as a MR-16 Radio Leko, but they should probably be low voltage and not line voltage.
Learned something tonight about that concept I have been thinking would work - and does... just doesn't with time an hours of use.
Could be that the reflector played a role in somehow adding heat or in even touching the gimbal ring.... still, I won't persay try that again without more experimentation. I will for a while without internal reflector but don't expect much better results so far. Low voltage I think for radial Lekos is probably the only choice I think so far of going so. Or at least lower wattage of line voltage and or making one's own gimbal ring as I will be doing.
Hard to tell but it can be safely said at this point that the line voltage radial Leko isn't safe to use at this point short of further R&D. I caution all others about my past advice about doing a line voltage MR-16 Radial Leko pending further research. Yes it will work for now, and yes it will melt down later. TBA more R&D.
Took it to the extent of a radial Leko in also working and it does - darned if that even if out of bench focus Leko for spot only bench focus - something I needed to re-visit, wasn’t as bright as or more so than the 500w lamp designed for it. I used a 120v/250w ENH lamp in not wanting to transformer my Leko. Worked for a while and than I expected in it no longer working, it after 50 hours in not yet going the 10H version for 1,000 hour but a little less output... would work fine.
Took the bad lamp out of the Leko tonight and noted that indeed the lamp was bad but that also the entire juno light track light housing it was mounted on was also melted down. Serious amount of gimbal ring for mounting a track light lamp melted away in bubbled up paint and melted away aluminum. (Gee, it was only a 50w/12v fixture that was doing a 250w/120v lamp.)
My Wife probably did use this fixture a lot as a primary fixture for her new hobby - beading in providing light to the dining room table for it's 50 hour lamp life. And it’s light output even if it would only really at this point bench focus for spot, was superior to any other lighting for the area. It was a good lighting. Bit hot for it's mounting perhaps.
Still though as a warning and something I saw today, the gimbal ring Juno style MR-16 track light type holder for a lamp won’t hold up for an extended period of time in use. Gonna melt down. It will stand up to 50w/12v use in low voltage use, and even color changing LED in use, but not line voltage 250w.
Could have been in part because I didn’t yet remove the fixture reflector as not needed from the fixture and in the way in seating the lamp housing. Could have played a role in over heating of the gimbal ring, but I doubt it. A track light gimbal ring as set up for 50w/12v perhaps won’t do a 250w/120v lamp unless short in lamp usage.
That’s a problem in original assumptions with such radial fixtures. For this fixture, I’ll make my own gimbal ring mounting that is bench focused and will take the ENH/10 version of the lamp. But that’s me in fabricating parts. For anyone else in doing such a thing... think still possible to do a radial Leko with MR-16 lamp and track lighting fittings. Won’t be as bright if only 50w/12v, but can do with some use
This all given that I did upgrade some Halo PAR 36 fixtures to DWE lamps in the past by way of cutting some cooling vents into them. But also these were not used hours on end, they were for a few minutes at a time in use.
Learned some stuff and a caution. Both if upgrading the Radial Leko, remove the reflector, and go low voltage for them. Don’t know what the highest wattage low voltage will work, but 50w/12v might be useful somewhat.
Still a can do thing as a MR-16 Radio Leko, but they should probably be low voltage and not line voltage.
Learned something tonight about that concept I have been thinking would work - and does... just doesn't with time an hours of use.
Could be that the reflector played a role in somehow adding heat or in even touching the gimbal ring.... still, I won't persay try that again without more experimentation. I will for a while without internal reflector but don't expect much better results so far. Low voltage I think for radial Lekos is probably the only choice I think so far of going so. Or at least lower wattage of line voltage and or making one's own gimbal ring as I will be doing.
Hard to tell but it can be safely said at this point that the line voltage radial Leko isn't safe to use at this point short of further R&D. I caution all others about my past advice about doing a line voltage MR-16 Radial Leko pending further research. Yes it will work for now, and yes it will melt down later. TBA more R&D.
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