bigclive

Failed LED lens

This very rough image shows the failed lens of a very old blue 1W LED (over 70,000 hours).

The lens has gone brown on the surface in a distinct central dot and outer ring that suggests they were the main optical peak for the blue light.

Updating a 70,000 hour lamp

I didn't realise how old this lamp was until I made this video and discovered that this lamp has been running 24/7 for over 8 years!

The only failure was degradation of the blue LED, with a slight reduction in intensity, but more importantly, a discolouration of its lens that affected it's output adversely.

A new blue LED has been fitted and the lamp is now back in operation.

https://www.youtube....

eBay touch switch module

It's debatable whether buying a cheap module from eBay that works at 110-240V and has a bare wire that you actually touch is a good idea.

This one isn't too bad if you trust a non class Y capacitor between you and a bad time.

The circuitry is OK and has a degree of hackability for playing about with resistor values.  There is no RF filtering on this potentially noisy phase angle control dimmer.

2022-11-02 05:05:20 +0000 UTC View Post

Coffee pod disaster

I thought I'd have a go at designing and 3D printing a refillable coffee pod for my coffee maker.  It turns out that PLA wasn't the best choice of plastic for the prototype.  I'll have to check out the higher temperature plastic options.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcHOmGNiNzA

Tiny little RGBW strobe for bike/drone use.

Quite a handy little module, but they could have done with omitting most of the 31 different modes.  I can't immediately think of an application for a pink SOS signal.

When used with it's short pulse duration modes it should achieve decent run time from its tiny 35mAh lithium cell, while still giving a very visual effect.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZVaU6vaC50

Weekend stream link

Here's the link to the weekend stream:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyObZAEk0jA

This one may be "busy"

I'm slotting in an extra live stream on the main channel (so a flood of unsubscribers when they see my face then).

I'm expecting the chat to be quite busy in this one, so I may end up snatching random chat comments out of a scrolling blur.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5C1sGb5LvY

Quiet Patreon Stream

Link to a quiet Patreon stream.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVnz98-bx3M

Trashiest "miracle heater" is quite interesting

This is not really what I was expecting.  The eBay listing images hinted at some interesting alternative to the usual PTC heating module found in these heaters.

But this unit makes me wonder which version came first?  Was it this odd retro design or was it just trying to keep up with the new trendy electronic ones.  (This unit does have electronic circuitry - just not much.)

https://www....

Revisiting rechargeable PIR lights

It's a while since I've looked at this type of light, and unfortunately in this era of political and corporate utility mismanagement it has become important to have a backup source of light that will spring into action during a power outage.

I've been doing a long term test on earlier versions, and they are actually very good for softening the effect of power outages by providing comfort lighting, or just allowing you to walk around the house at night without switching other lights on.<...

Can we fix Ralfy's heater

More importantly, is it worth actually fixing one of these very cheaply made appliances?   The answer is yes.  If you can fix something safely then it reduces landfill and can make a huge difference to those living on a budget, or where getting a new one locally is difficult.  (Not that a heater is budget friendly!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBmzl4szlpE

I suppose if I was ...

Weekend stream link

Here's the link to the weekend stream:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ck4S0tB2RI

Fixed it! (Then broke it again.)

Those of you who watched that bit of the Patreon live stream will know that I was demonstrating this whoofle igniter by swiping it back and forth in the air to disturb the arc, when suddenly it stopped working.

The good news is that I fixed it.  The LED staying on was a weird and complex effect initiated by a damaged component.

The bad news is that I then abused the thing again and it appears the arc length was probably already a bit too long for the tiny transformer, as it a...

Baiting YouTube shorts with fireballs

Yes I know.  It's shallow and guaranteed to please those with a short attention span.

But sometimes one must abuse the system for amusement.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/H9NhgOL55cQ

Two cell lithium protection and balancing module

I've never really explored cell balancing much before, so I got a simple two cell module to reverse engineer and see how it works.

It's clear that this module needs to be used with a charger that has suitable current limiting and an output voltage that matches the two cell voltage of around 8.4V.

If you have any thoughts on the notes in the video's description then let me know.

https://www.youtu...

Quiet Patreon Stream

I've lost track of whether this is one of the second Thursday streams or if it's a bonus extra one.

That said, there often is an extra one anyway.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGeKs0HA65s

Very simple boot dryer unit

Although this unit claims to be "the original", it is very similar to an American made unit called a Peet boot dryer.

It's worth mentioning that Peet don't seem to make these for other voltages than 110/120V.

The construction is inspirationally simple, and relies on hot air convection at low level to slowly dry footwear without damaging it.  It is intended to dry boots overnight if they are very wet and have them gently heated for putting on in the morning.

2022-10-19 00:13:27 +0000 UTC View Post

My favourite style of light just got better

It's rare that I get so enthusiastic about a light, but when your favourite daily use LED light gets an upgrade, it's hard to be disappointed.

In this awkward era of possible power outages, this is the light you want for comfort and functionality.  Best of all, it's widely available, affordable and seems to be compliant enough to be sold in high street stores.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYprl...

Night buddy original or clone?

Todd suggested I take a look at the much hyped Night Buddy style light.  But instead of buying the official marketed one for £30 I got a £10 one from eBay.

I'm wondering if they've just selected a common product and marketed it as if it's an original design.  The official one may have the extra feature of a red LED option in the COB.

The design isn't bad, but it does try to please everyone, and in doing so lacks what I look for in a head torch, which is being able to a...

Neosocket teardown - the 2022 remix

The Internet is littered with scams like these.  Often originating in the past when people didn't have the Internet to check their validity.

They were usually advertised in magazines or newspapers who were also apparently unscrupulous in the adverts they allowed.

They may also have been sold through pyramid marketing schemes where the manufacturer would recruit some salesmen that would then recruit further salesmen so it spread out exponentially with each layer skimming a bit...

Just gratuitous violence in a #short

I made a new video about this fake fuel saver plug, but then decided to blow it up in a short video by swapping the polarity of the capacitor and drilling some extra vent holes for the boom to come out of.

The case actually contained the blast quite well.

https://youtube.com/shorts/HQNBw5d5lyY?feature=share

Weekend stream link

Here's the link to the weekend stream:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKTwanp2fYc

Patreon stream in progress

Here's the link:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3SWDWOWuZY

Quiet Patreon Stream

Here's the link to the quiet Patreon live stream:-

The choice of thumbnail is entirely random.  I was looking for something more Autumnal due to that season being upon us, but liked this one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3SWDWOWuZY

High voltage ignitor/igniter unit

I appear to be making a video almost every day at the moment.  I'll have to tame things down to avoid having a huge delay between videos being made and released on YouTube at the usual schedule of one every two days.

This was a pretty cool unit.  Very sparky and poppy, but with very simple circuitry.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXUiXYkP9_E

Video jumping the queue

Just a reminder that my most recent video about the Parkside soldering iron hack is jumping the queue and being released in a moment due to being topical with the recently released reverse engineering of the same item.

So if you've not seen it yet, my apologies for the adverts that will appear.

The Lidl Parkside iron has a calibration mode

I've not seen this officially documented, but there's a way to set a new bit temperature for these soldering irons that is done entirely from the single button on the unit.

After I made the video showing the hardware hack a few people sent me a copy of the same text, showing the button calibration mode.  I'm not sure if it's documented somewhere, or if someone worked it out and put it on the 'net.

2022-10-11 23:43:07 +0000 UTC View Post

My turn to be scammed on eBay

This "ozone generator" is a nozone generator.  But weirdly the case has clearly been designed with mountings for classic ozone modules, complete with ventilation.

But what's in it is absolutely not an ozone generator.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lu2VZcPO5_Y

The schematic does yield one interesting power supply oddity.  A fudged half wave cap dropper type thing.

USB fairy light controller teardown

Fairy lights aren't just for Christmas, they're an all year round thing.

This is a set bought locally, that uses a fairly standard looking USB controller.  It won't put much strain on a USB power supply at just 350mA, and has a slightly annoying timer function and no memory!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQJv9EcaKh4

The circuitry is pretty much what you'd expect these days.  Compl...

Weekend stream link

Here's the link to the weekend stream:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWZGryaA-84

Hopefully YouTube is just glitching, as it currently shows my live channel as completely demonetised.  Maybe I've said bad things.