Archive for category Wingtips
Wingtip Nav/Strobe Lights Finished (7/16/11)
Posted by Ethan Jacoby in Construction, Wings, Wingtips on July 16, 2011
2.0 Hours -
I think I can finally say that my homemade wingtip lights are finished!
This morning, I took an hour to finish drilling all the remaining holes in the aluminum back plates. On the left side, I only had to drill four holes for mounting the heat sink with pop-rivets and two holes for mounting the strobe tube with #6 screws. On the right side, I had to drill these holes along with a 1/4″ hole for the grommet that the power leads will pass through. The holes for the strobe tubes didn’t turn out as straight as I would have liked (vertically aligned with the wingtip), but they will pass. The holes for the heat sinks were a bit trickier to drill since I had to be careful not to drill where any of the LEDs had been placed.
Once everything was drilled, I went back inside to finish wiring the right side LEDs. Soldering only took a few minutes since all I had left was the two power leads. As soon as the leads were attached, I connected them to my bench power supply and a Buckpuck. Since I didn’t have to hold wires in place, I was able to take a picture with the LEDs on. The camera sensor really struggles to take pictures of these. They are bright!
After soldering the power leads, I fired up the cyan LEDs with the Buckpuck.
The aluminum back plate and mirrored plexi had to have two holes drilled for mounting the strobe tubes. The black heat sink will be riveted to the back plate behind the LEDs.
After taking a lunch break, I started final assembly of the wingtip inserts. The first thing I did was to clean the back of the insert and attach the heat sinks. Before riveting the heat sinks to the aluminum, I coated the back of the heat sink with some Arctic Silver thermal compound to aid heat transfer from the LEDs to the aluminum back plate and finally to the heat sink (this is the same thermal paste that is used on computer processors to conduct heat to the heat sink/fan). Once the thermal compound was applied, I pop-riveted the heat sink to the aluminum plate using 4 rivets.
The heat sink is attached with pop-rivets after applying some Arctic Silver thermal compound.
A side view of the heat sink to give a better idea of its size.
With the heat sinks in place, I decided to do another bench test of the LEDs. I ran each side for 20 minutes. During this time, I regularly checked how hot the assembly was becoming. On previous tests, without the heat sinks, the aluminum plate would be too hot to touch after only a couple of minutes. With the heat sinks, I could still hold my finger on the aluminum after 20 minutes. The aluminum was warm, but by no means hot. The heat sink, however, was hot. I guess that means it is doing its job!
Having a successful heat transfer test in the bag, I completely assembled both wingtip inserts. I used two #6 screws and nuts to attach the strobe tubes and strobe-side mirrored plexi. I also used three #6 screws and spacers made from stacks of rivet washers to attach the LED-side mirrored plexi. The only down side is that I’m still leaving the protective paper on the mirrored plexi, and I probably won’t remove it until the wingtip lenses are complete.
The wingtip inserts are now fully assembled, and they look good!
A side view of the completed insert.
A close-up view of one of the strobe tubes. These things are works of art!
Next, I decided to pull out my new strobe power supply and test it. I hooked it up to bench power and connected two strobe tubes. The strobe power supply has 15 flash patterns to choose from and I ended up using the alternating triple-flash pattern. The single and double flashes seem to be too fast, while the quad and quintuple flash patterns just seemed like way to much light! I’m sure I’ll play with this more later on down the road.
My Strobes N More Pro Series 606 strobe power supply. After testing the 15 flash patterns, I decided the alternating triple flash would be best.
Finally, I received my LED filter/driver assemblies from Aeroelectric.com. I bought one assembly for each wingtip. Since I already had one Buckpuck driver on hand, I bought one filter with the driver already attached and one the was the filter only. In order to attach my Buckpuck to the filter board, I glued it in place with some E6000 and then I had to solder the pins. This is the first time that I soldered a component to a PC board, so I wasn’t sure how hard it would be…the pins are close together and the solder joints can’t touch each other. If they touch, they short!
Well, in the end, this turned out to be the easiest soldering I’ve done. Compared to the LEDs, the small solder pads on the board were easier to heat up and the solder wicked in more cleanly. Personally, I don’t see much difference between the board I assembled and the one the came already complete!
A bottom view of the LED driver/filter assemblies. I soldered the bottom six pins on the assembly on the left, while the one on the right was completed by the seller.
The top side of the filter/driver assemblies. I need to find some 4-40 screws and lock washer for mounting these on the outboard wing ribs.
