Lego Batwing Lighted Wall Mount
Posted by Chris Carpenter on
When I saw the new Lego Batwing kit the iconic 80’s scene of the batwing flying in front of the moon came to mind. I knew I was going to purchase it and it was going on a wall. The only question was how to recreate the scene.
I figure lighted acrylics were the easiest way. The next problem was how light an area big enough for the whole batwing. Edge lit acrylics work by reflecting light from the engraved portions of the acrylic. You can wrap an LED strip around the sheet and have it illuminate whatever has been etched.
I wanted a big lighted moon behind the batwing but I only wanted the moon lit and the rest to stay black. What I came up with was engraving dots on the acrylic in about the shape of the moon and clouds. This is similar to the way that backlighting on LCD TV works.
I also need a frame and a way to mount it. So, I cut a base of 1/4” thick plywood. I covered that with foil tape to reflect the light. I then took the same type of plywood and cut two layers of thin frame. This would be used to hold the acrylic in place.
I cut and engraved the acrylic to lay in the frame. I glued a thin LED strip around the outside of the acrylic and place the whole thing on the frame.
Then I made a page size moon and clouds in photoshop. I printed it and mounted it on white poster board. I chose white to allow the light to come through from the LEDs.
I also cut a thin acrylic sheet to mount on the front and protect the graphic. Originally, I was going to power the LEDs with a power cord but I decided to use a battery instead. I purchased a 12v battery from eBay and 3D printed a cover. This cover also serves as a mount for the Batwing’s descriptive plaque.
I lined up the Batwing on the acrylic and drilled a hole for the mounting screw. The Batwing has built in slot for wall mounting with a screw. The screw is drilled through the acrylic and wood for a solid mount. There are two hooks drilled in the back for wall mounting.
The final steps involve attaching the front acrylic with graphic, gluing on the border and the battery box.
