First Build: Getting a Bright Enough Saber (purple filter) with a LED Hilt Blade

[iplayafish]

Hey Everyone, I am extremely new to this and need some general and specific advice. I know that these are very beginner-level questions, so please point me in the right direction if this is the wrong place to post.

I'm working on my first build, these are the parts I bought:

Luxeon Rebel Star (White)
Shouldered 1" thin walled blade tip with reflective disc
BuckPuck 1000mA 6-wire
12 Colored Discs 1
Luxeon Rebel Lens Holder
Push on/push off switch with black button
Collimator Lens 8.7 deg viewing angle
Thin walled Polycarbonate 40" long

I'm also making a hilt out of PVC, its very basic. Following this tutorial: http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com/showthread.php?3266-Jay-gon-s-PVC-Hilts-Full-tutorial-on-last-page/page23
I have it connected to a Duracell MN21 Alkaline Battery.


I was doing a proof-of-concept by wiring everything up with a breadboard earlier, and here's what the LED looks like inside the tube (with and without filter):
https://www.dropbox.com/sc/s8obodh04vsvcxv/AABLSe78RTglm-wblwbe6Pqia

I've ordered cellophane and am waiting on that to come in, so I should be able to use it to diffuse some of the light and keep it in the blade.

Here are my questions:
- With the cellophane wrap, will the saber be lit enough, or are there any other big problems? I don't need crazy brightness, just some degree of purple light throughout the blade. Right now it's really bad (in the pictures, the light exits the blade immediately)
- Is this LED okay? I realized that there may have been a better choice LED for color filters, but can I work with this or not?
- I read that it was okay to use a range of voltage batteries with the buckpuck (so that 12V would be okay). Is this true? How many hours will this battery last (Duracell MN21 Alkaline), or is there a better one I can buy (that will still fit in the narrow 1'' PVC hilt). I basically need a battery that can hold out for ~2-5 hours of usage ideally. (This saber will be used a lot for 2 days as a prop in pictures, but not much after that.)

TLDR; Building cheap lightsaber to last ~2 days of use as a prop. Not picky, but worried about the amount of light I'm getting (is it just a cellophane wrap issue, or did I make bigger mistakes?) See pictures. Running out of time to work on this, so if I need to order anything else it has to be within the next few days :(

Thanks!

[Jay-gon Jinn]

This will be your biggest problem, the battery:
MN21 specifications:

IEC: 3LR50
12.0 Volt
33 mAh
Size (mm): 28 x 10 x10
Alkaline

At only 33mAh, that will give you a few seconds of run time before it dies...the white luxeon Rebel needs 1000mA to properly light. That battery is insufficient, and i doubt it can handle the 1A of current that led will draw. You need to use either AA's (4 of them for 6volts), NiMH (4.8v) or a single 18650 Li-Ion (3.7v) and the proper resistor for the battery source you've chosen. If you're building it with pvc, you might want to check out this topic: http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com/showthread.php?3266-Jay-gon-s-PVC-Hilts-Full-tutorial-on-last-page&p=138540&viewfull=1#post138540

Regarding your blade, read this one over: http://forums.thecustomsabershop.com/showthread.php?7274-How-to-construct-an-LED-Blade-%28or-at-least-how-I-do-it%29

[iplayafish]

I'm using a 1000mA buckpuck. If I use a single 18650 Li-Ion (3.7v), do I still need a resistor? I was under the impression that the buckpuck acts like a resistor, but maybe I'm wrong about that :confused:

Also, does the Li-Ion need housing of some kind? I actually originally tried the 4AAA housing in my hilt, but it didn't fit (oops)

[Jay-gon Jinn]

I'm using a 1000mA buckpuck. If I use a single 18650 Li-Ion (3.7v), do I still need a resistor? I was under the impression that the buckpuck acts like a resistor, but maybe I'm wrong about that :confused:

Also, does the Li-Ion need housing of some kind? I actually originally tried the 4AAA housing in my hilt, but it didn't fit (oops)Yes, a buckpuck replaces a resistor, but the buckpuck requires 5volts to operate, so a single Li-Ion cell wouldn't work...however, two would...so you'd need a 7.4v pack if you go with Li-ion rechargeable cells.

What size pvc are you using?

[iplayafish]

1'' inside diameter

[Jay-gon Jinn]

Okay, so an 18500 or 14500 7.4v li-ion pack from the store would fit in there, but would require some sort of filler to keep it secure, like some simple bits of foam...if you wanted to spend that kind of money on it, because now you'd also need a charger. If you didn't already have the buckpuck I'd suggest just using a single Li-Ion cell and a resistor.

[iplayafish]

drats. I would like to pursue the cheapest option :p I do have access to resistors (for free), so if that actually ends up being cheaper option overall I can do that (and not use the buckpuck). What would you recommend I do?

[iplayafish]

Actually, realized I'm running out of time so I decided to order:
7.4v Li-ion 800mAh 14500 Battery Pack
7.4V Li-ion smart charger with 2.1mm plug

EDIT: I realized you're probably referring to the 7.4v Li-ion 1600mAh 14500 Battery Pack. Agh, did I mess up? Will 800mAh be sufficient? I admit I know the least about batteries by far out of all the other aspects of this project. My plan is to use it with the buckpuck (so it'll meet the >5V requirement).

[Silver Serpent]

800mAh is fine. It'll run a little less than an hour before you need to recharge it.

[iplayafish]

800mAh is fine. It'll run a little less than an hour before you need to recharge it.

Sounds good, thanks!

[Jay-gon Jinn]

As the Silver One said, it'll work. I had recommend the 18500 7.4v stick pack for a longer run time, but either is fine for powering the buck puck.