Right Nav LEDs Wired (7/14/11)
Posted by Ethan Jacoby in Construction, Wings, Wingtips on July 14, 2011
1.0 Hours -
I finally got around to gluing and wiring the cyan LEDs to the right wingtip back plate. As with the left side, I opted to use thermal epoxy just to make wiring easier. I can imagine trying to figure out wire lengths with the LEDs loose and then being able to position the LEDs correctly under the plexi. If I made a few more of these, I might be able to do that, but I’m happy with the epoxy method for now.
After the LEDs were positioned, I started wiring them together. I wired them in an identical pattern compared to the left side, and I think my soldering is getting much better…neater at least.
The right nav lights have been glued to the back plate and wired.
Another view of the cyan LEDs that will go in the right wingtip. As with the left side, these suckers are bright!
I haven’t wired the power leads yet, but I did test the assembly using my bench power supply and Buckpuck. The cyan LEDs seem a bit brighter than the red LEDs at the same current level. However, I don’t think they are different enough to warrant trying to level them out.
I also received some new toys in the mail today. My strobe system arrived from strobesnmore.com, and I also received my leading edge landing/taxi light kits from Duckworks. The strobe system I purchased seems to be a common one for RV builders that are rolling their own lights. It’s the Strobes N’ More Pro System 4. It comes with a power supply that can drive up to 6 strobes, 4 strobe tubes, and 4 strobe cables. It’s a build-your-own system, so you can choose different strobe colors and longer cables as needed. Plus, at $160, the price is tough to beat.
The Duckworks leading edge lights are also very popular among RV builders. I opted for the rectangular 55W lights since they are weight less and are cheaper. I don’t plan on flying much at night, but if these lights aren’t bright enough, I can replace the bulbs with 100W bulbs. I’ll be running 14 gauge wire for these lights just in case I decide to upgrade later. I’ll be putting one light in each wing.
I’ll post pictures of both the landing/taxi and strobe lights later.
Wingtip Cutout Work (7/10/11)
Posted by Ethan Jacoby in Construction, Wings, Wingtips on July 10, 2011
3.7 Hours -
Building the wingtip nav/strobe lights is taking longer than I thought it would, but I’ve been having fun learning how to make them, and then actually seeing them come together. After today’s work session, the left light is essentially complete (just waiting for the strobes to arrive) and the right tip insert is ready to have the LEDs glued/wired to it.
I started off the day by finishing the edges of all the mirrored plexi pieces for both wingtips. In addition to finishing the edges, I cut 1″ holes in the pieces that will hold the strobes. I also cut an identical 1″ hole in the aluminum insert and the wingtip itself. The strobe tube will be held in place by 2 screws, but I’ll wait until I have the strobes in hand to drill those holes.
The left wingtip insert after cutting a 1" hole through the plexiglass and aluminum for the strobe light.
Next, I cut a hole in the left wing tip where the LEDs will be. This allows for airflow around the aluminum cutout, cooling the LEDs. I’ll also install a heat sink on the aluminum behind the LEDs, but they haven’t arrived yet.
I cut out the majority of the wingtip on the LED side and put a matching 1" hole on the strobe side.
Once the cut-out was completed in the wingtip, I installed platenuts for attaching the aluminum insert. I decided to use six platenuts per wingtip…three on the LED half and three on the strobe half of the aluminum insert.
At this point, I was able to install the left nav light setup (minus the strobe) in the wingtip and get my first real look at the, more or less, completed product. Sure, it could be better, but I’m happy with it as my first attempt.
After cutting everything, the first test fit looked good.
Another view of the left wingtip with the insert screwed on.
One more view of the left wingtip...this one has the mirrored plexi in place, but the plexi still has its protective covering attached.
With the left side waiting for a heat sink and strobe tube, I started working on the right side. As with the left, I bent the aluminum insert to fit the wingtip cut-out. Then, I started drilling holes to mount the aluminum piece in the wingtip and for attaching the mirrored plexi over the LEDs. Since I had the left side built and now know how they go together, I was able to drill a few more holes on the right side now, which I waited until the end to drill on the left. The right side is now to the point where I’m ready to glue and wire the LEDs in place. Getting to this stage on the right side took less than half as long as it did on the left side!
The right wingtip insert in now ready to have the LEDs glued and wired.
