# Lighting Ideas



## NavyTech (Aug 2, 2008)

I am currently researching ideas for structure lighting. I would like to see many different ideas that you have have used or have seen online. I have seen one type that seems popular but I would like too see all types.

Street Lights
Pole lights
building lights indoor and out.

So lets see what you all have used in the past and even your plans in the future.


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## hawkfanjohn (Nov 17, 2009)

Check your after christmas sales from some stores that do ceramic villages~ I've got a couple of nice strings of streetlights that are about perfect~ now have to build a layout to go with them!


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## kormsen (Oct 27, 2009)

not lights, but about light. if you got buildings with semitransparent material glue some kitchen alu-foil to the inside of the walls. 
no glowing buildings, no lighted cracks and better light than in buildings with the interior painted in black.


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## NW Jim (Jan 2, 2008)

It's pretty easy to tear apart the cheapy solar lights that you can get from Harbor Freight, HD, and others. You simply splice the wires, putting the solar collector on the roof. Perhaps I'm the only one who has ever done this - I used empty .357 cartridges to use as light shrouds on a pistol manufacturing building I made. It's kind of fun to just look at things a different way when creating things for your layout. To me, this is the funnest part of Garden Railroading.


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

To echo hawkfanjohn; 
Ace hdwr has Lemax ceramics on sale at 50% off. I picked up 2 sets of steet lamps (4ea.) for $3.00 ea, but they are only 3" between base and light. I figured I'd mount them on an adobe wall between the RR and the dirt street of town, just to bump them up a tad, they come w/ a battery box (2 AA). Another solution would be to cut off the base and slip them into some brass tubing for height. 
This is also the right time of year to find the cheap solar garden lamps (walkway lamps) on sale, that are easy to convert to building lights. Disguising the collectors is the hardest part... 

John


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## NavyTech (Aug 2, 2008)

Lets see some pictures of these light. I need some inspiration.


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## Paulus (May 31, 2008)

Hi NavyTech,

I wrote a simple 'how to' on MLS about converting solar lights a while back. Check this: Simple solar light conversion. 
You can find some pictures of my conversion and 'home made lights' but also pictures from others who did the same thing.

I also posted about scratchbuilding lanterns for Juruth station, you can find pictures and ideas; Working station lanterns scratchbuild

As you can see I always use LED's. They are cheap, low power using and low maintenance. It's very fun to experiment with LED's.
I had some powered with solar panels but unfortunatly this don't work well during the winter period in my country; the batteries won't charge enough. So I replaced the solar power and the lights are powered with an adapter (3,5 volts, 750 mAh). This means wiring through the garden. 

If you go through the 'Building' forums or 'Model making' forums you can find many ideas. Like Lawrence Waller's 'how-to'; Light fixtures stem type
Ray Dunakin showed some amazingly great looking scratchbuild working lights for his 2 story-house (some made out of buttons!) in his post: My new project, under construction But there must be more to find in those forums!

Now, here some pictures for your inspiration. 



















Lawrence Waller's lights:









And Ray Dunakins work:









Hope this was inspirational and helpfull!!!

Paul


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## Bob Pero (Jan 13, 2008)

I have always used Malibu lighting for my structures. I use the yellow bulbs and paint them with black acrylic. This really cuts down the amount of light put out by a bulb. The paint dims but is not totally opaque.


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## Big John (Jan 4, 2008)

You may still find strings of LED christmas lights on clearance sales. I bought a string of 60 white round globe christmas lights for $3. Just use a piece of brass tubing bent into a u at the top and they make perfect old style globe street lamps. Now that LED's are replacing most of the christmas light sets there should be pleanty of new styles on the market in the comming years. 

Big John


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## John J (Dec 29, 2007)

Here was My Idea about lighting a village. I am not sure this is going to work as I have not tried it. I am going to use LEDs. Fine a old transformer. Take it apart and un winde the coils to get the varnish coated wire. String it between scale size power poles in your village. Then run feeds to your buildings. ( There is a thred in here about makiing Eletric Meters) The put the LEDs in your buildings as you see fit. The low voltage for LEDs would be a problem for the wire strung througn the village. Plus it would look real. At the power house where the power comes from have a setp down X ormer for the LEDs. There could be fueses in line with the power that goes out to the buildings. The on the other hand if you have a Modern Village. all your power would be under ground.


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## aceinspp (Jan 2, 2008)

I am converting all my lighting over to solar lights. I install the solar panels on the roof and use a quick disconnect so that I can remove the roof and change the batteries if need be. I buy my lights at Home Depot for $10 . they are used as fence lights and I remove all the guts from the casing then install in my buildings Have a warm glow to them. couple pics of what I use.





































These have worked quite well for me. Later RJD


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## Lawrence Wallace (Jan 2, 2008)

RDJ 

Nice use of the solar lights. 

If I may make a suggestion, Put a female connection on the solar cell, I had a cell that went bad when I left it laying on my work bench and the wires were shorted out on metal laying on the bench. 

I always put a female plug on all power supply sources now.


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## hans911 (Jan 9, 2008)

I've used cheap malibu lites inside my buildings. For outside fixtures I've made a few and bought a few. For the quality, price and ease of use I prefer the Bridge-Masters light fixures.

http://www.bridge-masters.com/products/lights.htm

At only $6.oo each they are a bargain.

This house has malibu lighting inside and 'homebuilt' fixtures on the porches.












This depot is solid construction with BridgeMasters fixtures outside.







http://www.bridge-masters.com/products/lights.htm


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## NavyTech (Aug 2, 2008)

I am looking at making the Lawrence Waller's lights and using LED's instead. There will be a total of 20 lights paralleled off and will run it off of 2 AA batteries. 

Has anyone run LEDs without resisters at 3v....? 

Also what material was used to make the Lawrence Waller's lights...I am sure I have seen a web site on how they were made and what size copper tube is used..


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## Madman (Jan 5, 2008)

Posted By NavyTech on 27 Mar 2010 06:47 AM 
I am looking at making the Lawrence Waller's lights and using LED's instead. There will be a total of 20 lights paralleled off and will run it off of 2 AA batteries. 

*Has anyone run LEDs without resisters at 3v....?* 

Also what material was used to make the Lawrence Waller's lights...I am sure I have seen a web site on how they were made and what size copper tube is used.. I have converted my buildings to LEDs, wired in parallel, powered by two "D" cells (3 volts).
Seems to work very well.


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## SteveC (Jan 2, 2008)

That's Lawrence 'Yogi' Wallace, web site is *Belaire Depot - Stem Lights*


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## bob7094 (Jan 3, 2008)

Posted By NavyTech on 27 Mar 2010 06:47 AM 
...

Has anyone run LEDs without resisters at 3v....? 

I have some white LED Christmas lights in a small building running two parallel strings of fourLEDs in series off a 12V AC garden lighting supply. No resistors or rectification needed. 

My wife likes the buildings with incandescent lights better because the light is brighter and warmer. With four lamps in series, one burns out every few weeks, running from dusk to dawn every day. I also use light fixtures from bridgdemasters which last a very long time at 12VAC.


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