Lighting gel / filter / diffuser ?

Its a diffuser but as you mention at an output cost

Gel isn`t particularly expensive, but bnot sure if the OP is considering this for a one off or is seeking something to use in a production item. Even production quantities get a lot of sleeves out of a sheet.

There is holographic and prismatic optical diffuser films made by companies like 3M, generally used for things like display backlights, these are expensive.

Gel is a self extigushing polycarbonate commonly used in front of 2kW lamps, would rate it as safe even in direct contact with an 11W CFL. Stapled it around linear fluro tubes for years.

Even ultra clear glass is around 95% transmission, would think woven nylon cloth would be significantly below this. Spun diffuser is usually glass fibre of some form, think 2kW is probably a small light on a TV or film set. Silks and frosts tend to be plastic films.

Sleeve would be preferable, trapping heat around CFL ballast bases isn`t good for them.

Adam

Somewhere in-between I'd expect to sell maybe 20 of these lamps in a year - so it's sort of 'production' quantities.

The lamps themselves are about 12" tall and each side of the lamp is

4" (it's 'Toblerone'-shaped). So I'd imagine (cba to do the maths on a Saturday afternoon ) that one sheet of 12" x 12" gel would sit quite comfortable inside the 'shade' of the lamp - and be held in place by its own 'springyness' - this would also allow it to be as far away as possible from the CFL bulb.

As each finished lamp is a one-off 'art' item, I think that the cost of a sheet of gel can be 'absorbed' in the final selling price - assuming that it's less than a fiver or so...

As mentioned above - I like the idea of a gel / film as it would tend to be self-supporting.

OK - just waiting on my local (Dublin!) distributor to get back to me

- maybe I'll have to call them on Monday

Thanks Adrian