Rolled my own triple XP-G P60 PIC ADDED

I always feel like trips to the hardware store more times than not can yield positive creations such as this ! WTG :)

Very good! You save yourself $100, and the heatsinking is probably better on your module.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=286366

Nice! How do you put a reflector on it? I have a hard enough time soldering one wire in the right place on a driver board, let alone 3 to one spot.

Rich...I'm loving the mod. This is another great example of making a killer light out of common items.

If you get a moment, I'd also like to see some beamshots of this beauty whenever you decide on the optics.

-Match

Right on both... see the zero-ohm jumpers on the star? Chopped those off to make it individually addressable.

Take your Solarforce host to the hardware store with you and test fit pieces-that's what I did.

Rich

can you link us to the list of parts, i already have a ton of those drivers

dont know where to get the triple xp-g star

and where to get some of the other parts (dimensions, etc.)

Cutter sells the triple ...

Emitter board: http://ledsupply.com/indusstar-3up.php Choose the color temp you want. LED Supply is great... stateside, replies to emails politely and fast, ships priority same/next day.

Driver: http://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/the-132/3-dsh-Mode-Regulated-Circuit-Board/Detail Bryan ships same day and fast. Very responsive with emails. Has upgraded budget lights also.

The pill came from KD but I forgot the SKU... you can use any P60 pill, just file it down.

Teflon wire came from greedbay seller navships. Just search there for him.

The slug: Just cleaned out the hardware store! Too lazy right now to shoot a pic, but the package reads: EPC (company name) figure 119 3/4 x 1/2 flush bushing. Sounds like something any plumbing/hardware place might have.

I put it in a Solarforce L2P host (pic later when I get off my fat ass and feel like shooting, editing and uploading!) I don't think it'll fit Surefires but who wants to pay those prices anyway?! I actually like Solarforce more.

The best prices and shipping time come from Lighthound.

http://www.lighthound.com/ Just do a search for solar.

Rich

dimensions on slug was what i needed. not a problem nemore!!! as far as driver goes, ill have other methods for mounting, tho that method is quite ingenious

you forgot to mention the lens. where is that from?

DX also sells the empty pills, but im sure i already have one lol

L2P is quite a popular host, but i wonder if this works in other p60 hosts?

i have loads of 501b from ultrafire....

"L2P is quite a popular host, but i wonder if this works in other p60 hosts?"

Should do fine, but the 501b has the least mass of all.

i understand that, but at the same time, the least mass means the heat will transfer to the outside very quickly

also i never run my flashlights for very long on high...

what im going to look for is a driver thats at least 4 amps, while i have tons of 2.8 shiningbeam drivers (turns out their a bit too big to allow me to fit 18650 or 2x16430 batteries once installed..... dumb design but whatever)

id like to drive these things to make it a beast of a flashlight. functionality is not always my primary concern :-)

my new XM-L is more than bright enough

Bump for the added pic.

The optics are Carlco 20mm which LED Supply also has.

I haven't tried these in any other host. (yet) So the usual disclaimer on whether it fits or not...

Rich

Thanks for the added pic, Rich...Very sharp build. I gotta try one now

Btw, do the Carlco optics perfectly fit the host lens space, or did you keep that in place? Hard to tell from the pics, but it looks like you kept the original lens in place and added the Carlco behind it?

did you ever get pictures and measurements? (esp amperage draw at tailcap)

OK, an update. I've been busy with these-got on a roll and built a total of 6 of these for my L2P hosts. Two are cool whites, one is a 4000K neutral, one is a 3000K warm, one 5000K neutral and a cool white Endor (rebel) star.

Two of the lights I upgraded to 3.1A by cannibalizing an extra driver for the 7135's and piggybacking one chip to another on the back (spring) side of the driver. Don't try this at home unless you're really good at microsurgery!!

The stock SB driver with a triple draws ~2500-2800Ma. With the piggybacked chip, both of those draw 3150Ma. I don't remember exact measurements, but this is the average.

For cosmetic purposes I squeezed a cut-to-size-and-reglued glow ring around the optic and I ended up pulling out the original SF rubber that the lens fits into, gluing the glow ring to the inner circumference of the rubber, and putting it back in. This is so the glow ring won't fall down under the optic. I used krazy glue gel and waited 'till it thoroughly dried before reassembly. Krazy glue will destroy emitter domes and plastic! When I ran out of glow rings, I did a couple with a swiped rubber grip ring spacer from a Surefire.

A tip: We are dog lovers and dog hair gets into everything. (along with metal filings, dust, whatever...) I imagine in factories they must have clean rooms to assemble bezels... what a bitch to keep stuff out! So my wife gave me one of those real soft blush makeup brushes to dust off just before I put the original lens and bezel ring on. Works a treat! Picture a documentary with an archeologist working with one of those brushes they use to work around ruins... that's about it. BTW, I use Invisible Glass from the supermarket to clean glass lenses. That stuff is great.

I don't have calipers and I'm lousy at accurate measurements. Suffice to say that these dropins, as made, fit nicely into the L2P. The critical part is how far you file down the brass ring for the driver. I take it down until I start to see a seam around the area that would normally hold the emitter, then I knock that out, sand the ring level, just enough to make sure it is flat for the copper.

So on a couple I didn't file it down far enough before I soldered and I had to use an O-ring between the bezel and host, on one I went too far and had to use part of a P60 outer spring, and on the others they fit just right with nothing else necessary.

The one bad thing is that I'm depending on the glass lens to hold the dropin down... I should have come up with some lind of spacer so the bezel holds it in, but so far, so good.

My apologies for not relying sooner... the email notification for this thread somehow got disabled.

Rich

Thanks for the update Rich.

Any noticeable difference between the 2.8 and 3.1 drivers? I'm just curious if it's worth it. If you get a chance, I'd like to see some beamshots of the various triples you've made! Again, nice work.

seems someone on cpf has a more powerful driver available. but i cant seem to find it NOR the pricing....

sounds pricey by the description tho

they have ALOT of nice mods on there now... i had to join em to start asking questions about a few lol

Not in 10 deg. wx! I've never done beamshots and it would involve a tripod, etc. (the next one mentions global warming around me gets a whack upside the head...) I wouldn't even think about that 'till summer.

Y'know... I don't know about a difference bet. 2.8 and 3.1A... one is the neutral and the other is the warm, so I don't have another to compare it to. I only did it to see if it would work and I was thinking warms and neutrals have less lumens, so I just did it.

My Paypal is maxed but when I do more, I'll check that out. I'm liking the neutrals.

Rich

Excellent work, Rich! Have you tried any of the frosted Carlco optics yet?

Awesome job! I lack the will to go to a hardware store myself. Would love to do a single XM-L heatsinked to the max. Also very lacking is serous tools department. Hell i don't even own a file if not for nail care. :/

I need something like this but it would defeat the whole budget idea. Not counting that andodizing DIY gets messy.