DIY: Bike Light

Riding your bicycle at night can be dangerous if you are not equipped with adequate lighting. The old traditional bike lights that are connected to the front or back wheel don't provide enough light when driving in dark areas, such as riding off road. Installing a bike light with high beams is an efficient way to make night riding safer. You can purchase quality bicycle lights for a high price or you can buy electronic parts to make your own light for a fraction of the cost.

Things You'll Need

• 180-K ohm resistor
• 330 Ohm resistor
• .22-uF 16-V or 100-V capacitor
• LM 555 timer chip
• 9-V battery snap
• 9-V battery
• Circuit board
• Plastic casing for electronic circuits
• On and off switch
• 10 mm LEDs
• Soldering iron and solder
• Vacuum for desoldering, if needed
• Wire cutter
• Scalpel
• Sandpaper
• Telephone wire
• Drill

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Instructions

• 1

  Purchase your materials from an electronics store. Most electronic stores have all the supplies needed to complete the bike light. Choose the color for your LEDs. They come in red, blue, green and yellow.

• 2

  Set up your circuit board. Use the wire cutter or scalpel to cut your circuit board to a size that fits inside your plastic casing.

• 3

  Trim your plastic box with the scalpel by peeling away some plastic on the longest side of the case. You will make a long gash down the side of the plastic. Use sandpaper to smooth away rough areas. The opening should only be wide enough to hold wires, about 1 mm.

• 4

  Make the hole for the on and off switch. Drill a hole on the sides of the case that fits your switch.

• 5

  Assemble your circuit board and parts. Use the soldering iron and solder to attach the black wire of the 9-V battery connector to Pin 1. Solder the red wire to Pin 8. Connect Pin 8 to Pin 7 with a 180-K ohm resistor, and Pin 7 to Pin 6 with another 180-K ohm resistor. Cut a piece of telephone wire to connect Pin 2 to Pin 6; then connect the 0.22 uF capacitor to Pin 6 and Pin 1. Do not wire pins 4 and 5.

• 6

  Connect the LEDs to the circuit board. Use your soldering iron to secure the LED lights to the board. Connect the LEDs by the following example: Five LEDs are joined by connecting the (+) pin of LED 1 to LED 5 through the (+) pins of LEDs 2,3 and 4, then to 5. Remove the output from Pin 3 and attach it to the (+) side of the LED, through your 330 ohm resistor, and to Pin 1, the ground (-).

• 7

  Attach the on and off switch. Use the wire cutter to cut the wire from the battery snap. Use the scalpel to peel away about 1 mm of wire on both sides. Connect the wires to the switch.

• 8

  Fit the switch through the hole in the plastic case and attach the board to the plastic case. Secure the case.