Idea for lit up window

[jestyr8]

One thing that i have seen plenty of are window etchs, well I have come up with a way that might make them a little different. My idea is to use an extra thick piece of plexi say around 1/4" and then cut a channel all the way around the edge of it. polish the channel out then make whatever window etch you like. Then fit EL Wire all the way around in the channel you have cut. use slightly oversized seals or another way of mounting the window so that the EL wire cant be seen when lit. when you turn on the EL wire all the light from it should shine down the inside of the plexi and hence make your etch light up. was just a thought. havent worked out all the kinks yet...i have seen something close done with leds but was thinking that by using EL wire the glow would be a bit more diffuse and even. also would make some nice effects by changing the depth and finish of the grooves you use to make your etch.

[Silenced_Coyote]

You can make the LEDs diffused and even. One good example is on Crimson Sky's Doom 3 case.

http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/projects/doom3/window_lit-(6).jpg

[tybrenis]

I believe Crimson ended up using a cold cathode for that, SC.

Your EL wire idea would work, problem is that EL wire isn't always as bright as LEDs, and EL wires are more of a self contained glow, while LEDs "project" their light out further. Do you know what I'm saying?

It's like the difference between a bare light bulb (EL Wire) and a lightbulb with one of those aluminum shields behind it to focus the light (LEDs).

[Crimson Sky]

Actually I DID use LEDs. They were superbright reds :)

[tybrenis]

Ahh, I got owned there. I have made LED signs before like yours but they never turn out as even as yours is.

[jestyr8]

Thanks for the advice..and i had never seen you mod before CS..it is very nice...thanks for your time...as a side note i talked to a friend of mine about the window mod and showed him the pictures or your mod CS and he is going to try and adapt it to the rear quarter windows on his car..

[SgtM]

jestyr8, ya gotta check out the Doom 3 mod... Crimson is the man! BTW, welcome aboard.

http://www.thebestcasescenario.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1

[AKA_RA]

yes, welcome to the wonderful world that is modding. also, quite an impressive first post, in my opinion.

your idea would work to a certain extent. the only problem i see what Tybrenis pointed out. EL wire does not light up things very much. the example above of Crimson Sky's Doom3 window etching shows up really well because of the LEDs he used. I don't recall the exact process he used to mount them, but i believe Defyant used a similar technique on one or more of his HP cases and, as you can see, both Crimson's and Defyant's projects turned out great.

i thought i might add, even though i cant be certain, EL wire appears to be roughly the same width as the cathode tube found in cold cathode light kits. the biggest problem i foresee with such a method is cracking the cathode tube, the glass is thin and brittle. since they are made of glass they have very little give to them. if you installed a tube into plexi, and then bent the plexi just a little bit to much, no more pretty colors coming from that cathode. or, if the plexi was attached to a side panel and the side panel was pliable while off the case, the tube could shatter, making the tube useless from just removing/replacing the side panel. a possible work around for that problem would make a wider channel on thicker plexi and not secure the tube completely to the plexi, but rather use some sort of soft adhesive at both ends. its still risky, and im betting more expensive that the other alternatives.

your best bet is to use the tried and true method that Crimson used for the Doom3 etching. if you have a problem with getting the etching to light up evenly, try adding more LEDs aimed at the dim areas. you also wouldn't need to cut a channel around hte window, just drill small mounting holes on the edge very carefully.

one last thing, i believe theres a deal on LEDs going on right now that EPYK found, its like 100 blues for 8bux and 100 reds for even less)not counting shipping, which is cheap). you can but smaller bags through. it was a fairly recent post, shouldn't be too hard to locate. and with that many leds, you could still cut a channel in the plexi, just fill it completely with LEDs instead of EL wire. :D

[jreffy]

I just did somethign like this in my Savage mod (link in my sig). I'm lighting up my window with a sound-sensitive cold-cathode.

The build isn't complete, so don't take it as a final build, but I'm just going to make sure that my cold cathode sits right on the edge of the plexi, and then tape or paint over the rest of the cathode that isn't butted up against the plexi. That way the rest of the case won't get any light from the cathode.

LED's would accomplish this as well, however, I have little to no experience with LED's and I figured a cathode would do just as well (which it appears to have done)