Im looking to do a little trial and error with some old amber sidemarkers and would like to know the cheapest but good quality, white/amber both, leds used in sidemarkers. Also would like to know where the best quality cheap sauldering tool can be bought at. Thanks!

 

I use http://www.superbrightLEDs.com and http://www.autolumination.com for my LED needs. Remember that you're going to need to drop 13.6 volts so look up how much each LED drops and then you'll need a resistor to drop the remaining voltage.

Resistors and soldiering pencils and soldier are available at Radio Shack. Get something around 25 to 30 watts in a pencil form. There is a balance that you have to do melting the soldier without melting the LED. I'm certain there's tutorials on the 'net on how to soldier.

Here's the kind of work you're trying to do.

 

Ok next question is kinda dumb but im looking at the charts... I have no clue what all this is trying to explain lol... and also im guessing that resistor is the brown thing in the pic? Sorry never worked with this extensive or wiring or anything. Done system hookups and stuff but thats all prewire, nevered started from ground up

 

Yupp, the color code on that resistor reads:

one five one five percent meaning

150 +/-5%

What's ya' trying to do? LED are diodes and have to be wired correctly - they're polarized so that they light up only when connected in the right direction.

Have a look at this post for some details: LED door reflectors. I just added some to my corner reflectors just today.

 

Actually to think of it, just to make it easier. If YOU were to do a set of sidemarkers, let say at least row of 20 white, 20 amber on each strip. Which leds would u buy, part number and everything. lol cuz i dont know luminoscities, angles, etc... and im sure to buy the 5mm since thats what the others are using.

 

40 LED's?

Dang that's going to be brighter than the headlights! If you're going with that many you might want to concider some LED's that don't put out a bunch of light (lumionus intensity). Better yet since this is an experiment buy a few different values and try them out yourself.

If you're looking at SuperBrightLEDs look at the Forward Voltage specification and under the TYPical for the voltage drop reading. As an example the white LED at the top of their chart, part number RL5-W2545 needs a typical voltage of 3.5 volts. Take your supply voltage of 13.6 from your battery and divide 3.5 into it to get 3.8 diodes. Then divide it by the MAXimum forward voltage which is 4 volts for this diode and you get 3.4 diodes.

Coming up with 0.8 or 0.4 diodes isn't possible which is why I used an LED to draw the current - to drop the voltage equal to that 0.8 or 0.4. There's probably no harm with throwing four diodes in there and under driving them a tiny bit. Throwing too many in and they won't light at all. Not connecting enough and they'll over heat or just flash once and burn out.

With 40 LED's you're going to have to make a series of parallel ciruits which are going to drive four LED's each.

If you plan on putting both amber and white LED's in the same fixture you might want to concider matching their output intensity. I'd probably try 5000 mcd LED's with a pretty narrow view in the 15-24 degree angle.

 

sounds good, ill get some ordered and kinda try a step by step with a few of em. I was reading your whiteup with the door, what are u doing with the wires RIGHT before you solder them? You pinch them together? or something?

 

Acree was telling me about this guy, professorled on ebay. He said he buys his from that guy. Heres link to 100 white leds, would these work?
http://cgi.ebay.com/100-Ultra-White-...QQcmdZViewItem
Also where do I buy the resistors, I couldnt find them on superbrightleds.com or v-leds.com or anything....

 

those are the exact leds that i used for every set of sidemarkers i have made. they look great and the color is around 5500k.

 

I do sell a predrilled kit for DIY reflectors including LEDs and resistors it saves a bit off the fully assembled, though lacks the lifetime warrenty it seemed some people could solder just fine, but the whole deal of drilling the reflectors is the trickier part.

but at any rate if you do it all yourself and have any questions, shoot me a PM Id be happy to help answer them.

 

Cool, once I get my cc up and running ill buy a set of these and try em out. Curious where I can buy the little resistors? I already am gonna buy a 30watt solder pencil from radio shack.

So: leds, solder pencil, resistors, crazy glue, shrink wrap maybe or something like it, 3m splice clips, wiring, am i missing anything? Any "detail" to the items needed would be appreciated, what gauge wiring, good glues, etc...

 

Also Paul350z I read this in your other thread about the door mod.

"One lead of the LED is longer than the other - these all have to go to the same side as LED's are polarized - they work with electricity applied only in one direction. "

In the pic it looks as though its like this. Tall short, short tall, short tall, short tall, short tall, etc... (talking about the leads) is that right or pic just come out like that?

 

Just the way the picture came out - tall-short-tall-short ... is the way they connect.

 

Resistors are also available at Radio Shack - $2 for five something like that.

You forgot soldier and a pair of aligator clips to use as heat sinks on either side of the area that you're working on. A bit of rosin helps the soldier too - just a tiny bit helps. You need to get the two wires bonded together in less than three seconds - the heat sinks give you a bit more time then that but that's your goal. A small hand vice is nice.

 

ok cool i kinda thought so cause that would make sense when your doing a parallel at least. Ok one more question, on 2 rows of lets say all white, since im not doing amber on the practice pair. When you get to the end of row one, and about to solder to row 2, same concept, take the short one and connect to tall one on 2nd row, wouldnt that basically turn the 2nd rows leds around like a 180? Dont know if this makes sense written down, but in my head it seems like how it should be layed out

 

will this work as a solder? http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...entPage=search

And these for the resistors?
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...entPage=search

 

there is one thing. i recommend getting a certain kind of solder. they sell it at radioshack and it comes on a small spool. there are alot of different types of solder but this is the best one i have used so far, very easy to work with.

RadioShack
Part - 64-005E
Light duty Rosin-Core Solder
60/40 <---That is the important part.
0.032 diameter.
2.5 oz.

 

This?
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...entPage=search

 

I may be wrong about how your describing it. but heres how it should be.

positivewire-LED-LED-LED-resistor-negativewire.

now what you can do, is something like this
LED-LED-LED
Positivewire< >resistor-negative wire
LED-LED-LED

so now you have 1 positive wire, 1 resistor, and 1 negative wire. but you split the LED series. the leds will go positive-tall short-tall short-tall short-resistor

you cant have more than 3 LEDs in a series for white(4 can be done but its not great for the LEDs because the current varies)

take the above setup and imagine the LED-LED-LED many times, each set of 3 its own thing, all connected on 1 side to the positive wire and on the other side to the resistor.

 

that's it