Starter Kit

[SweetLou]

I am new to home built lighting and circuit building but I would like to learn how to do this type of thing. The lights I would like to build are for a hub dynamo and maybe later some battery powered ones.

What would you recommend for a starter kit? I am thinking a breadboard would be a good choice and some kind of multimeter. I see breadboards come with different amount of holes, etc. I would like to hear some recommendations for a always to be novice.

Same with a multimeter, I am not going to spend the money to get a Fluke, just doesn't make sense for me. I will probably only use the multimeter for bicycle lights. But, I want something that is accurate enough to use. Is there a lower price point for good multimeters? What should I look for in a meter? Again, any recommendations are appreciated.

Also, what else should I get in my starter kit? Resistors? How many, what size? Same with diodes, capacitors, etc.

 

[jdp298]

A small breadboard is enough, 10cm square or so. There'll be plenty of room for most initial projects. I wouldn't get a number of random components, just think about what you want to build, plan the resistor sizes, capacitors, semi-conductors etc, and get the pieces for that. I think I got a decent-ish digital multi-meter (Sky-Tronic 600.006) for about a tenner off of Amazon. Choices of resistance, voltage, current and a couple of other odds and ends I probably won't ever use.

Hub dynamos are definitely the way ahead. If I have to replace what I've already done, I'll probably go the MOSFET H-bridge route and potentially more and brighter LEDs. But for now, check out jdp298 on Flickr for what I made work in limited time, space and budget.

 

[SweetLou]

Thanks, I asked one of the electricians at work and he said about the same thing as you. Except he said he wouldn't use a breadboard, he would just build the circuit (I showed him some of Martin's circuits).

I was thinking of a starter kit type of thing because I want to experiment with different rear lights and eventually try some of the stand light ones.

I am a commuter and every year around the holidays, I decorate my bike. This year, I was thinking about using the dynamo to light my holiday lights instead of the battery powered ones in the past.