Make an Iron Man Arc Reactor

I didn't have a lot of time to make a great Halloween costume this year so I figured I'd do something relatively simple that was still eye catching and cool. I wanted my Arc Reactor to look pretty realistic, but not necessarily 100% movie accurate, so it's kind of a cross between a MkI and MkII version. There are some things I'd change on the next version (and I'll point them out) but overall I'm pretty pleased with it.

The reactor is attached to an old heart rate monitor strap and it's powered by a 3 volt battery pack that just slips in my jeans pocket. It's light weight and is comfortable to wear for several hours at a time. In the photos below you can see how bright it is- it easily shines through my t-shirt under normal office lighting conditions and is very bright at night.

Follow along and see how it's made.....

Update: see page six for the new style reactor!

Another update! Many people have asked for a kit and a fellow RPF board member has produced a fantastic kit and said I could post a link. This is a very nice kit for anyone wanting to build a wearable arc reactor-
http://www.therpf.com/f13/wearable-thin-iron-man-arc-reactor-kit-147966/

Step 1: Tools and materials

There are a few necessary tools:
soldering iron
dremel tool
drill bits
metal snips/shears
jeweler's saw (or some kind of saw to cut metal and plastic)
needle nose pliers
wire cutters
files/sandpaper
glue gun

And for materials:
thin brass sheet
plastic sheet ( I used Delrin- you can buy Delrin and acrylic sheet from Colorado Plastics)
clear acrylic sheet
copper wire- 22ga and 24ga thickness solid wire
sheet metal- 22ga thickness (.025in or about .5mm thickness)
PCB (printed circuit board)- at least 4" square (Radio Shack sells some that measures around 4.5" x 6")
several small bolts - I used 10ea 2.5mm bolts and 3ea 3mm bolts w/nuts
3 volt battery
11 ea NTE30027 surface mount LED's - I bought them from a local supplier but you can order them here: http://www.cablesandconnectors.com/30000-30.HTM
battery hook up wire

As an option for LEDs and making a circuit board you could use these instead-
http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=8735

I'll make specific notes about the materials used and possible substitutes/workarounds on the specific construction pages.

Please note: be careful cutting sheet metal as the edges can be very sharp and it's pretty easy to cut yourself.

Comments

[gcharlow]

how did you cut the acyrlic ring

[Honus]

I cut it with a scroll saw and then sanded it smooth.

[spoovendra]

Are your measurements in inches or milimeters?

[Honus]

As stated on Step 2: All the measurements used in the drawings are in inches and they are really just to be used as a guide- I really just eyeballed everything as I was making it. By no means are they meant to be exact measurements.

[spoovendra]

Do you think that these dimensions are enough for the whole Reactor?
Brass sheet 22ga thickness (.025in or about .5mm thickness) – size 250mm x 200mm
(ABOVE: Subsituting the inner ring(spider webs) from steel to brass)
Steel sheet 22ga thickness (.025in or about .5mm thickness) – size 200mm x 200mm
(ABOVE: It is for Step 4)
Are these OK?

[Honus]

I don't know- you would have to lay everything out and see if you can make it fit within those dimensions.

[spoovendra]

How did you attach or affix the Arc Reactor to your chest?

[Honus]

I use an old heart rate monitor strap- it's shown in the instructable.

[spoovendra]

What type of battery did you use for the 3V battery?

[Honus]

I used a single cell LiPo battery but two AA batteries would work just fine.

[spoovendra]

How thick must the acrylic be?

[Honus]

It's shown on the drawing.

[spoovendra]

Can I use friendly plastic pallets to form outer ring?

[Honus]

Sure!

[spoovendra]

How much thick must the brass sheet be?

[Honus]

It doesn't really matter. The brass sheet I used was really thin- you could easily bend it with your fingers.

[gcharlow]

what did you use to cut the aluminum ring out of the block and make it all smooth, can you please give me a step by step u used to cut the ring of of a block

[Honus]

I didn't cut it from a block of material. I cut it from a scrap piece of thick walled Aluminum tubing using a lathe. You could cut one from a piece of PVC pipe and shape it with a dremel since you don't have access to a lathe.

[gcharlow]

well i already ordered the aluminum ring, what if i just made the aluminum ring go over the side of the copper plate a little, would that still work

[Honus]

You can do that but you will have to adjust the size of the inner ring assembly in order to make it fit within the smaller diameter.

[gcharlow]

what are the dimensions of the brass tabs

[Honus]

There aren't any- it's not critical. Just make them to fit.

[Tidus-74]

Ok thanks ! And Wich means did you use to bend the part in this step ? (spider top view)

[Honus]

I just used needle nose pliers to bend it.

[gcharlow]

do you have any advice for something else to cut the ring, i do not have access to a lathe and they are really expensive to buy.

[Honus]

Not really- cutting Aluminum that thick by hand will be really difficult and time consuming. Is there another material you could use?

[Tidus-74]

Wich means did you use to do the 8 Grooves ?

[Honus]

You mean the slotted sections in the upper ring? I used a jeweler's saw.

[gcharlow]

do i need to use a lathe or can i use a jewlers saw or dremel to cut the .17 inch off. thank you

[gcharlow]

off the aluminum 4" diameter ring

[Honus]

That's a lot of material to try and remove with a Dremel- it would take a very long time! Jeweler's saws aren't really meant for cutting through Aluminum that thick- you'll break an awful lot of saw blades.

[gcharlow]

what about this one http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2102495

[Honus]

That's what I used. For some reason it didn't show up in a search for me...

[gcharlow]

http://www.shopwagnerb2c.com/SYSTEMS/SYSTEMS_TRADITIONAL/SYSTEMS_TRADITIONAL_RINGS_AL/4387 if i used this instead of Delrin, would it turn out the same

[Honus]

Yep- that will work. You will need to access to a lathe to turn the inside diameter to the correct size. If you don't have access to a lathe you could cut it out of wood and paint it.

[gcharlow]

I bought a pcb backplate from radioshack, but it is pre-holed, so how do i make the copper traces. and if i have to buy a different backplate can u please give me advice as to were to get the kind that is in your picture

[Honus]

You need a board that is blank like this one-
http://www.jameco.com/1/1/1038-21-221-r-copper-plated-blank-circuit-board-double-sided.html

I don't know if you will be able to make perforated board work. It appears that RadioShack no longer sells blank board.

[WithoutSkills]

Hi man, this is a wonderful project, thank you for all of your work.
I'm trying to do it but i'm French and I don't understand all the stuffs you're saying, also this is my first real electronic project, it's gonna be really hard ahah
Thank you anyway :)

[Honus]

Thank you! If you have trouble just let me know and I'll try to help as best as I can.

[gcharlow]

where did you get the aluminum ring