SOMEBEECH, your problem is the ignitor. If your ballast can still light a MH bulb than that points to the ignitor.(MH bulbs dont use an ignitor but HPS bulbs do)
Hope this helps.
Sounds like you have thrips. Check on the under sides of the leaves, I always find them hiding next to the veins on the under sides of the leaves. Some pictures would really help give people a better idea of what to tell you.
I had it happen with only 3 leaves/bud sites per node and when I flipped to 12/12 the fan leaves started to grow buds off of the actual fan leaves. I'll try and find the pics.
I just bought a ph tester pen and tested the runoff from my plants and the ph was at 4.8. What is the best way to get the soil ph back to normal.
Thanks for all the help.