# deflector lighting/frosting, yup, even more pics inside.



## CaptDistraction (Feb 1, 2005)

The painting is still not finished, the intermediate ring is satin silver, and the inner/front ring is dark ghost grey (although I almost think light ghost gray would probably be a closer match). I need to go over them one more time for lightbleed prevention, but you guys can see the frosting effect acheived with a cheap rattlecan satin clearcoat from Walmart.

It is lit by 1 3mm white led, with a blue "gel" over it. The gel is some rubbery blue material I found laying around, but I bet its from one of those pepboys kits for automotive interior lighting changes. I'm sure people can find better sources/material.

Also, the interior of the deflector housing is painted with "chrome" spray, its obviously nothing like chrome, but its the closest I've seen in a paint. Works great for reflection, and when the deflector is off, there isn't even a hint of blue, its just like the shooting model.

Without further ado: (and yes, I read up on exposure compensation)

lit forward facing









without lens









unlit









there are 4 more at http://www.chris-wynne.com/bige/

I'm saving the pics of how it looks from an angle, because it just looks so dam cool, minus the lightbleed. Once the second layer of paint and finish is on there, I'll take a couple at an angle, its really cool to see the soft blue glow reflecting on the rings.


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## KUROK (Feb 2, 2004)

Wow - wee !


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## Steven Coffey (Jan 5, 2005)

That looks very good !


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## Marco Scheloske (May 16, 2000)

So you didn`t paint anything blue there? Just a frosted dish and a blue "painted" LED?

Greetings from Germany
Marco


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## chunkeymonkey (May 4, 2004)

thats a sure pretty sight.

i've had so many ideas swimming around in my head about this model and this is quite similar to what i had in mind.

my locla wilko store has a can of plastikote mirror like silver paint i was gonna try for the inside of the deflector housing.

thanks for the frosting info, it looks really effective, i started a few threads for frosting clear parts recently just to get some ideas.

any reason why you used a white led and not blue ??

i plan to use a blue one and maybe under power it.


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## ccbor (May 27, 2003)

great job!


Rob


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## razorwyre1 (Jan 28, 2004)

nice! what brand of "chrome" paint is that?


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

Wow! That's fantastic!


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## CaptDistraction (Feb 1, 2005)

It might actually be the plastikote can now that I thinhk of it. I'll look


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## jgoldsack (Apr 26, 2004)

Wow that looks really good, but I have to echo the question of a previous poster... why a white LED and not a blue one?


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## cinc2020 (May 10, 2004)

*Nice*

Nice work. I was thinking of a potential problem that your images help demonstrate. The pegs for the clear piece appear visible when the assembly is lit. I am aiming to sand those off and figure a different way to mount the dish.

Any thoughts on that?


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## portland182 (Jul 19, 2003)

jgoldsack said:


> Wow that looks really good, but I have to echo the question of a previous poster... why a white LED and not a blue one?


I'm guessing but...

If there is spill from a blue light in the body of the ship it'll show through on the other windows. 
So if you use a white light you dont have to build a light tight box behind the deflector, and you may get additional illumination for some other 'lights' on the ship.

Jim


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## CaptDistraction (Feb 1, 2005)

blue leds were too intense. I used electrical tape to back the led, so there really isn't any bleed.

I may pick up another 3mm blue led (the one I have I was going to use for the impulse dome), and I'll post pics, and let you guys decide. What I like about using a 3mm led, is that I have not needed to make any modification to the plastic.


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## woozle (Oct 17, 2002)

disregard this message.. it's stoopid.


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## Marco Scheloske (May 16, 2000)

I simply have to ask again because I like the effect so much that I want to replicate it: There is no (transparent) blue paint on the clear parts, no? Just frosted an a blue light, yes?

Greetings from Germany
Marco


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## chunkeymonkey (May 4, 2004)

CaptDistraction said:


> blue leds were too intense. I used electrical tape to back the led, so there really isn't any bleed.



thats why i will under-power a blue led or find another way to tone the light spot down a bit.

i have toyed with idea of replicating how a car headlight works. with a central reflector over the led that bounces the light back to the silver deflector housing and then out through the clear parts.

thats how car headlights are made to stop a hard spot of light shining into other drivers eyes and giving an even beam of light.


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## woozle (Oct 17, 2002)

I plan to experiment with a UV LED, so the ultra violet light makes a white deflector glow with its own inner light...


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## CaptDistraction (Feb 1, 2005)

I remember something else, the film I used actually helped spread the light, versus the typical beam pattern that is real centerd.


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## chunkeymonkey (May 4, 2004)

SQUAWK...........SQUAWK!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :freak: :freak: :freak:


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## CaptDistraction (Feb 1, 2005)

huh?

