Fireworks LEDs Kit
This kit comprises an asterisk shaped "star" of LEDs that light in sequence, supposedly giving an impression of a fireworks display. The speed of the sequence can be adjusted. As usual the kit came from AliExpress:
There were a lot of parts on this kit, most of them being red and yellow LEDs:
A lot of care was taken in making sure that all the LEDs were soldered in place with the correct polarity. Numerous checks were made with a multimeter to ensure that the LEDs all worked and that the solder joints were good. Even after all the checking there was just one LED that wouldn't light. A hour or so rechecking all the soldering and polarities led me to the conclusion that there was a broken track in the PCB. After a bit of track tracing I found the culprit and soldered a wire in place to circumvent the track. And voilà, everything worked. The following photos show the kit after fixing the fault:
Both my wife and I actually like the appearance of the finished item. We have it on permanent display in our dining room with a glass paperweight resting on top of it, which defracts the light in a pleasing way. I adds to the atmosphere of the candlelit dinners we have most evenings in winter.
Here's a video showing the finished thing, sans paperweight, with me adjusting the speed: