***Light Retailers For Night Flying***

[Lee]

This thread is to be a place to post links to retailers that sell LEDs, glow wire, glow tape, flashing lights, glow sticks Christmas lights, and all of the other related lights and electronics we might use in night flying in a single place for quick reference.

Please post the links to how to threads here so that the links don't get lost through the threads. Please include your specific "How to" instructions or links to threads to show how you wire and configure your light systems.

In post #17 I did a basic summary of LED light set construction. I have tried every type of light source listed here on my planes and I recommend LEDs over glow wire or tape, glow sticks or Christmas lights.

Here is a start.

LEDs - see post #17

These LED lightstrips are the best so far. they have 60 LEDs per meter and are easy to install compared to other options ....

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_listCategoriesAndProducts.asp?catname=Night+Fly ing+Accs.&idCategory=280&ParentCat=58

.................................................. ...........................

http://stores.ebay.com/Chi-Wing-LED-product-shop_W0QQssPageNameZstrkQ3amefsQ3amesstQQtZkm

http://www.afterdarkled.com/

In UK http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Amigo-Of-China

In UK http://stores.ebay.co.uk/phenoptix

http://lightflightrc.com/HTML/products/LED_Light_Strips.html

http://www.flashingblinkylights.com/Round-Magnetic-Blinking-Pins/

http://www.windycitynovelties.com/epaysoft/cart/Category.asp?CatID=516

http://www.windycitynovelties.com/blinkies-body-lights.asp

http://www.globalsources.com/gsol/I/LED-manufacturers/b/2000000003844/3000000157524/11650.htm

http://www.buy-leds-online.com/560.html

http://www.goldmine-elec-products.com/products.asp?dept=1091

http://www.superbrightleds.com/

http://www.besthongkong.com/index.php?cPath=21

http://stores.ebay.com/Chi-Wing-LED-product-shop_W0QQssPageNameZstrkQ3amefsQ3amesstQQtZkm

http://stores.ebay.com/led-hk

[url]http://www.theledlight.com/led-specs.html

http://www.besthongkong.com/index.php?cPath=75_8&osCsid=b508ef43a7114f46f6f51d2fcbc55f45

http://stores.ebay.com/Asia-Engineer

In the UK http://www.component-shop.co.uk/html/leds.html

Glow Wire

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_listCategoriesAndProducts.asp?catname=Night+Fly ing+Accs.&idCategory=280&ParentCat=58

http://www.vibelights.com/

http://www.elbestbuy.com/

http://www.glowire.com/

Light Sticks

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZmarkwol17

http://glowrus.com/22__bulk_necklaces.html

http://www.thatscoolwire.com/store/item.asp?Category=168&SubCategoryID=&GroupID=&SKU=WY%2DP9L%2DN2

http://stores.ebay.com/GlowUniverse

Christmas Lights

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=766806&page=2

.

[foam and tape]

http://superbrightleds.com/led_prods.htm

heres a good site on how to wire them, still looking for a GREAT site that explained everything http://www.theledlight.com/ledcircuits.html

[dvlflyr14]

If you do a search on EBAY with the following "5mm LED" you will get a wide variety of LEDs to choose from, the two listings below give you multiple colors with high intensity and a good quantity of units in each color, well worth the price. These are typically not just one time offers on EBAY, in other words they are repeated every other day or so. For $10 to $15 you can get 100 or more LEDs. Use the link from the post above to help pick the correct resistor value using the LED calculator for 5V and wire everything up in parallel and you will be good to go. I used wire wrap wire, two colors so I could tell polarity, from radio shack, 28 gauge I think. I ran out about 20 feet of each color wire, had my kid hold one end and then chucked up the other end in a drill and ran the drill until I had a nice twisted pair of wire.


http://cgi.ebay.com/100x-5mm-5000-mcd-LED-bulb-Green-Orange-White-Blue-Red_W0QQitemZ170176979565QQihZ007QQcategoryZ66954Q QssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/105-X-5mm-7-Colors-LED-Each-Color-15-Pcs-Free-Resistors_W0QQitemZ280180881946QQihZ018QQcategoryZ 66954QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[foam and tape]

heres a cool resistor calculator, if your forgetfull like me. i cant remember the colorbands :rolleyes: :D http://www.dannyg.com/examples/res2/resistor.htm

[foam and tape]

double post :confused:

[rcproptester]

Here is a great site.

http://www.oznium.com/

[Diggs]

http://www.modsthatglow.com/

Resistors, Pigment and of course LEDs and Lightbars (light bars are too large for flight)

Diggs

[the_canuck]

I supply LED's, and wiring kits both non solder setups with connectors and DIY solder setups. My prices are reasonable.

www.canuckengineering.com/store

Here's a tutorial on installing my wiring kits:
http://www.canuckengineering.com/LEDTips

Thanks for looking.

