Wiring Help?

[madhorizons]

I added two buckpucks into my hilt and took the resistor out. I'm not 100% sure if I hooked everything up right. The blade is only a little brighter, but barely noticeable.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v694/madhorizons/My%20Nihilus/CRW_2006.jpg

Basically:

4AAA Battery holder
Red LuxIII (with silver thermal grease between it & heat sink)
40" thick-walled blade
Diffusion Tube

Battery(+) --> switch --> VIN+ on both buckpucks
Battery(-) --> VIN- on both buckpucks
Both Buckpuck LED(+) --> LED(+)
Both Buckpuck LED(-) --> LED(-)

it sux...i did it in visio and have no idea what i'm doing...but...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v694/madhorizons/My%20Nihilus/hilt_electronics.jpg

I'm at a loss...but really don't like having a dim area that's obvious in it. Also, i've seen Red LuxIII be brighter than a MR Vader or Maul...but this one is not. It just seems I'm not getting the most out of it and it's beginning to be frustrating.

Any ideas?

EDIT: And i sanded the outside with a very fine grit too (~200 i think)

[xwingband]

Your diagram looks correct.

The issue would be the diffuser... It looks like a TCSS one. On a 40" thickwalled that's what is making it suffer. For a blade that long (and thick to boot!) I would switch to another or add PolyP to that one.

Otherwise unless you left out something like the lens, your blade is most likely the issue.

[madhorizons]

the PolyP? i think someone else said something about that....what's that? i'm a total n00b...is that something sold here?

[Arm on Fire]

polyp is just cellophane gift wrap ,available at most craft stores.

[madhorizons]

OOhhh...gotcha. Thx...i'll try it and take new pics...i may even get out the green led and take new pix

[Eandori]

Can you measure current? That's the easiest way to verify the Buckpucks are working right. If not... can you measure voltage? You should see around 3.4v across the red luxeon III when it's passing 1.5A.

[madhorizons]

Can you measure current? That's the easiest way to verify the Buckpucks are working right. If not... can you measure voltage? You should see around 3.4v across the red luxeon III when it's passing 1.5A.

I'll have to see if i can track down something to measure it....i don't personally have a meter.

EDIT: How are you folks getting the polyP inside the hard diffuser? How flimsy is the stuff?

[B5813]

Just roll the wrap so that it fits fairly snug against the inside of the blade. You may have to unroll/re-roll a couple(few) times until you've got it right. Once you have the poly tube rolled then roll the stock store diffuser around that and shim it back inside the blade. KEEP THE SURFACE OF THE WRAP CLEAN WHILE YOU'RE ROLLING IT!!!!! You'll be pissed if you finish and light up your blade only to see small spots from where large pieces of dust, dirt, or hair have stuck.
In the future you may want to think about sanding the inside of the blade as well. The poly wrap will definitely make a big difference for starters though.

[Jay-gon Jinn]

What I do when I make one of the double-filmed blades is to have the outermost roll already in the blade. Then roll up the cellophane to fit inside that. It's much easier than trying to wrap another roll with another type of film.