Another glow in the dark question

Janka · Post by **Janka** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 10:42 am

What is small, does not require an external power source (a small battery is maybe ok), gives a light strong enough to read a short piece of text by, and looks like a single point of white light from about 3-5 meters away? Some kind of a LED?

(Now I have an art installation idea. This BM thing is really getting out of hand.)

Lassen Forge · Post by **Lassen Forge** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 10:46 am

A lot of the outdoor stores here have these little single white LED flashlights that are really tiny and work really well for that. I don't know if they have them over there yet, but they're cheap enough you can pick them up for a couple bucks each.

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 10:52 am

Yep, sounds like LED to me....How far away from the text do you want the light? For a little blurb your window of ideal lighting with a diode is about a foot or two....at that distance it'll light an area about the size of a Frisbee. I had to light some monster faces in my garage-spook house last Hallowe'en, and used UV LEDs taped to about 2' of copper wire with the power leads running down the wire to batteries....The copper wire wasn't rigid enough to impale anyone in the unlikely event that they ran into it, and you could fine-tune the lighted area by simply bending the wire.

Janka · Post by **Janka** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 10:56 am

Ideally, the light would be right next to (or above) the text, but a foot is great.

I'll check about the led flashlights, thanks. We are lucky to have quite good outdoor stores in town, though they are more geared to backpacking than car camping than those in US. :) That copper-wire system seems about what I would like to have, but I worry about the wind - this would be completely exposed.

Apparently there is also a store somewhere around that sells all kinds of glow in the dark stuff and lights for parties, might very well be worth to drop buy at some point to be clueless in (for this and for the game I asked about earlier).

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 12:53 pm

Using wire stiff enough to hold its shape ought to eliminate the wind-problems, or you can bend the wire at the base end into a coil, emulating CB antennae, to impart a degree of flex.I don't suppose you have Pep Boys stores in Finland, but it's at automotive supply stores like that that you can purchase sets of three or four diodes of assorted designer colors, (YES, there are white ones- that's what you want, right?) each on its own little three-foot-long power-supply wire. Ready to go!

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 2:03 pm

For reading text, one of those L E D head lights woulld do the trick. I use one for hands free work around the camp. Cost about $19.00

Janka · Post by **Janka** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 1:55 am

Not Pep Boys, but I think we have an equivalent. Thanks. :)

HughMungus · Post by **HughMungus** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 8:54 am

unjonharley wrote:For reading text, one of those L E D head lights woulld do the trick. I use one for hands free work around the camp. Cost about $19.00

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... 00-2992942

$9.99

Mister Jellyfish Mister · Post by **Mister Jellyfish Mister** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 8:05 pm

I've been taking apart cheap solar powered landscaping lights for a similar art project. No battery hassles and plenty of white glow. Dig it at:
http://www.mutantvehicle.com/paranoia_pikes.htm

HughMungus · Post by **HughMungus** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 12:39 am

Mister Jellyfish Mister wrote:I've been taking apart cheap solar powered landscaping lights for a similar art project. No battery hassles and plenty of white glow. Dig it at:
http://www.mutantvehicle.com/paranoia_pikes.htm

"To outline the perimeter of Kamp Apokiliptika at Burning Man 2005, Paranoia Pikes are being fashioned from PVC pipe and mannequin molds of faces."

Man you are going to screw some people's heads up.

Janka · Post by **Janka** » Mon Apr 25, 2005 12:58 am

Nice, Mr. JellyFish, thanks. Love the faces too, looking forward to seeing them. :)

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Mon Apr 25, 2005 5:22 am

Stop setting the bar so high!!! I've got OLD projects to finish!!!

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Mon Apr 25, 2005 8:26 am

Hope he has a BUsh head. That would be so cool.

Mister Jellyfish Mister · Post by **Mister Jellyfish Mister** » Mon Apr 25, 2005 8:41 am

Thanks, you guys. I saw the effect once at a science installation in San Francisco's Exploratorium and it really stuck with me.

Every musician (and artist) is a magpie and a theif. -Elvis Costello

Just wait until you see the Apokiliptika Air Canon. If we can get the thing to work like those new handheld toys we're going to be blowing some kilts up for sure.

Has anybody had experience with the next generation of glow paint and dust that you can mix into paint? It's pretty expensive but boasts a lot more luminesence than the old halloween stuff. Here's a link from a good company I buy stuff from:
http://www.coolightwest.com/coolightwes ... oducts.htm