Olight S1 Mini High CRI and Utorch S1 Mini NW, now w N219b and E21A

Sorry no, 40sec, not 3sec, even below 3.8V. I had always the first reaction after 40sec from the lamp. That went down to 3V. Around 3V the battery kicked it off.
I guess the controller does the first measurement or decision generally at 40sec

Joe

great info Joe

your 40 second turbo runs, contrasted with the 3 second runs I was getting when the battery was hot, suggests the issue I experienced was not LVP, it was OHP (overheat protection in the battery), while the 40 second step down you experience is more likely the OHP built into the light…

I just confirmed that my light also steps down from Turbo after 40 seconds. the battery is at two flashes atm and measures below 3.7v while hot, and rebounds about 3.83v after about a minute. So yes, I confirm Turbo works for 40 seconds for me too.

you are helping me realize that the protection triggering and 0 Volt issue seems to be Over Heating protection being triggered, not Voltage sag during high drain

so changing to an unprotected cell might let me run the light hotter longer, but thats not necessary for my application, and I really like the convenience of the Utorch included USB rechargeable batteries.

Imo lights with USB batteries make good gifts to newbies. It means I can gift a light to someone with no LiIon charger or experience. The overdischarge protection is also important for a newbie

enjoy your lights!

More weirdness

last night when the Utorch had a fresh charged battery in it, the light dimmed from medium and would not switch modes. I was not using Turbo, and the light was Not Hot.

I removed the battery and it tested at 4.04 volts, the protection circuit had Not triggered. After reinserting the battery the light still did not switch modes and only came on in the dim flickery mode.

I removed the bezel, Oring, lens and centering ring and pushed the LED board side to side to smear the thermal paste and make sure the board and wires were not shorting to the body. Reassembled and after that the light is working normally again.

So, the problem seems to suggest an issue with the thermal paste, not the battery protection circuit, and not the level of battery charge. Im thinking the next move is to unsolder the led board and increase the amount of thermal paste, but Im not sure if thats the right move yet, and Im not experienced nor equipped to do the job.

The person that did the mod has offered to help, I just was hoping not to have to ship the light back… But if it goes into dim mode again Im going to have to.

still unclear if the problem is the N219b running hotter, or triggering the battery protection, or if its just an assembly issue, a need for more thermal paste… will share what I learn.

For now, Im going to AssUme the light is “fixed” (again), and keep using it. Im not Egyptian but I do live in DeNial part time.

this post needs more pics
3000k N219c w 1/4 minus green lee filter, 4000k N219b 9050, 4500k N219b 9080

I don’t know what the problem is. But I am pretty sure it’s has nothing to do with the amount of thermal paste. Should work even without it.

Sounds more like a contact problem, driver problem or maybe a slightly broken ledwire.

Thank you for helping me brainstorm.

Regarding battery contact problem, yes that is a good possibility.

The battery was rattling because I took the tail magnet out. The magnet supports the spring.

So I put the magnet back in and now the battery does not rattle. And the light is working normally today.
.
.
I will keep the battery Spring supported by the magnet and Hope the problem goes away. No failures today since I put the magnet back in last night.

Well, the light failed again. Sad.

It is very inconsistent. Sometimes it works normally for a day, then it goes into dim mode and wont switch modes. Im thinking of asking the modder to look it over, maybe resolder the wires… not sure.

Problem solved! Thanks to the excellent customer service of Texas_Ace. He found the white wire was shorting to the LED board. It was not his fault, but he would not let me pay him for the fix. His words were “I stand behind my work.” Im very grateful.

I think I created the issue when I tried to use a flat lens instead of the stock aspheric. I actually prefer the aspheric, so I wont be opening the light to screw up any connections in the future… woohoo… Love my sw45 9080 Utorch S1 Mini. I just wish it had the Olight UI and the ability to memorize moonlight, but, Im flexible, no light is perfect.

I just made an offer on another Olight S1 Mini High CRI, to replace the one I passed on to a friend. The tint and CCT are not ideal for indoors, but its a good option for outdoors. Gotta love the Olight UI, including the ability to memorize moonlight. As far as the green tint, I solve that with a bit of Lee 1/2 minus green filter attached w double sided tape (reversible hackmod).

Clemence is modifying a couple more Utorch for me, he shared these pics and I [edited his comments for clarity], to help anyone else that may want to modify a Utorch S1 Mini.
—-
Completely disassembled

The driver relies on a small wire (white) for grounding. Without proper grounding it will flicker or not work at all.

To connect the grounding wire to the body Utorch uses a small screw soldered to the white wire. [the screw was not tight, it should be] …

…the MCPCB is … pressed to the LED shelf… by the black plastic reflector… Most of the heat transfer is done by the white thermal paste. Better thermal paste is usually grey colored.

Screw removed

—-

What is the difference between Olight S1 Mini and Olight S1A Mini Baton? I am a little bit confused about those two. When I was reading this review Olight S1A Mini EDC 600 Lumens Flashlight- Users Ratings & Review I wasn’t clear between them.

The S1 mini isthis one :

It’s powered by either a CR123 or 16340 battery

And the S1A mini doesn’t exist.
But the S1A does, it’s this one :

It’s powered by either an AA or a 14500 battery.

Love the S1A. Picked one up in copper. Bit heavy, but one of my favorite 14500 lights.

5 or 10 dollars, and different size batteries, and different LEDs, and different metals… and one of them offers a High CRI led, that is notorious for a terribly green tint

which one do you want?:slight_smile:

these are some of the names, and their power sources
s1a baton uses AA/14500
s mini uses CR123/16340
s1 mini uses CR123/16340

read up on all the details:

https://www.illumn.com/olight-s1a-cu-raw-copper-baton-xm-l2-600-lumens.html
https://www.illumn.com/olight-s1-mini-baton-xm-l2-600-lumens.html

theres a 30% off sale on the last two, use code blacknovember

I just bought a second Olight S1 Mini High CRI, soon I will have my Utorch S1 Mini w N219b mod back too
I have a slight problem, I tend to order more lights, when Im waiting for lights in the mail

if you hang around, it might cost you, I think the buy more now condition may be contagious

for use on a hat on a bicycle I would choose the Olight, it has a very deep clip, almost none of the light hangs over the edge of the cap bill, and the beam is nice and throwy. The Utorch would be the better headlamp at close range, such as fixing a flat.

Utorch on sale for $20 at gearbest, I like the NW version

the Olight S1 Mini can be had for about $36, I like the High CRI version

neither has perfect tint, but the biggest difference is the beam shape

I much prefer the Olight UI, but the light is not moddable, which is why I went with Utorch

I ordered 2 Utorch S1 Mini lights four weeks ago, shipped directly to Clemence for modding to Nichias

He just received them and is currently doing a quad 2000k E21A, and quad 4000k E21A for me

Clemence is an artist when it comes to working with small electronics, he has the skills and tools, and supplies to modify a Utorch using his LED board and LEDs in stock.

If youre thinking about a Utorch modded to Nichia, consider a drop ship to Clemence.

couple of caveats… changing LEDs changes the max lumens, but I dont mind because the Utorch beam is not for throw so I dont need to use Turbo, the other levels are plenty for an indoor flood beam.

Also, the super cool USB rechargeable battery cannot be shipped out of Bali, unless high ship prices are used. Basically it would have cost as much to include the 2 batteries as it did for me to buy 2 new ones in USA.

And now for some progress photos from Clemence, on the E21A Quad going into one of the Utorch S1 Mini

The man is an Artiste! His work is way beyond anything I could have hoped for. He has even spent time improving the beam, by various methods.

I give Clemence’s work my absolutely Highest Recommendations. I feel sooo fortunate to have his help.
here is his site https://www.virence.com

Wow that really does look like a candle! Sweet I love it!

thanks, yes, it is intended for use inside my Westfalia Camper, after the campfire burns out, and for other fully dark adapted, close range applications

morning after

fwiw here are before and after Lumens, thanks to Clemence:

Utorch S1 Mini [OEM Cree XPL HD NW]
ML = 0.1 lm
L = 6 lm
M = 98 lm
H = 661 lm

Utorch S1 Mini [4x E21A D160 sm203 R9050]
ML = 0.03 lm
L = 3 lm
M = 36 lm
H = 273 lm

I really like the new lower levels, I only use the first 3 modes anyway

I have other lights with narrower and cooler beams for outdoor distances, like spotlighting wild pigs, turkeys, and deer. The aspheric lens of the Utorch is not the tool for that job. The Utorch S1 Mini aspheric lens has a great beam for a close range headlamp and floodlight.

Turbo runtime test by Clemence of Stock Utorch S1 Mini w NW XP-L
Notice the nice Flat Regulated output

Turbo Start
661 Lumens for 40 seconds
360 lm for 30 minutes
90 lm for 1 hour and 6 minutes
dim? lm for ? minutes, until battery LVP kills the light?

More good news regarding runtime of Utorch S1 Mini, modded to a single N219b 4500k 9080 by Texas Ace.

The light is working great.

Did a runtime test on Medium @39 lumens, lasted
3 hours and 17 minutes (it then stepped down to 2.9 lm and battery was 2.9v, 10 min later battery LVP kicked in and light turned off.).
That is exactly the same as the Stock XPL spec on Medium.

There is a 60% drop in lumens from 98 lumens on medium w NW XPL, to 39 lumens w N219b 4500k, but, No runtime penalty from swapping to N219b…

Happy Dance

Looks like:
the final rays before the Sun’s bedtime,
something you might choose to eat,
a Kundalini fire starter.

Jon_slider, those are some very useful info. Seems like the 4xE21A performs about the same as a 219B 9080 in the low end but I know they should be alot brighter than even the 219C at higher amps per Texas_Ace’s test. I’m surprised you can fit a 4xE21A in that Utorch S1. Does the reflector need to be cut to fit the 4xE21A?