Darwin Fish Logo LED Lightbox

Do you believe actual science trumps superstition and the Dunning-Kruger feels? Yeah, me too. That's why I created this precious Darwin fish LED light box. Show others how you roll. As Darwin said, “Evolution”. As Bill Nye says, “Science Rules”.

It's a simple two-color print. I used Bambu Basic Black and Jade White PLA. It includes a printed-in reflector and diffuser, printed-in wall mounting keyholes, and a strain relief to use a zip tie to hold the wire.

There is a wire via / plug to make it more adaptable. See the photos for alignment - the part needs to be rotated where the tips on either side of the wire slot point at the reflector in the back housing and the tips will just clear. The reason is the slight curvature of the fish belly. The flat aligns the plug to fit flush on the outside.

I use self-adhesive 5V LED strips for the lighting and also add an LED controller so I can turn it on and off with a remote. It's basic stuff and everyone probably already has sources for this stuff but if not, check my other light boxes and you can see parts lists there. Just don't use incandescent lights. The lightbox is sealed up pretty tight to eliminate light leaks and incandescent lamps will get too hot and potentially start a fire. The wiring is a bit wonky in this one - I used a plug / jack arrangement just so I didn’t have to cut or desolder wires to use the power supply in other projects but didn’t formalize the jack with a proper mounting. A better arrangement might be to just wire the power in directly depending how you want to roll.

Just be aware the way I did the power wiring is not the best way to do it but it got me photos with it lit up. My other lightboxes show better wiring techniques. 😁

The toughest part is routing the LED strip into the tail parts and feet. If you like to solder you can always lay the strips flat on the reflector in those areas. It wasn’t too bad, though. I just used a bit of dowel as a tool to push the LED strip into place. Once all wired and tested, secure the lens with a thin bead of clear or black silicone seal and tape until mostly cured. Then you can just pull any excess away without a trace if you do it right.

There is no stand but the feet are sufficient for desk/shelf display. Cheers!