Built my first saber, but the blade seems a little dim.

[Chowder138]

Hey guys.

I finished my first saber today. I'm pretty happy with it, but the blade seems a little dim. It's pretty bright but it doesn't seem as bright as some of the sabers I've seen. I used the Luxeon Rebel Star (http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/Luxeon-Rebel-Star-P523.aspx) in blue, the 36" LED "corbin style" blade (http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/LED-Corbin-style-Show-blade-1-OD--P227.aspx), and the Buckpuck 100mA 4-wire (http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/BuckPuck-1000mA-4-wire-P364.aspx). Those are the only things i can think of that would affect brightness.

Pic of the saber in my room with the lights on:

12300

Pic of the saber in the kitchen with the lights off:
12301

My wiring layout:

Black: LED>buckpuck>battery pack.
Red: LED>switch>buckpuck>battery pack.

I suspect the buckpuck is the problem, because I watched a video before I started building that said the buckpuck prevents the LED from getting dimmer as the batteries die, while the resistor doesn't.

Am I imagining things, or could that affect the overall brightness of the LED?

[Forgetful Jedi Knight]

Hey guys.

I finished my first saber today. I'm pretty happy with it, but the blade seems a little dim. It's pretty bright but it doesn't seem as bright as some of the sabers I've seen. I used the Luxeon Rebel Star (http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/Luxeon-Rebel-Star-P523.aspx) in blue, the 36" LED "corbin style" blade (http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/LED-Corbin-style-Show-blade-1-OD--P227.aspx), and the Buckpuck 100mA 4-wire (http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/BuckPuck-1000mA-4-wire-P364.aspx). Those are the only things i can think of that would affect brightness.

Pic of the saber in my room with the lights on:

12300

Pic of the saber in the kitchen with the lights off:
12301

My wiring layout:

Black: LED>buckpuck>battery pack.
Red: LED>switch>buckpuck>battery pack.

I suspect the buckpuck is the problem, because I watched a video before I started building that said the buckpuck prevents the LED from getting dimmer as the batteries die, while the resistor doesn't.

Am I imagining things, or could that affect the overall brightness of the LED?

It shouldn't affect the brightness. One thing is the 36" blade, the longer the blade, it will be a little less bright towards the tip. I think it looks pretty good, all in all.

[Kouri]

Are you comparing your saber to other sabers you've seen in person, or pictures of sabers you've seen online? Most cameras get a bit overloaded by the light of a saber and make the blade look much brighter than it does in person.

The only other thing I can think of is the Corbin blade, which has the neat core effect, but results in a less even blade overall. Perhaps when this blade wears out, you could give one of the other styles a try?

[Miraluka]

I know it's difficult to gauge these things based on photos but especially the pic with the lights off, it does look dimmer than it should be to me, buuuuut I've never used a Corbin blade so I can't be sure what's "normal" for them.

[Drawcut]

What kind of battery are you using?