Andrew

[UAVPilot]

LED's and much more...

The Electronic Goldmine (http://www.goldmine-elec-products.com/departments.asp?dept=1088)

[Wayne V]

I usually get all my electronic needs including LED's from www.digikey.com

[Darth_Elevator]

Hobby Lobby is selling an LED night light set. From the description, it appears that it must have a pass-through configuration that plugs in between your battery and ESC. Pricey IMHO but it's a ready-made set for those who don't want to build their own. Interesting design that looks like it could be used as a portable light set that could easily be moved back and forth between planes.

To find it, scroll down almost all the way to the bottom of the page:
http://www.hobby-lobby.com/hlwingo.htm

[MorrisM]

Dealextreme.com has lots of LEDs. Check out the strip LEDs. They are pre-wired with resistors for 12 volts. Works great with 3S lipo.
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.7564
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.5197

Morris

[Conehead]

Here is another site for LED's

Lazertoyz

www.lazertoyz.com

The have a number of versions of LED's
Conehead
Orrin Eldred
Honor, MI

[CygnusX1]

http://www.directron.com/caraccessories.html
24" super bright silicone encased lights. 0.9oz to 0.6oz each strip. 20-25mA draw each. Sticky tape on one side. No transformer. Powered by 12v directly. 1/4" wide x 1/8" tall x 24" long, 30lights per strip.

http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/directron_1982_116843637

[Lee]

This is a link to a thread we started on how to use Christmas lights for night flying. It got lost in our club threads but is a simple inexpensive way for first time flyers or people who don't want to solder can get started.

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=766806

Christmas lights are seasonal so now is the time to start watching for your local stores to start carrying the lights.

We need to update the list of suppliers. Please post if you don't see your supplier listed.

Thanks

Lee

[Fast Freddy]

Here's a link to a lighting system that is truly scale and the lights are blindingly bright in daylight as well.

www.electrodynam.com/rc/EDR-117/index.shtml

[Lee]

LED LIGHTING BASICS

Many flyers are building their lights into their planes but often I want a set of lights to tape to a plane for that occasional night flight. I don't want to have to commit a receiver, ESC, servos and plane to a plane I fly only occasionally at night. I want the plane to also be able to be flown in the day. I don't fly often at night but want to be able to go with very little notice.

I wanted a more durable set of lights that wouldn't short out and could take some abuse. The sets shown here meet that criteria.

This indoor video is showing a LED light set in action. The lights are bright even though the room wasn't dark. Notice how bright the reflection on the floor is. The Snowball is an EPP plane and the lights are hot glued to the plane with a tiny dab of glue at each light to aim it where I want.

http://vimeo.com/2380538

The lights are amazingly bright, far brighter. and lighter weight, than the glow wire, glow tape or glow sticks and probably brighter than Christmas lights at their best. I took them in a 20'x16' family room and they put lights on all 4 walls. These reds and blues are as bright as the whites.

These lights are like a flashlight and can be aimed so you don't have to cover the plane with lights to cover the plane with light. I taped the lights down the center from nose to tail and then back under the center of the plane on the bottom. I then went through the lights and aimed them at the outer wing so they gave maximum light and put a small dab of hot glue from a hot glue gun to keep them pointing in the right direction. They are amazingly effective and are bright enough that I can see the ground on approach which makes landing much easier.

You can color white LEDs with permanent markers to get a desired color. It seems to work for the desired effect if you can't get the color you want.

I bought MEGA BRIGHT RED, WHITE AND BLUE 5 mm lights from the following vendor on Ebay The LEDs came with resisters to wire them into a 12V system and shipping was free.

http://stores.ebay.com/Chi-Wing-LED-product-shop

I understand that these links expire on E-bay but these are the lights I ordered. All 3 types of LEDs used are mega bright 15k-18k LEDs which are also available at other vendors.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-100-Super-W...1742.m153.l1262

http://cgi.ebay.com/New-100-BLUE-LE...1742.m153.l1262

http://cgi.ebay.com/100-Mega-Bright...1742.m153.l1262

All of the LEDs came from the seller with resistors to run them off 12V. They all look the same color and only show their color when they are on. I marked them with the a permanent marker when I took them out of the packages so I could tell them apart while building.

