Hey everyone! I'm working on a Ghost Rider costume for Halloween and I want to light up the flames around the skull using about 25 flexible LED filaments that are 300mm long and run on 3V. My background in electronics is pretty minimal; I've only wired a few LEDs with a simple circuit using a 3V button battery and switch. I could use some help figuring out how to wire these to a USB connector, as I'd like to power them with a portable charger hidden under my jacket. Also, I'm curious if I wire everything in series and my first LED has a flickering effect, will that flicker carry through to the rest of the lights? Thanks a ton for any advice you can offer!
1 Answer
Hey! Have you already bought the LED strings? If so, could you share a link? Knowing if they're single or double-ended would help. Ideally, for your 3V filaments, you'll be using a 5V power bank, and each LED will need a series resistor (like 220 Ohms) to prevent burning out. When connecting to the USB, just cut one end of the cable, strip the red and black wires, and wire them in parallel to your filaments. Remember, red is positive. Check out Adafruit for tons of great tutorials on LED wiring!
I got my filaments from Temu and AliExpress too! They were cheap and I chose both types—single and double-ended. I'm going to shape some cellophane flames over the LEDs with a heat gun to spread the light. Can't wait to see how it turns out!