First Build List - MAGLIGHTSABER

[jvward]

Hi Guys,

I am trying to make sure I have everything for my first two builds (I know I am missing bits around the electronics, specifically wiring and switches). I am putting together two maglight-sabers, mainly to learn the ropes until I can get all the MHS parts I need to do two full MHS sabers. Currently for the two Maglight-sabers I have the following parts:

** Also I finally got a MHS V4 heatsink in hand and its outside diameter isnt round enough to make it sit snug in the shaft of the maglight any ideas how to adapt it to keep it there and centered? I was using some PVC piping.

Saber 1:
Body:

Maglite Heavy-Duty Incandescent 2-Cell C Flashlight, Black
D-cell Maglite MHS pommel adapter
D-cell Maglite blade holder
Pommel style 3
MPS Insert style 1
10-32 x 3/8" Black Acetal thumb screw

LED:

Star thermal tape pad
18deg Tri-Rebel/Cree Star Lens
Saber Bay RED/ROYALBLUE/WHITE Tri Cree Xpe2 Led:

White Cree Die,
Forward Current: 1050 mA
Forward Voltage: 3.5 V

Royal Blue Cree Die,
Forward Current: 350 mA
Forward Voltage: 3.1 V

Red Cree Die
Forward Current: 350 mA
Forward Voltage: 2.1 V

MHS Heat Sink V4 (Flat Style)

Internals:

MHS speaker mount V6 - For 28mm Speakers
2W 28mm Bass Speaker
18650 Single Cell Holder
Nano Biscotte V3 Sound Module SD card
Nano Biscotte Sound Module V3
16mm Anti Vandal Short Momentary White Ring Switch (Note - The LED forward voltage of 3.0V and runs at 20mA..)
Switchcraft 2.1mm Power Jack (really only being used as a kill switch not so much as a charger)
TrustFire Protected 3.7V 2400mAh 18650 Lithium Battery

13567

Saber 2:
Body:

Maglite Heavy-Duty Incandescent 2-Cell C Flashlight, Black
D-cell Maglite MHS pommel adapter
D-cell Maglite blade holder
Pommel style 3
MPS Insert style 1
10-32 x 3/8" Black Acetal thumb screw

LED:

Star thermal tape pad
18deg Tri-Rebel/Cree Star Lens
Saberbay BLUE/BLUE/WHITE Tri Cree Xpe2:

White Cree Die,
Forward Current: 1050 mA
Forward Voltage: 3.5 V

Blue Cree Die
Forward Current: 350 mA
Forward Voltage: 3.1 V

Blue Cree Die
Forward Current: 350 mA
Forward Voltage: 3.1 V

MHS Heat Sink V4 (Flat Style)

Internals:

MHS speaker mount V6 - For 28mm Speakers
2W 28mm Bass Speaker
18650 Single Cell Holder
Nano Biscotte V3 Sound Module SD card
Nano Biscotte Sound Module V3
16mm Anti Vandal Short Momentary White Ring Switch (Note - The LED forward voltage of 3.0V and runs at 20mA..)
Switchcraft 2.1mm Power Jack (really only being used as a kill switch not so much as a charger)
TrustFire Protected 3.7V 2400mAh 18650 Lithium Battery

13568

[jvward]

More specifically, I am wondering to use the Nano Biscotti V3 for FOC I don't need the power extender? And for the LEDs I have which buck puck should I get?

[BZWingZero]

The NBv3 has a built-in power extender. It cannot be used with a Buckpuck; you'll need resistors. One for each LED.

[jvward]

In both of the sabers I am running two of the 3 LEDs in parallel, so should I put the resistors on each or combined for the two?

[BZWingZero]

You're better off with one resistor per LED.

[jvward]

So I think figured out what the resistors and their ideal wattage for both of my sabers to be, might anyone be kind enough to double check my math? (I attached images of my tables since the site is killing my formatting when I paste them in):

I have read that what ever you calculate the resistor wattage to be you should double that for the actual resistor? Is that accurate?

Saber 1
Component Red LED Royal Blue LED White LED Switch LED
Voltage of Power Source 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7
Forward Voltage 2.1 3.1 3.5 3
MilliAmps 350 350 1050 20
Amps 0.35 0.35 1.05 0.02
Resistance R=E/I 4.57 1.71 0.19 35
Resistor Wattage P=I*I*R 0.56 0.21 0.21 0.014

13569

so for this saber I would need:
Red LED - 1x 5 OHM 1watt resistor (the vendor said I may need a 3 watt to get the color I want since I will be running this in parallel with the Royal Blue to get Purple)
Royal Blue LED - 1x 2 OHM .5watt resistor
White LED - 1x .5 OHM .5 watt resistor
Switch LED - 1x 35 OHM (idk what wattage they would make that would work for this)

Saber 2:
Component Royal Blue LED Royal Blue LED2 White LED Switch LED
Voltage of Power Source 3.7 3.7 3.7 3.7
Forward Voltage 3.1 3.1 3.5 3
MilliAmps 350 350 1050 20
Amps 0.35 0.35 1.05 0.02
Resistance R=E/I 1.71 1.71 0.19 35
Resistor Wattage P=I*I*R 0.21 0.21 0.21 0.014

13570

so for this saber I would need:
Royal Blue LED - 2x 2 OHM .5watt resistor
White LED - 1x .5 OHM .5 watt resistor
Switch LED - 1x 35 OHM (idk what wattage they would make that would work for this)

Also any ideas where I can get resistors with such small ohm/watt values since it doesn't appear TCCS has resistors around the values I need? How accurate should I be when getting the resistors?

