Acrylic Bubble Rod Tap Handle

[cookinwood]

I have had an idea for the past week and it is to take a 1 1/2" diameter piece of acrylic bubble rod and make a tap handle out of it with a L.E.D. light embedded in it somehow.... My goal is to get it to light up when you pull the tap. If I cannot get this to work I will probably just put a spring loaded toggle switch on it and leave it on all the time. Anybody have any thoughts with how to mount the batteries to the L.E.D. so that the rod will light up when pulled?

 

[Plan9]

I have no visual reference for what your working with, but...

if you made a top cap for the handle, the LED and battery could be at the top, shining down through the bubbles. If this was the case, you could put a momentary push button on the very top. Whenever you grab the top to pull, you'd be pushing the button.

 

[k1v1116]

as said earlier a momentary switch, a touch button (one of those things that doesnt click but responds to the capacitance of your flesh), a mercury switch would sense when the lever is tipped, you could use a photo-resistor to sense when a persons hand wraps around the rod and blocks the light to trigger it, theres probably a million other ways too.

 

[cookinwood]

I think a combination of a top hat like a aluminum polished plastic oval will might be able to encase the hardware for the light while you can epoxy a mercury tilt switch behind the oval top hat. now my next question is where can you find an aluminum looking top piece as well as a 1/2" tall ring to wrap around the bottom to hide the drilling and make it look as clean as possible?

 

[k1v1116]

you can get raw materials at places like http://www.mcmaster.com/
but thats mostly good if you have access to at least a lathe or other machine tools.
If you dont have access to the machine tools you need then I dont know.

 

[Homercidal]

Damn you! This was my idea!

Seriously though, I had emailed a friend last week about a backlit tap hadle, and this led me to McMaster-Carr, where I saw a 1" diameter Hex Acrylic rod, which might be just the ticket to use with LED as a light source.

I haven't nailed down the particulars as far as the switch and whatnot. My kegerator isnt' even built yet, so I'm in no hurry. One could maybe use "touchlamp technology"?

My idea started out as a simple backlit tap handle into which you could slide business card-sized labels to indicate your beer. Then maybe an LED taphandle which flashed different sequences, then to acrylic rod with the beers name engraved into it...

 

[Homercidal]

Hey, maybe this ought to be moved to the DIY forum. Might get more ideas there.

 

[k1v1116]

oh this reminds me of http://www.thinkgeek.com/homeoffice/kitchen/8122/?cpg=froogle
this might be cool for beer too just have to make sure it doesnt give off a lot of UV.

 

[Homercidal]

oh this reminds me of http://www.thinkgeek.com/homeoffice/kitchen/8122/?cpg=froogle
this might be cool for beer too just have to make sure it doesnt give off a lot of UV.

LOL! Cool, but it would take away the seriousness of our beer!