Its been a while that I posted anything Gundam related mainly because there have so much happening, buying 3DS, Hawken’s new patch and a few other things that happened in the real world. However, I did also spend much of that time doing some reading on a few modifications to try on my new Gundam models I have yet to build. And one of the modifications that have been filling my head has been trying to add LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) to my Gundam models. I mean what Gundam fan would want all of their hard built models to have eyes and sensors light up in all its glory when taking photos of or just showing them to your friends as a new step in your Gundam building skills.
And while browsing the WORLD WIDE WEB (imagine me with a galaxy in the background), I found quite a few tutorials on this very topic, I mean its something extremely cool, why wouldn't anyone want to do this other than the fact it has a probability of ruining a perfectly fine Gundam model?! No other reason! So, based on my research, I have not tried this yet, will be getting to that soon, but back to topic, they usually only try this on models with clear parts for their eyes. A good example would be most of the new GM-type HG models. Many also recommend this because it is extremely easy compared to other methods. Basically, the main concern you have is the wiring and also how to maintain the mobility and articulation of the parts you will be adding the LEDs to.
(Above) LEDs, in case you don't know how these look like...
One of the main things I'm concerned about with this type of modification, is the type of LEDs you choose to use for it. To my knowledge, there are basically 2 types of LEDs you can easily obtain in the market, of course having a wide variety of sizes, the smaller ones usually being a tad bit more expensive, the first type being it produces orange light, but is covered by a clear plastic layer which will usually be its colour, as shown in the top left photo and the second being covered in a clear plastic layer but having different colours. The reason why this is a thing to be concerned about is that the first type, has pretty much the same rating of current and voltage (though I may be wrong about this) because basically the colour is the same, orange. And second of all, if you don't control or calculate the amount of voltage fed to these, they will burn out fast and worst of all light up orange (the light produced being so bright that the clear colour not having any effect, the reason I mentioned this is that it happened to me...) So you are most likely better of going for the second type, which has its own problems. For these type, the calculation of the colour having different ratings apply, blue being more current heavy compared to the others.
The above mentioned problem is mostly my concern, nothing big actually, but I like having the same colour light as the clear layer, just my own preference.
And my second main concern is what type of wire is suitable for such a project, and obviously, comparing HG models to MG models (which I would hopefully like to try later), the type of wire has to be thin enough to fit through the neck or some of the really tight areas in the model. Although I am considering a certain type of wire, the wire used in head phones or ear phones, since they are very, very thin. All of this have yet to be tested or course, and my first few guinea pigs are of course the SD models! Muahahahaha!
This post is getting pretty long, and I have just been talking about the LEDs, nothing to do with installation yet so I will continue on this topic in an update after I've tried this out myself. The few blogs I have read and provided quite good explanations for installing the LEDs are Play Evolution, Gamera Baenre and X Marks the Gundam Spot. Big thanks to these guys for posting these tutorials, check their blogs out, I also read a lot about painting through their blogs as well! That is all, till my next update!
Farid
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