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| Power lead for Vistalite etc | |
How and why to make your own replacement cable for Vistalite halogen lighting systemsProblems with standard cables, especially the curly variety are
While I digress, over time any cable will wear and break. This is made more likely by the nature of the curly cables and mtb riding. When I first got my Vistalites I got a set with two lights but only one battery and lead, so the first thing I needed to do was to get another battery and cable. So going to the internet for research I found a number of interesting sites (see links below) that gave me enough info to get started. After reading about wire sizes and loss I decided to make two cable and have to date only used the original cable for testing. If you have a look at the table on the BikeCurrent FAQ (http://user.fundy.net/cyclist/bikecurrent-FAQ.html#table2.1) you can see the loss increases noticeably with each additional wire size decrease. If you get a chance to look at actual wire in the vistalite cables you will see that it is really incredibly thin, especially when compared to the overall cable size. The other problem is that while the cable is good for about 300mm the actual wire length is closer to a metre. While I can't lay my hands on the table at the moment it is a fact that losses will increase over distance. So I reckon I'd much rather have a 400mm cable that goes 400mm than a 1000mm cable that only goes 350mm. Anyway the main aim of the excercise was to get as much of the power coming out of the battery being converted into light. 
The wire I have mainly used is Figure-8 Medium Duty Power Cable from DSE which rated to 50V DC 5A and should be oodles for 6V DC 2A (10Watt bulb @ 6Volt =~ 1.7A). It has the added benefits of being quite flexible, light and easy to use with the required fittings. I would imagine that other electronic stores would have a similar product available. For Vistalites I use standard 2.5mm DC connectors also available at DSE or Jaycar. Right angle connectors, as used at the light head end, I have only found at Jaycar. These all have have standard solder type contacts. Cygolites used to use a 2.1mm DC connector also readily available. It doesn't take much imagination to make up a adapter cables to use Cygolites with a Vistalite battery etc. The hardest part of making the cable is determining the length of cable required. I usually end up with about 400mm cables although for a head mounted light you may want to add a little to ensure you can manage it if the batttery is in a jersey pocket. After soldering the ends on I use a hot glue gun to insulate the contacts a bit better, but that step is probably overkill. LinksBikeCurrent FAQ http://user.fundy.net/cyclist/bikecurrent-FAQ.html or http://www.purl.org/bicycling/FAQ/bikecurrent-FAQ/ Homebrew lights http://www.rf.org/farmers/aa4hs/bikelight/ Fat Hippy Lights http://members.iinet.net.au/~fathers/lightstoc.htm PartsCable http://www.dse.com.au/cgi-bin/dse.storefront/432a1bb3041387aa2742c0a87f9c06f5/Product/View/W2022 2.5mm DC Plug Connector http://www.dse.com.au/cgi-bin/dse.storefront/432a1bb3041387aa2742c0a87f9c06f5/Product/View/P1645 2.5mm DC Plug Connector http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=PP0511&CATID=&keywords=2%2E5mm&SPECIAL=&form=KEYWORD&ProdCodeOnly=&Keyword1=&Keyword2=&pageNumber=&priceMin=&priceMax=&SUBCATID= 2.5mm DC Plug Right Angle http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=PP0515&CATID=&keywords=2%2E5mm&SPECIAL=&form=KEYWORD&ProdCodeOnly=&Keyword1=&Keyword2=&pageNumber=&priceMin=&priceMax=&SUBCATID= Disclaimer: I have no connection to any of the brands, manufacturers or retailers mentioned above. | |