Resistors & LED`s

[u_couple]

I was thinking of putting two or maybe even three led`s in a mod I`m thinking of, I would mainly be using one 18500 battery, or if I`m stuck, one 14500 (inside a spacer tube)
I was gonna build it with all the electrics visible inside a clear tube, and have it so as the tube lit up when the button was pressed, I have already built one using one ultra bright led, wired to a 470 ohm resistor, but to be honest it`s just not lighting it up enough.
If I were to use two led`s, or at most three, could I still use one 470 ohm resistor, or would I need to use one on each led ?
Any help gratefuly accepted guys

 

[puppythor]

you can use more than one LED on the same resister as long as you don't go over the current that the resister can handle, though LED's use very little current so 2 or 3 should not be a problem. You will know when you are getting close as the resister will get warm and if you use too many it will release it's smoke (that all electronics do when they give up the ghost).

 

[u_couple]

thanks man, just gotta build it now

 

[WillyB]

I was thinking of putting two or maybe even three led`s in a mod I`m thinking of, I would mainly be using one 18500 battery, or if I`m stuck, one 14500 (inside a spacer tube)
I was gonna build it with all the electrics visible inside a clear tube, and have it so as the tube lit up when the button was pressed, I have already built one using one ultra bright led, wired to a 470 ohm resistor, but to be honest it`s just not lighting it up enough.

Well how did you decide on 470Ω? Swap it out for a 220Ω or if you want even brighter a 100Ω.

 

[MasterofChaos]

Actually, you can use one resistor to bias more than one LED, however it is not recommended since each LED will have its own unique voltage drop, which means a different amount of current will go through each LED. The end result, each LED (even if they are the same type) will have a different brightness.

If you want all your LEDs to have the same brightness, you should bias each one with its own resistor.

If you don't care, then you can put the LEDs in parallel and bias them with a single resistor.

 

[u_couple]

Well how did you decide on 470Ω?

To be totally honest WillyB, it`s because I have a whole bucket load of 470`s laying around ! and thats what I`ve used in a few previous mods. Gonna try some 100 ohm ones now.

Thanks again guys