Left Flap Hinge and Left Nav Lights Completed (7/3/11)
Posted by Ethan Jacoby in Construction, Flaps, Main Structure, Wings, Wingtips on July 3, 2011
2.7 Hours -
This morning, I managed to get a couple of hours of work in on the RV project. During that time, I finished attaching the left flap hinge to the wing. As with the right side, I had to remove the temporary rivets from the skin/flap brace, deburr as needed, then rivet the hinge to the wing. Once that was completed, I cut the hinge pin in half, bent it to the proper shape, and fabricated another hinge pin retainer. The flaps are officially done!
Just like the right side...the left flap hinge pin and retainer are finished.
Later in the afternoon, I decided to finish up some wiring tasks on my left nav lights. I already wired the LEDs together, but I hadn’t yet attached the power leads. I decided to make the power leads two feet long. This is much longer than I need, but I would rather have them too long for now. I’ll shorten them when the tips are ready to go on the wing. Before I soldered the wires to the LEDs, I drilled a 1/4″ hole in the back plate for a grommet that the wires will pass through. Then, I soldered the wires to the LEDs, and I’m happy to say that my soldering is getting better (it’s still not very pretty though). With the power leads in place, I hooked them up to the driver and fired them up. As usual, I forgot how bright they are and stared right at them as I cranked up the power. Since the lights are in parallel strings, and the driver supplies 1000mA, each string sees 500mA. Even in this slightly under-driven state, they’re still brighter than any nav lights I’ve seen on a factory built plane. Once I remove the protective paper from the mirrored plexi, the mirror should amplify their apparent brightness.
The power wires were soldered to the LEDs, then passed through a grommet. They'll connect to a driver that will be attached to the outboard wing rib.
As a mild test of heat generation, I left the LEDs on for about 10 minutes. The back plate started to warm up a bit, but it was by no means getting hot. I had already ordered a couple of heat sinks, and, once they arrive, I think I’ll go ahead and install them on the back side of the aluminum plate just to be safe.
All six LEDs lit up. Very bright...the camera doesn't do them justice.
The LEDs with the mirrored plexi in place. The protective paper is still in place, but I think they'll look even brighter when the mirror is uncovered.
Left Nav Lights Positioned and Soldered (6/29/11)
Posted by Ethan Jacoby in Construction, Wings, Wingtips on June 29, 2011
0.8 Hours -
With some more supplies arriving from Aircraft Spruce, I decided it was time to start wiring the wingtip LEDs. I decided to use thermal epoxy, rather than thermal paste, to sink the LEDs to the aluminum back plate. I did this because I didn’t want the LEDs moving around while I tried to solder them. If I was a bit better at soldering and figuring out wire lengths, the paste probably would be fine. The downside of the epoxy is that the LEDs are going to be incredibly difficult to remove if I ever need to replace one.
To glue the LEDs, I mixed up a small portion of epoxy and spread it on the back of three LEDs. I then positioned the LEDs on the back plate and screwed the mirrored plexi down on top of the LEDs. The holes in the mirrored plexi positioned the LEDs and held them in place until the epoxy set. I then repeated this with the other three LEDs.
Once the epoxy was set, I laid out a wiring schematic and pulled out some wire (22 gauge tefzel). For each piece of wire, I cut it to length by holding it in position and snipping off the appropriate length with some side-cutters. I then stripped and tinned each end. Finally, I soldered it into position on the LEDs and moved on to the next wire. When I was done, I had six LEDs wired in two parallel series of three. My soldering technique still needs some work, but the connections seem solid…they just don’t look very pretty.
Finally, I used some test leads to connect my Buckpuck driver to the LEDs and flipped the switch on my power supply. This was the first time I had six LEDs on at the same time, and I saw spots for the next half hour. One of these days, I’ll remember not to look directly at the super-bright, high-powered, LEDs. Seeing all six turn on sure was cool though!
This schematic shows how I wired the LEDs. I may still try a resistor instead of the driver.
The red LEDs have been glued to the back plate and soldered together with 22 gauge wire. It isn't pretty, but they work.
Left Wingtip and Left Flap Work (6/25/11)
Posted by Ethan Jacoby in Construction, Flaps, Wings, Wingtips on June 25, 2011
1.8 Hours -
Today, I was able to put in almost two hours of work on the airplane project before the garage became too hot. I wanted to get some more done on the wingtip nav light project. There were a couple more things I needed to finish on the left side so that I could bring parts inside to work on the wiring while sitting in the air conditioned house!
I started by drilling and countersinking the mirrored plexi pieces. To do this, I drilled the openings for the LEDs to #12. I chose #12 because this is the largest countersink cutter I have. Then, I machine countersunk the holes. I don’t think countersinking is necessary, but it sure makes the opening look better. Once the holes were countersunk, I carefully enlarged them to 7/32″ so that the lenses on the LEDs will fit through the plexi.
