check out my new project

[Bryguy17]

well, its technically not mine, but hell if part of my tuition doesnt go towards the school machine shop

i've got a:
haas mini mill (5 axis)
haas mini lathe (CNC)
engine lathes
broach
standard knee mill (with 3 axis capabilities)
grinder
plus a bunch of other things.

as long as i make a good fixture for it, I'm good to make pretty much whatever i can reasonably design.

saving money isnt the only reason im building my own light either. im a tinkerer. i design random things when im bored, then try and make them. It's just something I've always liked to do (even when it was just with LEGOs :bang

 

[OTHRIDER]

Bryguy, you sure make purdy pictures!

I feel that my background in Non-Destructive testing requires a "First-Article" sample for a more thorough examination. Please include a magnesium assembly at you convenience. Thank you. :beer:

 

[katonk]

STR Light Building Day? I could see it happening...

I can see the coarse schedule now...

STR Trail Lighting Systems Clinic 101 - We will be building your first 7.2 volt lighting system: a basic head lamp and battery charging system. Coarse fee: $85. 15 to 20 hours.
Prerequisites: CNC safety and basic operation 101, Soldering for Howebrew applications 101, Electronic Theory and practical uses for Homebrew lighting applications 101

STR Trail Lighting Systems Clinic 102 - We will be building your first 12 volt trail lighting system: a triple cree handle bar mounted lamp. Alternative charging sources (automotive electrical systems) will be explored. Coarse fee: $175. 22 to 36 hours.
Prerequisites: STR Trail Lighting Systems Clinic 101, STR Fully Loop Night Riding 101a and 101b (101b is optional, but recommended)

CNC safety and basic operation 101 - We will be reviewing basic safety and operation of CNC systems. Computer controlled fabrication will be explored. Coarse fee: Free with registration to STR Trail Lighting Systems Clinic 101. 22 hours.

Soldering for Howebrew applications 101 - We will build some basic projects to familiarize the student with proper soldering technique and safety. Dangers of lead inhalation and it's effects will be prominent. Coarse fee: $25 plus $10 lab fee. 4 Hours.

Electronic Theory and practical uses for Homebrew lighting applications 101 - We will explore Ohms law, resister band counting, and sourcing for various components. Coarse fee: $22. 30 Hours.

STR Fully Loop Night Riding 101a and 101b - 101a: We will be riding the fully loop with you new 7.2 trail lighting system. Frequent stops for lighting systems adjustments and re-soldering will be made. Coarse fee: Free. 1.5 Hours. 101b: We will be making final adjustments to you lighting system over beers at Roscoe's. Coarse fee: varies. Unknown hours.

 

[Bryguy17]

noice.... sign me up for all of them :beer:

 

[BrewMaster]

Shoot, when you make it like school it doesn't sound like as much fun to me! Electronic theory? That could be cool, but I don't know any of that and I am building away!

 

[katonk]

Shoot, when you make it like school it doesn't sound like as much fun to me! Electronic theory? That could be cool, but I don't know any of that and I am building away!

Better study up, 'cause you're gonna be teaching it! :lol:

 

[spookydave]

Shoot, when you make it like school it doesn't sound like as much fun to me! Electronic theory? That could be cool, but I don't know any of that and I am building away!

first you need to know the resistor color code.

Here is an easy way to remember the order of the colors.

Big
Boys
Rape
our
young
girls
but
viloet
gives
willing

(tolarance bands)
get
some
now


I learned that over 20 years ago. I bet they don't teach with that rhyme anymore. lol

 

[katonk]

I learned it as Big Boys Ravish Our Young Girls But Violet Gives Willingly to Gentlemen Speaking Nicely.

 

[Bryguy17]

thats...nice....

i was thinking, what if i make 2 smaller lights with 2leds each? it would give me a smaller package, and allow me to use some of my 3s hobby lipos to power them for roughly 2.5 hrs each at 1A without killing my packs (only discharging 1800mA as opposed to the rated 2170mA)

it would also let me use less expensive drivers (could just use a buckpuck in each) and give me an extra 200 lumens of light :bang:

any thoughts?

 

[katonk]

The usefulness of that may depend on the beam pattern of your other lights. Maybe set them up with narrow beam optics and angle them for a little extra throw? Or as a headlamp? Or backup lights?

 

[spookydave]

thats...nice....

i was thinking, what if i make 2 smaller lights with 2leds each? it would give me a smaller package, and allow me to use some of my 3s hobby lipos to power them for roughly 2.5 hrs each at 1A without killing my packs (only discharging 1800mA as opposed to the rated 2170mA)

it would also let me use less expensive drivers (could just use a buckpuck in each) and give me an extra 200 lumens of light :bang:

any thoughts?

that is just what I'm doing

 

[Bryguy17]

yah, so basically i would have 2x 2-led pods running ledil's for a tunable beam on the bar, and then ill have a 2-led helmet light using McR19-XR reflectors for a bit more spot. so i can run the same brightness (somewhere around 650 lumen)over the whole setup at 750mA or less, or i can crank it and pump out a 1200ish lumen high beam for the descents:bang::bang::beer:

of course, i could shell out for R2 bins and crank out an unholy 1600 lumens running at 1A

 

[spookydave]

of course, i could shell out for R2 bins and crank out an unholy 1600 lumens running at 1A

ding ding ding, that's my plan. 4 on the bar and 2 on the lid.

Dang, are you going to force me to put six on the bar now? haha, I did a drawing for one today. It looks mean too.

 

[Bryguy17]

dave, are we going to have to have a light race going here? i can just keep adding 2 emitter pods to the bar for an extra 500 lumens each...:?:

if i run out of bar room, get a bar extender that attaches to the fork lowers so i can add 4 or so on top of whats on the bar...

this could be really expensive/awesome :lol:, plus, the two of us would be able to light up the whole loop for the rest of the thursday night ride :bang:

 

[katonk]

Wow. That's a lot of lumens. Are you guys trying to signal aircraft? Need to be visible from space for some reason?

 

[spookydave]

dave, are we going to have to have a light race going here? i can just keep adding 2 emitter pods to the bar for an extra 500 lumens each...:?:

if i run out of bar room, get a bar extender that attaches to the fork lowers so i can add 4 or so on top of whats on the bar...

this could be really expensive/awesome :lol:, plus, the two of us would be able to light up the whole loop for the rest of the thursday night ride :bang:

you might have to step up to a dual crown fork so you have more places to mount lights. :lol:

For now I'll stick with a 4 banger. I only got the 7.2Ah battery. Heck, if I knew I would have went with the 9.6Ah battery. That one is starting to get heavy though.

I do think runing 2 sets of 2 is a good way to go though. Brewmaster's 14.8V 4400ma battery uses 8 cells. The 11.1V 7200ma battery I bought uses 9 cells. Not much of a weight gain there.

Wonder why those AyUp lights are so light? They run them soft (prolly 350ma or less) and only use 2 cell batterys.

 

[Bryguy17]

ayups aren't driven iirc, thats why they're so light. its just a thin aluminum shell, plastic handlebar mount, and emitters and batteries. not too much.

the big plus for me making several 2-led lights is that i can use my 3s (11.1V) 2170mAh hobby lipos that i use in my helicopter. only 150-170g depending on which one i use.

 

[Bryguy17]

i worked up a new design idea for the bar pods. I'm quite happy with the new design, since its smaller, and probably lighter since i eliminated 2 fasteners from the face. the design is complete aside from holes, an o-ring slot, and correcting the thickness depending on the thickness of the LED stars.

the area cut off the back is where the carbon fiber rear shell will slide on. extra volume for electronics without too much added weight :beer:

on to the show: