I'm not sure it's driven at 1A max, I don't have a voltmeter to measure such level (the one I have only goes up to 500mA, anymore it will fry my voltmeter). I can be certain as the trimpot on the Fatman is adjust to full. How do you suggest I beef up the wire? I can't seem to find any 9v snap connectors with bigger wires.

You Solder on your own wires from the snap plug. Like this:

Cool, I'll have to check it out if I ever need to stick two pieces of aluminum together...

I need to mount this in a better fashion.

Im also running 12 AAs for my LED setups. I use 2 6 packs, they have quite tight springs so it difficuly to pry the batteries out for recharging...but I found that on the MTB over rough stuff the batteries can rattle out so I use a velcro tie around the whole thing to keep em in place. The light will sometimes blink out as the batteries momentarily lose contact. Only once have they gone out completely with this setup (yay for helmet lights). The battery pack sits in a neoprene pouch under the top tube.

Would like to find a nice 12 pack with a cover to securely locate the batteries.

What light set up (how many leds, what Vf, and current) are you running and what kind of AA cells are you using?

I ask, because it would be interesting to compare run times.

I am using a single 20w halogen 12v lamp (mr16), and the AA cells are rated at 3400mAh.

I got 40min of bright operation and 20min of dimming light. Then i shut down the light cause
i was worried about too much discharge. This sounds like the batteries did not perform as rated. It was the first charge and i didn't charge 4 of them fully so that might have contributed to lower run times.

My black 5x2 holder is really snug... the white 2x1 holder sucks i am thinking of making an other 12 cell holder with all black ones.

Well,just got done reading this thread,only took 2 days! I'm doing some research in order to make some commuting lights myself.I wish to thank everyone for there time and commitment to diy lighting.There is alot of good info here.I don't own a camera but my buddy does,so when I get mine finished I will have him take some pictures and show me how to post them(computers aren't my thing).

No questions really,but I do have a couple things that may be of some help.In the automotive world,there are some connectors called "weather-pak",first used by GM.They are weather tight,small,come in different wire sizes,lock together,come in 2-3-4 pins(maybe more),indexed and will take anything you can throw at them (you could hang a SLA battery from them).

I don't understand why most people use SLA batteries.The only thing they have going for them these days is shelf life and cost,and that's open for debate.There heavy,they start losing there brightness the second you turn them on (discharge curve is not real good).NiCads or NiMH have a much flatter discharge(better light for longer period) and can be recharged 3-5 as many times,as long as you don't mistreat them(a smart charger will take of that).So I'm not sure SLA's are all that cheap in the long run.

MR-11 and MR-16 bulbs come both covered and open,6 and 12 volt.MR-11's come 5w-35 watt or so,MR-16's come 5w-100w+(not as big of a selection in 6v as 12v) but still plenty for bike lighting.I'm still up in the air myself on which to use,MR-11 for there size or MR-16 for the light output for the same input.Seems like a no-brainer to me to over-volt these bulbs at 7.2/14.4(almost twice the light).So they only last 10% of what there rated,there 3 bucks!

Whipping up a couple of aluminum housings for me is no big deal (been running mills and lathes for 30 years) but if I were to pick a housing out of all the ones I have seen,the Harbour Freight "Pond Scum" lights would be my choice.Not sure they would hang with 20w overvolting or some of the bigger bulbs,but they sure look good!

One last thing,did your know that if you sink your car/truck up to the roof in FRESH water,that all of the electicals systems with motors still work? Starter cranks,electric windows work,wipers work,door locks work,headlights work.Don't ask me how I know this,but have done it MANY,MANY times.You can drive your car/truck right in to a lake and roll down the windows and swim to the surface.

Thanks again everyone,best diy thread on the net!!!

Booger1

Well on second thought I do have 1 question.Has any one thought of using the frame as ground if the batteries are not next to the lights,you could get rid of one of the wires.

Welcome! I'm interested in what you come up with for your lighting.

Those sound pretty interesting. Do you have any online stores / local parts places where you can buy this kind of connector?

Some of us salvaged "used" SLAs from UPSes and other equipment for a free source of power. Chargers for SLAs are very inexpensive as well. SLAs are also available fiarly inexpensively in larger capacities for those who want to run halogens for long periods. NiMH batteries are available in high amp hour packs, but they're a lot more expensive. For those who like to run their bulbs "in-spec", 12 volt SLA batteries are a lot easier to find than 12 volt NiMH packs.

All that being said, I will soon be buying two 7.2 volt NiMH RC car packs to power my light setup.

I personally prefer the MR-16s because they are more efficient for the wattage (bigger reflector) and they are more commonly available in my local area. I used Optronics housings (the plastic ones, not the metal ones some use) and they are sized to use MR-16s. The size of the light heads isn't a big deal to me.

As long as the path of least resistance for the electricity is through the motors / headlights / etc, they will work. I'm not going to ask how or why you tested this, because I'm not sure I want to know.

Some have done this - I remember seeing a post or two on this in this thread. The consensus is that this will work. I used multiple conductor wire (computer AC power cables) for wiring my lights, so all the conductors are in the same package already.

Have fun designing your lights!

Ken

Weather-Pak terminals can be had at any auto parts store,big chain stores or mom @ pop.If they don't have them in stock,they can order them.

I guess if the SLA's are free....I'd still don't like the idea of strapping a gallon of water(weight wise) or more to my bike and humping it around town.

