DIY Driver swap Guide [ P60 as an example ]

Thank you for taking the time and trouble to write this article. It's a little advanced for me as yet, but the pictures really help. Better than a lot of text books.

I highly recommend a solder sucker or solder removal wick for when you are removing the original driver. Either of these can be purchased cheaply from DX. Having these tools will really help if you are going to be doing a lot of soldering.

Do you have a link?

Old4570,

Thank you so much for posting this, I haven't done anything like this with flashlights yet but have been thinking about getting into it, this helps greatly and it seems straightforward.

Is there any chance you, or someone else could post or link me to a similar tutorial for swapping an emitter???

Thanks again, I have bookmarked this.

Thanks for the write up.

I feel like I should take something apart at least to look at it..............

The next part I have to figure out is what to buy for a replacement.

Ummm... how about:

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/aluminum-alloy-desoldering-pump-33011

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/goot-wick-soldering-remover-1-5mm-x-1-5m-6252

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/goot-desoldering-wick-remover-2-5mm-x-1-5m-6211

The solder removing wick can be purchased in multiple sizes...

I think you would just figure out what you want out of the light, I.E. modes, current, etc and find a driver to suit your requirements.

Are most all drivers the same size or is that another thing you have to look at when purchasing one?

Bookmarked, thanks!

Flux is also useful both for soldering and desoldering.

You should be able to pick up the solder removal wick at Radio Shack or any local electronics shop

You would want to make sure that the driver you need is the right diameter. 17mm is a very common size and is the sized used in the P60 dropins, but some drivers are larger and some are smaller.

Have you tried these. I managed to reduce one to one mode. I am not too good with soldering small pieces.

http://www.intl-outdoor.com/amc71354-5mode-circuit-board-nanjg-101aka1-p-254.html

If I’m not mistaken the one used here can be made to do a few different modes ie 6 ways ,now how yobdo that I’m not sure ?
When my drivers arrive I will post pics here as well if u don’t mind old?

Another way to remove the old driver is to cut away the solder blob with a sharp hobby knife (mind your thumb) and also cutting vertical along the edge of the driver. This is normally sufficient for prying the driver out at its edge with the knife (again mind the fingers).

I have found that this can snap the blades on hobby knives, so now I have an old small, precision flat blade screwdriver that I use to pry out drivers.

No Problem

KD gives a description of how to mod modes - ill see if I can snap a picture as time permits ..

I use a dremel with a sanding tip to remove solder off the driver and pill I find it easier and quicker.

I think I'm going to try this method. I just tried to desolder my driver and could not get the solder to flow at all. I have no idea what they used to solder this damn thing but I was getting worried that I was gonna fry the board with the heat I had the iron on it so long. All I could do was push the solder around a little bit. I'll just cut it out now.

I use an xacto knife or a razor and cut around the edge of the driver through the solder. I have taken many drivers off this way.

Some times they are a bitch to remove I find the dremel is quick and easy and you don't have to worry about over heating the pill and causing damage to the led.

Ive found sanding the solder off the driver and pill makes it Easyer to re-solder the new driver to the pill as it removes the tarnish.

Just make sure your soldering iron has enough Wattage .. 25-35W should be enough 45W if you need to get a little more heavy duty ..

I have a 65W iron for silver solder , want to get the solder to flow [ used to make tin tanks from jam tins for control line ] but we dont need that for electronics .

Swapping the emitter ---

If all your doing is an emitter swap

1/ Make sure your new emitter is on the right sized base [ new one ]

2/ Unsolder + and - wires

3/ Removing emitter - can be easy - can be a PITA , I use a small flat head screw driver and try to pry it out as carefully as the required force will allow ..

4/ Clean the pill

5/ Mix and apply thermal glue [ Archtic Alumina ]

6/ Put down new emitter the right way (+-)

7/ Centre emitter as best as possible before glue dries

8/ Resolder +-

9/ Test

10/ assemble pill/light and test again ...

11/ Your looking for shorts , so Multi Meter is a must to keep an eye on current draw , Direct drive and a XM-L mod may result in more current , but just watch out for extra ordinary current .. A mild short can easily add one or two amps , and the emitter may burn brighter [ but a short is a short , and one day it might not be mild and stuff happens ]