How can I hook up a 1.5V black light in my case?

Hey everyone. I found a black light in a little "Money Tester" thingie that is powered by 2 AA batteries. I tried plugging it into the case with its circuit board (Which HAD a wrapped copper thing) on it. I'm guessing that was to boost the AMPs while keeping the voltage constant.

Well.... how can I hook this up, and what is that thingie called, so I can go buy a new one Cause the other one melted when I put it in the 5 volt output

Well, you need to use a couple of batteries and a multimeter to find what the exact current draw (amperage) is. Then is just a matter of a little math to find the correct resistor to place in line with the +5 volt line.

voltage - wanted voltage / amperge = Ohms resistence
5 volts - 1.5 volts / amperage drawn....this formula will give a number in ohms (getting close is okay too) for the resistor to buy from Radio Shack or whome ever your fav supplier is.
By close I mean, if the answer were 258, then 250 or 260 is okay to use without damage.

Have a great one!

2 AA battteries inline would equal 3V not 1.5V

And with a bulb with that low of a consumption rating you could easily run it at 5V without decreasing it's life span.

P.S. The current draw and rating of the bulb is usually stamped on the bulb it self or indented in one of the metal caps.

It doesnt have writing, or caps... its a glass tube with two wires sticking out of it. I broke open one of those "Real Money Detector" thingies (Gimick items) and took it out.

So. ... if it can run at 5V, why did it fry that coiled copper wire around the magnet?? Thats what I need, because connecting the bulb right up to the 5V didn't make it do anything but sit there