Lifetime strobe

Hi have anyone read a test or know how long the lifetime of a strobe is (except the battery). Is the guide nr reducing do to aging, or can a old be compare to a new ?

I'd suggest it's a combination of age, usage, quality and how well looked after. There was a thread a while back about this and many Wetpixelers commented that they had had strobes for many years - 10+- and they were still going strong.

I have an ikelite AI strobe that is 27 years old and still works great. No floods or any problems with the strobe. Sync cord i did have to replace though.

Flash tubes age, capacitors remodel. My experience is that you lose about 10% power for the first 10K flashes (not too many trips) but then it is stable for quite a while.

Bill

I use a Subtronic Alpha since 2000, and I have 2 Ikelite 100AI that I have buy used that they work yet.

I made usually from 30 to 60 dive per year.

Cristian.

I sold 3 working Ikelite 150s last year that I bought new in 1984-still worked fine-Ikelight did an upgrade on them in the middle 90's.

My Ikelite 200s worked since the early 90s to now -sold them last year as well.

My SR strobes (not many know this brand still work and they are from the 8o's.

I repair underwater strobes from time to time. I can tell that capacity of main capacitor is usually reduced after few years, but not significantly (5-10%). Strobe lifetime mainly depends on xenon flash tube (tube shape, and energy of each discharge).

Linear shape tubes can make 4k-5k number of flashes at full allowed energy (according concrete tube passport). Round shape tubes can make 10k flashes. This is truth.

But if you shoot usually at small powers, the lifetime will be significantly longer.

All this information refers to appropriate tube applications for uw strobes. In case of wrong developed uw strobe (tube is overloaded), it can work normally at small and medium power, but has fatal cracks after 500-800 full power flashes.