Also using the TrustFire Protected 3.7V 2400mAh 18650 Lithium Battery can I use Switchcraft 2.1mm Power Jack only for its "kill key" functions and not as a charging port?

[darth_chasm]

Extremely tough to read the way you have typeset this. That said, you're not going to be happy if you go with the numbers you have.

All Cree led's can be driven safely at 1000mAh. All rebels, except red, can be driven at 1000mAh. Reds can be driven at 750. You need to get the forward voltages at these currents to get max brightness, which I am guessing you want.

[jvward]

Hi Darth_Chasm,


I attached my tables as images to make them easier. I thought I calculated my resistor values correctly (and I think your saying I didnt which is fine :P, its what I was hoping for) using the specified forward voltage from the vendor? Is there some change I need to do since I am using a 2400mAh battery? or are you saying for each LED I should use 1000 MilliAmps instead of the ma Value I used?

Update** I think I get what your saying per the vendors page every LED can be used at 1000 ma even the red (https://www.etsy.com/uk/transaction/1123382170 ). Do the tables below look correct now?

13571

13572

[darth_chasm]

For example's sake http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/Blue-Cree-XP-E2-CopperNova-P993.aspx

Blue Cree XP-E2
(3.7-3.4)/1=0.3ohms
0.3*1^2=0.3watts

These can be rounded up to the next most common resistor value/size http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/47ohm-5w-resistor-P947.aspx

Rinse, repeat for other colors.

[jvward]

Hi Darth,

Got it, I updated my tables accordingly.
so basically getting values like .6 ohm .6 watts for the blue LEDs and .2 ohm .2 whats for the white LEDs, so I should be using the exact resistor you listed:

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/47ohm-5w-resistor-P947.aspx

For the Red LED I got 1.6 ohm and 1.6 watts, but the vendor said I may want to go with something like this:

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/12ohm-3w-resistor-P22.aspx

Since the vendor said to mix the red and blue to get purple I should use a 3 watt resistor on the RED led?

For the LED on my momentary switch, one of these should be ok? 20mA DynaOhm™ Variable Resistor: http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/20mA-DynaOhm-Variable-Resistor-P847.aspx

Do I need to worry about resistors on the NB v3 or the speaker?

[darth_chasm]

Hi Darth,

Got it, I updated my tables accordingly.
I can only comment on the specs given by TCSS ;) They are different in terms of forward voltage.

so basically getting values like .6 ohm .6 watts for the blue LEDs and .2 ohm .2 whats for the white LEDs, so I should be using the exact resistor you listed:
No. 0.47 would be too low for something coming out to 0.6. you always round up, never down.

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/47ohm-5w-resistor-P947.aspx

For the Red LED I got 1.6 ohm and 1.6 watts, but the vendor said I may want to go with something like this:
Per TCSS specs, that would be an acceptable resistor for the red to run at near max current.

http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/12ohm-3w-resistor-P22.aspx

Since the vendor said to mix the red and blue to get purple I should use a 3 watt resistor on the RED led?
Wattage only refers to the amount of power the resistor dissipates. It does not affect color intensity or mixing abilities. You'll want to experiment with resistor values (ohms) when mixing the way your are. Madcow made a video on the subject which you can find in the videos section.

For the LED on my momentary switch, one of these should be ok? 20mA DynaOhm™ Variable Resistor: http://www.thecustomsabershop.com/20mA-DynaOhm-Variable-Resistor-P847.aspx
Many people choose to use that and it's fine. Too big in my opinion, but its an easy solution.
Do I need to worry about resistors on the NB v3 or the speaker?
No. Neither the NB nor the speaker require resistors.


Oh, and you can call me DC :)

[jvward]

Hi Darth,

Thanks for all the info and from preventing me from ordering the wrong resistors! Might I hit you up for one last question :) If I am using TrustFire Protected 3.7V 2400mAh 18650 Lithium Battery can I use Switchcraft 2.1mm Power Jack only for its "kill key" functions and not as a charging port? (if it works as charging port also thats an added bonus!)

-Jeff

[darth_chasm]

I believe you can use it as a kill key, but I think it's not recommended to charge removable cells with it. Someone with more experience can weigh in if I'm wrong on that.

[NanoRex]

If you're going to have a removable cell instead of in-hilt recharge, it might be more convenient to use a kill switch instead of a kill key. That way you don't have a little greebly floating around waiting to get lost ;)

[jvward]

Thanks NanoRex and Darth. Just wondering in the hilt where is the ideal place to have the sound card, towards the end, centered, or as close to the LED as possible?

[darth_chasm]

Typically toward one end or the other. Pommel end is more common and generally easier. Look up resonance chamber or just resonance for more info.

[Greenie]

Thanks NanoRex and Darth. Just wondering in the hilt where is the ideal place to have the sound card, towards the end, centered, or as close to the LED as possible?

Placing the sound board away from the middle can help make motion sensing more responsive :mrgreen:

[darth_chasm]

Placing the sound board away from the middle can help make motion sensing more responsive :mrgreen:

Thanks for the save. I misread and thought he said speaker. :oops:

[jvward]

Who wants to see some finished product!

So for the record I am a volunteer EMT for a few years and have recently started doing volunteer fire fighting, and maglights have always been my go to service flashlight and something I always thing of when I think of armed forces of any type. So the design principle behind my first two sabers, were for them to be used by a force sensitive storm trooper (I know they probably wouldn't use blue and or purple but that's the colors I wanted!) Anyway I hope you guys enjoy and thanks for all the help! Especially Thanks to DC for answering all my questions!

1368713688136891369013691

[Cire Yeldarb]

Nice job!