Night Lights

[Martha]

Jonathan, what size LED lamp did you use for the pole lights, what size resistor? and what gauge/type wire and what did you use for the "lamp" base? Oh also, how many poles did you run together? Do you think I can run 10 in parallel, 12 feet in lenght? I plan to use either a 3.0 volt or 4.5 volt wall wart do you think that is sufficient?

I have 10 Telephone poles I would like to create something similar for Jamestown, my Christmas village. Here is the photo I am referencing. BTW ingenious how you come up with these awesome ideas. Jamestown is out of control with lights!!! I can't seem to get enough and now I am making my own LED lamp connections or "strands" of wire to go on trees. Just still a novice and doing things hit or miss right now. 



Thanks for any info you or others may have. I have picked jbrock27, doneldon, rogertra and many others minds asking questions and I am so thankful!

[jonathan]

Good Morning, Martha.

I started with a 9 volt wall wart, can't recall the amperage.  With a 9 volt, you can string many LEDs in parallel without losing any brightness.

All my lighting is either 3mm LEDs or 0603 surface mount LEDS (SMD).  If I run a lamp in parrallel, by itself, I used a 1K ohm resistor.  I have also strung three LEDs in series using a 560 ohm resistor on the negative side.  I prefer the individual wiring.  If you have a problem, it's easier to isolate.

Metal lampposts are 1/16" aluminum tubing.  You have to use magnet wire (30-gage) to get the wire to thread through the tubing. Wooden lampposts are dowels with holes drill in them for the LED leads.  Can't recall the diameter of the posts, but they are bit thick, for sturdiness.

For the 3mm LEDs I used leftover plastic wheels for the lampshades.  Drill the center to 1/8" and the LED fits snug (pressure fit).  For the SMDs, I purchased those brass lampshades (fleabay) for a dollar a piece.  I also made my own lampshades using those little plastic pill packs that come with Kadee coupler packs.  Cutting those pill packs is tricky and doesn't always work.

Hope that helps some.  

Regards,

Jonathan

[Martha]

Thank you thank you thank you! You have given me lots of useful info and ideas. I have to say the aluminum bent tube, pill capsules, old plastic wheels, my kind of thinking. Now I have ordered a bunch of 3 and 5 mm leds to play with. and I am digging through all my "what do these wall warts go to" pile and I salvaged some nice small gauge wire from usb cords that went to

I will share when I get some of my projects completed. Christmas is still a little ways away.

Thanks again! M

[Doneldon]

Martha-

This may sound peculiar but put sand inside of your aluminum tubes before bending them. Then dump or blow it out after. This will keep the tubing round where you bend it. Otherwise it can flatten at the bend which doesn't look good and which can make it hard to feed wires through.
                                                                                                                                                                                               -- D

[Martha]

Thanks for that tip! I was trying to think what I could use without buying special tubing bender spring looking thingies. I think that is how Jonathan described those spring looking thingies. Still get a chuckle out of that!

[jonathan]

  Yep. Those springy things don't work very well!  I strung electrical wired through the tubes and bent very slowly, around a screwdriver shank, to maintain the shape.  Even using that method, I had a few tubes that flattened out a bit.  I like Doneldon's sand idea.  I'll have to try that next time I'm making lampposts.

Regards,

Jonathan

[jbrock27]

If you did not have sand readily available, would inserting a piece of wire, just a little thinner in guage than the metal tube work?  Just pull the wire out of the tube after making the bend.  (?)

[Doneldon]

If you did not have sand readily available, would inserting a piece of wire, just a little thinner in guage than the metal tube work?  Just pull the wire out of the tube after making the bend.  (?)

Jim-

I haven't tried it but I'm thinking the tube might flatten just to the size of the wire inside and trap it. I suppose that would be okay if the tube carries one side of a circuit and the insulated encased wire the other. Or if one side of a circuit goes up inside of a tube with the other side in a different light pole. Of course there wouldn't be any reason to put wires inside if the lights are strung pole to pole. Just use two poles to get the power up to the tops of the poles. But a piece of wire would still be needed in every pole to prevent flattening,

I have bending springs for 1/2" and 3/4" copper tubing and they work beautifully. I never saw springs small enough for say 1/8" tubing (still a foot wide in HO) so I started using sand. You can also use styrene rod if it isn't necessary to run wires inside; styrene won't come out.
                                                                                                                                                                                               -- D

[Martha]

This is why I love this site/forum so much. Its one huge think tank. We all have ideas none the only way to do it, we take it as we want to take it in. We can agree to disagree if we want. NO ONE on this site has EVER made me feel dumb, inferior, talked down to me because I am a novice and ask questions over and over. I have been on a few other sites way back when I first started Jamestown and lets just say they are snotty condescending jerks. So here's to the hokey pokey, the spring thingies and to Jamestown! This gal is very fortunate to have found such a nice bunch of people to help me.

[jbrock27]

Thank you for those kind words Martha. I make an effort to try not making people feel that way.  Some may disagree, but I believe that often their lack of humility or easily being embarrassed, prevents them from seeing what I am telling them for what it intends to be; helpful.  As you see, many more folks take the helpful approach here over the put down approach.  Many of the posters to this thread are classic examples of those that make the effort to be helpful.

[electrical whiz kid]

Doneldon;
Most of my bending experience has been in the electrical field; but with regards to bending aluminum tube:  Sand I know about, but was wondering over the possibilities of using heat also.  Your thoughts.
Rich C.

[Irbricksceo]

aluminum melts at more than 1300 degrees Fahrenheit so it might be a bit tricky!

[Doneldon]

Doneldon;
Most of my bending experience has been in the electrical field; but with regards to bending aluminum tube:  Sand I know about, but was wondering over the possibilities of using heat also.  Your thoughts.
Rich C.

Rich-

I haven't tried so let me be clear up front that this is just my best guess, uninformed by experience.

I'm afraid the tubing would flatten even if heated. In fact, I think it would be more likely to flatten because the degree of bending would be the same but the softened metal would have less resistance to the pressure. It would be easier for the bender, of course.
                                                                                                                                                                    -- D

[Martha]

Hello Jonathan I'm Back! I need your advice or anyone else who might know, how can I hook up these lights to an adapter? and what size adapter? I want to do away with the battery power Do I need a resistor? How do I hook them up so I don't burn out this set of cool lights? They use 3 AA batteries, so the novice I am think that means maybe a 4.5 volts? But hey, I thought that a few days ago and burned up a nice set of lights on a tree so....... I am sure I am wrong on this guess.

This is the battery box with switchable choices. I'd like to keep that feature if at all possible


As you can see they are tiny lamps on two wires, is this magnet wire?


This is the circuit board inside the little black box


This it the other side of that circuit board


There are 2 wires to go to the battery terminals and 2 wires to go to the lamps.

I sent these photos to help view this particular problem I am having. I am pretty sure I would need to snip the 2 wires going to the battery terminals to use for the connection to an adapter. The BIG BIG question for me is what adapter would I use? a 4.5 volt? a 3.5 volt to be safe? what?

There is nothing on the black box or the packing it came in of what volts they are or what they pull. All you are suppose to do is add 3 AA batteries, and turn it on. However I do not want anything powered by batteries, this is why I want to change the power source.

I don't have a multi meter to check anything (that is on order). So I hope someone out there can help me. Thanks!

[Doneldon]

Martha-

You are right that three AA batteries put out 4.5 volts. One thing you can do is connect a 4.5 v DC output wall wart to the inputs on the small circuit board and not worry about what that board does or doesn't do to the electricity. That would also preserve your ability to control the brightness and flashing speed.
                          -- D