Fake alarm flashing light, sub 20$, about dodges three times

After spending couple hours yesterday figuring out my 12v socket fuse was indeed live all the time ( duh on my part)

>>>> thanks go to @nd4spdbh <<<<

I am ready to get started on my fake alarm led light. Trying keep it nice and simple working w just my dash area. Hopefully it prevents a smash and grab. I where i park on the weekends the ground is littered with tempered glass...

So here's the gear I've got so far, just need to assemble. Flashing relay, led light, spdt relay , 2 fuse taps. the adjustable Flashing relay has some funny chinglish on it, check it out. About dodges three times? I mean seriously, still trying figure out what they were trying to convey w that...Well, It works, tested it, hope it doesnt burn my truck down haha... uh, ha ha , uh.... it adjusts perfectly, not like a regular turn signal flashing relay from auto part store... more like from strobe (no good for me) to off for few seconds then a 1/2 second flash., just like an alarm system.
Two fuse taps will supply power constant (one from the 12v socket fuse which is live all the time) the other from a fuse that turns off with the truck. this will close the normally open relay when the truck is turned off, thus closing the flashing relay, and then ta da the led light does its thing...... total price? Sub 15$ ...edit, the led recently went up in price to 7 bux...I'm damn sure there was an easier way to do this but with my limited knowledge and the help of TW members this is what I came up with.... p.s, the Lil pic is the reg relay... if anyone can see any steps/ parts I can eliminate, (like do i really need two fuse taps?) please let me know, thanks

 

fake alarm flashing light

48 cents


http://lighthouseleds.com/pre-wired...blinking/12v-5mm-pre-wired-flashing-leds.html

 

I checked these out, the flash rate didn't work for me, some were a strobe, some like a turn signal also those are too bright, didn't want to mess with inserting a diode.... my reg led was 1.50 free ship Amazon prime ..edit looked just now they are 7 bucks....the adjustable flashing relay was like 9$., flash rate is few seconds off, then a 1/2 sec flash. Similar to an alarm.. also need to supply power when truck is off , and not when truck is on.. but damn those are cheap....

 

Also the 1.50 led (edit looked they are like 7$now..)I got is on a threaded stem with a nut, drill 1/4" hole, tighten nut, flushmount

 

Can you provide the Amazon links to the items you have listed above?

 

$8 PLUG-N-PLAY Instrument Cluster LED Indicator Light Dash Bulbs. Aluminum Pilot Lights. Colored Acrylic Lens. Flush Panel Mount 5/16" 8mm 12V for Speedometer Odometer Tachometer (Black Bezel, Blue LED)

http://www.amazon.com/LED-Indicator...psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages02

http://www.amazon.com/KDL-Adjustabl...psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages02

http://www.amazon.com/Pico-0956PT-B...psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages01

These items plus a spdt relay

The led is perfect, 1mm just bright enough, most leds I checked out looked like a photo flash in the truck, could be remedied with a diode, didn't want to fuss w experimenting til I found right diode.....

 

To wire the "about dodges three times" adjustable relay, it's 12v to the + post, ground the - post, positive wire to led from " L" post, be sure to ground other wire from led pigtail... adjust away to your liking....

 

me, I'd probably use a 'ne555' timer chip, and a couple resistors and capacitors tuned to generate the appropriate duty cycle, generic red LED, wire it to always-on power, and ignition-on-power wired to disable it. this all would fit on a tiny breadboard less than 1" square.

of course, my buddy would do it with a 'PIC' micro CPU chip, which would draw microamps (above ne555 analog circuit would likely draw around 25 milliamps).

I'd want about a 1/4 second blink every 4 or 5 seconds, I think that would be close to the rate of the typical bungler annoyer.

 

YOu may have seen this, but this video might help you. Nice project! I love seeing people come up with their own solutions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoSJsbai1Ac

 

Video confirms what I already knew...haha...that I was over thinking this project with very little electrical experience... had i found that product I would likely have bought it instead of my silly build... would still use fuse taps rather than soldering into my ignition wire. I found the device in the vid for 24$ , add fuse taps, few more bucks....

One thing of value that I did get out of this is a working knowledge of how to configure different relays for different purposes... I have used them in the past for accessory lamps on my ARB bumper but it was a plug and play harness, just mounted the relay in the engine compartment , had no idea what 87a, 30, etc was for, etc....
I now have confidence to make, say, my own harness for a light bar or whatever, using premium parts, proper type of automotive wire, rather then buying a pre made Chinese one, that may have spotty solders, using the absolute minimum gauge wire, etc (uh, all the parts in my build are cheap Chinese, haha!!!! But at least I know the solders are good, shrink wrap etc...)

 

I would rather go through the process you did than just buy an off the shelf part. Like you said, you learn so much through working through your own solution.

 

Seasoned car thieves don't worry about flashing alarm lights. There fast. It's a skill of the trade.

 

And thats why i didnt purchase an alarm...Ya the pros can steal any car , alarm or not. The intention of this is to discourage smash and grab scumbags, where I park on the weekends the ground is littered with tempered glass. I figure they will be at least SLIGHTLY more likely to smash a window in the car next to mine, without the flashing light, if they think a loud alarm is going to go off.
That said, I agree, car alarms are useless, and in the past when I had one it was annoying, going off when a Harley went past it, causing electrical problems etc. I wouldn't advise anyone to buy an alarm. Waste of money and won't stop a pro for more than 3 seconds. People don't pay attention to alarms anymore. People I know don't even bother looking out their window if one goes off, it's just background noise like a bus going by or a bum screaming to god at the top of his lungs at 3am... people just don't give a sh#t in urban areas....

 

http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Car-break-ins-fuel-spike-in-S-F-property-crimes-6775664.php

 

factory alarms with immobilizers integrated into the ECM are pretty hard to bypass in the few seconds a car thief wants to spend.

 

Yes modern cars are less likely to be stolen immobilizers are built in with or without a factory or aftermarket alarm

In san francisco, there were 7000 car thefts last year, but I'm assuming they are older sedans

2012 report, released in August 2013, NICB cautioned that newer models of a nameplate may hardly be stolen at all; their nameplates may appear on the top-10 most-stolen list each year because older models are still very popular with thieves. In 2012, for example, only 393 model-year 2012 Civics were among that 47,037 total.

The vast majority of car thefts are for the parts that can be harvested from it, making older import sedans the most stolen vehicles, as they are easily stolen by someone without any "skills" at all, using a shave key or popping the steering column and hotwiring it

Of course, if the pros have a flatbed
/ tow truck nothing is gonna stop that...

 

I agree, I had an alarm in my last Tacoma and it drove me nuts. After the 1st week I disarmed it.

 

why

when 50 cent 12 volt self-contained miniature LED's already exist, with various blink timings

you don't need all that extra crap. the only hard part is finding the 'hot when ignition off ' wire

 

This is great

 

the only way you'll get 'hot with ignition off' is to create it yourself with logic or a relay.

those off the shelf blinking LEDs linked previously blink at 1-2Hz, with a 50% duty cycle. 2Hz would be 0.25 seconds off, 0.25 seconds on, repeat. thats way too fast.


speaking of alarms. my 2008 Taco has a 'toyota alarm', there's a remote control, presumably an engine imobilizer, a red LED in the dash (between the clutch start cancel, and the differential lock buttons)... when I lock and unlock the car with the remote, the parking lights blink a couple times, but there's no "BRAP! BRAP!" or whatever that too many alarmed cars I've had in the past had... I left the drivers window down, remote locked the car, then opened it by reaching in, no BRAAAP BRAAAP. does this mean my alarm has been disabled?