EBRZM-16 just over 1000 Kcd thrower

Wow, good stuff!

Thanks for sharing.

:open_mouth:

HA! First I occupy all shelves in the house with flashlights and batteries and chargers. Then I steal her makeup mirror! My wife will kill me for sure! LOL!

Nice work using those cheap mirrors :-)

What if you do not use a zoom flashlight, but just the bare emitter, e.g. just remove the head of the UF-T20? I'd say it would increase the throw even further (but the beam would be way narrower). Do you have beam-shots of the set-up actually illuminating something, to get a better idea of the throw?

i’m wondering how you figured out the focal length requirements for this also before buying the mirror. i think it was a good idea coming up with this precollimator set up. it allows a decent amount of light to hit the mirror, over the required distance to focus the light. i’m not sure it would work so well any other way, bare emitter=low coverage angle (without a short focus mirror), reflector/optic=mixed light angles? also curious what the beam spot looks like

Wow. I didn’t even know there’s a zoom mirror before this. Now I want one :smiley:

How did you measure the lux? It looks from the pictures the focus is not infinity, the point of convergence is far away.

He didn’t need to know the focal length. He built it all after buying the mirror.

I just tried this holding a cheap zoomie and the wifes mirror in my hands. The beam was disfigured but a marked improvement on throw.

Really ghetto looking with exceptional results. Well done Ervin :crown:

the focal length of the mirror affects the required amount of precollimation, the amount of precollimation will affect the amount of light hitting the mirror. anyway sort of moot with the number of these mirrors available :stuck_out_tongue:

ervin, have you thought about reducing the size of the setup by using two concave mirrors?

Nice work. Love the out of the box thinking.

Holy cow I was just wondering about this very idea after looking at some microwave transmission antennae. I played with my wife’s mirror too but not on a ruler just hand held and I couldn’t quite get it too work. It made me wonder about going bigger and to center it like those fat telescopes. That have a name but I’m too tire to think. Nicely done and cool pictures.

First thank you all, and sorry for late reply, but i have less and less time lately.

have made some schematics for some new more compact ideas, will upload in first post as soon as i can. maybe someone with some spare time and some nice equipment could have some fun some day. :slight_smile:

@djozz “What if you do not use a zoom flashlight, but just the bare emitter, e.g. just remove the head of the UF-T20? I’d say it would increase the throw even further (but the beam would be way narrower). Do you have beam-shots of the set-up actually illuminating something, to get a better idea of the throw?”

of course I have tried that, but the result was not that good. first as you say the beam would be way narrower, the spot very very small. but there is another problem, the beam quality downgrade too, the projected image go full artifacts too. the cheap mirrors shows their true face in this setup i think. using lens as pre collimator rise the overall performance (more light is captured ) but also the quality of beam.

@islisis_“i’m wondering how you figured out the focal length requirements for this also before buying the mirror. i think it was a good idea coming up with this precollimator set up. it allows a decent amount of light to hit the mirror, over the required distance to focus the light. i’m not sure it would work so well any other way, bare emitter=low coverage angle (without a short focus mirror), reflector/optic=mixed light angles? also curious what the beam spot looks like”
_

I try to touch this subject a little in the review on my first post, but understand that without proper examples is not that clear. Will try to make schematics hoping it will explain something.

Lets assume that in the A we have an ideal setup.

Now going to B we have an mirror with a larger f. using the same lens but playing with x and y we still can find a right setup that give us an clear projection. In this case x become bigger and y smaller. We just lose mirror area as an unused space so overall performance can suffer a bit, but the system will work somehow, just working with x and y. in the worst case scenario going to extremes we will need to add some additional lenses. Case C. in extremes we go in normal reflector setup without the need for lenses.
In the end will add some photos and also will try to finish first post with additional photos.

“ ervin, have you thought about reducing the size of the setup by using two concave mirrors?”

not 2 concave mirrors but have thought of other ways:

maybe one day will go after those projects but i am shorts on tools

again thank you all for your kind words, really appreciate.
Photos(will try to edit later with proper explanation and if u click they go full size ):

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beam finally hit 1M cd :stuck_out_tongue:

thanks- i wish i could say i understand from the diagrams, but i’ll come back to it later :stuck_out_tongue:

for the indoor shots you should try using low mode and low exposure to get a better pic of the profile :slight_smile:

Very cool! That is really going out there. In your last two diagrams, the last diagram using the parabolic mirror- I wonder if putting the light source opposite of the large reflector might be easier and achieve similar results but be easier to focus. I am really enjoying watching your work. Please keep it up!

BTW, there is some information on a post here that might give you some more information that might be helpful. It’s different from what you are doing but the discussion and geometry are very related.

. . . beam finally hit 1M cd.

Daaaamn! Sounds more like laser territory than flashlight territory. Congrats man. You probably should be careful for aircraft when you point that monster up into the sky.

Wow awesome!

A cheap zoomie + a cheap makeup mirror = mega throw!!! :bigsmile:

Just when I thought I’d seen everything. Very clever!

Shame you don't have some room to cut that puppy loose! Bet the people in the apartments aren't all that pleased with your invention... ;)

Ok, it’s Northern California so I have to keep it a little redneck. I don’t have a zoomie. I know, I know, how can I be a true Flashaholic or BLF’er if I ain’t got no zoomie or an SRK. My caveat is that I am too cheap do buy one. :8) Note the cheap equipment in my replication of the original experiment.

Ok, the light isn’t cheap, but it’s what I had that worked. Regular XML in a P60 just had to long of a field of focus.

See, redneck. I couldn’t find the bailing wire so I went with zip-ties.

Sorry, iPhone pictures.

Picture is pathetic, I know but demonstrates the beam profile some. It shoots long and tight. I don’t have anything that comes close to touching it’s reach. My C8 reaches far but not even in the same class. Only my green laser reaches further.
I apologize for the lack of outside shots but it takes two hands to hold and the missus is loath to stand in the rain at night to take pictures of a flashlight beam. “You want me to do what?”

As I was playing with the beam, I had to stop as an airplane took of from the airport 5 miles away! It’s that bright and reaches that far. I didn’t want the police to haul me off like I was using a laser on the plane. My neighbors probably are groaning about that silly neighbor, out with his lights again.

So, now we have to figure out how to mount the pieces on a telescoping rod so they can flip down, slide down tight for portability. Slide out, flip up, BAM! for outside distance shots. We'll all start wearing massive baggie shorts with cargo pockets down to our ankles and rods sticking up out the top.

"That's just my Ervin." :)

Ok this is insane…