LEDs have different brightness ratings usually between 3000 and 18000 mcd. Some also have options for different angles of focused light. I'm not an expert in LEDs and so took the advice from a friend and got the lights listed. I also heard the brightness ratings may be misleading because the more focused lights have a higher mcd rating but not produce more light. Many flyers are satisfied with the 5000 mcd lights in their planes.

I set up two configurations for testing. One set has 2 X 60" wires. I built R and L sides and 10 LEDs on each string. I have 4 colored and six white on each side. I used the LEDs listed above. My other set has 4 X 24" strands of 6. All 6 lights in each strand are the same color with one strand of red, one of blue and two of white.

I built my LED light sets with heavier wire to make them more durable. I used 24g speaker wire that has single strand wires. I cut down the wire on the resisters and LEDs and soldered them about 3/8" apart then put heat shrink over the resister and both sides of the wire connections and solder joints on the LEDs. I can roll up the set with the lights on without risk of shorting them out.

All speaker wire is not the same. The solid core or single strand wire is so much easier to work with on this project. The multi strands would sometimes separate and were hard to fix once they came apart. I used the 24 gauge, two conductor solid core clear speaker wire from Radio Shack. One side of the wire is marked with a white line to mark polarity. A smaller gauge wire would do. The heat shrink is a hassle but well worth the effort. These lights can be rolled and twisted together and won't short out.

I put my 30 W soldering iron in a vise to leave my two hands free to make the mini solder joints. It is much easier and faster than holding the soldering iron. I used flux and pre-tinned the leads so I could keep the soldering time and temperature down while working with such small leads on the resistors and the LEDs since both can be ruined with too much heat. I did destroy two of the bulbs I was working with by overheating the wires while soldering. Considering I soldered 48 bulbs and am learning to work with LEDs I thought this wasn't too bad.

It is time consuming but worth the effort to get the sets of lights to lay flat. It is also a good idea to put the power plug in the middle of the light set and have 2 or 4 wires exiting the power plug for easier attachment on the plane.

This is the process

I cut 20 pieces of 5" wire.
I found the polarized mark on the speaker wire
I soldered the marked polarized wires to the red battery lead plug and heatshrinked the connections
I repeated with the ground or black battery wire and the other side of the speaker wires.

At this point I have 2 speaker wire leads out of a plug.

I prepared the all of the LEDs before starting to wire them by:

I mark the color of the bulb on the bulb so they won't get mixed up.
Bend the LED leads out in opposite directions
identify the flat side of the LED and cut off the other side to about 3/8"
Cut one side of a resistor wire down to 3/8"
poke both wires to be soldered into the flux
Pre-tin the wires by briefly touching them each to the tip of the soldeing iron with a small amount of solder on it
solder the resistor to the LED.

I then would work on one side at a time and I would:

slide on a 3/4" piece of heat shrink tubing
then cut the length of each side of the speaker wire so the LED wires could lay flat.
strip off 1/4" of insulation on each side of the speaker wire.
flux and pre-tin the speaker wire
cut the wires to the desired length on the resistor and LED
flux and pre-tin the wires.
then would solder the resistor side of the LED to the positive or red battery side of the wire
then repeat with the flat side of the LED wire to the black battery lead side of the wire
I would then cut the next 5" wire end lengths so the LED wires would lay flat making sure to maintain polarity
I would then solder it to the next 5" extension of wire and
slide on a 1/2" piece of heat shrink for the flat side connection.
I pushed the 3/4" heat shrink over the resistor and
the 1/2" heat shrink against the flat side of bulb
using a lighter shrink the heat shrink.

Repeat until desired set is built. Last bulb is on the end without an extension wire.

Once I got up to speed I would twist the wires together before soldering the source and extension wires to the resistor and LED ends which was much easier. The most difficult parts are to get the wires the right length and remember to put the heatshrink on the wire before soldering.

As a comparison the 20 Christmas lights as discussed in other posts, that I used in the past, would weigh 1.8 oz and would require 1.4 A and are more fragile so the LEDs outshine them in most ways.

