Quote:
Originally Posted by eyebeatbadgers
Very informative thread Hoppy, well done. How close (or not close) did you get to your budget?
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Look!! Over there!! Isn't that Elvis Presley?
OK, no, it isn't Elvis.
Well, I was shooting for $150 budget, but I made enough mistakes and false starts, especially on the constant current device, that I ran over that. The last I figured it out, I was at around $170 for just the light fixture part, not the hood. With the hood it looks like it will be closer to $200-$225. Every time I did something it took a trip to HD to buy nickel and dime stuff, which today costs $5-$10. Yesterday I bought 3 little packages of screws, washers, and nuts, and it came to almost $5. I needed some adhesive to laminate two strips of 1/8" x 3/4" aluminum together, and that came to about $5. Do things like that enough times and you are spending real money. But a major addition was buying stuff for the printed circuit board. Because I used a local electronic hobby supply place, forgetting about Frys, those parts ended up costing about $20. Part of DIY is SIY (spend it yourself).
As I keep telling my wife, I have had about 2 months of solid, great entertainment from this project, and will enjoy it for many more months, all for around $200. If we decide to take in the Sacramento Jazz Festival this weekend it will cost us about $100 just for one day of enjoyment. So, it has to be viewed in perspective. (I have a degree in rationalizing, and that helps too!)