Tips for candles, LED lights, electric, batteries, bulbs and beyond.
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By NikkiRae
#70686
Thanks so much, zombombie! I'll have to get started on that then. Maybe I'll put the boyfriend to work on it since he doesn't carve :P He can handle the lighting since he likes to play with electricity so much.
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By DeadKing
#71435
Zombie Pumpkins! wrote:If that happens, you can always use them next Halloween. That's where I am, this year. Finally going to put mine to use.
That's true.

I got them yesterday. I'm going to use them this year afterall :D
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By brandon_fear
#78168
Hey guys! I'm gonna be ordering some of these this week and wanted to know how these are when using foam or real pumpkins?

Is one LED light enough to be bright? Thanks guys.
#78172
Hey Brandon, you saw this post, right?
Zombie Pumpkins! wrote:To answer your questions about brightness, I did a little test. I took a photo with all the yellow LED items I have handy. These shots were all taken with the same exposure, so you can get a true comparison of brightness. Looks like the 10mm diffused LED does quiet well. (click to enlarge so you can read the captions)

Image
In that example, I used only one 10mm diffused LED light, and the brightness was superior to any other yellow flicker light I had. It's worth mentioning that it was a smaller sized pumpkin. The amount of light bouncing out might be slightly less for a larger pumpkin. But still bright enough, I would imagine. Sometimes I use them (yep, often just one) in large sized pumpkins and have good results. The effect should be the same, whether it's a real or foam pumpkin. And the good thing is - you can toss in 2 or 3 of them if you want the pumpkin to be brighter, because the little LEDs are pretty cheap (well, the batteries might not be).
User avatar
By brandon_fear
#78269
Zombie Pumpkins! wrote:Hey Brandon, you saw this post, right?
Zombie Pumpkins! wrote:To answer your questions about brightness, I did a little test. I took a photo with all the yellow LED items I have handy. These shots were all taken with the same exposure, so you can get a true comparison of brightness. Looks like the 10mm diffused LED does quiet well. (click to enlarge so you can read the captions)

Image
In that example, I used only one 10mm diffused LED light, and the brightness was superior to any other yellow flicker light I had. It's worth mentioning that it was a smaller sized pumpkin. The amount of light bouncing out might be slightly less for a larger pumpkin. But still bright enough, I would imagine. Sometimes I use them (yep, often just one) in large sized pumpkins and have good results. The effect should be the same, whether it's a real or foam pumpkin. And the good thing is - you can toss in 2 or 3 of them if you want the pumpkin to be brighter, because the little LEDs are pretty cheap (well, the batteries might not be).
Sorry about that! I didn't see the pic you had posted, my browser showed it as an inactive image at the time. Thanks so much for the response guys! I ordered a handful of white, warm white, orange, and red LEDs from the Evil Mad website. Going to try them out in a few Funkins and then try a real 'kin when I get one.
#80510
Sorry for all the questions on these.

But what is the best way to hold the LEDs in the pumpkin? I assume a simple paper clip and tape will go a long way? Any cool suggestions?
By maegnus
#94419
I've been experimenting with some of these LEDs, and have just made a discovery that merits bumping this thread.

Having read this thread and been intrigued, I purchased a bunch of these yellow 10mm diffused LEDs and have been running them on CR2032 batteries with great effect.

While they do run for a very long time (over 3 days) on a single battery, the brightness does drop off fairly quickly in favour of a softer, sustained glow. I tried combinations of adding more LEDs with little difference. I've left them in pumpkins on my desk for days, which is nice, but I couldn't help but wonder if a brighter/better solution was out there.

I was browsing Evil Mad Scientist's shop last week, when I stumbled upon this Solderless Flickery Flame LED Kit, which I figured was worth a try. I picked up five of the kits, and have been testing two of them out. I am extremely impressed so far. They are they best alternative to a candle that I've ever seen. You'd be hard-pressed to tell the difference from the curb. They take two AA batteries, and I imagine the resistors makes it easier on the power draw. Here is a video of one in a small Michaels foamy, with one outside for ambient light:



I ran one for 5 hours so far and it doesn't seem any dimmer than the fresh one. The instructions are very clear and other than a little optional wire clipping, these go together like small Lego sets (5-10 minute assembly time). The LEDs in these kits are smaller than the ones linked above (they are probably 5mm), but are very bright. I tried swapping some of the 5mm ones out for the larger LEDs to see if it had an impact, but what comes stock in the kit seems to be optimized. The addition of red LEDs really helps add a little depth/realism to the candle effect.

The only downside to these is that it looks a little weird when you look down into the pumpkin and can see wires, breadboard, resistors, etc. (faux tea lights and Howlers are a little easier on the eyes when visible). I think it's more than worth it for the great effect.

Like I said, carves look bright/crisp/flickery from across the street. I'm glad I picked up five of these kits. I'll let you know how they perform and what people think this Halloween.

They also offer a soldering kit version, which is more compact and a little more affordable if you have the tools to solder it together. I imagine this one would be a little easier to conceal within the pumpkin.