Introduction: Simplest Solar Watch

About: I'm a techie and a DIYer , I'v been know to take junk and make it useful again , not to much I can't make or fix , I'v been taking things apart since I was 5 and started making and fixing things at 8 , I re…

Hello everyone , 
I'am proud to say I have reached over 50 subscribers , :-)
I just want to thank all of them for there support  ,
and also want to thank the Instructable Community for making me a pro member ,
so the best way I know to thank everyone is posting one of my latest projects , 


So to start I'll mention the benefits of making your own solar watch ,

first off is its was cheap and simple to make only costed me a couple of dollars ,
second it never needs the battery replaced , and it takes very little time to charge ,
and the other benefit  is no more shopping around for rare battery's that often the stores do not sell , 
and also wanted it to be simple to make so almost anyone could do it , 

Next is how it works , 
well its simple it use's a rechargeable battery and a small solar cell ,
all you have to do is leave it in the sun for hour or two and its ready to go ,

I wanted this to be explained clearly and to try not to have all the steps crammed into just a couple ,
 hence the extra steps to ensure there is enough detail and picture's to follow it ,  

So with that all said lets go make a solar watch


Step 1: Getting What You Need

OK here's a list of somethings you need ,

Parts 
A Lava led watch ,  I got this from  ebay  this was about 4 dollars , used this kind because I could fit the solar cell neatly into it ,
A Solar led flash light , this to was from ebay , I paid $ 1.00 for it , it has everything you need inside ,
A metal twist tie the kind you use for plastic  lunch bags  ,  why you ask because well need a flat wire for the battery ,
A piece of small wire ,

Tools 
Gloves , for when using the epoxy .
epoxy , 
Glue gun ,
clear tape , 
electric tape , 
soldering iron / gun ,
and a small flat screwdriver .

Please Not I'm in no way responsible for Damage or any injuries that may happen , 

Now  to get started ,

Step 2: Getting the Watch and Flash Light Apart

So first thing we want to do is take apart the flash light and they pop the back off the watch ,

when you've finished doing that you can start to de-solder the  solar cell and the battery from the circuit board ,
 now the ground of the solar cell is in the upper corner were the led is ,
and the positive is the red wire of coarse ,



then once you have de-soldered the battery and solar cell we can move on to the next step .

Step 3: Fitting the Battery

Ok so now we have to prepare the battery ,

First thing we want to do is take the plastic cover off the battery ,
the reason for this is the battery has two button cells in it  which is 6 volts ,
 we will only need one of them for are watch because the watch only  use's 3 volts , 

when you have finished doing that will need to take are twist tie and strip each end of it ,
then coil the one end so it fits flat against the bottom of you button battery ,
then unscrew the battery holder on the watch and carefully place the wire and the battery inside ,
then place the battery holder back and screw it into place , 

ok on to the next step .

Step 4: Solder the Connections

OK now were just about done ,

as all ways I like to post a Diagram of were the connects go ,
but I will put it into words as well .

solder the ground to the solar cell that would be the Twist tie wire that is connected to the bottom of your battery ,

now take a piece of wire and solder it to the top side of your battery holder , the top of your holder is the positive connection
once done solder the positive wire to your solar cell ,

ok now take a piece of electric tape and place it over the battery so you don't short out the connections , 

moving on to the finale step

Step 5: Epoxy Time

now to finish off by making a case out of epoxy / resin .
were going for a water proof seal and need it to be strong to protect the solar cell and the components inside , 
That's were the epoxy will come in ,

so start by ,
take your glue gun and glue the solar cell into place ,  then clean the solar cell with a damp cloth so there's no dirt on it ,
when you've done all that take a piece of clear tape and place it over the solar cell ,
then using the glue gun to melt / seal the edges ,

now using your gloves mix some epoxy and carefully spread it over the top and sides of the solar cell and go around the edges ,
to ensure no water can get inside and make sure the top of the solar cell is smooth ,
bumps would be bad because you will feel it  when wearing it ,

Alright  now your finally finished  , note wait up to a hour to dry first , ;-)

Step 6: Testing It and the Specs

Before I posted this Instructable ,
I wanted to test the watch out for a couple of days to make sure there's no problems , 

so after letting it charge for a couple of hours ,
tried it out and it works very well better than I expected , 
it has gone for  a couple of days without needing to be charged and takes very little charging , 
it is tough and will take a drop also it is  water proof ,

for the specs ,

charge time 2 to 3 hours ,
run time 2 days and counting , 
over all performance of the watch is very good , 



So I hope you've enjoyed this Instructable Thank you for Viewing .

P.S if you have any questions feel free ask .






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