It was a enjoyable project but with all of the soldering and heat shrink it took me 2-3 hours to solder it all up.

Total weight with the plug, 10' of speaker wire, 20 x 5mm LEDs, 20 resistors and 40 pieces of heat shrink is 1.0 oz. The set uses 0.34 A. I am pleased.







.

[Lee]

I added pictures to my last post #17 to help clarify what I did.

Enjoy.




.

[tend2it]

Nice work LEE! :p

These guys are great to deal with and have fast turnaround time from Asia. Good selection of LEDs and LED strips.

http://www.besthongkong.com/index.php?cPath=21

:rolleyes:
--Eric--

[goldenite007]

I always get my LEDs from ASIA ENGINEER on ebay. use the snowflake method with 7.2V resisters (2 LEDs per resistor, 4 for lower voltages)

PS. contact him and he may let you do custom order like mine: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=280266314851

[B Rocka]

Here's a link to where you can find all of our Night Flying stuff on our site. We have Align Glow Wire, and different types of L.E.D.s.

http://www.eastrc.org/shop.cgi/page=estorenightflight.htm

[aaronredbaron]

I have been helping my friends with some test flying of their new light systems which they call N-Vison (yes, that is how its spelled...). These systems are different than glow wire or just using LED's, and they are very visible without being blinding. They have a system for Stryker's, and Slow Sticks, and they have special tail fins for 450 and 600/50 nitro sized helis. I have helped them out with development, but I am not directly involved. :rolleyes:
Personally I think this new night stuff works really well, it shows up great at a distance and enhances visibility but does not blind you.
Their website is www.flexyourrex.com
enjoy, happy landings :p

[3w_flyer]

just new at www.hobbycity.com

Lumifly glow wire in different colours for a very low price.

http://hobbycity.com/UNITEDHOBBIES/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=8223

[Lee]

This is my LED lights on an EPP Snowball from crashtesthobby@gmail.org

http://vimeo.com/2380538

[Lee]

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_listCategoriesAndProducts.asp?catname=Night+Fly ing+Accs.&idCategory=280&ParentCat=58

[Terry Rigden]

Here's the company I use in the UK

http://www.component-shop.co.uk/

Low P&P and fast service

Regards

Terry

[Lee]

I added it to the list.

Thanks.

[WadesRC]

I am an avid night flyer and I have bought numerous LED's and dozen of lighting systems.
I just purchased a turnkey system from a robotic supply company that IMO leaves everything else I have seen in the dust!

http://www.dimensionengineering.com/DeLightStarterKit.html

This system features a fully programmable 6-channel LED controller with incredibly tiny and bright SMD LED’s. The controller features current feedback/control meaning "no resistor required" and the best part is you can custom program each channel to blink, flash, change brightness, and or anything in between. This is by far the coolest night flying set-up I have seen to date and I just installed one on a Rafale EDF jet.

I programmed the controller to turn on each channel on in the following sequence via transmitter control.

Red simulated rotating beacon
White 66 Pulses/Min single wink aft tail strobe
White dual 66 Pulses/Min double wink fwd wing strobes
Green / Red navigation lights
White dual landing lights
Orange dual afterburners

“I mixed throttle with the control channel to illuminate afterburners above half throttle”

Photos & videos to follow if there is any interest.

[Darth_Elevator]

I am an avid night flyer and I have bought numerous LED's and dozen of lighting systems.
I just purchased a turnkey system from a robotic supply company that IMO leaves everything else I have seen in the dust!

http://www.dimensionengineering.com/DeLightStarterKit.html

This system features a fully programmable 6-channel LED controller with incredibly tiny and bright SMD LED’s. The controller features current feedback/control meaning "no resistor required" and the best part is you can custom program each channel to blink, flash, change brightness, and or anything in between. This is by far the coolest night flying set-up I have seen to date and I just installed one on a Rafale EDF jet.

I programmed the controller to turn on each channel on in the following sequence via transmitter control.

Red simulated rotating beacon
White 66 Pulses/Min single wink aft tail strobe
White dual 66 Pulses/Min double wink fwd wing strobes
Green / Red navigation lights
White dual landing lights
Orange dual afterburners

“I mixed throttle with the control channel to illuminate afterburners above half throttle”

Photos & videos to follow if there is any interest.I agree. The DeLight is an amazing light set. I have two of them.

[Lee]

I am an avid night flyer and I have bought numerous LED's and dozen of lighting systems.
I just purchased a turnkey system from a robotic supply company that IMO leaves everything else I have seen in the dust!

http://www.dimensionengineering.com/DeLightStarterKit.html

Photos & videos to follow if there is any interest.

Please post some videos and pictures of this system. How many lights are in it?

Lee

[merlin703]

Yes, it would be nice to see a video of how it performs and more details on the systems as it performs and set up per plane.
I'm still looking for a good vendor to order my lights from but I think I want to go the ebay route with Lee's suggestions.

[376782]

I agree. The DeLight is an amazing light set. I have two of them.
Any chance I could see a list of your program? I have the basic starter kit but found it pretty much useless as the programing instructions are for computer geeks. Believe it or not I used to be able to write basic machine language programs to help in repairing mini computers but find this very difficult to use especially when I want to be able to control modes with throttle stick or aux channel switch positons. I wish they would come up with a better set of instructions and some typical examples. If they did this I believe they would really be able to sell alot more to the average flyer.

Thanks,

Dave

[WadesRC]

I suggested last week that D.E. should post a database of programs.

Below is the reply:

“We don't have a database of programs, but it would be a good idea to have one! I'll see what we can do about making that happen.

Best Regards,
Tom Bellinger
Dimension Engineering”

I too would love to see what others have composed.
Attached is my first wag at programming the controller and I am sure the possibilities are endless!! :D

Dave, please don’t let the word "programming" discourage you. I am not a computer geek by any means and I found the interface easy as crayons.
Did you download the latest software?

http://www.dimensionengineering.com/software/setup.exe

The simulator feature is very cool!

[Darth_Elevator]

Any chance I could see a list of your program?I can post some when I get home. Meantime, you can glean a few programs out of the beta tester thread (http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=807546). It was a pretty steep learning curve getting familiar with the program, but once you get it down, you can program anything you want relatively easily. Don't give up!

Also, if there's a specific sequence you have in mind, I can try programming it for you and post it, then you can tweak it as you like. It's probably easier modifying an existing program rather than creating a new one from scratch.

[376782]

Thanks very much to WadesRC and Darth Elevator for all your help. I am presently in the middle of finalizing the Medusa software interface for a small motor dynamometer that I have made and plan to present at our next club meeting next week. Once this is done I will take some time to try and get a handle on programming the Delight.

Thanks again,

Dave

[WadesRC]

Thanks Darth for the beta tester thread!

[Tomapowa]

Here's another PC-programmable LED lighting controller that's pretty intuitive in its programming and has been out for several years... (used exclusively by scale R/C heli folks but can be adapted for any night-flying use). Download the software and give it a try (unzip and run setup).

http://www.diyrc.com/picaxe-miniflash.htm

http://www.laureanno.com/RC/MINIFLASHREV3.zip

There's also a cool rotating beacon simulation controller:
http://www.diyrc.com/picaxe-minibeacon.htm

[WadesRC]

Here's another PC-programmable LED lighting controller that's pretty intuitive in its programming and has been out for several years... (used exclusively by scale R/C heli folks but can be adapted for any night-flying use). Download the software and give it a try (unzip and run setup).

http://www.diyrc.com/picaxe-miniflash.htm

http://www.laureanno.com/RC/MINIFLASHREV3.zip

There's also a cool rotating beacon simulation controller:
http://www.diyrc.com/picaxe-minibeacon.htm

Nice setup for anyone looking for a programmable lighting system.
I just ran the software, very user friendly and simple to use. :)
I like the fact you can set multiple threshold levels for a single LED channel, sure wish DE had that feature. :censored:
The only thing I would miss is intensity control because I’m too lazy to swap out resistors.

Very interested in your beacon simulator!!!
Hey, I know how to play with hot lead & tin. :eek:
How can me get one? :D

[Comatose]

I like the fact you can set multiple threshold levels for a single LED channel, sure wish DE had that feature. :censored:


I haven't installed their software, but what's the feature you want to be able to do with a DELight? Switch between sequences, turn sequences on and then back off, etc?

[Tomapowa]

I haven't installed their software, but what's the feature you want to be able to do with a DELight? Switch between sequences, turn sequences on and then back off, etc?

