I quickly got sick of bending over with a flashlight to get a good look at my prints. I was hoping to use those easy 3M LED light strips, but with the shape of the Rostock platform, they just weren't going to work.

My first rev used regular 20mA white LEDs but the heat from the hotend caused the leds to fail one-by-one until they were all gone or flickering.

I landed on some 1-watt LEDs that I'm running at a lower "wattage". I tried them cranked all the way up, but 3 at full power was absolutely blinding.

Instructions

Required:

• 3 x 1-watt LED lights (http://www.amazon.com/microtivity-IL726-1-watt-Ultra-bright-White/dp/B0085MOZYW/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1350344791&sr=1-2&keywords=microtivity+1-watt+led)
• hookup wire
• A resistor (depends on your preference). Lowest value you can go with 3 LEDS wired in a series like these is 8.2ohm. I landed on 33ohm, as these are super bright and the full 3 watts was blinding.

Look at the pictures, but it's pretty simple. Wire these in series with the resistor on the positive side.

Additionally, I used a 1/4" drill bit to clean out the LED holes.

NOTE: DO NOT connect these LEDs to a power source without a resistor.

If you'd like a softer look, take some sand paper and gently rub the outer plastic lens. It'll diffuse the light softening it.

I printed this in polycarbonate so I used pseudo support because regular support attaches to your finished print and PC is way too strong for that.

Category: 3D Printer Accessories