I'm enjoying these Small Sun FTT lights - they are in large part a Flood-To-Throw C8, with a ~39mm plastic lens.
In stock form, the XR-E makes for a bright, if narrow, beam profile. Time to install something else.
CNQG was kind enough to deliver, in exchange for some silly numbers, a handful of nice glass aspherics in varying diameters. Fortunately, one was a close fit. The much shorter focal length should make for a large die image, as well as some additional lumen, over the stock plastic offering.
Stock left, CNQG 37.2mm lens right:
The glass lens is much thicker:
The host spent a bit of time on the lathe, making a retention groove for the new lens. I then made the mistake of turning it around, thinking it would improve the look. Debatable. It did improve grip; too bad the light will be fixed-focus when done. :)
Lesson learned? Don't drink Red Bull and Grey Goose at lunch.
lmao - red bull, vodka and lathe - you're lucky to be fixing that slide in place and not a finger!
looking forward to the result. I'd like to go to a shorter focal length (and change emitter position) w/ my next sample of this light (to get more flood).
Nice project!
I’d like to see that light come with a smooth bezel and driven a little harder. If anyone finds a bezel from another inexpensive light that fits this host (and still protects the aspheric) please post!
The lenses I received recently from Ric seem to be decent, so far. I have only played with a few of the glass lenses, so I can't report back on the molded plastic ones yet.
I also had the idea of trying to improve that (already great) Small Sun of mine with a glass lens, perhaps somewhat wider than the stock plastic one.
Didn't even start the modding, as the glass lens I got from LighTake projects a totally blurry emitter image at best focus, although it looks flawless. Wrong curvature, obviously. Plastic rocks.
I took another approach. I eventually took the lens and bezel from the Smallsun and epoxied it on a fixed light that I have with a screw-in pill XR-E R2.
The lens on my SmallSun was good but due to the design of the Smallsun head I got a brownish color thick disc around the bright emitter shape. On the fixed light that I transfered it to it doesn’t have that thick brown disc. The light I used was an Aurora single 18650. The tail cap from the Smallsun even fits the Aurora.
[edit] I just did a quick experiment with a piece of black paper cut to cover that silver retaining ring with the two indents in it and this greatly reduced that brown ring. The silver ring is reflecting enough light to look brown so painting it black would be helpful.
Good idea. Nice to know.
I noticed on Matches recent thread about bonding directly to copper that his pill used a raised platform (as I recall) for the emitter.
That concept would be good for aspherics (the platform) as it would improve the image by removing everything else from the center of focus.
I've been experimenting w/ the opposite - tiny reflectors and small lenses - to try and grab all the light before the main lens.
The smaller aspheric that comes w/ the pt-54 projector assembly is just about perfect. Placed directly on top of the emitter it slightly shortens focal length but significantly narrows the overall beam angle.
I need to find a way to mount it w/o creating a little oven around the emitter...I was thinking 4 very small aluminum posts (rods from rivets) driven into holes in the pcb - but that's not very rugged, even if the lens is epoxied to them.
I've often wanted to make an XM-L aspheric but place a narrow focus TIR optic on the emitter to tighten the beam then place an appropriate aspheric the proper distance (whatever it might be) and see if it will focus the TIR output properly or not. Not really sure if it'd help or make things worse. One day I'll try it out unless someone else feels like doing it first.
I don't know about a TIR either, but the tractor supply zoomie is a good candidate for testing it, since all my other lights have too short a focal length for the TIRs I have on hand. Unfortunately, I sold the one I converted to xml and the other is mid-conversion, waiting on parts.
