thecountofzero
Active Member
I used 20 gauge wire for everything.
Tron Legacy Costume
- Thread starter Rook 3
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I used 20 gauge wire for everything.
thecountofzero
Active Member
Here is the solder I used:
High-Tech Rosin-Core Solder (1.5 Oz.) - RadioShack.com
And I used a 30-watt cheap soldering iron. Couldn't find the link for it.
I could have used on of those tools that holds wires for you while you solder. Not sure what they are called. Can someone point me in the right direction. Gonna put one on my holiday gift list (along with more LEDs).
High-Tech Rosin-Core Solder (1.5 Oz.) - RadioShack.com
And I used a 30-watt cheap soldering iron. Couldn't find the link for it.
I could have used on of those tools that holds wires for you while you solder. Not sure what they are called. Can someone point me in the right direction. Gonna put one on my holiday gift list (along with more LEDs).
Anu
New Member
..Is it me or are is the EL tape of the sirens not actually sewn into the fabric, but literally pasted onto the fabric?
The replica costumes with the reflective tape also look this way. Maybe to make it easier to interchange the lighting?
ModernDayMarc
Well-Known Member
Total noob question here: is it possible with wiring up led's and soldering and what not to use the same connectors that el wire utilizes to make segments plug/unplug- able?
mworley007
New Member
Don't feel bad - I lost my costume contest to an infant wearing a mask. haha!
mworley007
New Member
GREAT JOB! You guys look amazing!
colonelmasako
Active Member
Very possible. Its how I've done it all so far. I forget what website I used to find just the connectors, but its pretty slick. Its very tricky to learn exactly how to solder the wires into the connectors, you'll have to do a lot of trial and error to get it to fit right. You also have to be very anal about your polarity. Keep it consistent.
The connectors for EL wire come in two parts: the metal contact, and the plastic that holds the contacts. You have to solder your wire to the contact, bend the tabs so that it becomes smaller, and then carefully insert into the plastic until it snaps. If you force it, it won't work. Good news is the connectors only cost like $.08 each, so buy lots. I'll find the site some time when I can.
P
predpaul
Guest
I have roughed out the layout of both EL Tape and EL wire. I am doing this on a budget so am going the wetsuit route 
EL tape
EL Wire
Very tempting to go with the Light Tape used in the film because they are local but I have spent over £3000 on costuming already :lol
Feel free to use these templates to layout your own. I plan on making it as screen accurate as I can :cool
Paul
EL tape
EL Wire
Very tempting to go with the Light Tape used in the film because they are local but I have spent over £3000 on costuming already :lol
Feel free to use these templates to layout your own. I plan on making it as screen accurate as I can :cool
Paul
:confused 3000? You could almost buy your own ship with that!
but who's gonna fly it, kid? you?
sorry, i couldn't resist...
sorry, i couldn't resist...
Haha perfect!
P
predpaul
Guest
That's all Paulo and Alfie. the others I built from scratch for less :lol
Paulo
http://www.therpf.com/members/predpaul/albums/paulo-predator/
Alfie
http://www.therpf.com/members/predpaul/albums/alfie-alien/
Paul
Icey
Active Member
My foam arrived in the mail today, so I was able to play around with an LED diffusion method that's a hybrid of aoifrosts's and eddy's method. I didn't use the same thickness of foam as I don't have armor in my costume to recess the lighting and need as low a profile as possible, so I used 1/16" white packing sheeting (commonly used to wrap picture frames and the like) covered with a shower curtain stuck to clear contact paper. The LED strip is a bit different and smaller than the ones you can find on the reel, 60 LEDs/60cm versus 60 LEDs/meter, but they work for testing purposes.
The left and center strips are attached to white vinyl and the right one is attached to a piece of poster board to see if rigidity made a difference. I tested both one and two sheets of foam for diffusion properties and the difference is negligible.
The LED strips are flat, and though not visible straight on, you can see them when viewed on an angle.
The LEDs on one side of the strip is plenty sufficient to light up even wider areas (these are close to 2 inches), provided there is a bit of a gap between whatever the lights are attached to and the diffusion material otherwise you'll wind up with dark spots like the right poster board backed strip. This could easily be fixed by gluing a thin strip of craft foam opposite the LEDs or cutting and staggering the lights on opposite sides.
The only real downside I can see to this is the width of electrical tape you'll need to hide the LEDs since they're around 8mm wide when flat.
The left and center strips are attached to white vinyl and the right one is attached to a piece of poster board to see if rigidity made a difference. I tested both one and two sheets of foam for diffusion properties and the difference is negligible.
The LED strips are flat, and though not visible straight on, you can see them when viewed on an angle.
The LEDs on one side of the strip is plenty sufficient to light up even wider areas (these are close to 2 inches), provided there is a bit of a gap between whatever the lights are attached to and the diffusion material otherwise you'll wind up with dark spots like the right poster board backed strip. This could easily be fixed by gluing a thin strip of craft foam opposite the LEDs or cutting and staggering the lights on opposite sides.
The only real downside I can see to this is the width of electrical tape you'll need to hide the LEDs since they're around 8mm wide when flat.
tim
Sr Member
Woo-hoo! This thread is officially has over 800,000 views! :thumbsup I'm wondering if we'll hit a million by Christmas?
Below are some much-delayed photos of my completed costume. The photos taken at the Halloween party I attended were all done with flash, so the EL tape is washed out and pink. I took a few quick-and-dirty shots, but will have to do better ones at some point.
And yours truly with a bit of a focus problem:
Below are some much-delayed photos of my completed costume. The photos taken at the Halloween party I attended were all done with flash, so the EL tape is washed out and pink. I took a few quick-and-dirty shots, but will have to do better ones at some point.
And yours truly with a bit of a focus problem:
CelticRuins
Sr Member
For any girl out there doing a personally designed Tron costume...these are kinda cool: kandeej.com: LED (light up) Eyelashes
Eveningarwen
Well-Known Member
Those are flippin' awesome! But I can't imagine they'd be very comfortable to wear lol!
So much information in all these pages!!! My mind . . . it burnnssss.
I ordered my first package of EL wire yesterday to fix up my Kevin Flynn disc for my Siren costume. Super, super excited!! However, I plan on working with EL tape for the actual Siren suit. I'm paranoid about getting the tape right. Anyway, I was wondering, not to sound gross, but how is everyone getting in and out of their suits to use the restroom? I plan on using my costume at SDCC next year and I'm concerned what I'm going to do when I need to pee. I'd hate to break any EL . . . :sick
I ordered my first package of EL wire yesterday to fix up my Kevin Flynn disc for my Siren costume. Super, super excited!! However, I plan on working with EL tape for the actual Siren suit. I'm paranoid about getting the tape right. Anyway, I was wondering, not to sound gross, but how is everyone getting in and out of their suits to use the restroom? I plan on using my costume at SDCC next year and I'm concerned what I'm going to do when I need to pee. I'd hate to break any EL . . . :sick
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