The flashlight is assembled quickly and simply, all the necessary materials can be easily found or inexpensively purchased. As a power source, 12V batteries from an old toy are used. Still for these purposes, cells from a laptop battery are suitable. In a pinch, you can buy rechargeable batteries, however, in this case, the value homemade slightly reduced.
The case is assembled from PVC pipe, and an LED lamp is also bought at a hardware store.
Materials and tools for the flashlight:
- a piece of PVC pipe 50 mm;
- special glue for PVC;
- two threaded PVC fittings;
- threaded PVC plug;
- a small toggle switch;
- 12V power supply (battery);
- LED lamp for 12V (colors are different, you can choose any one to your taste);
- polystyrene (a small piece);
- heat shrink, cable ties, electrical tape.
According to the author, a 9V battery can also be used as a power source, but in this case the light will be dimmer. If there is a problem with the batteries, then there is such an option as installing a bracket for eight AA batteries of 1.5 each.
What will be needed from the tools:
- solder and soldering iron;
- a hacksaw;
- file;
- side cutters;
- sandpaper.
Getting to the manufacture of a flashlight:
Step one. Battery Preparation
As a power source, the author used batteries from a toy on a radio control. It is a 1.2V battery pack of 10. This block was cut and connected using electrical tape in a more compact form. Now the entire unit can fit in a PVC pipe.
Two wires must be soldered to the battery output terminals. As for connecting the batteries, it is important to get a voltage of 12V, at this voltage the LEDs will light optimally, and will last a long time. If there are still cells from the battery in stock, they can be connected in parallel to increase the capacity of the power source.
Step Two Lantern lamp
The preparation of the lamp for the lamp is that the author solders the wires to it.It was decided to abandon the use of connectors, as there is simply no need for this. It is best to use a LED lamp, since it does not heat up, it shines brightly, consuming little energy.
Now the circuit can be checked, turn on the toggle switch. If the lamp is on, everything is fine, you can proceed to the next step - create a housing.
Step Three Making a housing for a flashlight
The case is made quickly, it is almost ready, you just need to modify the PVC pipe. A hole must be made in the fitting, then the edges must be carefully crafted with a file. The surface should be flat and round so that the lamp can stand well on this place.
Now it is important to determine the length. It is necessary to measure what is the length of the lamp along with the battery, it is still important not to forget about the toggle switch, since it will stick out inside the case from the back. After that, the pipe can be cut with a small margin of space.
Step Four Build a flashlight. Final stage
Flashlight is going to glue. So that the battery does not walk around the case and does not hit the toggle switch and lamp, an insulating foam tube is installed in the case. It is also advisable to grab the battery with glue or fix it in another way.
After installing the battery, you can stick the lamp. To do this, a good layer of glue must be applied to its edge to ensure tightness between the lamp and the housing. Well, then the lamp is inserted into the housing.
The toggle switch is installed on the other hand, the feature here is that you can turn on the flashlight only if you unscrew the lid in the back. On the one hand, this is inconvenient, but it is good because it provides tightness and the lantern can be shone even in the rain, even under water. However, you can come up with an external waterproof switch.
To ensure tightness, fittings are glued on both sides of the lamp.
