The Smell of Molten Projects in the Morning

Ed Nisley's Blog: Shop notes, electronics, firmware, machinery, 3D printing, laser cuttery, and curiosities. Contents: 100% human thinking, 0% AI slop.

The New Hotness

  • Astable Multivibrator: RGB LED Strut Fixture

    One cannot (or, perhaps, should not attempt to) solder parts to 14 AWG wires seated in a 3D printed battery holder base, so I cleaned up the edges of two polycarbonate scraps:

    RGB LED Strut Fixture - flycutting setup
    RGB LED Strut Fixture – flycutting setup

    Then drilled holes to match the strut positions:

    RGB LED Strut Fixture - drilling
    RGB LED Strut Fixture – drilling

    The holes fit snippets of the original wire insulation, because, after all, polycarbonate is a thermoplastic, too.

    Stretch some copper wire to straighten and work-harden it, add insulation snippets, then maneuver everything in place:

    RGB LED Strut Fixture - assembled
    RGB LED Strut Fixture – assembled

    I definitely need a third (and maybe a fourth) hand to hold each part, the solder, and the iron, but at least the wires won’t walk away in the middle of the process.