Mazda SO/H Sodium Vapour Lamp & Dewar
This SO/H sodium vapour lamp was manufactured in 1950 by the British Thomson-Houston Co. Ltd, under their Mazda brand name. Still in mint condition with its original packaging for both the dewar and the arc tube (which were always sold separately) , it is interesting to note the extra efforts made by BTH to ensure that their sodium lamps were the best quality that money could buy.

Most noticeable is the small nickel cap, thoughtfully attached to the end of the dewar jacket to protect the delicate concealed tip-off which holds the vacuum. A spring supports the long inner vessel which helped to minimise breakages during transportation or as a result of vibration when in service. To prolong the effective life of the vacuum and ensure that lamp efficacy was always maintained as high as possible, a barium getter is also present in the dewar jacket. All three of these constructional features were unique to BTH-Mazda sodium lamps.

The inner discharge tube is also manufactured from a very special glass, BTH's Chesterfield C64 and C40 hard glasses (similar to Pyrex) and these reduced the tendency to crack compared to the earlier C10/C19 soft glasses. In addition it has better adhesion to liquid sodium, preventing it flowing down to one end of the lamp where it can form large light-blocking mirrors.

But the C64 lining unfortunately exhibits greater tendency to adsorb argon, which increases lamp striking voltage during life. Lamps made in hard glass are easily identifiable by the greenish grey colour of the "Fernico" glass-metal seals where the lead wires pass through the inner tube to the electrodes.
Manufacturer: The British Thomson-Houston Co. Ltd.
Lamp Power: 60 Watts
Lamp Current: 0.60 Amps 0.54A Starting current
Lamp Voltage: 95/125 Volts 200-250V Mains voltage
Cap Type: BY22d Porcelain Small
Bulb Finish: Clear Hard glass arc tube
Bulb Type: Inner: TU-14½ x 32 Outer: TA-50
Overall Length: 300 mm 11¾ inches
Light Centre Length: 170 mm 6¾ inches
Arc Length:
Electrodes: CCC-6 Triple Coil Black W + BCT Emitter
Atmosphere: Na | 0.8% Ar in Ne Outer: Hard Vacuum
Luminous Flux: 4,020 lm (@ 100 hrs) 3,420 lm (@ 4000 hrs)
Luminous Efficacy: 67.0 lm/W (@ 100 hrs) 57.0 lm/W (@ 4000 hrs)
Colour Temperature & CRI: CCT: 1700K CRI: Ra-44
Chromaticity Co-ordinates: CCx: 0.574 CCy: 0.425
Burning Position: Vertical Base Up ± 95°
Rated Lifetime: 6,000 hours Guaranteed to 4,000 hrs
Warm-up & Re-strike Time: 20 minutes Instantaneous
Factory: Leicester England
Date of Manufacture: Inner: Sept. 1950 Dewar: Nov. 1950
Original & Present Value: £5 3s 0d (1954) £94.49 (2005)
 
References: 1) BTH-Mazda Lamp Catalogue, 1950.