A number of people have been unable to find the transformer needed for the Black Light project, so I looked around to see if I could find a fluorescent lamp driver that does not require any special components. I finally found one in Electronics Now. Here it is. It uses a normal 120 to 6V stepdown transformer in reverse to step 12V to about 350V to drive a lamp without the need to warm the filaments.

 

Schematic

Parts:

Part	Total Qty.	Description	Substitutions
C1	1	100uf 25V Electrolytic Capacitor
C2,C3	2	0.01uf 25V Ceramic Disc Capacitor
C4	1	0.01uf 1KV Ceramic Disc Capacitor
R1	1	1K 1/4W Resistor
R2	1	2.7K 1/4W Resistor
Q1	1	IRF510 MOSFET
U1	1	TLC555 Timer IC
T1	1	6V 300mA Transformer
LAMP	1	4W Fluorescent Lamp
MISC	1	Board, Wire, Heatsink For Q1

Notes:

1. Q1 must be installed on a heat sink.

2. A 240V to 10V transformer will work better then the one in the parts list. The problem is that they are hard to find.

3. This circuit can give a nasty (but not too dangerous) shock. Be careful around the output leads.