The mirrored plexi was easy to machine countersink. The holes were drilled to #12, then countersunk, then drilled to full-size.
Next, I did a little work on the aluminum cutout insert. I used the plexi piece as a guide for drilling three holes that will be used to attach the plexi to the aluminum with screws. Once these holes were drilling the aluminum, I attached three nutplates for #6 screws. I also searched for something that will make an ideal spacer between the plexi and aluminum. The spacers have to match the thickness of the LEDs. The closest thing I could come up with was a stack of three rivet washers. A stack of washers will be placed on each screw so that the plexi doesn’t bed down at the attach points. Now, I’m ready to start fitting and wiring the LEDs on the left side.
Here's the left nav light temporarily assembled with the mirrored plexi and LEDs in position.
Finally, I turned my attention to the left flap. The right flap was really easy to drill to the wing, and I was hoping that the left would be just as easy. As usual, the second time I do something on the plane, it is easier than the first time. The left flap was aligned and the hinge was drilled in a matter of minutes. Once again, I had ample edge distance on the wing side of the hinge. I guess I just don’t understand why so many people have edge distance issues here and have to order wider hinge material.
The left flap after drilling the hinge.
The flaps are both clecoed to the main wing structures now. All I’ll have to do to finish them is deburr the wing side of the hinge, figure out my method for securing the hinge pin, and rivet the hinge to the wing.
Both flaps are drilled to the wings...now they really look like wings!
Almost all the parts are attached.
Wingtips Continued (6/22/11)
Posted by Ethan Jacoby in Construction, Wings, Wingtips on June 22, 2011
1.0 Hours -
We finally had a small break in the heat, and I was able to spend a little time in the garage. I decided to spend this session working on my nav light project since I now have all the parts and tools on-hand.
The first thing I did was use my band saw to cut the plexiglass pieces from the 12″ x 12″ sheets of mirrored plexi. The band saw cut through this stuff easily and didn’t do any damage to the edges. Once the pieces were rough cut, I finished them on the belt sander to remove any rough edges and smooth the curves. Prior to final assembly, I’ll smooth the edges more, but for now I want to leave the protective paper on the top side of the plexi.
The mirrored plexi pieces for the wingtips. The markings on the two pieces on the right side are approximately where the LEDs will be placed.
Next, I checked the fit of my aluminum cut-out insert in the left wingtip. It still needed some finishing, so I gave it a few passes on the belt sander under the shape matched the wingtip. Once the shape was right, I decided to drill it to the wingtip. I only drilled it to #40 for now. This way, I’ll be able to slightly modify the positioning, if needed, during final drilling. My plan is to use six #6 screws and platenuts to attach the aluminum insert to the wingtip.
After fine-tuning the aluminum cut-out insert, I carefully drilled it to the wingtip. The blue-plastic will stay on as long as possible to protect the shiny surface, but it makes the edge of the piece look messy...it's not!
I sat one of the plexi pieces in the cut-out to get an idea how it will look. This setup should work well.
Back to the plexi pieces. I bought some plas-drill bits for use on this, and other, projects, but I wanted to see how hard this stuff is to drill with standard bits. Turns out, it’s pretty easy to drill with normal or plas-drill bit when using the drill press. With light, constant pressure, I found it easy to drill the plexiglass without causing any cracks. However, the plas-drill bits did leave a slightly smoother surface after drilling. Since I have them, I might as well use them.
Knowing the drilling the glass wasn’t going to be a problem, I grabbed a scrap piece and drilled a#12 and a 1/4″ hole in it. I then manually countersunk both holes and took the piece inside to see which hole would be a better fit for the LEDs. The 1/4″ hole was slightly bigger than the LED’s lens, but it is probably the best size for this application. when I turned on the single, red LED, the entire room lit up and the plexiglass looked great with the edges glowing red (sorry, I couldn’t get a good picture of this…maybe next time).
Once I figure out the best way to arrange all 6 LEDs on each side, finishing the project should be a breeze.
More Wingtip Work and Right Flap Installed (6/12/11)
Posted by Ethan Jacoby in Ailerons, Construction, Flaps, Main Structure, Wings, Wingtips on June 12, 2011
2.5 Hours -
With today’s work session, I passed the 500 hour mark on the build. This means I’m anywhere from a third to a fifth of the way finished as far as build time goes.
