So before the Holidays I pulled the trigger on my order for my first build. I didn't want to make another "What do i need to buy" thread, so I did a bit of research and came up with the following. I suppose I'm looking for some opinions.
I based my schematics off of Jay-Gon Jinn's PVC hilt thread, but noticed it was intended for children. Naturally, me and my buddies would want to spar with our sabers (Before we pull the trigger on full MHS kits), and I decided to make the first two using a PVC hilt. In addition to sparring, we want brighter blades that hopefully can be seen in mild daylight. Since the guide uses thin walled blades, I figured I'd have to up the power to the LED with a stronger driver.
I wasn't quite ready to get a tri-star so I started simple- I can always get a resistor if my buckpuck is too powerful or someone thinks it could be improved, in addition to a higher powered LED. At worst, I make a few returns.
Well, here it is:
Electronics:
-2 Luxeon 1-UP Rebel Star, Deep Red in color- rated between 350mA and 700mA
-1" OD heatsink for ease of use and the ability to power future, stronger leds
-5 degree and 8.7 degree lenses with holders
-Buckpuck with Dimmer, rated at 700mA (Twice the mA in Jinn's guide)
-4-cell AAA battery holder
-2 Latching on/off switches with Wire Leads.
What I regret not buying:
-18650 battery holder with battery
Saber:
-2 40" Clear Polycarbonate Thick-Walled blades w/ Shouldered Blade tips.
-2 Homemade PVC hilts. A respirator is nice for carving the PVC with power tools- those fumes and dust are bad.
-End caps of my sabers will have holes drilled in them in the very, very rare case of a battery malfunction. Just being safe.
So this is my general list, and thats where I'm at.
I don't have a drawn up schematic on my laptop (I prefer graph paper and pencils), but I intend to power the driver with 4 AAA's for the first test, this should come out a little above the minimum or right at its minimum voltage requirements, if im right. 4 1.5v batteries=6v in total.
So If im right, this is the proper order for configuring the electronics:
Battery (6v to start)--> Dimming 700mA buckpuck---> On/off Button (Needed with the dimming button?)---> Luxeon 1-Up Rebel star inside heatsink---> Cram-Fu!
Of course, everything will be tested before being assembled.
So, does it check out guys? I like to think I've done my research on this one- if not, please point it out to me! Tips are welcome!
My main concerns/questions so far are:
-Battery life/power, will my 6v setup run that 700mA buckpuck for a decent amount of time? If im right, it should do well.
-Is running that 1-up at its maximum rated mA going to shorten its lifespan? Overall, how long should it last?
-Brightness of a home-rolled blade, will tediously rolling a load of cellophane diffuse my LED properly? I'll be using a very thin dowel.
-Is the 700mA driver overkill? I figured the dimmer will help if its just too much power/drains too quickly.
-If i wanted to include an on-off button in addition to the dimmer switch, would I add it in between the buckpuck and led or would it have to be in-front of the dimmer?
I apologize if my list is jumbled or I have used improper electronic terminology- I'm still getting into it each day. I hope I've adequately researched all my parts, if anything appears unsafe or unusable, again, point it out!
Advice, comments, and input in general are more than welcome and highly appreciated! I can't wait for my packages to arrive this week!
Bookmarks