The controlling servo channel is broken up into "zones". If using a stick or slider for control, zone#1 would be 0-1/4, zone#2 would be 1/4-1/2, zone#3 would be 1/2-3/4 and zone#4 would be 3/4-full stick/slider defelection. When assigning a servo control to an LED channel (1 of 4), the user can select any combination of these zones (1 of 16)... such as "**-*", which in turn would allow the LED channel to be active (on) only when the stick/slider is in either zone#1,#2 or #4. When the stick is in zone#3, the LED channel would be off (inactive). So, rather than having one spanning zone (start/end), you have 1 of 16 zones you can choose from (i.e. multiple starts/ends).

More can be read about the controlling "zones" here:
http://www.laureanno.com/RC/picaxe-miniflash-usermanual2.htm#zones

[WadesRC]

I haven't installed their software, but what's the feature you want to be able to do with a DELight? Switch between sequences, turn sequences on and then back off, etc?

Wow! You never know who is lurking. :eek:

I love your controller but it would be great if you could program more that a single threshold for each channel.

For example:

Ch5: landing lights

1.00mS -1.25mS = Off
1.26mS -1.60mS = On
1.61mS -1.80mS = Off
1.81mS -2.00mS = On

[Comatose]

Wow! You never know who is lurking. :eek:

I love your controller but it would be great if you could program more that a single threshold for each channel.

For example:

Ch5: landing lights

1.00mS -1.25mS = Off
1.26mS -1.60mS = On
1.61mS -1.80mS = Off
1.81mS -2.00mS = On

Well, I'll admit you can't do "on-off-on-off" with a single channel, but you can definitely do "off-on-off." using the "off below" function. You can do "on off on off" by using the off below and paralleling two outputs.... That's not all that user-friendly, though.

This isn't the first time that this feature has been requested, which hurts my pride as delight was sorta designed as "lighting controller to end all lighting controllers..." I'll put some thought into it.

[WadesRC]

:o Well, I'll admit you can't do "on-off-on-off" with a single channel, but you can definitely do "off-on-off." using the "off below" function.

Off Below Function ??????? :confused:

"off-on-off." is exactly what I want to do!!! :D

Now I am going to have to read the manual. :censored:

15 minutes later. . .

Found it!! It was hiding under: >ADVANCED< :eek:

I have 10 LEd installed on the jet, Oh the possibilities. . . :rolleyes:

No sleep for me!!!!! :p

1-hour later. . . .

Perfect!

The landing lights still illuminate during the programmed sequence but now dim to 30% above half throttle. The red beacon also chimes in for taxi but will shut down above half throttle so the only red to be seen during those full throttle passes will be a port side navigation light.

This DELight system just advanced from way cool to AWESOME!!! :D :D

A clear case of operator malfunction! :o

[Tomapowa]

...Very interested in your beacon simulator!!!
Hey, I know how to play with hot lead & tin. :eek:
How can me get one? :D

Kits (you assemble/solder) unfortunately are not available for the Mini-Beacon controler but assembled and tested Mini-Beacon controllers are available here:

http://www.laureanno.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=21_24&products_id=92

(p.s. Kits are available though for the Mini-Flash LED programmable LED controller... for those that like to tinker/solder)

[Tomapowa]

Folks,
I constantly get asked questions re: LEDs therefore I wanted to share some links that should help the novices in getting up to speed on LEDs and how to use them in your R/C model, whether it's a plane, heli, car, boat, ets... The first link describes what LEDs are, how they are powered and why you most likely need a series current limiting resistor when powering LEDs. This link also shows you how to build some LEDs and where/how to install them in your model

http://www.laureanno.com/RC/LED-assembly.htm

The second link below provides a bunch of online calculators for determining current-limiting series resistor values ... (series or parallel)

http://www.laureanno.com/RC/LED-calc.htm

[WadesRC]

This is a short video of the Rafale with the DELight system installed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Unu9lvSiog

[jhaywood]

Now that was cool! I am usually against sound editing, but that was very fitting. You got my vote for LED King of HRRC
.
Jeff

[sverlander]

Now that was cool! I am usually against sound editing, but that was very fitting. You got my vote for LED King of HRRC
.
Jeff
Yep I agree Jeff, I couldnt done better myself.
Good work Wade
Sam
in Virginia

[jhaywood]

OK Wade, next challenge....How are we going to convert these FPV cameras to IR so we can fly FPV at night????

