Aeroelectric wig-wag p4 - min current to function?

[rjcthree]

I'm set up with the wig wag as on AE p4. It functioned while using H3 (Duckworks 55w) bulbs, drawing 5a-ish each. I switched to LED's at 1.1a each, and it no longer functions.

I'm not yet sure if the high-freq power supplies of the LED's are the issue, or if the curcuit requires a minimum draw to function. Any ideas?

With the LED's, the behavior is one stays high, the other goes to half intensity and stays there. The flasher gives off the slightest hum in that mode (making me think HF p/s).

Basically, to ballast or change the circuit entirely?

Rick 90432

 

[rjcthree]

checking

For what it's worth, I pulled out the flasher unit alone, set it up on the bench, same behavior - works with h3's, not with the led lights. Same buzz fromt eh flasher. Tapping the flasher makes it wat to trip over, but it won't. Help? Rick 90432

 

[Brantel]

You can make it work with a load resistor but you will be wasting power and making heat. That flasher needs the current load to make the timer circuit work correctly.

If it were me, I would replace it with a solid state one that is not load dependant.

The CC LED power supplies are not the problem. They may however cause you some RF noise issues if they are not properly filtered.

 

[rjcthree]

so far so good?

So far so good on noise. The lights in question are for automotive apps (4 crees in a square, 1300 lumens raw with lenses), and seem to not put any noise on the radio/intercom when run from a 10a power supply via 16ga wire in the quiet of my garage, so I think I'm ok.

Best information on the tridon el13a1 is that it needs 25w draw per side to operate. I'd rather not go with BIG (10W or more) ballast resistors.

Anybody know of a decent stand alone el13 replacement that is not current sensitive? It looks like the B&C version is solid state and only requires 2w waste power (75ohm ballast), I guess that's ok. Looks like it may be plug and play in the system. ????

Rick 90432
edit 4/24/12: using a scope and some resistors, I think I've nailed it. The HF power supplies (and the freq escapes me, I didn't write it down) prevents the wig-wag form seeing enough current to flop. It gets close. Adding a 150ohm/2watt resistor to each is just enough DC component until the resistors get hot, then they are at a higher resistance to slide back into non-flop. Takes about 4-5 minutes at 13.4V. The current draw of the lights alone looks like a chopped sine wave. There maybe influence of my power supply, not sure, and just not motivated enough to redo on the battery. Little worried about noise, but as I noted before, with one or both on, i didn't get any audio noise indication.

I bought the B&C solid state, maybe I'll take it all to work and set it up in the lab and get some good numbers. Might make an entertaining lunch project.
4/29 edit: the SSF1 flasher is the same as the current production elc13a2 from tridon, they are both digital circuits now. using the recommended 75 ohm ballast resistors to ground on each lamp circuit allows the circuit to function regardless of other 'lamp load' - like HF power supplies of LED lamps. The circuit works down to 150 ohms per side if the resistance stays stable. It they heat up . . . . it stops blinking. Be careful, the power dissipated at 75 ohms at 13.4v exceeds the 2w rating . . . and you can't use the 50% duty cycle to cover it, because they will be loaded any time BOTH are lit. I put 2x250ohm in parallel, and it works without getting too hot.