STR | SocalTrailRiders.org
Your Southern California
Mountain Biking Community
|
|||||||
| The Workshop Get and give help on repairs, installations, maintenance, and general bike tech. |
 |
|
|
Thread Tools |
11-13-2007, 07:50 AM
|
#1 (permalink) |
|
Thirsty
 |
Anyone ever build their own MTB light?
I have a buddy who built his own MTB light that he uses on the Fully Loop. He soldered D-cell rechargeables together to make his battery pack.
I am looking to do something similar with rechargeable batteries and some LEDs from www.superbrightleds.com. This would be a fun project in addition to saving me money on a light system. I've googled it a bit, but my biggest block is the batteries. I don't know much about electrical engineering, so I am clueless when it comes to selecting a battery pack for use as is or cells to solder together. Anyone have suggestions on where to start or their own experience building an MTB light? Thanks.
__________________
Solo rides are good for the soul. |
|
| post thanked by: |
Do Work (11-13-2007)
|
|
11-13-2007, 07:52 AM
|
#2 (permalink) |
|
Duan'er - 29'er remixed
|
i thought about it as i have one projector lense from a crashed 2007 GTi w/ bulb, projector, and ballast. And since i used to race RC cars i have a grip of NimH batteries and was thinking bout rigging something up...oh it's a bi-xenon projector too so you can hit a switch/button and the shutter will open to reveal ALL the light
__________________
-Duan Dulce et Decorum Click the Button  
|
|
|
| post thanked by: |
BrewMaster (11-13-2007)
|
|
11-13-2007, 07:54 AM
|
#3 (permalink) |
|
Client 9
|
It can be done we have the Technology. We can make it better, faster, stronger. Thats from the six million dollar man.
Yea I thought about making one myself.
__________________
And the hangovers hurt more than they used to And corn bread and ice tea took the place of pills and 80 proof And it seems like none of us do the things quite like we used to do And nobody wants to get high on the town And all my rowdy friends have settled down -Hank Williams Jr. |
|
|
| post thanked by: |
|
11-13-2007, 08:01 AM
|
#5 (permalink) |
|
SoCalMTBubbs
|
If you check on Empty Beer, there are a bunch of threads and links about how to do it. I may be making one too.
|
|
|
| post thanked by: |
BrewMaster (11-13-2007)
|
|
11-13-2007, 08:03 AM
|
#6 (permalink) | |
|
E-Expert
|
Just
Quote:
http://www.superbrightleds.com/flashlights.htm
__________________
Fired Yo Momma "Some of the ***** members take that sh!t too serious. They need to chill out... drink some fire water... and smoke their peace pipe." Burner (#1 Kobe Fan!) "OC is like Ohio, just near the beach." |
|
|
|
| post thanked by: |
BrewMaster (11-13-2007),
Wrecker (11-13-2007)
|
|
11-13-2007, 08:58 AM
|
#8 (permalink) | |
|
E-Expert
|
Chicken.....
Quote:
__________________
Fired Yo Momma "Some of the ***** members take that sh!t too serious. They need to chill out... drink some fire water... and smoke their peace pipe." Burner (#1 Kobe Fan!) "OC is like Ohio, just near the beach." |
|
|
|
|
11-13-2007, 09:11 AM
|
#9 (permalink) | |
|
Which way did he go?
|
Quote:
 He must travel with the worlds longest extension cord....Love to see photos of the invention.
__________________
The only reason people get lost in thought is because it's unfamiliar territory.
|
|
|
|
| post thanked by: |
BrewMaster (11-13-2007),
sdyeti (11-13-2007)
|
|
11-13-2007, 09:19 AM
|
#10 (permalink) | |
|
The Flying Hawaiian
|
Quote:
|
|
|
|
| post thanked by: |
BrewMaster (11-13-2007),
coldbrews (11-13-2007)
|
|
11-13-2007, 09:21 AM
|
#11 (permalink) |
|
STR Veteran
|
I would pay anyone who is mechanically savvy enough to make one, to make a second for me... I have wanted to, but I suck.
here are some good links to where all the homebrew/DIY lighting stuff is going on to keep up with all the latest LED's and lenses, etc. http://www.candlepowerforums.com/ http://forums.mtbr.com/forumdisplay.php?f=124 some dude putting 1000 lumens on his helmet http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=354430 this thread seems to cover some of the basics of component selection http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=355960 |
|
|
| post thanked by: |
BrewMaster (11-13-2007),
foofighter (11-13-2007)
|
|
11-13-2007, 09:25 AM
|
#12 (permalink) |
|
Pickettt
|
No need to use D cells. Rechargeable AA batteries are running as much as 2700 mAh nowadays and do suffice. You can connect 5 AA cells in series to create a 6 volt 2.7 mAh battery or 10 AA cells to create a 12 volt battery. In all actuality you would want to connect 11 to create a 13.2 volt battery to overamp a 12 volt bulb. If you want more run time, you'll need to connect the cells in parallel. Any questions?
|
|
|
| post thanked by: |
|
11-13-2007, 09:26 AM
|
#13 (permalink) | |
|
Which way did he go?
|
Quote:
__________________
The only reason people get lost in thought is because it's unfamiliar territory.
|
|
|
|
| post thanked by: |
COLEKO (11-13-2007)
|
|
11-13-2007, 09:36 AM
|
#14 (permalink) | ||
|
Thirsty
|
Quote:
holy crap those were some complicated threads to understand. I felt like I just walked into an alien space ship or something. this could be more complicated than I thought. I may try to build a lame prototype just to tool around and find out what I don't know. Quote:
__________________
Solo rides are good for the soul. |
||
|
|
|
11-13-2007, 09:56 AM
|
#16 (permalink) |
|
Member
|
instructables.com
Not being at all mechanically inclined, I've never tried any of these builds...one of them might work for you.
http://www.instructables.com/tag/?so...nstructable=on |
|
|
| post thanked by: |
BrewMaster (11-17-2007)
|
|
11-13-2007, 10:03 AM
|
#17 (permalink) |
|
Senior Member
|
I had an old nightrider light that didn't work. The battery wouldn't hold a decent charge and somthing was fried in the microprocessor/turn-on switch. I was looking into building up a battery from scratch. After figuring out how much it would cost and the time to do it, I just decided to buy a water bottle battery and charger from batteryspace.com. I got rid of the whole microprocessor/turn-on switch and re-wired the bulbs with individual switches. I also use the battery (13.2v) for running my Sirius radio on my roadbike when commuting to work.
I got alot of info from the mtbr threads. Of course mine is an ancient halogen system. The way to go now is LED's. |
|
|
|
11-13-2007, 10:09 AM
|
#18 (permalink) |
|
THE Penultimate Mtb'er
|
John actually built up an LED light; I'll forward the thread to him so he can give instructions. I believe that the problem he had with it was long time use and heat venting. But, I'll have to check with him.....
__________________
"There are too many factors you have to take into account that you have no control over...The most important factor you can keep in your own hands is yourself. I always placed the greatest emphasis on that."
|
|
|
|
11-13-2007, 10:47 AM
|
#19 (permalink) |
|
Pickettt
|
More or less. Of course you have to match the bulb voltage to your battery. It is, however, safe to overvolt a bulb by 10% safely. Anymore than that and your bulb will burn out. mAh determine run time and will normally be printed on the cells themselves. Do you understand the difference between series and parallel wiring?
|
|
|