With the death of the Urbis ZX2, the Philips SGS306 traffic vision and the Philips SGS201, as well as the weakening of the Urbis ZX3 and the continuing lack of popularity for the Philips SGS203/ WRTL MRL6. For instance in London, apart from some boroughs using the SGS203 as occasional casual replacements, the only borough left still using it as a staple lantern is, possibly,Brent, whilst only Newham remain using the WRTL MRL6 as its staple lantern. Therefore it appears that the long lived second generation SON lanterns are finally coming to the end of the product life-cycle.
Therefore I was wondering, In an ideal world, if you had your choice:
> Which 5 lanterns would you save from the grim reaper?
> Which 5 lanterns would you happily throw into the arms of the grim reaper ?
> Which 5 lanterns would you resurrect?
> Which 5 lanterns would you keep dead?
For me it has to be:
SAVE> WRTL MRL 6 - It might be old now, but do not let that fool you, because when this was originally released, it was far ahead of its times, and throughout its life it has always looked great. However as its generation of SON lanterns are nearly all discontinued, I would like to hold on to this one for as long as possible.
> WRTL SRL 8 - For the same reason as the MRL 6, only that it is the last of its type for side roads, and even though it has become woefully unpopular in recent years, I personally believe it still looks great.
> Philips SGS203 - Not the best lantern I will admit, but since the death of the ZX2 and the demise of the ZX3, really all that is left of the 2nd generation SONs are this and the MRL 6.
> Philips MA/SRS series - Wonderful classic, and the last of its kind (and because of that, still popular as a casual replacement... if this goes, all that will be left is the good but annoyingly unpopular WRTL Iris.
> CU Phosco P178/P107 - I love these classics, it harks back to the days when CU Phosco were good at designing lanterns... but lets be honest here,
How In The World Do These Ancient Lanterns STILL exist ...................... does anybody buy these, plus are they still in production because CU Phosco simply forgot about them
KILL> Thorn Triumph - Urgh, this lantern is a joke that's only popular in Hong Kong. I am pretty sure this was simply designed as an April Fools Day joke which mistakenly got put into production on the pretense that it was meant to be an actual lantern of some sort.
> Thorn Riviera - Always lived in the shadow of the ZX2/3s success......although in terms of its sheer, ungainly, ill-proportioned size, the fugly Riviera would then cast a huge shadow over the ZXs.... Infact, when comparing the ZX3 to the Riviera 2, the Riviera 2 makes the large ZX3 looks slim and sleek like the WRTL Luma
> Thorn Gamma Basique - I dont know what irritates me more about this lantern; is it the fact that out of the wonderful 1980s Thorn Range of the Alphas, Betas and Gamma (which had some fantastic lanterns like the Alpha 8/4, Beta 79 etc), the only one to still survive is the dreary, unlikable and dull Gamma 6, which became even uglier when it became the Gamma Basique.... Or is what annoys me the fact that if this lantern always remains in production, Bromley won't stop using it until the end of time (albeit only as casual replacements). Therefore my message is simple really:
Just. Kill. It. Off. Already.> WRTL Vectra - Not the best lantern to be honest, and quite frankly it looks like the b**tard love child of the MK2 Thorn alpha 8 and the Philips SGS306 trafficvision.
> Urbis ZXU1 - The ZX1 was good but not a looker, but this has upped the ante in terms of ugliness, and because it is based on an ancient design, with plummeting popularity, it simply must go.
Ressurect> Thorn Alpha 8 - Had lots of character, but also was used almost by every single London borough (as well as throughout Cyprus), and ultimately Londons most popular lantern EVER.
> Thorn Alpha 4 - Really likeable classic, which may have given the Philips MA/SRS a real run for its money. Definetely a high point for the once-brilliant Thorn.
> Eleco GR range - Elegant Classic, and was personally one of my favourite SOX designed lanterns. Like the ZX2, the GR range looked fantastic no matter what it was attached to.
> GEC Z9554/ GEC Brick - A really likeable classic, which time is mostly proving that they are also rather reliable and possibly robust.
> Urbis ZX2 - I love the ZX2, and considering its vast popularity in London as well as the rest of the country, I still believe it had more years ahead of it.
Remain Dead> Urbis DZ15 - This lantern was the main reason for Lewisham's likeable lighting stock reputation going straight down the toilet. What a dreary, ugly lantern!
> Urbis Sintra - A design that should have simply should not have made it past the drawing board. The b**tard love child of the Urbis ZX12 and the Thorn Pilote.
> Philips SGS306 Traffic Vision - Good Ridance to this utter monstrosity. Never Ever EVER come back from the dead. Just simply stay dead already.
> Philips SGS201 - Finally dead! Far too bulky for a side road lantern and an INCREDIBLY dull, dreary design, especially if the lantern was weathered.
> Thorn Alpha 2000 - A slightly better looking Riviera, but that is no prize considering this only ever a polished turd at best. The Thorn Oracle is an evolution of this design, but is a huge, vast improvement (and is proof that Thorn can go back to making great looking lanterns after all).
What do you think of this plus what would all of yours be and why?