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Green Lantern Power Battery Tutorial

Green Lantern Power Battery Tutorial

2,462
Super Hero
2,462

    Mar 13, 2008#1

    A cool weekend project for under $100.00!!!




    First, I'd like to thank Run Runner for his inspiration and help with this project. His diagram:









    made this project much, much simpler. & Here's a pic of my completed working (lights up) Lantern to begin:






    Here's a list of everything you'll need (pasted from Excel so it's a little awkward):





    $13.99 rechargeable lantern
    $11.97 8" acrylic globe
    $3.87 4X3 Bushing
    $3.87 4X3 Bushing
    $1.93 3X2 Bushing
    $2.97 1" Pipe (5 feet)
    $0.53 1" end cap
    $0.53 1" end cap
    $1.36 0.40/1M Sheet Styrene
    $4.24 Krylon Fusion for Plastic Green
    $4.17 Rustoleum Metallic Finish Paint
    $3.37 E-6000 Clear Craft Adhesive
    $1.19 Felt Circles
    $3.99 Bowl
    $3.99 Bowl
    $2.39 3' #6 Copper Rod Lowe's item number 73200
    $64.36 TOTAL
    $69.19 with 7.5% sales tax

    Here's a few other items not included you'll need but which you might already have:




    $2.00 PVC cement (price guesstimate)
    $2.19 Painters Tape
    $3.78 Rustoleum Grey Primer
    $8.83 Frisket (12"X4 YD) excluding shipping
    $4.47 Acrylic Sealant
    $21.27 TOTAL
    $22.87 with 7.5% sales tax

    So, even if you need to buy every supply, the total still only comes out to $92.06




    Here's a couple pics of all the supplies:














    Here's a list of the tools you'll need (I'm pretty sure just about everyone should have these already):




    Tin Snips


    Pencil


    Fabric Measuring Tape


    Scotch tape


    Phillips Screwdriver


    Dremel Tool with sanding accessories


    Palm Sander or Belt Sander


    Sand Paper (250-300 grit)


    Compass (to draw circles- & not one with a long metal tip!!!- a kid-friendly one)


    Pliers


    Drill and Drill Bit


    X-Acto Knife




    Here's where you begin, with the rechargeable lantern- I found this one at The Home Depot on clearance for $13.99:






    Here it is out of the package:









    Now take the top off:









    Remove the foamie sheet on the bottom, take a screwdriver and remove the battery case and then remove the hot glue that's been pasted all around the
    central nut:









    Unscrew the central post like so:









    Use tin snips to cut off the upper housing and reassemble the Lantern:









    In the next step you'll see that the interior of the 4X3 Bushing doesn't fit down around the base:









    So, you'll need to cut out about halfway down on the interior of the 4X3 bushing:














    Remember to fill in the small holes on the side of the 4X3 bushing with some kind of putty (oops, not on the list above):









    Next, cut the bottom out of your plastic bowls and sand the edges smooth- I used Mickey Mouse bowls I found at Publix:









    Since the idea is to be able to carry this Lantern around, you'll need to run a PVC pipe through the middle globe and into the PVC end caps.




    Cut about 8 3/4" of 1" PVC pipe and sand the edges smooth. There's one slight problem- the pipe is going to fit through the center of the globe
    just about the LED lights coming up through the bottom:









    So, in the middle of the PVC pipe, cut about half the way down:









    Your 1" end caps will need to be cut in by about half in length also, with a small hold drilled in the exact middle of the top of the end cap for the
    Brass rod to fit through. Drill smaller than you need at first- make the hole just big enough for the Brass rod to fit in. Before cutting the hole, sand down
    the raised lettering on top:














    Use a fabric measuring tape to mark your globe with a PENCIL 4.5 inches up from the bottom- this will be the CENTER of the circle you draw to cut out the PVC
    pipe. Use scotch tape to hold your measuring tape in place and run it all the way to the other side of the globe marking the line with a pencil. Measure and
    mark 4.5 inches up on the other side of the globe now. From this center point, use your 8 3/4 piece of pvc pipe to draw a circle. BE EXACT. Then, use your
    1" End Cap to draw a circle for placement of your end cap- this line will help you guage things while you're cutting the hole for the PVC pipe to go
    through.




    One note about cutting out the hole: CUT SMALLER than you need at first. Slowly sand the hole with your dremel tool until the pipe will fit through.




    Before cutting out these holes, mark your approximate circles for where your bowls are going to be. Using the 4.5" center points you already made, run
    your measuring tape around the globe horizontally (you may want to tape it in place again) draw a circle around the globe. Find the center point and mark it
    (making sure you're still 4.5 inches from the bottom). From this new center point, use your compass to draw a circle outward that will be where the
    outside edge of the bottom of your bowl will be glued. Again, BE EXACT. Being off just a little bit will ruin your lamp. But no pressure.




    I'd like to show the pencil markings I made on the globe, but they won't show up in film. See?














    The top 3X2 Bushing will need to have it's square edges sanded smooth- this sanded edge will go up into the top 4X3 Bushing. The only thing you need to do
    with the top 4X3 Bushing is fill in the little hole on the side.









    Now trace a circle in pencil on your sheet of stryrene (also called plasticard, you can also use any plastic sheeting you have like acrylic) of the 4X3 Bushing
    and of the bottom of the rechargeable lantern. Use the tin snips to cut out the basic shape and then sand the edges of the plastic circles smooth. You'll
    glue these onto the bottom and top of the Finished lantern assembly.




    Bend your Brass wire into a half circle and bend the tips of each end in the opposite direction like so:









    You're ready to start gluing together your Power Battery!




