Once my first attempt failed I was forced to figure out a new way to wire the LEDs, so I began reading up on how they're actually designed to be soldered. I'd bought the Wire Glue because I'd failed at soldering in the past, so I assumed that there was no way I could solder components this small. Turns out I was wrong. If I can do it I think almost anyone can, provided you get the right tools.

I'll go into soldering details in step 5. First, we need a PCB to solder. In this step I outline how I made mine, but in the next step I'll outline how I wish that I'd made mine.

I made my PCBSt by reading several instructables on etching circuit boards. All you do is buy copper clad prototyping boards, cover the places you want to have connections, and etch the rest away.

The professional way to cover the board is by printing traces onto transfer sheets, but sharpie works too. That's what I did. I used several cups as stencils to draw an inner and an outer ring and then added in the pads where the LEDs would sit.

This part is important: It's critical to layout the LEDs precisely because any asymmetry will be very noticeable when you're done. I discovered this because I placed LEDs on my first attempt just by eye. When I tried to add the diffuser with the copper bands I found that there was no position in which the LEDs weren't askew. In my second attempt I made a guide using an iterative approach. I segmented a circle and then cut a triangle as close to 18 degrees as possible and traced it. Depending on whether it was too big or too little I repeated the process using the last stencil as a guide until I had a circle with reliable demarcations every 18 degrees. I then used straight edge to connect three LEDs in the middle in the shape of a triangle. The goal is to provide some illumination to the center of the arc reactor. Depending on your preference you can add more than three or leave them out entirely.

I cut my copper clad board with a band saw. I then cleaned it thoroughly with rubbing alcohol and then copied the design onto it with the same stencils I used before, all while wearing nitrile gloves. You can erase stray lines with a cotton swab soaked in rubbing alcohol.

I flipped over the board and drew my design on the back side. It just needs a pad that connects to the battery holder, a pad that touches the under side of the battery, and a way to connect to the other side. A connection through the two layers is called a 'via'. It's just a small hole with solder in it that connects to copper on either side.

I added a switch and a resistor so that I could change the brightness. This is totally optional.

Once I had both designs drawn on, I filled a bowl with warm water, dissolved ferric choloride in it according to the instructions, and then dipped my board in. After ten minutes it had dissolved away all the copper that was showing. I rinsed it to quench the process and cleaned off the shapie with rubbing alcohol to see a beautiful circuit board. You can find more detailed instructions on etching PCBs here and here, but I recommend that you don't even bother, because in the next step I'll explain how to just order a professionally made board online.