[WadesRC]

Easy! :p

Super Circuits sell B&W / IR cameras all day long. :D

I have been around drones flying with IR, Not a comfortable feeling having a 60Lb model screaming at you and you can't see it! :eek:

[sverlander]

OK Wade, next challenge....How are we going to convert these FPV cameras to IR so we can fly FPV at night????
Jeff the camera I ordered is suposed to be an IR camera. I think it gose into B/W mode in the dark.camera:: KX191 color and night mode CCD camera
520 TVL horizontal resolution
1/3" Sony Super HAD CCD
Back light compensation
Automatically switches to black and white night mode.
f4mm IR sensitive lens
Auto White Balance
35x35mm, 46 g with lens
12V±10% DC, 210mA draw




http://www.rangevideo.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=6&products_id=111&zenid=5c40ea94621e5bfd95a91ca3598cb194
Sam
in Virginia

[merlin703]

This is really good information, nicely organized!

Folks,
I constantly get asked questions re: LEDs therefore I wanted to share some links that should help the novices in getting up to speed on LEDs and how to use them in your R/C model, whether it's a plane, heli, car, boat, ets... The first link describes what LEDs are, how they are powered and why you most likely need a series current limiting resistor when powering LEDs. This link also shows you how to build some LEDs and where/how to install them in your model

http://www.laureanno.com/RC/LED-assembly.htm

The second link below provides a bunch of online calculators for determining current-limiting series resistor values ... (series or parallel)

http://www.laureanno.com/RC/LED-calc.htm

[jhaywood]

Its all good, I have flown 300lb and 1000lb at night, whats a little edf?
Besides, the FPV lets you sit away from the line of fire. I assume we are going to use Sam's plane, so no real worries for us!! :D

Easy! :p

Super Circuits sell B&W / IR cameras all day long. :D

I have been around drones flying with IR, Not a comfortable feeling having a 60Lb model screaming at you and you can't see it! :eek:

[WadesRC]

Its all good, I have flown 300lb and 1000lb at night, whats a little edf?
Besides, the FPV lets you sit away from the line of fire. I assume we are going to use Sam's plane, so no real worries for us!! :D
Agreed, we'll take turns crashin..eh, I mean flying Sam's plane in the dark. :D

[sverlander]

Agreed, we'll take turns crashin..eh, I mean flying Sam's plane in the dark. :D
Guess I better get a MegaFly if your gonna be doing all that crashing, and some hot glue sticks :eek:
Sam
in Virginia

[Lee]

Ooops wrong thread but it is worth leaving.

The Singapore military got involved with a local manufacturer and did a RC kite parade with 42 planes at once to represent the 42 years since they became a country.

Check out all the videos here. When the video pauses wait and it will continue. Amazing with 42 planes up at night. Check out the other videos at the same site.

http://www.goflykite.com/home.html

http://www.goflykite.com/video/NDP2007.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOmIhApnO-s&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3YSegQgmnA&feature=related

I see Dave has already started a thread for the kites here:

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=987191

more info:

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_4549675/tm.htm

Lee


.

[sparkie624]

This is a short video of the Rafale with the DELight system installed.



Great video and I like your layout. I think that Delight is the best, I use my Delight system on a GWS Slow Stick and Pico Stick,and the work great. You can see some of the lights here. I currently do not have a video of it, but will have in the future.

I would have to say that I think that the Delight System is the best out there. 6 Programmable channels, and they have good support for when you have issues. Their software has a simulator so that you can see what your lights will do, and you can put a picture of your model on the screen and place the lights.

Check them out: http://www.dimensionengineering.com

[DWA]

Great idea for a thread!!! Seems like it should be made a “Sticky” by the moderators.

[WadesRC]

I would have to say that I think that the Delight System is the best out there.

I couldn't agree with you more!!! :D

[Atom1025]

http://lightflightrc.com/HTML/products/LED_Light_Strips.html

[sparkie624]

http://lightflightrc.com/HTML/products/LED_Light_Strips.html

Looks quite interesting.. Have not heard of them, but I think that I will do some research on them...

Sparkie

[Atom1025]

Well I know the vendor is legit, I have been using Lightflight since 2003, the lights look like a nice clean way to light a ship without much soldering.

Thinking bout trying some on a superfly.....

