Road construction warning light (curiosity teardown)

Поділитися
Вставка
  • Опубліковано 20 бер 2024
  • Last week Big Clive did a video on a road construction warning light, which reminded me that I have one of those as well - but a somewhat different style, and probably older.
    Today, I'm taking a look inside to see how similar (or different) they are.
    Here's Big Clive's video: • Old tungsten roadwork ...
    -----
    My tip jar: / pileofstuff
    My other tip jar (channel membership) : / @pileofstuff
    Buy me a coffee (or a beer): ko-fi.com/pileofstuff
    If you are OK with me getting a commission on your purchases, feel free to use my affiliate links:
    Ebay: ebay.to/33IF7PA
    Banggood: pileofstuff.ca/r/9ajsf
    Some links to products may be affiliate links
    odysee.com/@pileofstuff
    #ElectronicsCreators
    -----
    This isn't the only way to do it.
    It's probably not the best way to do it.
    But it's how I did it.
  • Наука та технологія

КОМЕНТАРІ • 36

  • @shagreobe
    @shagreobe 3 місяці тому +2

    I always wanted to appropriate one when I was a kid, just to tear it apart, plus, it would be cool in my room

  • @onecircuit-as
    @onecircuit-as 3 місяці тому +1

    Sometimes at my university college in the early 80s many of these lights would gather in someone’s room to provide a disco effect for a party. Fond memories! 💃🏼🪩🕺

  • @fuzzybobbles
    @fuzzybobbles 3 місяці тому +3

    These things used to follow me home all the time. A few of them lived in my cupboard.

    • @snakezdewiggle6084
      @snakezdewiggle6084 3 місяці тому +1

      @fuzzybobbles
      I know, right. I alledgedly, borrowed a couple, well, a few, ok so it was about 11 or 12, allegedly.
      I may, or may not, have needed them to run my CB radio.

    • @TheRainHarvester
      @TheRainHarvester 3 місяці тому

      They flashed "guilty guilty" all theway home!😅

  • @petertryndoch8857
    @petertryndoch8857 3 місяці тому +1

    We had similar ones to this in Australia, but I don't see them anymore. Now its just reflective cones and big LED signs flashing warnings if required. The early ones had the 2 transistor flip flops but on a copper tracked pcb and the CDS cell was in the stalk. Later ones just had a blob chip and CDS cell all epoxied in together.

  • @AnotherMaker
    @AnotherMaker 3 місяці тому +3

    That thing is pretty cool. It's nice to see simple tech that just works and lasts for years.

  • @Multi-Skill-Bill
    @Multi-Skill-Bill 3 місяці тому +2

    And there it is!
    The lollipop warning light!
    Nice.

    • @snakezdewiggle6084
      @snakezdewiggle6084 3 місяці тому +1

      I thought it was Lollypop. But according to 'predicted text', its "Lolly Pollution"....

    • @Multi-Skill-Bill
      @Multi-Skill-Bill 3 місяці тому +1

      @@snakezdewiggle6084 LMAO

  • @frankowalker4662
    @frankowalker4662 3 місяці тому +2

    Very similar aproach to the one Clive has. Cool.

  • @markfergerson2145
    @markfergerson2145 3 місяці тому +3

    Way back in the early 1970s I bought a much earlier version at a second hand store. It contained nothing but a switch and a weird bimetallic switch thingy which were both in series with the lamp. When turned on, the lamp lit until the bimetal strip warmed up and opened its contacts. When it cooled it closed them turning the lamp back on.
    This was in Phoenix Arizona so I figured they quit using them there since ambient temperatures were so high which would affect the switch rate if not force them to stay off.

  • @matambale
    @matambale 3 місяці тому +3

    You missed the opportunity to say, "One Moment Please" :^) enjoyed this teardown more than you might think. Or, exactly as you might think. Great nostalgia.

    • @pileofstuff
      @pileofstuff  3 місяці тому +1

      It was hard to avoid the temptation to do that.

