[PART 1] Official BLF GT Group Buy thread. Group buy officially closed! Lights shipping.

Swapping the emitter has a very low chance of damaging the mcpcb unless you apply WAY too much heat.

That said, I will ask about getting extra mcpcb’s made but it would be a long time before they were available if they ever were.

It’s going to mount using the tripod mounting hole and will likely be slightly offset to allow the user to reach the button with their thumb. The design is just in my head until I get to programming the waterjet, we will see how it goes from there.

Edit: I’m sure a left handed version would be possible if requested. It would be as simple as putting the counterbore for attaching the handle rod to the bracket on the other side of the part.

After a quick thought by using flat head socket screws instead of socket head cap screws it could be ambidextrous or allow a right handed user to acces the button via index finger instead of the thumb.

I must have missed that. I like to dabble anyway. LOL

I’m going to chime in here and say at least on mine it is nowhere near as yellow in real life as it is on vob’s video.

Just because you say it, doesn’t make it so my friend. Audi 2018….” Full LED headlights produce light at 5,500 Kelvin, that’s roughly the same as daylight. This could help your eyes perceive more contrast. They experience less strain. And those dark stretches of road become a little less daunting.”

And for racing in the LeMans… “Audi’s new Matrix Laser headlights have wowed LeMans racers and may soon do the same for European drivers. But archaic regulations will keep Americans in the dark for now.

Lasers are the brightest, whitest lighting yet, better than the light-emitting diodes that only recently took over in cars, and because they can be directed just where you want them to go, they are in principle more efficient, too. That fine-pointed precision also opens up all kinds of possibilities for intelligent automated functions, notably projecting images onto roads.

Audi and BMW have publicly vied to be first in showrooms with laser headlights. After years of prototype development, BMW rushed to claim victory by delivering eight laser-equipped, i8 plug-in hybrid cars to customers in a Munich ceremony last June. Audi followed with a limited, 99-unit run of its 2015 R8 LMX supercar, their high beams supplemented by phosphor-pumping blue laser diodes that illuminate the road at twice the distance of that LED’s can manage—and at a daylight-mimicking color temperature of 5,500 Kelvin.

Now Audi is bringing out its Matrix Laser headlights, which incorporate a digital micromirror—an array of hundreds of thousands of tiny mirrors that reflect light from multiple laser diodes. (As in many white-light laser systems, the diodes flash blue light through a phosphor, which converts some of it to lower frequencies, producing a mix of colors that blends to white.)”

The independent testing company that looks at vehicle lighting for Insurance companies gives many cars a low rating on the lighting system they use. Among the top performers, Audi. The lowest ratings according to the Institute? Cars from Cadillac and Buick and many other’s exhibiting low Kelvin temperature and short beam distances not aiding the driver in todays high speed Interstate driving.

Well said Texas Ace! :+1: I get tired of reading all of the nit-picking BS and arguing! :person_facepalming: BFL is turning into SOF=Soap Opera Forum :stuck_out_tongue:

Notice that I said OEM HID headlights, all your examples are LED and Laser headlights. Very different technologies.

BTW, Does HID tints match up the same to LED tints, like is 5000K the same color temp to the human eyes? I’m sure that both have variances due to manufacturers!

I can remember the earlier discussion about the colortemp of the led for the GT. Neutral/warmer white is better for seeing depth and has preference by carmakers, fire departments and other specialists. So the choice for this color led is very defendable, I am content with it.

Spartan16 has an emotional message, he hates yellow light. He based his order for the GT on a YouTube video of a pre production sample. So I understand his disappointment when he discovered the change to 4000k. That he missed all the posts about this on the BLF GT thread is sad for him, but that is the reason he is surprised and disappointed at this moment. If you participate in a group buy of a totally new flashlight, created by the community, you are part of the community and you have the responsibility to stay on track and follow this process. By the video on YouTube lots of non members of BLF have been attracted to the GT. And all want a piece of the cake. Great, but don’t complain as if this is a professional company that has to mail everyone that the product has changed. Maybe it’s a suggestion for the next time. But if you can participate in such a great group buy for less than half of the normal price, stay happy and cool, even though the lighttemp isn’t as cool as you preferred.

Is there a list maintained of payments received?

Also I’m planning to order protected batteries, since I think they are modded proteced batteries, will they fit Giggiles (Since these might be a bit bigger):

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/2-unids-protected-for-samsung-18650-battery-100-icr18650-26fm-originally-3-7V-2600-mah-rechargeable/32801883037.html

and

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/5PCS-2015-New-Original-18650-3400mAh-battery-3-7V-Li-ion-Rechargebale-battery-PCB-Protected-For/32585730747.html

Very well said!

New subject to hopefully move past all this bickering.

A few weeks ago I was contacted by a NASA sub-contractor about wanting a GT for research and testing.

They were not very forthcoming about the details but it seems that they are wanting to test it out for use on Drones that are used for mapping the earth / disaster areas.

So in a few weeks when they get their light, you can officially say that the GT is being used in research for NASA! How cool is that!

They have had a bunch of questions about different options for the light as well.

Please read the first post

Wow, how cool is that
BLF products used by NASA!

So now they shouldn’t mind if I shine my GT on their ISS! :smiling_imp:

I will be updating the first post later today hopefully with the latest info.

The plan is to make the OP for this thread basically like a pre-purchase page on a store with a single updated list of those in the GB included.

Then use the GT support thread for post-purchase items.

Thank you, I indeed went through the first post but my name wasn’t present on any list.

Props to you and the team. Can I still add batteries to my order? (Already paid for Giggles.)

You can try contacting Neal about the batteries, if the light has not shipped it is possible. If it has shipped already they have a separate purchase page for the cells alone, it just costs a little more.

Within four years, Osram Sylvania predicts that LED headlamps will be installed in 20 percent of all new cars. The Toyota Corolla and Ford Explorer come with standard LED low-beams, and as fuel-efficiency regulations tighten, LED headlights will play a key role in reducing energy consumption. Indeed, they each draw between 15 and 18 watts of power, versus 55 to 65 watts from a halogen and 42 watts from an HID. Their response from off to full strength—known as “rise time”—is just one millisecond. An incandescent bulb is 250 times slower, which makes LEDs especially advantageous for brake lights. There’s no question that LED headlights are brighter (3000 lumens at low beam versus 800 lumens for halogen, although this varies depending on the optical system used) and output light at a color temperature closer to daylight (5500 Kelvin versus 4500 for HID and 2500–3000 for halogen).

I really don’t care about the stock tint, will use it for a while and if I don’t like it, I will switch it for something I like more…

I do have a question about the led bin intensity.

The stock is a XHP35 HI in D4 bin, which yields about 2500+ lumen on turbo.

If I were to change it for an XHP35 HI E4 bin, in theory how much lumen would I get on turbo?

If I were to change it for an XHP35 HD E7 bin, in theory how much lumen would I get on turbo? I know this one is an HD not a HI emitter, I wonder if the increase brightness will compensate the increase in hot spot size…

I thank in advance for your input, it is greatly appreciated! :slight_smile: