I just received an S5 and while it’s very nice, I need it to throw better. Would a dedoming get the best results or buying one of the smooth reflectors from Aliexpress…or both? I’m a non-modder who screwed up a dedoming…batting 000 on mods! 
Help!
De-domed XPG2. The original light OP reflector works fine.
Convoy S4, de-domed XPG2 R5 '2B' tint, 105C w/Nlite FW, 2.65A tailcap current:
P60 smooth XML reflector, XML2 U2 '1C' tint, 105C w/Nlite FW, 2.81A tailcap current:
Thanks Comfy, the only dedomed XP-G2 light I’ve ever had was a UF-V3 and it had a pencil beam, I’d rather keep a wider beam. If I managed to successfully dedome the XM-L that’s in it, would it have a wider beam than the XP-G2? It’s the 2.8A model. Thanks.
De-domed XML2 is pretty close to the same beam profile as a dome-intact XPG2, though of course more light output.
I don't find the de-domed XPG2 to be too much of a pencil-thin beam, it's very usable. Likely the OP reflector helps a bit for close-up use, but doesn't seem to hinder much at long range. On a white wall it still has a discernible center spot but it's not nearly as sharp at the edges as the same emitter in say a smooth P60 reflector.
Using the “dunk in gasoline” method, I’ve had much better luck dedoming XM-Ls than XP-G2s. Comfy suggests make fine cuts on the dome before dunking, but in my case, I couldn’t (no razor blades, plus the domes are “rubbery”), so I took one of the sharp ends of a tweezer, and carefully poked holes into the dome and then dropped the emitters into the gasoline.
I have an STL-V6 that I had an un-dedomed XM-L in, with the original SMO reflector, and lux measurements went from about 50 Klux to about 122 Lux with the dedomed XM-L (I think a U3). The latter lux number was done with 2 different lux meters. I don’t remember what the beam looked like with the dedomed XP-G2, but the beam with the XM-L is definitely not a pencil beam.
I haven’t had a combo of dedomed emitter with OP reflector, so can’t comment on that.
Thanks Ohaya, I’ve read the whole dedoming thread and unfortunately had no success yet with gasoline (admittedly after only one try), that one was an XM-L. I ‘think’ I know where I went wrong, but not absolutely sure. Mods just don’t seem to be my thing.
The S5 is only barely any more focused than the S3, which is a real flooder. I’ve got a feeling dedoming would really get me much closer to what I’m looking for, it is an XM-L U2 1B and is driven @ 2.8A. This light is going on a bike helmet to reach out and see what’s coming ahead, and it needs to throw a bit to do that. Last night I strapped a C12 on my head and that was about perfect except for the weight and strange look!
Am I barking up the wrong tree trying to make a little S5 into any kind of thrower?
I don't have a S5, but I have a S4 which has a very similar reflector, and I have a whole bunch of the exact same reflectors the S2/S5/S6 use (here) and I have not found them to be floody at all. I do have a S3 and agree about that one being floody almost to the point of annoyance. Have you played with different thickness insulators?
I perfectly de-domed an XML in about an hour using Gunblaster Gun cleaner. Just sprayed enough in a cup and let the emmiter sit fully submerged for an hour and the dome just floated off.
I didn’t have any trouble getting the dome off…but somewhere along the line the little wires got broken, 
Comfy, my S3 and S5 beam profiles are remarkably similar with the S5 being slightly less floody. It doesn’t throw any better than the S3 however.
Something's wrong then, those little deeper-than-wide reflectors throw like crazy.
Do you mean ‘throw like crazy’ like a C8? It isn’t even close to being in that league.
Comparison shots here, S4 vs P60 vs a particularly awesome throwing C8 vs SRK - https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/19950#comment-427137
I meant 'throw like crazy' as compared to anything else with a 20mm reflector, and even some bigger than that, though not in the hot-rodded C8 league.
I have a S4 with that de-domed XPG2, and a newly-built S3 with a dome-intact XML2 T6 3C (5000K), both using the same driver, want some beamshots comparing those two?
Convoy S4 dedomed XPG2 vs P60 dedomed XPG2:
Convoy S4 vs Convoy S3:
S4 and P60 have all the same stuff - same bin & tint de-domed XPG2, Sinkpads soldered to the pills, same cells, same 22AWG wire, same switches, same drivers, only functional difference is the reflector size and smooth (P60) vs OP (S4). The S3 is using all the same stuff again, but using a XML2 T6 3C with the dome still in place.
The internal dimensions of the S4 and S2/5/6 reflectors only vary very slightly, light output and pattern is virtually identical. The only S5 reflector I have with a dome-intact XML2 has been shortened and the OP stripped & polished, so I don't think it would be an accurate sample to compare with a stock reflector.
Mouseover to see the S4 compared to the P60 in the first pic, and the S4 compared to the S3 in the second.
Wow, great beamshots Comfy!
After another ride tonight, the S5 needs to throw just a little more and/or be a little brighter. I hate to make the beam narrower with a dedome, thinking about switching to an XM-L2 U2 and adding a smooth reflector. Is 2.8A enough to drive the L2? I’m sure more amps would be better, but I’m not really a modder, and it runs pretty hot already.
The S3 is perfect as the main bike light. It floods the whole area in front of the bike and goes as wide as the street.
If you can wait a few days I'll be able to give you a direct comparison. I have several S4s to build, I was already planning to do one with a stock XML2 and another with de-domed XML2, and the unmodded S5 reflectors will fit in the S4 head temporarily so I can get beamshots. Then you can compare all the variations, except for a dome-intact XPG2 (which I'm planning to do in a Convoy S2 (same reflector) but that host isn't here yet). I think the de-domed XML2 will be the best compromise.
Cool, thank you Comfy, that would help immensely! I just ordered some SMO reflectors for the S2-S7 Convoys…3 for $5.62…not a big investment. Don’t see it making a huge difference but I’m pretty close to where I need to be already.
OK, after last night’s ride, the S5 is so close to being ‘good enough’. It throws almost as well as the EC1, but with a wider beam, which is nice. The smooth reflector may be enough to focus the beam and make it throw a little bit better.
If you replace an XM-L with an XM-L2, how does it affect heat production….does it run hotter with the same current being applied?
Thanks!
comfychair, that’s impressive throw from the Convoy S4 dedomed XPG2.
How much percent lumen loss are we looking at after dedome?
Have you dedomed a Nichia 219?
Thanks!