I can see myself getting closer to the finishing line and I’m pushing for release by January 2025. I wanted to release this my mid-2024 but in my pursuit of a longer lasting system and using a 3D printed solution, this delay costs me time. Financially, it is quite significant since I am still depending on my Day Job. Plus, there are some ‘hidden’ costs in terms of resources such as out-sourcing to a 3D printer, plus a new Labeling machine among other things.
Do not burn the Green LEDs
As far as accuracy goes, the pair of green LEDs at the left side of the blaster was never shown to be lit. I read it somewhere .
Still, for the Lighting System, there will be an option where you can either light it up or leave it as it is. However, you might need to paint it darker since modern green LEDs are more of a lime green. It was quite difficult to locate those darker vintage types.
As I could not locate my soldering jig which was last used in 2012 or thereabouts (a pair of crocodile clips mounted to a heavy metal base) I had to improvise. So, the pair reverse heatsink tweezers will have to do. The soldering process, albeit a little labour intensive, is to make sure both wiring joints are tinned. This means, I would have to first cut off the LED legs, tin them and then, also, tin the wires before the actual soldering.
Yes, my soldering iron tip gets dirty after soldering a few LEDs and I need to clean it often.To get the exact cut for each heatshrink sleeve, I used ‘The Chopper“. This is a rarely used coveted tool (used at least once a year) which saves a lot of time compared to using a pair of cutters. I can say the same with the pre-cut wires too.I used the soldering iron (bad move as it turns the barrel black) to heat up the heatshrink sleeves. But I also wanted to try with a heatgun as it was much faster. Since I do not have one, the closest would be a jet-flame lighter which can be quite hot.In the end, using the jet flame lighter was a bad idea. The 20% failure rate is high as I could not see the invisible flame. Later I learned that the flame was shooting to the bottom right instead of dead centre. Anyway, this results in heating and destroying the LED itself instead of shrinking the sleeves.This is roughly what will be included. The manual will be bigger, in A5 size and also, the LiPo charger would have a protective clear heatshrink sleeve.
The Labels
During my last run during the Pandemic which was a drop-in lighting for the Ghostbusters Spirit Proton Pack, I had some issues in labeling my boxes. Problems ranged from the Laser toner flaking off or smear, or the sticker curling up. Thinking about now, the issue is still not solved although I got my products out the door. This time, to solve the issue permanently (hopefully) and to standardise my packing process, I invested in an A6 Thermal Labeling Printer.
There are mainly two versions of the printer depending if you’re using to print receipts (built-in cutter) or, as a waybill printer. Then, there are various connections, from USB to LAN to Bluetooth and even Wifi. I chose the USB that also comes with Bluetooth connectivity. However, the Seller only supplied the necessary USB cable and that’s about it. I assumed that they assumed that the printer is a replacement for an already working Software and System.
After looking at the Lable, and some searching, I got to this working link to download both the Driver and Software for the Timozia TP870 printer.
This is a non-cutter A6 Thermal printer with USB & Bluetooth connectivity. It came in a Box with those huge, long air bubble type of packaging. The printing speed is about 50ppm with a 203dpi resolution. In other words, the paper does not shoot out as fast as those expensive ones you see on YouTube.
It took me four tries to get a proper lable. I am not going to use their DLabel or Zgrozziie App since printing out as a .PDF file yielded better results. Oh, I used the InkScape Software to draw the Blaster and created the design.
The Impulse Sealer
OK, I wasted money on this one. All the time, while I was looking for my existing impulse sealer, it was literally sitting in front of me. While I was unboxing the newer 12-inch all plastic version, I just turned my head and that metal 15 year-old 8 inch version was staring right back. Damn. Still, it was time to change because I keep getting shocks from it. I think I am quite sensitive to non-earthed devices/ equipment.
It took me four tries to get a proper lable. I am not going to use their DLabel or Zgrozziie App since printing out as a .PDF file yielded better results. Oh, I used the InkScape Software to draw the Blaster and created the design.
Luckily I did not switch it on as the connection to the heating element was loose. The first thing I did was to replace the 3mm heating element to a wide 5mm version. The thinner element kinda melts the plastic into one long crinkly scar while the wider element gives a nicer pattern.
I liked how it turned out out but I should have gotten a longer bag. See the tear notch on the upper right of the bag, yeah, I’ll be getting a notch crimper soon so that each segment can be torn individually.