Oh, I had ruled out a reflector, after trying it and ending up with a dark center. I tried various translucent reflectors, and couldnt make myself happy. Therefore, I will live with a bit of over-brightness in the center


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## chunkeymonkey (May 4, 2004)

either way it still looks great.

i have had another idea for myself.

i found a cheap (20p) plastic folder and it the right blue for lighting. i compared it to the DLM bits i got for lighting my defiant and the colour is pretty welll spot on.

my plan is to use a white led and cut a disc out of the plastic folder and try it to provide the colour. the plastic is already frosted and hopefully i will get the desired effect.

now...it's back to the defiant, got several projects to finish before starting on my refit, but i will post piccies of my deflector when it turns out how i want it.


p.s. my previous post was to keep this thread alive :drunk: and it worked :wave:


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## Marco Scheloske (May 16, 2000)

Oh it hurts to be ignored...  ...twice...

I still like to know if there is any blue paint involved or just a frosted deflector and a blue tinted LED.

Please? Someone?  

Greetings from Germany
Marco


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## Garbaron (Apr 23, 2004)

Hey Marco …

He did say in the very first post that he only frosted the dish and covered the white LED with “some rubbery blue stuff” he found lying around. 

No paint or anything else just some blue gel stuff….got it now?


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## StarshipClass (Aug 13, 2003)

^^ Ah, you Germans are incredibly polite! :thumbsup: 

Here y'all are speaking English to each other instead of German so the paranoids amongst us won't think you're talking bad about us English-speakers! 

That is,_ if _you're really Germans!


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## FoxTrot (Jan 27, 2000)

lookin' goooood!!! Fox


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## Raist3001 (Oct 23, 2003)

chunkeymonkey said:


> either way it still looks great.
> 
> i have had another idea for myself.
> 
> ...



I have been trying the same exact thing with materials I purchased in Michaels. I bought some frosted sheet, in various colors, and they had something called stained glass sheets, that were simply what the plastic folders are made of. I have been trying these materials in many ways. Either the center is too dark, or the material covers up the ring of lights. Either way, I do agree that a WHITE LED works better for me than a blue one.


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## chunkeymonkey (May 4, 2004)

my intention is to cut the disc fairly small so that it just covers the led...ie the disc is at the back of the dish/housing assembly.

of course the housing itself will be primed in black and then painted in silver for reflective qualities.

if someone gets the chance to do it before me let us know how you get on , as i think getting the deflector looking right is the hardest thing as alongside the warp engines it stands out the most on a lighted model.


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## Raist3001 (Oct 23, 2003)

chunkeymonkey said:


> my intention is to cut the disc fairly small so that it just covers the led...ie the disc is at the back of the dish/housing assembly.
> 
> of course the housing itself will be primed in black and then painted in silver for reflective qualities.
> 
> if someone gets the chance to do it before me let us know how you get on , as i think getting the deflector looking right is the hardest thing as alongside the warp engines it stands out the most on a lighted model.



Again, I have done the same thing. My deflector housing was primed in black and then painted a reflective silver. And I have frosted the actual dish. I have been trying many combinations of using frosted sheet and the blue discs. Nothing to my liking yet.


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## Marco Scheloske (May 16, 2000)

Garbaron said:


> Hey Marco …
> 
> No paint or anything else just some blue gel stuff….got it now?


Hey Garb,

thanks, I just wanted to be SURE - I have only one try... (or I have to buy a second one, what I don`t want... too many other projects also waiting). :thumbsup: 

Greetings from Germany
Marco


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## Cloudwalker (Sep 25, 2004)

*I Have An Idea!*

I was speaking to my brother about the deflector cunundrum, as his line of work is stage lighting and illuminated sign fabrication. He suggests that to eliminate the LED "hotspot", we take a conical drill to a 5mm or 10mm LED. Basically, what you want to do is remove the natural lens shape of the led and reverse it, so you have a sharp concave cone emmiting the light, which will disperse it more consistantly over a much wider area. Now my variation on this idea to get a whitish color in the center, is to surround one underpowered 3mm Cool White Led with 3 (or 5) 5mm Pure Blue LEDs (or Sky Blue LEDs) with the aforementioned conical tweaking....and of course, frost the dish.

I'll be starting to place my many lighting orders this week and next week, but it'll be a little while before I'll have time to test the idea. If anyone else feels up to it, by all means, please try it and report back.

Also, I'm not sure if anyone is aware of this, but there is such thing as an incandescant colored white LED. So if anyone out there wants authentically colored spot lights, secondary formation lights, and VIP lounges, be sure to pick a few of these up. One source that I know of is www.ledtronics.com in their discrete LEDs section.


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## Alkalilake (May 13, 2005)

I think one solution here is to try the new coated leds from superbrightleds.com I got some, and indeed they have a nice coating on them and have a 360 degree light pattern just like and incandescent bulb. Plus the prices are 1.29 per led. You can't beat that.


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## Cloudwalker (Sep 25, 2004)

I've seen them. They're really nice and do spread the light out much better than a water clear lens, but you still have a hot spot with it. It's just the nature of an LED's shape. These would probably work very well on each end of the inboard nacels, though, if you don't want to use CCTs, and may light groups of porthole windows more efficiantly. I think it was TrekFX who had some pics up of his lighting system in the works, and behind each grouping of saucer rim windows, he has three 5mm LEDs. You'd probably only need one of the 360 degree ones for each section, which would definitely be a little easier on the wallet.


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