It seems that bulb sockets for the T17 bulbs are very difficult to locate.
I was wondering if a T17 pedestal type bulb holder could be found that a replication could be made?

The reason I say this is because I have had very good luck making reproduction plastic parts from original parts using rubber two piece molds and urethane plastic.
These parts are rather strong and reproduce exactly as the originals.
The urethane can be in any color you want.

I don't see why a reproduction T17 bulb holder could not be made.
Bent brass strips with solder connections would work as connections and the solder connection would only show from the bottom.

Does this sound worth while?

Sounds possible to me.  Original T17 sockets are rare, so it would be nice to have a modern supply.  There may also be a way to make these kind of parts with a 3D printer.

Sounds possible to me.  Original T17 sockets are rare, so it would be nice to have a modern supply.  There may also be a way to make these kind of parts with a 3D printer.

If you have a good original bulb holder, reproductions are really easy to make using silicone molds as most bulb holders are originally made in two piece molds, that is with a top and bottom with no undercuts.
This way when the production molds are injected with plastic they cool and the part just pops right out.

First you make a two piece mold out of liquid silicone rubber using the original bulb holder as a pattern, then you mix the urethane up in the color you want, then pour the urethane into the mold and in about 15 minutes, you have a solid bulb holder.
You would have to use brass strips for contacts and make a back out of a cut out flat thin plastic sheet, and attach with a small screw and you are done.

By using the two piece rubber mold, you can make as many as you want.

It is just an idea.

The question is, if the urethane is suitable for things like lamp sockets. Particularly it's dielectric properties and heat, light and flame resistance. All that shall count with the contamination coming from the process.
With urethane I would be afraid of releasing aggressive compounds, attacking the metal and/or other plastic parts, so damaging e.g. the rare lamp plugged there...
And as far as I know, the PU is very sensitive for even the visible light, the UV from fluorescents would be killing...

The question is, if the urethane is suitable for things like lamp sockets. Particularly it's dielectric properties and heat, light and flame resistance. All that shall count with the contamination coming from the process.
With urethane I would be afraid of releasing aggressive compounds, attacking the metal and/or other plastic parts, so damaging e.g. the rare lamp plugged there...
And as far as I know, the PU is very sensitive for even the visible light, the UV from fluorescents would be killing...

Yeah you may be right, but there are many other similar plastic compounds that could be used, epoxy for example.
I have cast parts out of Epoxy with good results.
At least epoxy won't melt or burn. I don't know how it stands up to UV though.
The only reason I was thinking of urethane as an example as it will set up very fast and is easy to use for prototype testing.
 
I have cast parts in liquid acrylic the same material as tail lights for cars, but it is difficult to use and must be used with good ventilation at in the uncured state it is toxic.
But once set up it is safe and strong just like a tail light lens would be and the dielectric and UV I would think would be ok.

There are many pourable plastic materials in use by industry to make parts from, I do think a suitable casting material can be found that would work.
 

 

Both heat and light/UV are very aggressive towards most plastic materials. Virtually all plastic corrosion is strongly tight to these two factors. Some need an oxygen too, but still the heat and/or light remain essential for the corrosion to progress...

Quite good protection against the light/UV is black (highly light absorbing) filler, it stop the light from reaching the deeper layers of the material. So although the surface layer still deteriorate, the bulk material get protected and so stay unharmed.

Well if I could ever find a T17 pedestal bulb holder as a pattern to make a reproduction out of urethane and see if it is feasible to do and then if so, then later use better materials like acrylic.

Urethane is a good choice to make prototype parts with.
It is easy to use, sets up fast, makes very accurate parts from silicon molds.
Then you can get a good idea of what is involved.

I don't think there would be a big market for the T17 bulb holders, but there might be a special small volume market among fixture restorers, so the per part cost would be on the high side depending on how close to the original you wanted.

The closer to the original, the higher the costs.

For example, a T17 pedestal bulb holder that looked like an original, but you had to solder the wires to the bulb pins and it would not be seen from the outside, would be cheaper than a bulb holder with all the plated contact parts.

This may not be a problem for display uses as it is not like you are replacing the bulbs all the time.
In this case a $20 part X 4 might be better than a $60 part X 4.

But you have to find a pattern part first.






  

 

There may also be a way to make these kind of parts with a 3D printer.

Thats the one I wonder about .. reading articles in magazines about 3D printers, it seems this would be very possible (except for the metal parts).
You'd still need an existing T17 lampholder (or exact specs) to make a pattern from though.
I wounder how much it costs to "print" something on one of those machines?

Quote from: mbulb146

There may also be a way to make these kind of parts with a 3D printer.

Thats the one I wonder about .. reading articles in magazines about 3D printers, it seems this would be very possible (except for the metal parts).
You'd still need an existing T17 lampholder (or exact specs) to make a pattern from though.
I wounder how much it costs to "print" something on one of those machines?

I don't know how to make one with a 3 d printer, but making a accurate one from a original T17 bulb holder as a pattern and liquid silicone mold is easy to do as these bulb holders should not have any undercuts, and have a natural draft to them.

If you had to solder two small wires to the pins and pull them through the holder, then attach the back of the holder with a small screw, the cost may not be too much.

It is not like you are replacing the bulbs all the time.

If you wanted the brass parts like the original, the costs would be higher of course.

Making a mold with liquid silicone like that would  be a neat little trick LOL


Using a 3D printer would actually be very easy from my understanding: You'd simply design the item in the computer with 3D-CAD software (thats where a spec/detail sheet with measurements would come in handy LOL). Once its designed, you simply "print"...