I started the day off by working a bit more on the wingtip cutouts. I had already transferred the pattern to some sheet aluminum, so I used my band-saw to cut the pieces out. Once cut out, I did some edge finishing with both a belt sander and a Scotchbrite wheel. However, I won’t be able to finalize the shape until they are bent and I can hold them in place on the wing.
The left wingtip cutout before bending. I also made one for the right since it is just a mirror image.
Since I had the left wingtip on the bench, I decided to go ahead and attempt to bend the left cutout. To do this, I simply used the edge of my workbench and a section of 2″x4″. After a few attempts, I had the angle correct, but the cutout had quite a bit of extra material that needed to be removed. My belt sander made quick work of this and made it easy to keep the curved edge intact on the aluminum. For now, I’ll just use the left cutout to work on making the plexiglass pieces and figuring out the LED arrangement. Once everything is finalized, I’ll come back and finish the right.
After bending the cutout, I had to do a little trimming and finishing to get it to fit correctly.
Next on my to-do list was to get the flaps installed. Since the right aileron has been neutralized, and the bellcrank jig was still in place, I decided to start with the right flap. The biggest problem with mounting the flap is that there is a gap between the bottom wing skin and flap brace if no clecoes/rivets are installed. To eliminate this gap while aligning and drilling the flap hinge, I used a method that I found on a build site called Matt’s RV-7 Project. However, he gives Dan Checkoway credit for the idea.
The basic idea of this method is to eliminate the gap temporarily by installing several oops rivets (NAS1097). These rivets will be flush on the flap brace side during initial flap mounting. Then, before riveting the flap hinge to the wing, the oops rivets are drilled out and reversed so that the flush head is now on the skin side of the wing. To make this work on my right wing, I ended up drilling holes for 7 oops rivets. After manually countersinking the flap brace, I squeezed the oops rivets in place, and the gap was gone. With the gap closed, I could easily set the flap in position and clamp it with two side-grip cleco clamps.
I drilled 7 holes through the bottom skin and flap brace in each wing for temporary rivets.
The flap brace is countersunk for an oops rivet. After mounting the flap, I'll drill out these rivets and re-insert them with the flush head on the skin side.
Two clamps held the flap in position while I adjusted it. Here's the outboard clamp near the aileron hinge.
The inboard clamp was much easier to install and adjust compared to the outboard clamp.
With the flap now clamped in position, I could make small adjustments, nudging the flap inboard/outboard, up and down, until the trailing edge was aligned with the trailing edge of the aileron and there was a 1/4″ gap between the flap and aileron. Before starting to drill I had to make sure I would have enough edge distance on the wing side of the hinge. Since I previously drew a line on the hinge indicating minimum edge distance, DO NOT CROSS, it was a simple matter of glancing through the holes in the wing skin to see where the line was. The line was barely visible at the forward side of the holes, so I had more than enough edge distance. I was partly surprised by this since I’ve read so many accounts of builders having to order a wider piece of hinge stock in order to meet the edge distance requirement. I can only hope the left wing works out the same!
The right flap hinge is now drilled to the wing. No hinge edge distance issues here!
The gap between the flap and aileron is a perfect 1/4" the entire length.
Since everything was lined up perfectly on the right flap/wing, I decided it would be good to take a lunch break before drilling the hinge and then return to double-check the alignment with fresh eyes. After lunch, I remeasured the flap to aileron gap, double checked the trailing edges were in-line, and re-checked that my edge distance would be more than sufficient. With everything still satisfactory, I started drilling at the outboard end of the flap. Since the flap was only being held in place by two side-grip clamps on the hinge, and a bigger clamp holding the flap in neutral position with the aileron, I started drilling very cautiously and with very little pressure on the drill. After the first hole was drilled and clecoed, I, once again, checked that everything was still in the correct position before proceeding to the next hole. I continued this way for sever holes. Then, when I felt the flap was sufficiently held in place with clecoes, I picked up the pace ever so slightly. A few minutes later, the flap hinge was completely drilled and clecoed. As usual, something I was really worried about working came out great.
Of course, now that the right flap is drilled, I have to repeat the entire process on the left wing. For today, I managed to install the bellcrank jig and get the left aileron neutralized, and I also installed the 7 temporary rivets in the flap brace and wing skin. At the next work session, I’ll be ready to align the left flap and drill the hinge.
After a couple twists of the pushrod ends, the right aileron was aligned. The angle isn't on the center of the aileron's trailing edge since it is aligned with the side of the bolts.
