I agree the issue is the battery hammering against the board, causing broken solder joints
another light that is notorious for failing when dropped is the AA Illumination Supply L11c, and its twisty sibling L10. There is also an AAA version, the L08, though I could not find any reports of people dropping it, I suspect it has similar vulnerability
another possible advantage of potting, is it stops water from coming into the E01 around the 5mm LED, since there is no lens
other AAA lights known for durability, and they are potted, is the Arc AAA and the Peak Eiger
imo, when cloning an E01, it is very important to also clone the potting
note the lack of potting is one of the frequent objections to the Vinh E01, it may be just psychological, but it matters to buyers
btw, I think it is essential for the tail to have a keyring attachment point, I like it on the side of the tail, so the light can still tailstand.
It really can’t cost that much to stuff some glue in the head, and it certainly won’t do any harm (as long as the correct compound is used). Since the goal of this project is to make the most bomb proof light possible, there’s no real argument to not pot the light.
If Sofirn is unwilling or unable to pot the light and still wants to product it that’s their call, but I don’t see the point of arguing over whether or not added reinforcement is a good thing, regardless of whether you think it necessary. I know, for myself, if Sofirn is making the light and not potting it, I will probably opt to hold off on any orders until I can see some abuse testing.
If Sofirn can make a sampe, potted or unpotted, it would be great to see it run through a stress test side by side with the E01 this project was originally looking for - if the Sofirn light lasts longer or as long, case closed.
I was just ignoring strong language without reference, like “solder is weak” and “1000G is rather a lot” , “legendary” and “many tests” . And since I did not know examples myself I asked BLF for actual events happening, and now all sorts of detailed stories are seeping in and now my skepticism is being replaced by evidence in my face . Sounds rational to me.
So, still being quite ignorant about potting, what is the stuff that flashlight manufacturers use for potting drivers, so that I can tell that to Barry in case that the Sofirn engineers do not know that?
I was going to say too, that “anecdotal evidence” isn’t the same thing as “rigorous testing” although both may be considered “experiences from small flashlight users”.
I have no means yet to update the interest list, but since the Yuji AAA twisty was picked up by Sofirn, within 29 hours 47 people were added, for 135 lights. I think that if Sofirn does this light right they will get enough of them sold to justify the development.
If this is anything like the E01, they will sell plenty, especially at $6 price point. I believe E01 sold very well when it first came out (despite its horrible tint) and still available today. If it was that bad, would of discontinued many years ago. Sofirn won’t be disappointed with this project.
The L11C seems to be particularly vulnerable to - I’ve seen more reports of small drops killing it than any other light. I still need to try repairing mine.
I certainly would feel more confident with a potted design, but I also accept that Sofirn will be investing their money in this project and gets to make the final call.
Waterproofing should be possible to handle with an O-ring around the LED dome. Other 5mm lights take care of it that way.
Right. It should be at least somewhat beneficial, and the material is presumably inexpensive, but they might not have a good setup for adding potting in their assembly process, or other reasons for not doing so.
I mailed Barry with a summary of the latest discussions (including a detailed request for potting the driver) and asked him to discuss all points with the Sofirn engineers.
FYI, I have manually created a list on my computer. I will post it in a moment after I decide how to format it.
jon_slider and parametrek, you’ve both been active in the thread, but I don’t think you’ve stated an interest so far, although your inputs on this initiative have both been appreciated. Just let me know if you’d like to be on the list.
djozz and bmengineer - I have you on the old list, but not the new list.
)
. And since I did not know examples myself I asked BLF for actual events happening, and now all sorts of detailed stories are seeping in and now my skepticism is being replaced by evidence in my face