ted's hardware

A religious token to tame the beast inside.

Some years ago Spikebike joined our family. She was a real beauty to look at with her shiny metal frame reflecting the mesmerizing afternoon sun. Always ready to begin a journey into the unknown like a loyal horse. However soon she started to change. Her behaviour took a turn for the worse. She became more and more rebellious, her metal frame was suddenly not so shiny anymore. What once were graceful fenders became a breeding ground for rust with evil spikes growing on them. Because of her change nobody dared to drive her for a long time. What made her reject our loving care and turn towards the darkness…and why? One thing is sure, the Spikebike was in desperate need of some spiritual guidance.

Materials used
- Prototype board
- 23 bright red 3mm LEDS
- PSU based on the LM7805
- additional capacitors, diodes and resistors
- 4mm Plexiglas
- hot glue

Building
Firstly I started experimenting with the design of the cross. It had to look cool and fit inside the tail light housing. My choice fell upon a three-bar cross  inside a cross bottony (three rounded lobes at the end of each arm). This type of cross was adopted by the Eastern Orthodox Church and is very popular in Slavic countries and their religion. After designing and constructing the cross I needed a suitable PSU to power it. I had an old PSU laying around from which I build for an earlier project. Luckily it was small enough to fit inside the tail light housing together with the cross. Because the original tail light cover consisted mostly of a reflector, I cut the whole area out and replaced it with a Plexiglas cover. The only thing I regret is that I didn´t paint the prototype board of the cross black. It would have given it a nicer look.

Photos
On the photos a part of the Spikebike can be seen. A gruesome appearance, isn´t she?

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