Starship Modeler Discussion Forums

I have also had nothing but good luck from Hong Kong and Chinese shippers. I do the Buy It Now, look at the cheapest ones, and then from there choose sellers with nearly perfect feedback. Of course with 100,000 sales they are going to have a few negs, but I am comfortable with 99.5 and above. I don'...

I have not done any computations for batteries. I modified an ATX power supply to put out 6V and I use it to power all the models.

I am watching this thread carefully now to see if I should start wiring in series where possible.

I run all my led wiring in parallel. Otherwise when one bulb dies it takes the entire circuit with it, correct? As for a schematic, I am not the one to ask. I can barely read a simple one much less draw one for you to read. I couldn't find any decent walk-throughs by other modelers when planning min...

This was one of the very first models I lit up too (just finished a couple months ago). I had a lot of trouble with the wiring from the nacelles through the flat part of the "wings", because of the 2 leds that need to be installed inside that flat part as well. I did not have a good plan f...

What sizes of wires, resistors, LEDs, and fiber optics do you typically use? In addition to what Ziz said, I would like to add that almost all starships (except Klingon ships) I can think of use white LEDs so they are a safe bet to stock up on. I have only lit a few ships so far, but I discovered t...

My booth is pretty large and oddly shaped compared to a tupperware bin or cardboard box, and it's permanent. So I probably have a different perspective than most. I do think an important part of lighting is to paint the booth white so it's more efficient. Florescent - pros: low profile and out of th...

I am using an 18in enclosed fluorescent fixture from Walmart. I did cut the plug off briefly to wire a switch into the line and add a few more feet of length so I could run it to an outlet.

Does the trick.

Thanks. I recently bought a hundred pack of 3mm warm white LEDs and also packs of different resistors off of Ebay a while back so I'm ready. However, I do intend to test the gow bulbs against the leds to make sure the brightness is comparable. Those leds aren't very bright and if they are not accept...

Very good!

I am embarking on my fiber optic DS9 model. It comes with "grain of wheat" bulbs. It seems I should use LEDs with resistors instead due to the lifespan of the bulbs (plus the heat).

Am I missing something?

Bah I wish you would have noticed the thread that went on as I was getting ready to build mine. It would have saved me about 2 hours of cutting through 8 inches of concrete block

In the end though, I'm glad I built the permanent ventilation. It has worked out great and only one filter to change.

From what I have read here and other places, building a ventilation system that does not go outside is a pipe dream. You'll find contraptions that use buckets and supposedly filter out the fumes but everything that I have read in previous discussions says they don't work and the room ends up stinkin...

Darph Bobo wrote:How about these?

http://www.thefiberopticstore.com/purch ... -Fiber.htm

Those look really promising for nacelle lighting in smaller lengths. I will definitely be trying out some 5mm for my next project that requires it.

Who can these be ordered from????? :8) I stumbled across it while googling. Since there were quite a few places that seem to carry it I posted the manufacturer's link as to not be biased. Here are a couple that list it currently in stock: http://www.amazon.com/Logisys-RM04-4-Channel-Remote-Control/...

Here is a 12v 4 channel battery operated remote transmitter and receiver that is sold by tech and computer hardware sites all over the internet: http://www.elogisys.com/viewsku.asp?SKUID=RM04&DID=REMOTE I was looking at this for my setup but opted against it. It says it controls 12V appliances, ...

I have also been searching for this. It would be really useful to be able to cut a strip for a nacelle and wire it straight into the same 6v supply I use for the rest of the model without needing an inverter. I am still using LEDs and still unable to produce a really uniform glow with straws, styren...

Thanks, guys.

I bought a 100 pack of the warm white 3mm off of Ebay. They are indeed yellowish when you compare them to "cool white" LEDs. In the first link, the light panels over top of the MSD where the guy is pointing are 8mm cool white LEDs from Unique Leds. The floor is also lit with the 8mm cool w...

Put a voltmeter on the 5v rail and see if it's fluctuating. Seems to be the most straight forward way.

So the effect is not cumulative? What if I soldered a bunch of resistors in a row and then sent the current through, would it come out the same as if I used only one resistor? To use an analogy, if I fire a bullet at a board, it will be slowed down but still pass through. When it hits a second board...

I will attempt to answer your question to see if I have a proper understanding. If the lamps are all connected one after the other, and one dies, the connection is broken to all that follow. But if they each have a dedicated path to the power source, they are not affected by the other LEDs burning o...

So going by the problems demonstrated here and then explained by tetsujin, is it better to just always run LEDs in parallel? Is there a scenario in model building when series is better?

I was the most recent person to ask this question. I ended up making my own tube out of .10 sheet styrene. I rolled it up, glued it with Tamiya Extra Thin and stuck an 8mm superbright led in each end and hot-glued them in there. It's still a bit brighter at the ends than in the middle, but it's far ...

Here ya go

Stolen from another thread with the same question.

Doesn't he have to add up the amperage of his LED's for this? I am just learning about electronics but one of the very first lessons was making sure the power supply can handle the load. The Trek Modeler DIY kit for the Refit comes with 56 led's. When you calculate the resistance needed for a normal...

Thanks, Tchail, I appreciate the effort. That product wouldn't help me regulate my 12v power supply to between 6 and 9 volts though. The VR circuit I built does a great job and was really simple to do as well.

Update: For my bench supply I did modify the power supply and built in the VR circuit. I made a box for the connectors that will look a bit nicer on the bench and ran the power switch next to the edge of the bench so I don't have to reach around the models. I will still just use a 1.5 or 2amp wall w...

Thanks for the terminology tip. I'm picking this stuff up as I go. I already have the LM317 to build the regulator circuit and was about to go buy parts to build it until Scott posted a link for a 9v wall wart that will supply 1.5v. That appears to be enough to run multiple lighting kits with no pro...

Wow I could have used your help in this thread.

Better late then never though, and a much cleaner solution. Thanks!

Hah I already have 12v coming out of my ATX power supply. I am trying to step it down to 9v. If I could find a 9v 1.5a wall wart I'd be in business! And I am learning too. It's slowing down my modeling but I am having fun. As an aside, the ATX power supplies also have a 5v rail that can evidently pu...