U3 driver same as T6?

I have a T6 flashlight with the T6 bulb on a 20mm board and want to swap the T6 for a XML-U3 bulb. Will it work with the T6 driver or would I need a new driver?

What I want to do is get the most lumens out of my flashlight so if there is an even better led for this little flashlight, then I would like it.

T6 is the bin of the LED. Usually referring to an XM-L or XM-L2 LED. If it was a cheap flashlight, bought within the last year or so then it may be a counterfeit Latticebright LED.

Anyway, if you put a genuine XM-L2 LED in there you may see some improvement. It depends on what is in there currently. The stock driver should work with the new LED without a problem.

If there is sufficient heatsinking and the pill is not hollow I would recommend a new XM-L2 on a copper DTP board, with a new Qlite 3.04A driver.

Here’s a great source for tons of information on LEDs and pills and much more:

Thanks for the info unknown. It's a cheap flashlight, $5.35 with free shipping from aliexpress, but it does have a thick copper ring around on top of the board. Not sure if the board itself is copper though. From that great link you included in your post, I can see it is a XML not an XM-L2 as it has 3 wires running out of the bulb not two like the L2.

Also, the board on my flashlight does not say Cree. It just has the letter "y" on the left side. Still runs amazingly bright with a 18650 in there.

Anyone have a recommendation what soldering iron to use and what max temp to solder at so as not to hurt the board that a XM-L2 T6 is mounted too? I'm sort of new to soldering, even though I have no problem on my bikes or cars, but when it comes to electronic boards, I have to admit that I have no skills whatsoever.

Since it’s a cheap flashlight, chances are it is a fake Cree…
So you can practice on it ! :smiley:

I always use a hot iron, mine has no regulation.
I just stop heating things when the solder melts and flows.

Fake Cree for sure lol. Glad I don't have to buy a new soldering iron then. The wires sure look small though so it's going to take time to get used to working with them.

perfect training light.
no big loss if it all goes wrong.
mod away!

Or just an unabashed LB, with “LatticeBright” and/or the LB logo stencilled all over the star. Nowadays they don’t even go through the motions of sticking in a fake XM-L/XM-L2 lookalike.

A few months ago, I’d gotten fake C8s which had XP-E sized LEDs (LB), that barely threw 80-100lm. Guess they figured that with lots of throw, shining a disc of light far away would be impressive enough.

About 2yrs ago, though, fake C8s would at least have an XM-L LED, even if a LB counterfeit. Those at least threw 300lm, based on ceiling-bounce tests that I did. (But still not the ridiculous 1000lm claims they made.)

Yeah, even in low-current apps (eg, 800mA boost drivers for AA alkies), the extra efficiency from a prime LED gives more light than from a cheaper LED.

Well, I posted this in the fake Cree thread, but what do you guys think this LED is? It is supposed to be an XM-L T6 on my cheap flashlight. I thought it looked like a LB because of the two metal strips down the side, whereas the cree, I think, has it all orangepeeled green and the emitter looks like it is smaller than the Cree emitter?

Also, the star just has the letter "y" on it and nothing else. It does shine very nice and bright though with the 18650's. It really lights up the whole room in a neutral white.

not a cree xm-l.
die is too small.

Thought so, thanks. I ordered some real Cree's at fasttech yesterday but not sure about drivers as I am not sure if they will fit. This is all new to me still but it's fun!