Loadster, Roddy, Harvey, et al, and Danny,
Danny, you've got another 'Canuck' here, so your not alone in the 'Great White North' !
Bought a bunch of fuses, HAVE a LOT of spare bulbs/strings, learned how to use my 'Multi-meter', have some 9V batteries, amongst others, and resistors too.
Sat down in now warm garage, and 'had at it' !
Discovered that I had current end to end on ALL my strings (except the ones the squirrels chewed the sockets off) from various stores, Costco, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, Rona, Sears, and probably some others, and that ;
1. SOME bulbs CAN'T be removed from sockets, Norma's I think.
2. Bulbs have a 'positive and negative' side.
3. All 'sockets/bulb holders' are different sizes.
4. Those 'bulbs' are REALLY THICK (had to use my VISE to break them open) !
5. Different length strings bulbs all have different 'power needs' to light 'em up.
6. Too MUCH power in a bulb will 'blow' it, not ENOUGH does nothing.
7. Had NO such 'problems' with old 'incandescents' from 'mini-lights' to 'C-9's.
Conclusions ;
A. 'Standardization' of socket size would be nice, like the old incandescent's .
B. I'm sure glad I used 'Home Hardware's SCREW in C-9's when I replaced all my 'main string' big bulb's !
C. Even the newest string of 'C-7' LED's I bought from Wal-Mart that worked IN the store, but NOT at home, are crap. ( Couldn't return them, already threw out box, stupidly, being so 'trusting' 'cause they DID work in the store !)
D. Expensive as LED's may be, they are NOT worth the 'tearing of hair' and increased 'blood pressure' TRYING to get working. Even the Firemen at Vancouver's Stanley Park's 'Christmas Bright Nights' display can't get these LED strings working, and THEIR 'on the clock' getting PAID to try to figure them out ! So 'screw it', off to the landfill they go ! Maybe some Archaeologist in the distant future can figure them out ! Maybe I'll take them to the Gun Club, might be fun using those little bulbs as .22 (or bigger) targets ! 'Recycling' be damned, 'repurposing' as targets is more fun !
E. The 'Chinese/Vietnamese/ whatever, manufacturer's, WITHOUT 'standardization' and 'Quality Control', WIN !
So much for 'LED's save money' ! Gimmie BACK my MANY DECADES lasting incandescent's !