So over the summer, I ran a flashlights workshop at a summer camp. The campers built their own flashlights, mostly from scratch. We made the bodies out of copper pipe. I used a cutting machine to make lenses and diffusers (I didn't want the kids shining naked dies in each other's eyes). The reflectors, LEDs on stars, and switches were from dealextreme.
The workshop was pretty challenging to run, because a lot of the kids had never soldered before. And, some parts of the assembly were kind of fidgety. But on the other hand, we were able to build very nice, very bright flashlights for less than $10 in materials each, including batteries and everything. So great! One problem though; the switches kept dying. I think this was more disappointing to me than the kids, because I had a lot invested in the idea; mostly they thought it was a cool experience anyway. However, if I ever run this workshop again (and I might), I would really like to use some more reliable parts. Anyone know where I could get similar switches to this: http://dx.com/p/clicky-switch-for-flashlights-16mm-5-pack-5632 that would hold up better?
While we're at it, here are some pics of the flashlights they made.
The workshop was pretty challenging to run, because a lot of the kids had never soldered before. And, some parts of the assembly were kind of fidgety. But on the other hand, we were able to build very nice, very bright flashlights for less than $10 in materials each, including batteries and everything. So great! One problem though; the switches kept dying. I think this was more disappointing to me than the kids, because I had a lot invested in the idea; mostly they thought it was a cool experience anyway. However, if I ever run this workshop again (and I might), I would really like to use some more reliable parts. Anyone know where I could get similar switches to this: http://dx.com/p/clicky-switch-for-flashlights-16mm-5-pack-5632 that would hold up better?
While we're at it, here are some pics of the flashlights they made.