The normal PKD2019
For the Project of lighting up the Blade Runner blaster, I was counting on using the CR2032 coin cell battery to light up the red LEDs. The reasoning was due to the red and green LEDs whose forward voltages were 1.8volts and 2.2volts respectively. But after some time, when the voltage nears to 3v, anytime the 5mm LED blinks, the pair of green LEDs would dim slightly. And a little while more, at 3volts, the four red LEDs also show some signs of very faint dimming as well.
How about the Ghost?
The programming for the Ghost is different as the 5mm LED stays lit. However, the other four smaller 3mm LEDs would flash. The good news is that the green LEDs would constantly stay lit. Then again, we’re looking at the Lipo battery which is giving out 3.7volts. In theory, by using the same Lipo for the normal board, the green LEDs would stay lit too. Since the board has been designed (it is still at v4.02), I am mulling on doing v5.0 with this feature.
I wanted the two boards to be powered from a battery which is easy to purchase over the counter but with the Ghost board, I had to re-think my decision on using Lipo batteries instead.
What about other PKD Blasters?
To be honest, initially I only wanted to design the two boards for the AndersFP 3D prints where the stl files were available as free downloads. I have tried the boards with a Blaster which does not fit unless I de-solder the four red LEDs off the board and connect them with wires. Then there is a Tomenosuke Blaster which is commercially available. There are some enquiries if my Boards do fit them, which I would honestly reply, NO. I do not own a Tomen nor have plans to get one since it is quite illegal to have anything that resembles a gun in Malaysia, be it a prop, replica, stunt, non-firing, airsoft, airgun, etc. So, I have to ask around, about the measurement between the two LEDs (each side) to determine if they’re as close as AndersFP.
Alternative power source
While searching over the Internet for a solution, I came across the LIR2032. This is the lithium-Ion battery which at a glance, looked like a CR2032. However, that is the only similarity. This is a re-chargeable battery which gives 3.7volts. The bad news is, the capacity of the LIR2032 is about 40mAh compared to a 200mAh non-rechargeable CR2032. As for the cut-off voltage, the LIR2032 does it at 3volts while the CR2032 does it at a lower 3 2volts.
One last thing, you cannot, for the love of God, replace a CR2032 with a LIR2032 in any equipment.
