Pop up lights

Well, this technique is not a secret, but I heard a lot of my mates asking "how can I do the pop-up lights".
That's why I decided to make a small DIY post.

The concept itself is very simple. 

First thing you should do - make a light bar. For this purpose, I used a bicycle spoke. Other materials can be used, but the bicycle spoke is stiff enough to withstand all the possible bumps and hits, still holding the shape.

Then, you should make a small "pit" for the bar to sit in.  I used 2 layers of double-sided foam tape. Cheap and cool.

At the end, you should get something like this.

Next step - is to cover the hole with duct tape to allow the bar to slide, and not stick to the double-tape. 

Easy-peasy.

And then you make something like this. his part will fix the bar in the hole, still allowing it to slide. The sliding part should not be too big, or the bar will tend to fall out of the pit.

Finished look.

Next step - is to add the servo. It's useful to have a trim-able 3rd channel on your receiver, to set the amount of servo travel. I don't have that, so I had to play with the servo position and the servo horn hole position. 

And the last, but not the least - the light bucket.

THe best material to make it from is a plastic card.

It's all about your patience and your creativity. The more time you'll put into the light buckets, the more realistic they will look. Mine are not finished yet.

And there we go. The "almost" finished look. 

A video too.  Will be really glad if it helps. 

As always, stay tuned for more.