  • @johndii2194
    @johndii2194 3 місяці тому +1

    Had one from the early 70s. The case was metal. It went click click. No fancy transistors or light sensor.

  • @jyvben1520
    @jyvben1520 3 місяці тому +1

    was that a recent light bulb package or just a picture, still made after 35 years, wow

    • @pileofstuff
      @pileofstuff  3 місяці тому

      It is/was a very common automotive bulb for decades.

  • @erikburman530
    @erikburman530 3 місяці тому +1

    Don't know why I regularly watch your videos. I don't even like Canadians. But here I am.

    • @pileofstuff
      @pileofstuff  3 місяці тому

      It's probably just the beer.

  • @AD-hr4is
    @AD-hr4is 3 місяці тому +1

    I had one on the roof of my plow truck in the 80's. It had a photo cell for automatic turn on at night. Never used that feature becaused it was used in the daytime mainly. I hook it to the cigarette lighter socket. It worked flawlessly.

  • @jerril42
    @jerril42 3 місяці тому +3

    Thanks for the teardown. These hazard lights always bored me. I was fascinated by the kerosene road flares that preceded these. Those ones always reminded me of the bomb in Mad magazine's "Spy VS Spy" comic; and stirred my imagination. Take care.

  • @jordanwaeles
    @jordanwaeles 3 місяці тому +1

    There is a charm to these tungsten road works lights. "Found" a lot in my childhood, took all of them apart. Mine had a one-transistor flasher circuit, i wish i still had one to reverse engineer it, it's built to be the absolute lowest price possible, probably because stupid kids keep "finding" them.

  • @Elnufo
    @Elnufo 3 місяці тому +1

    one has not lived if he didnt "borrow" such a light as a kid 😊

  • @lezbriddon
    @lezbriddon 3 місяці тому +1

    I remember 'dorman-smith "traffiLamps" 70's yorkshire uk area, very very similar construction

  • @g0hjq
    @g0hjq 3 місяці тому +1

    At 2:23 you show the 1895 package, with a rating of 14v (presumably for a 13.8v vehicle system). It's going to be really inefficent at 6 volts, although of course it will last much much longer. Funilly enough, when I was in my late teens, I woke up with one almost exactly the same after a night in the pub!

    • @pileofstuff
      @pileofstuff  3 місяці тому +1

      inefficient, sure, but will also last forever. Which is, no doubt, the design intent. I doubt these things get a lot of maintenance.
      They live a hard life. (I found this one melting out of a pile of snow one spring many decades ago)

  • @Ernzt8
    @Ernzt8 3 місяці тому +1

    In ancient times, when I was still a juvenile terrorist I threw one of these in the water. After a few weeks it was still blinking. Very water tight

  • @TheEmbeddedHobbyist
    @TheEmbeddedHobbyist 3 місяці тому +1

    Used to have a few of them flashing in my bedroom. Did we all do strange things as kids😂😅

  • @snakezdewiggle6084
    @snakezdewiggle6084 3 місяці тому +1

    Ah yes, many a stoty to be sure...

  • @dhultgren1
    @dhultgren1 3 місяці тому +2

    Wouldn't it be possible to put one of those direct replacement automotive LED bulbs into this?

    • @pileofstuff
      @pileofstuff  3 місяці тому

      I'm not sure. It would need to provide a low resistance path for the capacitor to charge through.
      Maybe if there was a diode added in inverse-parallel with the replacement LED.

  • @biggrey54
    @biggrey54 3 місяці тому +1

    bit off topic do you have a video on your power supply that you use many thanks great channel

    • @pileofstuff
      @pileofstuff  3 місяці тому

      This video is probably what you're looking for: ua-cam.com/video/avv7dsoVO9o/v-deo.html
      there is a link to the module I used in the description of that video

    • @biggrey54
      @biggrey54 3 місяці тому +1

      @@pileofstuff thank you keep up the great work

  • @geekrulz1
    @geekrulz1 3 місяці тому +1

    looks like an astable multivibrator ish i guess?