allen0622

I need the help of someone electrically inclined, I went to radioshack to check out the LEDs that I heard they had, they have a good selection of all kinds of colors, some flash, and some are big, some are small.
[link=http://www.radioshack.com/category.asp?catalog%5Fname=CTLG&category%5Fname=CTLG%5F011%5F006%5F002%5F000&Page=1&find=LED(keyword)&hp=search]LEDs[/link]
I was searching online for info or a diagram on how to make one but couldn't find anything. ANyone have a link or know how to do it? They sell some cool ones with threaded backs so you could just make a hole in the body, slide in the light and secure it with the nut, don't know how bright they are though because they are in plastic.

What I really need to know is, I don't think you can just connect the LED directly to power, don't you need(besides a switch) a resistor or capacitor or something? And how many LEDs can you run off a single 9-volt? All I read is how they consume very little power. ANy help would be great, I'm sure this info would be useful to alot of people, especially with the nice weather here now. And the specs on all the LEDs were different, is there anything in the specs I should be looking at when buying LEDs, like what voltage I need to stay at? Here's an example.
And what does this all mean?
Typical MCD is 300. Typical wavelength is 430nm. Size is T1 3/4 or 5mm. Clear lens color. Viewing angle is 24°. 30mA (max). Typical Voltage is 5.0, with a maximum voltage of 6.0V. Comes as a package of 1.

motorpsycho502

You need a 400 ohm resister, make sure you wire the plus of the LED to the plus on the battery, you do not need multiple resisters for multiple leds if you wire it correctly

Element

I use 100ohm resistors on my leds.
CHeck ebay for leds they have bright leds for cheap prices

flak monkey

Why bother with the hassle of ebay when you can buy any type of LED from RS for a few pence/cents each?

Seems silly to me!

David[&:]

allen0622

ok, so I just need a resistor on the positive of the battery then just wire the LED to that? And I can do a kind of daisy-chain from LED to LED and not a resistor between each LED?

Mopzilla

Check out www.lsdiodes.com , they have a big selection of VERY bright CHEAP LED's and different resistors, plus some help on wiring and figuring out how to select the resistor you need. Also they ship for very cheap to anywhere in the world!

allen0622

Dude, thats the best site, thanks! There's a whole page with easy to follow diagrams on how to connect up everything. Thanks alot dude. Any one who wants to do up their own light kit without paying high Ebay prices book mark this site. http://www.lsdiodes.com/tutorial/ and do it yourself.

lax195

My Feedback: (2)

yea that is a great site but they ripped me off (2 whole bucks!!!). when i checked out with paypal, they added an extra 2.00 for shipping to the final total (which already included shipping). grrrr . but you can beat the prices!!

motorpsycho502

no you nee to hook the positive of all leds together, and negative of all leds together, neg to neg on batt. positive of leds to the 100ohm resister, other end of resister to the batt.

lax195

My Feedback: (2)

hey mopzilla, have you ever ordered from isdiodes? how long did it take for you to gt your order? cuz i ordered it last night and i havent heard any sort of shipping status. cuz i paid an extra couple bucks for priority mail.

allen0622

Are you saying in general? Without knowing the voltage of the bulbs or how many? What if you have bulbs of all different voltages? Just toss on a 100ohm resistor and that's it? The way you're saying to wire them is the same thing as wiring them in parallel like the diagram is showing, except with less wire. Isn't it?

allen0622

One question about the power source, I know like say the T-Maxx comes with a batery box for 4 1.5v AA batts now, there must be a reason not to just use a 9volt battery which would be more output voltage I'm guessing than a 4AA 6volt pack. Is it because the 9 volt would drain faster than 4AA 6volt pack would. Just wondering what power I should use for the LEDs. I was going to use 2 9 volts for 18v but I'm now thinking of using my old T-Maxx holder of 6volts. ANyone know which would be better to use? And why? I dont want to wire it into my RX pack by the way.

lax195

My Feedback: (2)

i am gonna use the 6 volt battery box that comes with mostly all nitro cars. (AA battery pack). it supplies 6 volts and the lights i am using run on a maximum of 4.5 volts so i am just putting a 100ohm resistor on them.

wadesie93

My Feedback: (11)

I took the reverse off of my maxx and I was thinking of useing to 3rd channel to turn the lights on and off. I have a rechargable reciever pack for the servos and I think I will power the lights off of that also? Any thoughts

allen0622

I'm mounting my lights, battery, and switch in another body I have. I don't want to do any normal daytime bashing with all the lights in so it doesn't get all screwed up, or ripped out. My nightime bashing won't be as severe with the lighted body mounted. So can anyone answer my question about the difference between using a 9volt battery, or 4 AA batteries(6volts). I mean it would be so much easier and use less space to use a 9volt. But I have a feeling it's a longevity issue. Or is 6volts what was needed for the stock T-Maxx servos.

Tweedybird

any sites out there for lights other than leds? I saw a dropped down pick up r/c body with neon underside graffics kit and neon lic plate bracket in a magazine, but can't seem to find them online.

Tweedy

allen0622

http://www.rcneon.com

Tweedybird

Thanks Allen

Tweedy

lax195

My Feedback: (2)

30 or 40 bucks per kit on rcneon.com?!?!? they dont even tell you the maximun mcd on the leds.......i built my own kit for about...9 bucks including a battery box and switch.

Savage_Dias

The only differences between using a 6v pack & a 9v battery are size & weight. If you were going by electronics knowledge there would be a difference in your math. LEDs are generally forgiving & can be pushed with higher voltages than they need. I built a kit with blue 2600 mcd headlights, foglights, & functional red brake / park lights. Don't make the mistake of mounting any of them on your bumpers! Mine lasted about 4 tanks. If I had to do it over again & wanted to do brake lights I would either make a separate system or use a connector between the brake switch & rear end of the truck.

allen0622

Those neons come with transformers so I don't think they are LEDs, and they don't look like they are very bright. The only thing that interests me is maybe the antenna tube.

allen0622

I plan on using some resistors anyways, most of the LEDs I'm looking at are 3.3v and I'll probably have maybe 6 or 8 LEDs on 1 9volt, do you think they would still last at least say, 10 hours? I could wire 2 9 volts but I was reading somewhere that the light time won't really be extended because most of the power will be wasted through the resistors.

lax195

My Feedback: (2)

yea the antenne tube did look pretty nice!!

Wayne Miller

Hi,

You may want to try these sites for wiring information on RC wiring projects and gadgets:

http://www.uoguelph.ca/~antoon/

This one will have to be cut and pasted into the address field:
http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~atong/

http://www.google.com/u/guelph?q=gad...ch=uoguelph.ca

Let me know if you find any useful.

Best regards,

Wayne Miller

dirtbrosbmx

i dont use resistors on my rig i just use the old 4 AA holder that came with the t-maxx and take one battery out and put a dummy wire in the place of the battery because i found that if i use all 4 AA's the lights burnt out a whole lot quicker. i am using 6 led's and they can last me up to 10 hours.