[davereap]

I have used these ebay sellers with good results..one is from china but the bits got here very quickly and are good

I live in the UK

Here are some good places for lights with fast delivery
http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/amigoofchina/
and
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/phenoptix

[Darth_Elevator]

I guess Hobbycity didn't want to miss out on the night flying market, so they created a new, albeit small, night flying section (http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_listCategoriesAndProducts.asp?catname=Night+Fly ing+Accs%2E&idCategory=280&ParentCat=58).

I just ordered an RTF light set (http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=8850&Product_Name=R/C_LED_Lighting_System) that looks pretty good for the money (under $10). And here's an inexpensive receiver-activated switch (http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=8833&Product_Name=Turnigy_Receiver_Controlled_Switch_). There's plenty of glowire, too, at great prices, but I won't be trying it as I prefer LEDs.

[Yellowspider]

great stuff I am loving this thread Thanks guys

[Lee]

http://www.xerogear.com/Default.asp?Redirected=Y

I saw this dealer on a Firefly video (strangely appropriate)

Lee

[DJMixtrix]

We just debuted our products at SEFF 2009 and Joe Nall 2009.

We sold out at both events, we constantly drew a crowd at night and believe we have the brightest setup and the easiest yet. Pure Plug N Play at it's finest.


Check us out...

www.AfterDarkLED.com

Thanks, Tom
AfterDark LED Products

[sparkie624]

The best that I have found anywhere.... Alot of possibilities. 2 video examples that I have shot for night flying. One is a slow stick, and the other is a Mutliplex Twinstar.

Slow Stick
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwcNhiouZ08&feature=channel_page

Twinstar
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EPWCiAR2mw&feature=channel_page

These lights are software programmable from a computer and work great. The Landing Lights (or easy lights as they call them) work on a seperate channel simply on and off. Great system.

Sparkie

[Lee]

This is being added to the list. I watched the Ute flying club in SLC with Slowsticks and these LED light strips. They are bright and easy to assemble.

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_listCategoriesAndProducts.asp?catname=Night+Fly ing+Accs.&idCategory=280&ParentCat=58

[Lee]

My Capricorn has two rows of 6 red LEDs and 6 blue LEDs down the top aimed out at the outer panels and 12 white LEDs only on the bottom. All lights shine through the EPP. I shot pictures with and without flash so you can see the set up then see the effect of the lights.

I have learned to make sure the plane can be seen from all angles. In the past some of my light patterns were blocked by the plane so it disappeared for a moment in turns momentarily in the dark. (This is bad!!!)

This plane is bright and easy to see from all angles against city lights.

I just bought some of the strips of lights from Hobby King. They have 60 lights/meter and are already preassembled for all of you who hate to solder. I will post pictures soon of that set up too.

Lee

[EAST RC]

We just debuted our products at SEFF 2009 and Joe Nall 2009.

We sold out at both events, we constantly drew a crowd at night and believe we have the brightest setup and the easiest yet. Pure Plug N Play at it's finest.


Check us out...

www.AfterDarkLED.com

Thanks, Tom
AfterDark LED Products


I have to say that I saw these guys at Joe Nall and I was blown away by the intensity of the lights. I mean they were REEEEEELEEE Bright! Nice stuff! I started a night flier forum and have been an avid night flyer for several years. It takes a lot to impress me, but these guys did it.

Chris

[Lee]

I added http://www.afterdarkled.com/ to the list.

Lee

[1320fastback]

Heres the HK lights, they run on 12V but are still pretty bright on a 2cell lipo if you have to.

[Lee]

Any new products or retailers you want added to the list in the first posts?

[badkisson]

anyone have a Turnigy Reciever Controlled Switch?

heres a link i have, http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1120318

anyone have one of these for sale or willing to sell me?

thx

[DJMixtrix]

Here's a sneak peek of what's coming soon. Our Xtreme Flyer LED system.

3 times brighter than anything other strip LED setup out there on the market!

AfterDarkLED.com (http://www.AfterDarkLED.com)

Tom

[Moonbeam]

We just got two light kits at $10 each from HobbyKing. They are AWESOME!!!

Each kit comes with the controller that plugs into your Rx. You get one green & one red solid light, two red "anti-collision" lights, two blinking white "strobes", and two solid white lights. I'll post pics of the set up on my Slow Stick tomorrow. Can't wait to try it out in the air!!

[Mark Wood]

Got a link?

mw

[goldenite007]

I think its this one. We got one and it works well
http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=8850