Misc. Wing Work (6/8/11)
Posted by Ethan Jacoby in Ailerons, Construction, Wings, Wingtips on June 8, 2011
1.0 Hours -
I’ve been using the heat as an excuse to not work on the plane, and I wasn’t planning on working on it today, but a potential RV builder contacted me and asked if they could come see my project. I’m always happy to show my work to anyone interested in building, and it gave me a reason to go into the garage, battle the heat, and get a few things done.
I started off by making the spacers that are needed to connect the W-716 pushrods to the bellcranks. As with other spacers in the wings, these were just pieces of aluminum tubing cut to the length specified in the plans. Once the spacers were made, I temporarily installed the pushrods, leaving the nuts only finger tight. My right wing still has the bellcrank alignment fixture installed, but I could push and pull on the right pushrod and make the aileron move. Granted, this is the way it is supposed to work, but its still exciting when you actually get to see some parts come together and work the way they are supposed to!
An aft view of the bellcrank with both pushrods installed.
A bottom view of the bellcrank with both pushrods installed.
The W-716 pushrods stick out the inboard end of the wings. For now, I wrapped them in bubble wrap to keep them from getting scratched.
Next, I wanted to continue working on my LED nav light project. The next step is to start fabricating parts and see how everything is going to go together. To start, I pulled out the left wingtip and made a paper template of the cutout where the lights will go. A file folder worked great for this since it already had a fold in the middle. Once the wingtip cutout was traced onto the folder, I cut it out and transferred the shape to a piece of sheet aluminum. At this point, I had to set it aside as the potential builder showed up.
I made a paper template of the wingtip cut out using a file folder.
The template was transferred to a piece of sheet aluminum. Eventually, this will get cut out!
After about 45 minutes of answering questions and talking about flying/RVs, I went back to work for a few more minutes. The last thing I wanted to do was to start working on aileron alignment. I started with the right wing since it is the easiest to access. Van’s instructs you to build a simple alignment jig out of wood. However, I decided to make this even easier by using a 4 foot length of aluminum angle held against two bolts sticking through the tooling holes in the wing. The tooling holes are in-line with the neutral aileron position, so all I had to do was adjust the aileron pushrod length until the trailing edge of the aileron was in perfect alignment with the bolts. The aluminum angle is simply a straight edge that lets me check the position. To achieve neutral, I only had to adjust one rod end about 1.5 turns. This adjustment equated to about 1/4″ of aileron travel.
I simplified Van's aileron alignment jig a bit. I inserted bolts into the tooling holes and then used a piece of aluminum angle to see if the aileron was aligned with the bolts. The right aileron was only 1/4" off to start.
After a couple twists of the pushrod ends, the right aileron was aligned. The angle isn't on the center of the aileron's trailing edge since it is aligned with the side of the bolts.
Playing With LEDs (5/28/11)
Posted by Ethan Jacoby in Construction, Wings, Wingtips on May 28, 2011
I’ve started gathering all the parts I will need to make my LED wingtip navigation lights. I want to keep them as simple as possible, so that means using resistors to lower the current instead of a driver. Not knowing much about these sorts of things, I ordered a bunch of different resistors, 7 cyan K2 LEDs, 7 red K2 LEDs, and a bench power supply. While the plan is to put 6 LEDs in each wingtip, I ordered one extra of each color just to play with. At $7 per LED, they’re not cheap, but I won’t be upset if I burn a couple out while trying to figure things out.
Today, I wired up one red and one cyan LED to the power supply. For the red LED, I used a 20 Ohm resistor, and I put a 12 Ohm on the cyan. This supplied approximately 500 mA to the red LED and a bit over 700 mA to the cyan. At these currents, both LEDs are being under driven, but they are still super-bright…and I mean don’t stare at them bright!!! To be perfectly honest, one of these LEDs is brighter than any nav lights I have ever seen on a Cessna 172. Six of them in each wing should be visible from a long way away!
Wiring the LEDs seems like it will be easy. This was the first time I ever soldered anything, and it was much easier than I thought it would be. The only problem I may have is that both the LEDs and the resistors get very hot. I’ll have to play with them a bit more, but I’m wondering if the resistors will stay cooler when six LEDs are connected vs. just one since that should mean less voltage to dissipate.
Six K2 star red LEDs
All 12 of these LEDs will be going into my wingtips (6 per side). The pen is there as a size reference.
This single red LED, running at a hair over 500mA, is brighter than any nav lights I've seen on a Cessna 172.
Just for fun, I wired up a red and a cyan LED and took a picture with the room lights off. I had trouble getting the camera to convey how bright they are, but it hurts if you stare directly at them!
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