a-wing lighting

Ask and answer questions, share tips and resources for installing lighting and other electronics in your models.

Moderators: Sparky, Moderators

Post Reply
darthwiley
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon Oct 05, 2009 9:15 pm

a-wing lighting

Post by darthwiley »

I have an old snap-together a-wing and want to add engine lighting. Are there any good instructions/suggestions out there?

Thanks.
KWSTAS
Posts: 64
Joined: Tue Jul 28, 2009 2:41 pm

Post by KWSTAS »

Just use a couple of leds with 2 resistors and a 9v battery.
en'til Zog
Posts: 2405
Joined: Fri Jul 12, 2002 3:03 pm
Location: The Wilds of Northwoods Wisconsin

Post by en'til Zog »

And maybe a green or red LED on the console to light up the cockpit - that's what I did. All 3 LEDs in series with one resistor powered by a 9 volt battery in the base.
Last edited by en'til Zog on Tue Dec 22, 2009 2:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Where there's a Will....there's Probate.
User avatar
SpaceDuck
Posts: 1952
Joined: Thu Apr 12, 2007 9:13 pm

Post by SpaceDuck »

One simple effect you can achieve for just the engines in that lil A-Wing would be to get those lil "Tea Lights" from a craft store. Take em apart and inside you'll find 3 button cell batteries for power, a switch, a lil circuit board and then the LED. You can replace the LED very easily or maybe even find a way to hide it if it can be sunk in deep enough with that funny phony flame shape. But irregardless, the nice thing about this is often you can even hide that size of batteries within the model itself and this time of year you sometimes find em on sale cheap- so you get all the components (unless you replace the LED) along with a "flickering effect" which works on smaller scales nicely.

Otherwise, as previously advised there's plenty of ways to accomplish what you're after and if you want you can look up my 1/24th scale A-Wing build in the SW section of this board perhaps and get some further food for thought?

Have fun- it's wonderful when you see your model lit up and can say that you added it all yourself! :D
Duck Dodgers of the 24th and a half century!
User avatar
MillenniumFalsehood
Posts: 17038
Joined: Tue Nov 16, 2004 5:23 pm
Location: Wichita, KS, USA
Contact:

Post by MillenniumFalsehood »

It sure is, Duck.

I would advise against using tea lights though, because the ship in the movie didn't have flickering engines. But this is up to you and what your preferences are.

Here's my A-wing:

http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h4/Mi ... C05290.jpg

More photos can be found here:

http://s60.photobucket.com/albums/h4/Mi ... g%20model/

I used three incandescent-colored LEDs (*not* lamps!) for this effect with no resistors and a regulated battery pack.
If a redhead works at a bakery, does that make him a gingerbread man?

Ponies defeat a Star Trek villain? Give them a Star Wars award ceremony!
Madman Lighting
Posts: 1818
Joined: Sat Mar 05, 2005 9:16 am
Location: Serenity.
Contact:

Post by Madman Lighting »

Neat! Thats a nice little A-wing MF!

Can I suggest a little teased cotton ball in the engines to diffuse the light? Looks more like engines that way.
That Madman Who Lit Up Deep Space Nine
Post Reply