Booger1

I use SLAs because of the low cost of the batteries and smart chargers. I have chargers for 3 family bikes at home where we lockup the bikes, and I have one at work to recharge during the day. If you don't discharge the SLAs to deeply, you get better battery life. Also, I have changed my headlight to a MR16 3-watt luxeon that has a built-in power regulator so the power/discharge curve doesn't effect it.
I have been using my bike frame for the ground for years--works great. The only thing I have done differently is to have 2 contacts from the battery to the frame (seatpost). I have had the connection break from fatigue/age and there go your lights. A backup ground connection takes care of this issue.

I use Anderson Power Pole connectors on the battery packs ... much easier to connect and doesn't need the additional "series" adaptor. Plus ... my charger has APP connectors which I can build adaptor cables for to attach any connector type to.
I rig mine like this:

I use the Deans because they have a low resistance and that's what my RC car has on it. the Anderson's look good too but I've never seen them before. Considering the number of Deans I have around my house I won't be switching soon

Where do you get them and how much? (For future reference)

I use the APP's in RC too so I guess I'm in the same boat. I mount the two 7.2 packs to my 12V RC starter (airplanes and helis). Don't have to worry about the long cord attached to your 12V hobby battery getting wound up in the prop

So I guess if you have a bunch of Deans already ... can't really blame you for bringin what you got.

The last time I purchased the APP connectors, I purchased a pack of 50 (50 black, 50 red, 100 contacts). That's been about 5 years ago. You save more by buying in bulk (single connectors here and there will eat you alive).
I'll try to remember where I got them but they are available everywhere in the lower quantities.

What LED are you using? What are you driving that LED at? What lens do you have mounted?

I think I had some of those long ago but I only ever had a few and couldn't find a supplier. Your system is more elegant than mine for doing the serial connection. Oh well, use what ya got

You'll find everything you need at www.luxeonstar.com

Received my lenses, Q5 LEDs and bFlex - so now I have to learn how to solder.

Luxeon 1w red led, and a random lens i had. 2x NiMH AAs in series, direct drive

Ok just got their email notice.

I got mine at www.acerracing.com. They offer a 50 pair kit (50 red, 50 black, 100 contacts) for 50.00.
I don't know if they are the cheapest but they are cheaper than buying a pair at a time (look at their 2 pair price ... 3.39 for two pair ... yikes.

Besides ... if you buy a 50 or 100 pair kit ... you won't buy any more for a long time.

I just spent the last 4 days reading every single post in this thread and viewing most of the homebrew light pics that people posted... and I have to say "Thanks!"

I'm getting geared up to start bike commuting again, and my commute presents some challenges. My ride is only 10 or 11 miles each way, but I live several miles outside of town in a very rural area. So the first part of my ride is on unlit roads that are not just dark... they are utterly blacked out after dark! When it's cloudy or moonless, the surrounding trees make it sort of like riding through an unlit tunnel. For these stretches I need light to see by... good strong light.

As I get nearer to my workplace, I'm faced with different challenges. I work on a military installation, so my lights must meet very specific guidelines. If you run bright lights on the base, the police tend to freak out and stop you every five minutes so that you can explain what the hell you're doing blinding other drivers. Most of the base is lighted very well with street lights, so I mainly need lights to be seen by.

The last factor is rearward visibility. Some of the roads that I ride have some very fast moving traffic on them... lots of shoulder room and extra lanes for cars to give me space, but the cars need to see me a long way off. I need to give them plenty of reaction time.

So you see... I was looking at buying 2 different headlight systems so I could turn off the high beams while on base... and some expensive tail light system for safety. I was looking easily at several hundred dollars. But no more!

I'm an engineer and a tinkerer anyways, so you guys have inspired me to make my own lights! With the stuff that is available out there today, I figure I can put together a system that does exactly what I need it to do for about $100 or so. I could probably do it for less, but I hate shopping endlessly for prices and components.

So thanks to you all... and look for me if you're ever out on Georgia's roads!

Bobby

I finally finished my light! I'll post pics tomorrow. It's running at 350 mA, and at the highest setting it outshines my wife's 10W halogen. I can't wait to bump it up to 750 mA!

I started a separate thread: https://www.bikeforums.net/electronics-lighting-gadgets/355361-cree-q5-quad-hack-job.html

Does anybody have any experience with this LED?
They claim the light output of a 20 watt Halogen.
It would seem a quick and easy way to upgrade my MR16 based light.

https://www.optotech.com/MR16_12V.htm

According to the datasheet, it only produces 85 lumens with a current draw of 700mA. That's about equivalent to a Luxeon III emitter. Equivalent output to a 20W halogen? No. More efficient? Yes. Worth the money? Probably not.

Installed the '07 version of my light system this weekend. Added a second Whelen TIR III in back. The pair of them are so bright I'm wondering if I may be breaking some regulation. The gory details:

Front bike rack: Rivendell Mark's Rack
Batttery: 5AH SLA, I get about 30 minutes on full bright, but with the dimmer I can do the whole ride.
Battery Box from Target, I'm using Bungees this year to get a bit of suspension between the rack and box.
Light Dimmer Circuit: Light Brain 2002 twin
Dual Auto style fog lights, with 20 Watt Halogen MR16 bulbs, one narrow, one medium spread.
All connectors upgraded to Power Poles.

In the rear:
Dual Whelen TIR III flashers, mounted on a 1/8 by 1 1/2 aluminum stock, attached to the rear rack with "P" clamps.

Plus:
Planet Bike Beamer, bar mounted.
AAA LED flashlight velcro'ed to helmet.
Backup AA batteries to run the flashers if the SLA goes dead.