Bulb alternatives

Those two criteria are for the most part mutually exclusive.

For the brightness and heat requirements, and the space/area for the bulb, it has been engineered to work with the 363 bulb.

I can't get my new Sunoco oil rig to bubble eigher

The Sunoco oil derrick came with a tube holder that was not
made correctly. Lionel made a fix so the tube was held upright.
The bulb that came with the derrick does not get hot enough so
get a #363 lamp which is 14V, .2 amps. The tube that comes with
the derrick does not bubble very well. It only has a stream of very small bubbles. If you can find a replacement tube from early derricks, they bubble
much better. If you turn the voltage up to 18V until the tube bubbles then turn the voltage back down, the tube will continue to bubble and the bulbe will last.

quote:

Originally posted by southernrr:
Any thoughts/suggestions?

What pa says makes sense. Perhaps some kind of timer widget that applies a higher voltage for a few minutes or whatever then lowers the voltage after the bubbling starts.

Thanks for the replies... My main concern and thus the question, was to find an alternative since incandescent bulbs will be a thing of the past here shortly. Hopefully the "old" supply of 363's will still be available through various sources for the years I am running my layout.

Thanks,

quote:

Originally posted by southernrr:
...incandescent bulbs will be a thing of the past here shortly

Indeed. Hasbro just re-designed the Easy Bake oven for kids eliminating the 100W incandescent bulb as the heating source. I wonder how many parents stocked up on 100W bulbs. Actually, I wonder how many customer complaints Hasbro got from parents who installed a "equivalent to 100W" CFL bulb

From what I've been reading the ban only affects incadesents 40 - 100watt range. Specialty bulbs are safe for some time.

Where can you get the 363 bulbs

Thank You

Ken, the last time I ordered, I went with the www.traindoctor.com. There are several suppliers when I Googled "363 bulbs" this morning, so appears there are at least a few options out there to do some shopping to get the best price.

Thanks,

Thank You

Ken