There was a thread in Sept 2014 about buying throwie supplies for Books By The Banks.
Are there any throwie supplies left over, and how much would they cost?
I got asked to give a flashlight / headlamp presentation at an Adventure Racing clinic and I’d like to give away throwies. I’m guessing I’d need 50, but I’ve asked the organizer how many people have registered, so I’ll have a firm number soon.
Matthew
Sharonville
If not, I’d be interested in getting some also. I’d love to do a stem talk at the local kiddie center my son goes to and I think the led throwies will go over fabulously with the little ones!!
Throwies are the little LED/battery/magnet critters… right?
Yep!
i remember someone mentioning a bunch thrown up on the side of a campus building… and that some of the higher up ones were still left weeks later…
If the magnets did not have the bad effect of shortening the life of the battery, I wonder how long they would last if you could add a tiny solar cell to charge the battery in daylight… and then leave them in fun locations!
That is an interesting idea.
Use a rechargeable battery instead of 2032, plus a solar cell and maybe a CdS light sensor (???) so it turns off during the day. The LED would prevent overdischarge of the battery—it would open when the fwd voltage is too low. You’d have to aim the sensor away from the LED light.
Matthew
yes, I know, I’ve reinvented the solar lantern…
but the idea of them lasting a longer time is neat… get them set out in interesting patterns on the sides of buildings and stuff… Or make them with a drag/tangle anchor and toss them into trees or over anything that stick out - signs- downspouts, etc.
I bought the supplies to make about 200 throwies for the Contemporary Arts Center a while ago. I chose to do it through Amazon because I have Prime so the sipping was free and fast, and they had everything I needed. This is what was on the order:
LEDs
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005H8MWVA?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006LUZLNY?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage
Batteries – CR2032
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0043SAFK0?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage
Magnets – Neodymium
http://www.amazon.com/GODHL-Neodymium-Earth-Magnets-Strong/dp/B01BZQML22/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1456336872&sr=8-3&keywords=Neodymium+Magnets+50+disks
Dave Menninger asked me about my source afterward because he wanted to have them at the BBTB event. Im assuming thats what he ended up doing too.
...I have Prime so the *sHipping*...
Goddamn smartphone virtual keyboard
Thanks, Daniel!
I need everything by Saturday at the latest, so I already ordered everything. For adventure racers, I’m recommending they stick to name-brand batteries (for things like LED headlamps), so I decided to “take that advice” and go with Energizer 2032s, 100 for $46 off ebay. They’re dated 2012, so that’s not terrible. I went with a very thin magnet 10mm x 1mm, I think, that was actually a few more dollars than your choice. I don’t think they’ll use the magnet very much. But for the LED, because AR people should be flashlight nerds anyway, I went with Cree 5mm. From Digikey, I got half of C503B, with a 15 degree viewing angle and a ridiculous mcd rating (30,000 maybe?), and half of C535, which are 110 degree viewing angle and like 1/10 the mcd (2400?). My understanding is that the die is identical, so the lumen output is the same, but the high-mcd one is a spot and the low-mcd is a flood. The goal was basically a tiny emergency light source. (Full disclosure—I’m not sure if I got “high-performance” LEDs. I may have bought “commodity” LEDs that aren’t anything special. I actually picked 100 of a 20deg, 15,000 mcd part number (with like 1500 on hand), but we got an email they were backordered, so my cost went up from 18cents each to something like 24 or 28 cents.)
I like the flashing RGB LED idea. I just ordered the 100 piece version, for $2. (How is that even possible—2 cents each, delivered?)
Matthew