    Here's the layout again:









    I recommend using the glue listed in the supplies. I made a mess on mine using the wrong type of glue.




    1) glue the bottom 4X3 Bushing to the Rechargeable lantern base. wait till dry.


    2) glue the Globe onto the bottom 4X3 Bushing- making sure it's level!!! wait till dry.


    3) glue the 3X2 Bushing into the top 4X3 Bushing. wait till dry.


    4) glue the this top assembly on the top of the lantern- making sure it's centered and level. wait till dry.


    5) insert your 8 3/4 inch PVC pipe through the holes you cut on either side of the globe and glue them to the end caps using PVC cement. Make sure that the
    cut-out section is on top of the LED's.


    6) glue 1 bowl on. Again, perfectly centered (the white on my globe has glue on it because I had to move the bowl around). When it's dried on then
    move to the next bowl. Place the lantern on it's side with the finished bowl on a level surface. You can then use a level to make sure you glue the 2nd
    bowl on perfectly.


    7) glue on the top and bottom pieces of styrene.


    8 ) insert Brass Rod




    Optional:




    9) at this point, I added a Lantern symbol stencil that I cut out of frisket. you don't have to if you don't want to though.


    10) I didn't, but you may want to use some putty to fill in around the edges of the end caps, top of the bottom 4X3 bushing and the top styrene piece (a
    little light can bleed through these pieces otherwise)




    Fully Assemled:














    Now on to the paint.




    First, use blue painters tape to cover up the white globe on the inside of the bowls. Use an X-Acto knife to cut along the edges of the tape to get the circle
    right.




    Here are the steps I used to paint:




    1) Grey Primer- 1 coat from top, 1 coat from bottom (you'll do this in each step)


    2) Metallic Finish paint


    3) Green Paint


    4) Acrylic sealant




    It'll probably take about a day to assemble and about a day to paint one of these. But again, here's the finished result:



















    Due to the rechargeable lantern inside, it has a nice "heft" to it and feels like a real Lantern. However, the lantern inside is intended to be a
    "night light" of sorts, if you want to make this bright enough to see in the light, you'll need to wire in more LED's before assembling the
    Lantern.




    Hope this helps- and Good Luck!




    Thanks again Steve/ Run Runner!




    Allen


    3/14/08
    "Costumes are fleeting.  Friends last a lifetime."

    (Personalized Banner Courtesy of Gayle Walls)

    gl1940
    348
    Super Hero
    348

      Mar 14, 2008#2

      This looks almost too easy. What type of globe/casing should I use for Alan Scott's Lantern?
      Is it wrong that I'm a little turned on?





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      loganallenwolf
      2,462
      Super Hero
      2,462

        Mar 14, 2008#3

        Don't know. We'll have to find something that'll work at Home Depot.
        "Costumes are fleeting.  Friends last a lifetime."

        (Personalized Banner Courtesy of Gayle Walls)

        drgnfyre4
        631
        Super Hero
        631

          Mar 14, 2008#4

          This is fantastic! Thank you for sharing this. I am gonna do one too now!!!!
          Mike

          "COSTUMER instead of CONSUMER"


          Guest
          Guest

            Mar 14, 2008#5

            Very good tutorial! I especially like the price breakdown, that's above and beyond

            tk1055
            548
            Super Hero
            548

              Mar 15, 2008#6

              Cool beans I may have to make one myself

              gl1940
              348
              Super Hero
              348

                Mar 15, 2008#7

                loganallenwolf wrote:
                Don't know. We'll have to find something that'll work at Home Depot.
                Ok. Sounds good.
                Is it wrong that I'm a little turned on?





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                56

                  Mar 16, 2008#8

                  I saw something the other day at wal mart and I need to find it again for an Al Scott Battery. It was a plastic toy fire hydrant that with a little
                  modification, I think would work good for the globe for the AS GL Battery. I will post if I find first lol. Later.




                  HK


                  CK






                  P.S. Someone has an official one on ebay again





                  http://cgi.ebay.com/Green-Lantern-Alan- ... dZViewItem

                  894

                    Mar 28, 2008#9

                    Truly and thank you for posting this. I am so impressed. I have got to make one now.






                    LATE EDIT: I told LoganAllenWolf this and you might be interested.




                    Just ramblin' here, but I still am jazzed by the GL Battery you did. I went hunting for something similar and found two Items you may find helpful, should
                    you ever make another or wish to update the tutorial.




                    1) I was terribly afraid of not getting the "perfect loop" on battery handle. Well, lo and behold, Hobby Lobby sells perfect gold tone steel
                    rings in various diameters 4" 8" 12" etc. - these are the rings used for holding the cloth on the wooden circle in embroidery
                    .




                    They are strong and you can see just were they were joined so you can cut them. Price - $.99 to 2.99 IIRC. Very cheap! (NOTE: you will need a 36" ring to
                    wrok with the Power Battery presented.)






                    2) I was on a $10 budget so I went hunting through various Resale shops. I did not find the acrylic globe, but something almost
                    as cool - a mini plastic gumball dispenser.
                    You know, the toy kind! It had the globe and a base
                    and a top cap! WOW! (NOTE: this is for us Klutzes or people who MUST skip steps that involve high-precision assembly. See a small globe example for Wholesalers

                    here.)




                    They have bigger ones for usually under $20 at some outlets.




                    It solves sooo many problems at once I thought you'd like to know.




                    Again, thanks for all the coolness and great, clear tutorial. I wouldn't have had the guts to try if you hadn't shared!




                    End Edit
                    Read my Not-Quite-Daily diatribe for Heroes: justicecarmon.blogspot.com.

                    3

                      Jun 15, 2008#10

                      looks great where to get the globe?

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