I was throwing around some ideas on another forum for a system that would tell you when paint was getting low for the rotor (since the windows are friggin useless). One of the members took my idea and did it overnight, just wanted to show you his work!
THANKS TO ta2maki FOR HIS INFO AND WORK!
ta2maki's post:
This nifty mod uses the ramp in the hopper to let you know when you start getting low on paint. When full, the power button will shine the standard blue. As the hopper empties, the power button light will change to red, letting you know it's getting low(or at least it's not full).
You will need the following parts:
- 1 SPDT Leaf switch. (Long leaf/lever recommended)
- 1 bright red LED(smaller and brighter, the better)
- 1 resistor 100-500ohms
- Thin gauge wire. I used 26ga.
- electrical tape.
Tools I used:
- Phillips screwdriver
- x-acto or utility knife
- 1/4 drill bit.
- soldering iron
- clear hot glue
- disc/belt sander
First off you will want to use a tiny LED. I didn't have one so I just ground down a regular 5mm LED using a disc/belt sander. You can use a file to shape the led down if you don't have access to a sander. You can remove the plastic as much as you like , but don't hit the metal or you will damage the LED.
You want to position the LED just over the yellow button and in front of the surface mount LED. This way your LED will end up sitting inside the chrome button. To make additional room you will want to trim down the 2 pins that stick out from the battery plug.
I shaped the LED pins so they cleared around the trimmed down pins and blue LED. Then they bend up where they are soldered to wires. To hold everything in place, I used a bit of hot glue. Be careful not to use too much or you will have clearance issues later. (Some pics were taken AFTER I finished so don't get too confused) Also remember that the LED has polarity! It will make things a bit easier if you put the negative lead towards the motor.
You will want to notch the side of the motor housing to allow the wires to pass through to get to the switch. Check to make sure the spot you choose wont get covered once you place the housing back in the hopper.
Now here are the points of interest on the board. You will be soldering to those 3 points. Check the schematic to see how things get wired. On the switch, where I marked 'C', it is sometimes labeled 'com' on different switches. As for the resistor value, I used 470ohms since that's what I had laying around. Lower values will make your LED brighter, but I wouldn't go anything lower than 100ohms, you will probably be overdriving it.
Once you finished wiring, it should look something like this. Don't forget to tape up the resistor to prevent shorts.
The switch mounts to the side of the batteryholder with a bit of hot glue. When attaching the switch, make sure not to go too far past the height of the battery holder, or else it will interfere with the cover and ramp. I recommend flush. You may need to trim some of the plastic of the motor housing to allow the switch to stick flat on the side.
Reassemble the motor assembly, careful to route wires away from the moving parts. Make sure to place the wires neatly and not doubled up or crossing, there isn't much room between the top of the pc board and assembly cover. Now place the motor assembly back inside the hopper, you will need to be careful to insert the back end first so the red LED goes inside the button. You may find that you are unable to press the button. In that case you will have to trim the button a bit. Careful not to trim the squared off part completely. If you do, the button may fall out. I have trimmed it a bit too much, you don't want to go this far. This is where not using too much hot glue to attach the red LED comes into play. If you have it trimmed like below and you still cannot depress the button, you will need to cut away some of the hot glue around the LED.
Once you have this much completed you should be able to test the wiring. Insert the batteries. Once you power on the button should shine RED. If you depress the leaf switch the button should go BLUE.
Now carefully remove the ramp and drill through the plate to allow access for the leaf switch. I drilled 2 holes, then joined the holes by cutting with a knife.
Put the ramp back on and reassemble the hopper except for the top. Make adjustments so that the light goes red when the ramp is positioned most of the way up. Adjustments can be made by bending the leaf/lever. I had to bend up quite a bit to get the actuation point I wanted. Looking back, getting a switch with a long lever would have worked better.
Put the hopper back together and go play!
This concept was brought up by Redbeard the Pirate, here
Dye Rotor owners, come brainstorm with me!, hence the name. (Also, ta2maki mod doesn't roll of the tongue quite as nice). I found that when the hopper is held level and paint is dropped out the feed slowly, that the ramp lifts, and the red light comes on, before it can take a full 140rd pod. It's not completely accurate, since tipping the hopper(marker) forward and back will make it flash on and off(red and blue), but it is pretty nifty for guys like me that can't remember how much I shot, to just be able to look slightly up and tell if you are in need of a reload instead of lowering your gun out of the 'ready' position.
If you find any errors let me know so I can fix them.
/ta2maki post
Hope you enjoy! If you have questions please contact ta2maki on MCB, as he was the person who actually performed the mod!
