[BC] Chemical Lamps?
Eric Vey
Since there seems to be an issue about electricity, the way it is
generated, etc., is there any movement concerning chemical lights? "What
is old is new again" seems to be the rage these days.
Wouldn't it be nice just to drop a pill in a container on the front of
your bike and take off without worrying about the battery charge?
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J-P
ev...@ericvey.com wrote:
>
> Since there seems to be an issue about electricity, the way it is
> generated, etc., is there any movement concerning chemical lights? "What
>
> is old is new again" seems to be the rage these days.
>
> Wouldn't it be nice just to drop a pill in a container on the front of
> your bike and take off without worrying about the battery charge?
What do you know, that we don't know ? ;)
J-P
John Clary
On 2/19/07, Eric Vey wrote:
>
> Since there seems to be an issue about electricity, the way it is
> generated, etc., is there any movement concerning chemical lights? "What
> is old is new again" seems to be the rage these days.
>
> Wouldn't it be nice just to drop a pill in a container on the front of
> your bike and take off without worrying about the battery charge?
>
from a water/carbide reaction, that was burned in a gas lamp. They
used to be very popular, as you could cook your dinner as you rode
home in the dark (period joke).
--
Opus
My gas is up to $.99 a burrito, $5.99 for premium, and I'm only
getting 20 miles to the regular burrito.
Eric Vey
Yup. That is what I was thinking about. I was wondering if anyone has
heard if someone improving the carbide or using the glow stick chemical
in a lamp.
The old carbide lamps are still popular among the caving crowd, but
LED's are taking over.
John Clary wrote:
> On 2/19/07, Eric Vey wrote:
>>
>> Since there seems to be an issue about electricity, the way it is
>> generated, etc., is there any movement concerning chemical lights? "What
>> is old is new again" seems to be the rage these days.
>>
>> Wouldn't it be nice just to drop a pill in a container on the front of
>> your bike and take off without worrying about the battery charge?
>>
> You mean like the old carbide lamps? They actually generated acetylene
> from a water/carbide reaction, that was burned in a gas lamp. They
> used to be very popular, as you could cook your dinner as you rode
> home in the dark (period joke).
>
John Laidlaw
Never had a carbide system, myself, but I've heard my father's stories about
them on bikes during the teens & 20's. Yes - they packed lots of light, and
were reliable, once lit. I remind folks, though, that they involve dripping
water on to a block of corrosive chemical, to produce a gas that is burnt.
I can see a few problems here - particularly with the weight-freaks among
us. Water IS heavy - 1 kilo/litre, 8 lbs/ US gallon. Any tank would,
inevitably, develop a "free surface" of liquid, with its stability problems.
Further, if we have problems with wires standing up to the vibration of
riding on our "smooth" roads, how will the gas tube fare? Maintenance was
also finicky - only the most determined tinkerers would have the patience.
There was a reason we went to electricity, folks.
John Laidlaw
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> 29/12/2006 8:22 AM
Jack Brown.
You might find these sites interesting.
http://home.tiscali.nl/antiekefietsverlicht/
http://www.websolutionswa.com/pwc/ecl.asp
I have a collection of 25 candle,kerosene,oil and carbide.
Willie Hunt
I've used plenty of carbide lights for caving, much like:
and weight is not the problem. It takes just a tiny bit of water and the lamp will run for hours. However, these lights do not like any wind (bicycle at 5 MPH would be too much), they soot up the reflector fast, they require dump the spent carbide and putting in fresh periodically. Basically they are a royal pain to keep working. So, all but the most diehard old-timers cavers now use electric lights. Even the longest expedition cave trip is now better served by LED's and Lithium batteries, than carbide.
Willie
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Jean-Pol
ev...@ericvey.com wrote:
>
> Yup. That is what I was thinking about. I was wondering if anyone has
> heard if someone improving the carbide or using the glow stick chemical
> in a lamp.
>
> The old carbide lamps are still popular among the caving crowd, but
> LED's are taking over.
>
> John Clary wrote:
> >>
> > You mean like the old carbide lamps? They actually generated acetylene
> > from a water/carbide reaction, that was burned in a gas lamp. They
> > used to be very popular, as you could cook your dinner as you rode
> > home in the dark (period joke).
> >
Ha, ha, you got me there!
John, you are more awake than I was :-).
Jean-Pol