> On Dec 9, 2022, at 10:04 AM, Mykiss Gold <[email protected]> 
> wrote:
> 
> It’s funny this topic came up. Just the other day I ran into this video on 
> how to make these. I don’t have all the equipment necessary otherwise I’d 
> totally whip up a batch. 

You want the hardest vacuum you can get. I have it on good authority that it 
does make a difference.


> Have a watch. I’ve enjoyed all the Technology Connections videos I’ve seen so 
> far. The rockets and audios  series are extra fun. Watch out for very sneaky 
> Easter eggs. 
> 
> https://youtu.be/lgE6BVDl3mw <https://youtu.be/lgE6BVDl3mw>

I hadn't seen this before. I'm not sure about waring regular sunglasses when 
using an Oxy/Fuel torch on borosilicate glass. There are special goggles for 
this.


> On Dec 9, 2022, at 9:16 AM, Adrian Godwin <[email protected]> wrote:
> 
> Interesting to read about these old-school suppliers.
> In the UK, the supplier of all things cheap, tacky and seasonal (as well as 
> miscellaneous electrical the rest of the year) was Pifco, with products 
> usually made in Hong Kong. Did they reach other parts of the world or were 
> they just a brit phenomenom ?

Based on observation it seems that round the late '60s production of plastic 
Xmas ornamentation shifted from Japan to Hong Kong. I believe they used a 
cheaper type of plastic which was shiny and didn't hold fine detail.

As for bubble lights, NOMA's last gasp in the Sixties was making them look like 
rockets. These are highly desirable as they didn't sell very well and those of 
us who were kids at the time really want them. Unfortunately, like many other 
plastic decorations that were intended to get hot they had Tricresyl phosphate 
added as a fire retardant. This causes the plastic to decompose over time. I 
have a box of bubble lights that I call the coffin. Inside there are wires, 
light bulbs and sockets, and glass tubes. All held in place by the cardboard 
insert. No plastic to be seen anywhere except for some sugary crumbs sliding 
around.

Because of the TCP, some types of bubble lights are impossible to find in good 
condition. The Shooting Stars made by Peerless must have had a lot of it 
because I've never seen one that wasn't at least a third gone and that was 
years ago. Clemcos are a vanishing breed as well. The upshot of this is that 
many of the NOMA lights that have survived are from very early on, second half 
of the '40s. They made them in huge quantity between '46 and '49 and those are 
still with us along with Paramounts and Royals.


Terry Bowman, KA4HJH
"The Mac Doctor"

https://www.astarcloseup.com

"I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off the 
shoulder of Orion. I watched c-beams glitter in the dark near Tannhäuser Gate. 

"All those moments will be lost in time like tears in rain."— Roy Batty, Blade 
Runner <https://youtu.be/TNbJ45yyVcY>

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