hey does anyone have any ideas for creating a wig-wag light set for my t-maxx? wig-wags are the amber colored lights built into the headlights on emergency and a lot of city vehicles. it doesnt have to use a nerdkits micro controller and actually it would be better if id didn't require it because it is likely to get broken if it isn't something that is soldered down to a board. any help would be greatly appreciated.

kinda like this or this

and actually just like this

thanks

Give this a try...

The CD4017 decade counter is a great choice for this. Use any TTL oscillator you want to drive it. The CD4093 Schmtdt trigger is a simple one and certainly capable of it.

Use outputs 0, 2, 5 and 7 to feed the drivers.

Isolate the outputs with switching diodes like 1N914 or similar. Outputs 0 and 2 feed one half while 5 and 7 feed the other half.

To make the LEDs Flash in a strobe-like manner, a simple r/c network goes between the diodes and the drivers.

The drivers can be 2N2222 transistors. I have a circuit drawn up but haven't figured out how to upload pics yet.

Here is a good link for app notes on the 4017

http://www.doctronics.co.uk/4017.htm#pins

OK, I figured out the image uploads... Sorta...

Here is the quick sketch on the 4017 wigwag circuit. Again... Sorry about the size and slow transfer. . The resistor and capacitor values can be played with for different speeds and flash durations.

I would suggest a 555 timer set in astable mode. About half way down this page is a schematic: The Electronics Club. I've used the 555 timer extensively and they work great.

OK, I probably should have looked closer at the videos because a single 555 timer would only do a wig-wag thing like the ones we use at work. When one is on, the other is off & vise-versa. Sorry.

a 555 timer alone isn't enough to to this. mongo i think has it spot on. thanks

555 and 556 chips are great for some pretty precise signals but they require more components to do the job. I have in the past, built dedicated pulse generators for breadboarding and they work great. In this case however, the simpler - the better.