3D Printed Treetop Star

Solar botics
December 9, 2014

Initially inspired by the Moravian Star on Instructables and the fact that we now carry all kinds of 3D printing filament, we decided to make one of our own glowy holiday star. We have used this thing as source files to create a similar treetop decoration of our own.

After some trial and error (due to the Slicer not cooperating)...

...we printed a whole forest of perfect wintery spiky star-ends.

And, well, we just had to have someone live there for a bit. In this case, a snowman:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our  addressable 5mm LEDs were well suited to light this contraption. We drilled a hole in the bottom of each spike..

..to fit the LED's domed part:

   

And then wired everything up. It wasn't pretty but the WS2812 LED that we used made it much easier than a conventional RGB LED: rather than 3 separate channels, the WS2812 LED only has a data in and data out. Chain them all together and they work like a charm!

 

 

And here's the final product, ready to light up our office with wonderful glowing lights!

 

 

 

MORE POSTS

May 16, 2009
Closed for Victoria Day (May 18th)

Hey there every peoples! Just a quick heads up for you - We will be closed on Monday, May 18th for Victoria Day. The standard rules apply - go ahead and place orders and send emails and leave phone messages.  Normal hours will resume on Tuesday the 19th, when we'll process/ship orders and respond to […]

June 10, 2013
Project Monday: Musical Gears

Sometimes we get the opportunity to help out select people who are developing projects for a good cause. One of those things dear to our hearts is inspiring children with science and electronics. So when John Porter came to us looking for a hand to make a musical gear project as part of an exhibit […]

February 22, 2002
May issue of Discover Magazine

Mr. Tilden informs me that his experiments with 40 B.I.O.Bugs in the desert of Whitesands, New Mexico will be detailed in the May issue of Discover Magazine. I've seen some of his personal pics of the experiment, and it is indeed impressive photography. Keep an eye out for this issue!

November 23, 2003
GM10 Modifications

Grant has taken some time to document how to turn a standard 81:1 GM10 pager gear motor and turn it into a 9:1 version. Why would you want to do that? You tell me - I'd love to know what project you build with a speed demon like that! Read More...

1 87 88 89 90 91 253
Solarbotics Ltd Logo
Solarbotics has been operating for more than 25 years, bringing electronics know-how and supplies to both the electronics professional and hobbyist. We'll be happy to help you too!

Solarbotics, Ltd. is not responsible for misprints or errors on product prices or information. For more information, please see our Terms and Conditions.

Warning: This product contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.
Please visit www.P65Warnings.ca.gov for more information. This item was manufactured prior to August 31, 2018.