Recent content by tylernt

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    Beacon Light

    Hm, I can't explain it then, unless maybe you've got a bad resistor. Sometimes the resistance will be higher than spec due to manufacturing defects.
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    Beacon Light

    That's probably high enough. Each LED has a slightly different forward voltage, especially between manufacturers but even within a batch. 3.6V is thrown around as a "standard" but some LEDs are specified as high as 4.2V. But, even the ones specified at 4.2V will usually light at somewhat lower...
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    Beacon Light

    What voltage are you using and what color of LED? If the voltage is high enough, your LEDs should light even at very tiny current levels. But if the voltage is too low, then all the current in the world won't make them light.
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    Beacon Light

    There is a device called "uCurrent" made by an Australian guy that goes by the handle of "EEVblog" and is sold by such retailers as AdaFruit.
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    Thinking of getting a small lathe...

    In it's annealed state, O-1 isn't terribly hard. I've had no problems turning it on my 7x10 mini-lathe -- not as pleasant as 1018, certainly, but not bad.
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    Thinking of getting a small lathe...

    It may just be threaded. Use a piece of leather or similar padding (to avoid marking the shaft) to grip the shaft with pliers or Vise-grips to see if it unscrews.
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    Thinking of getting a small lathe...

    Some of the pen turning mandrels I've seen will let you remove the shaft from the Morse taper. Maybe you could grip the shaft in a chuck, dispense with the taper altogether.
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    Thinking of getting a small lathe...

    Funny, just tonight I was testing the accuracy of my $10 Chinese dial indicator. This is on my surface plate. The indicator was zeroed on the surface and then a 1" standard was placed between the plate and the plunger. It's measuring about 1.0036" when it should be measuring 1.0000". In other...
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    Thinking of getting a small lathe...

    If I only had one, I'd probably pick the lathe with a milling attachment for flashlight-related machining. Round parts can be done on a mill with a rotary table, the lathe can do something the mill can't -- single point threading. (Well, a CNC mill can do threadmilling, but CNC is a whole...
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    Thinking of getting a small lathe...

    I'm with gadget_lover. Really, the perfect Mag-lite lathe doesn't exist. A small benchtop lathe with a 2.5" spindle bore would have to be fabricated, or at least a custom headstock fitted to the existing ways and carriage of a standard lathe. The only problem then is, large bearings don't like...
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    Thinking of getting a small lathe...

    Don't forget to take the back off the chuck (three small screws) so you can oil the bevel gears.
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    tiny homemade flashlight for craft project

    Yes, 3.2V LEDs will light at like 2.8V though they won't be as bright. Use two 3V cells and you can get full brightness.
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    tiny homemade flashlight for craft project

    If you're using 3V lithium cells, a driver such as the Joule Thief is not necessary. A simple resistor will work to limit the current.
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    Thinking of getting a small lathe...

    I have no problem cutting mild 1018/A36 steel and 416 stainless on my 7x10. (The type of stainless makes a big difference, I would not care to even try 316 or 304.) For larger diameters (up towards 3") you lose a lot of torque at low RPM, so DOC (Depth of Cut) has to stay light to avoid stalling...
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    Aluminium Reflector

    I'd start with 400 grit sandpaper, then move up to 800-100 grit, and finally about 2000 grit. Then I'd use something like Mother's Mag Polish (available at auto parts stores for polishing wheels). Here's the important bit, while you're polishing with the Mother's, have some car wax ready to go...
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