I agree, use the pinball lighting vendors we have. I have been very happy with Comet's bulbs and also quick and friendly responses on my questions.
@ryanwagner -- I guess I am in your second grouping above, for me part of the fun and hobby is experimenting and finding the correct color, type of bulb, etc. I am still working on my Haunted House for several months now, play the game, see what I want, etc, it has been a fun and slow process. My back box is the last thing to do and I just can't bring myself to replace those old flashing incs with LEDs, especially for the lightning.

Don’t go crazy with color, that was my early mistake. Start off slow with playfield GI and try the two different color whites and see if you like one more than the other for your Twister. No need to buy the non-ghosting to start, just the cheaper ones. Frosted are a little mellower than clear. Some color can be added to color inlays but some times it just doesn’t work and white is better.