DISCO SOX 90

[GabryJ84]

As stated in the Title.

It was here: https://www.google.it/maps/@45.1921488,9.2196695,3a,30y,135.55h,134.65t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1svGBahNDZASYRswfoHaUyLg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 untill yesterday when it has been retro-fitted with LED. The boys who did the job knew me and my project and kept it for me.

Here are the hi-def pictures of the lamp.





There are no stickers or plates with Producer and Fixture names, but there is something really interesting: As in picture 3, the ballast is a 140W one. This, along with other 2 pieces of information (1. in the neighbourhood there were OMICRON UNIVERSALE 126 fixtures which date back installation to the middle '50 and 2. the mechanism to detach the plastic reflector is entirely mechanical (that lever that with a 90° turn releases the little hooks on both sides of the lantern) leads me to think this a very old lantern (middle '50) and an original installation never retro-fitted before (apart from lamp replacement). Being a 140W ballast, I believe that the original mounted lamp was a SOI/H, since only in the period 1950-1960 there were 140W Low Pressure Sodium Lamps. (Which were re-rated 100W in the '60 and then '90W). A 135W lamp does not fit (it is longer than the fixture) and the 140W rating of the ballast would not be justified in any case, so what I suspect is the only possible solution.

Coming to the producer dilemma, I have no hints. No cast names on the fixture body nor onto the plastic reflector. The only thing that is leading me to thing about a foreign producer is the fact that the plate onto the ballast clearly identifies the ballast producer as a german factory named MAY & CHRISTE. This does not recessarily has something to do with fixture manufacturer, but as far as I have seen until now, all italian produced SOX fixtures do have an Italian ballast producer (this is true for the DISANO GAVIA, ZERBETTO IVREA and even for the SOLDI E SCATI ENH 11/13 I own) and to add more, on the plate it states that it has been validated for Osram and Philips lamps (again, no 100% warranties on foreign producer, but still a clue). This factory was opened in 1955 so the lantern should have been produced from 1955 to maximum early '60s.
To confuse things even more, over the internet I can find little to no informations about this factory, apart from the thing that it still has a factory in the Philippines ??? (this might be a company transformation which has been caried on in later years), but I seriously doubt that a Philippine fixture has ever come to Europe to be installed into an italian road.

So far, looking in the Phozagora datbase didn't help me, since although it is resembling some AEG/SIEMENS product, none of the listed products seem to match.

Any Ideas?


UPDATE: Being careful not to destroy the plastic reflector nor the lamp, I twisted the fixture upside down and I found a strange DISCO cast writing. It should be something similar to this, even though it is SOX http://phozagora.free.fr/?page=Lanterne_LPM6