Q8 modding

[djburkes]

@Tom E

@Sledgestone

Just received mine! Everything looks fine, except the LED centering. Anyone have a tip on how to get the reflector out? It just won’t budge and I don’t want to use excessive force trying to get it out.

Did you remove the screw that holds it down? Gotta take driver out - then you’ll see it - one M4 x8mm (think), centered. It’s in very tight - use a really good screwdriver. After than the reflector may need a little nudging because the o-ring kind of holds it in.

I’m replacing this screw as well. Think should be a combo, some are phillips only - another inconsistent thing… :person_facepalming:

+1 Mine weren’t centered very well either so when I beefed up the tail assembly I adjusted the reflector by removing the driver screws, loosening the reflector screw, then using my finger to hold down the center of the reflector while tightening the reflector screw. If you don’t hold the center of the reflector down while tightening the reflector screw then the leds will be off center again.

[MRsDNF]

Really nice mods here guys with lots of ways on doing the same thing differently.

[Jtm94]

The LED centering on my Q8 is actually perfect. Staring at it for a while and I can’t even find something to adjust so I’ve not touched the reflector just yet.

So the tailcap screws are M2.5? I wanna try bronze screws on the tail end to see if it makes any difference.

[RapidLux]

Yes, tail screws are M2.5x5mm (including head) and driver screws M3x5mm.

Maybe unscrewing the driver screws and screwing them right in again while pressing the board with some force will place the driver in at least good enough position without any underside gap at the screwing points. Maybe it is not that important to widen the holes?

[Etex]

Without a zoom in camera pic, I didn’t think mine was to bad.
Reflector movement can be Up, Down, Left, Right, clockwise or Counter clockwise. After looking at this I think mine needs a clockwise tweak.

Does the gap shown between the centering rings and led corners dictate the maximum movement possible?

9:00 position zoom

[Etex]

Never mind I answered my own question. It is “very” tricky to fine tune led / reflector centering, and be able to hold steady while tightening the screw. To bad those centering rings weren’t a tad smaller (closer fit). Looks like play around led & a little play between centering rings and refector.

IOW, easier said than done.

[JorisFRST]

Just drilled out the driver boards to 3mm, and retightened the screws.
it makes a noticable difference, now the Q8 that was the dimmest outshines the other one.

Happy with the result, waiting for my solder paste to arrive to be able to put in lexel’s driver.

[Jtm94]

I have some brass screws for the tail cap on the way along with some wafer head screws for the driver. I’ll wait until then to open up the holes for clearance, right now my Q8 is already roaring compared to stock.

[The_Miller]

This topic has become a joy to read and watch!
Nice work!

@Jtm94

I have some brass screws for the tail cap on the way along with some wafer head screws for the driver. I’ll wait until then to open up the holes for clearance, right now my Q8 is already roaring compared to stock.

Can you link the screws?

[Sledgestone]

I did my spring bypass the same way as Etex. On the outside of the springs. Will I still benefit from adding wires to the traces?

[Jtm94]

These are the brass screws I got for the tail end. Allie has some decent offerings for these, but they were all for 50+ pieces, and at most I will only do 2 Q8s so 10pcs for $1 is fine. Then these are the wafer head screws. $3.50 for 25 pcs is a lot, for $1.50 more you can get twice as many, but again I only need so many for myself. Taking a gamble on the height of the head, but most of these wafer head screws for laptops seems to have a pretty small head thickness and I can’t see them protruding higher than a button head.

[The_Miller]

Thanks!

[KawiBoy1428]

Mr. Metric……Brass M2.5 and M3 flat heads…

http://www.mrmetric.com/M34200

http://www.mrmetric.com/M335689

http://www.mrmetric.com/M34206

Sometimes you just have to look thru the website, some things don’t come up when you use the search?? :person_facepalming:

http://www.mrmetric.com/

[Flashy_Mike]

@Sledgestone

I did my spring bypass the same way as Etex. On the outside of the springs. Will I still benefit from adding wires to the traces?

Probably not much. I did the mods one after another and measured lumens in between. No measurable gain from adding wires to traces - I did this mainly because I wanted to have a wire loop for current measurement. Bypassing the springs afterwards brought 1000 more lumens.

[Tom_Tom]

@fixed it

@hank

Make new tail PCBs with those beryllium copper magic springs.
And bus bars instead of wires and traces.

I think DB Custom half jokingly suggested replacing the whole thing by a copper plate. You’d loose the loop for the clamp meter but you’d remove PCB resistance and improve contact to the battery tube. And it would be all shiny

That was me, and I wasn’t joking

Q8 modding

Who needs a tail PCB at-all ? Just whack in a copper disc with springs soldered straight onto it.

[fixed_it]

@Tom Tom

That was me, and I wasn’t joking

Q8 modding - #207 by Tom_Tom

My memory must have rewired that post to the usual suspect for such things It’s a good plan though, for those with the required tools and material.

[bwl123]

@Tom Tom

@djozz

And by how far do the screws clear the batteries? There are flat tops that protrute a bit so can be used in the Q8, also they should be cleared I think, not just the button tops.

Agreed, this is important.

See Q8, PMS SEND TO THOSE WITH ISSUES BLF soda can light - #12898 by Etex copied below:

@Etex

@RapidLux

I noticed that my Samsung 18650-30Q batteries have a wider button top with diameter 7.5 mm, compared to the batteries on the picture with a 5.5 mm button top. Can this 2 mm wider button top become an issue with the flat top screws?

Here’s what I measured with the smaller buttons, but remember screw heads do not stand as proud as brass ring. (1/8” vs 1/16”) so a 1/16 gap.

Note: (Inside screwhead to screwhead distance, not brass ring diameter)

(Batteries measured after I crammed a felt tip pen in the middle to spread them to max diameter).

…

EDIT : I misquoted myself above, hate when that happens, 1/16” vs 1/32”, so a 1/32” gap.

Just re-measured with digital calipers 1.60mm vs 1.00mm, so a gap of .60mm.

…

!!

ETEX found a sideways clearance from the countersunk screw heads of 0.6 mm using the smaller button-top cells.

Many of us will have bought the 30Q cells from Banggood for this torch, which have the wide “button top”, with 2mm more diameter, i.e. 1mm less clearance.

This is why I am worried about anyone who would put in an ordinary M3 panhead screw which will be proud of the brass ring. This combination, standard pan head screw, cell with wide “button”-top, looks like the cell would have have negative clearance (overlap by 0.4mm), if (two) cells lined up with the screws, which would be down to chance.

Tom E’s domed button top screws will have slightly more sideways clearance, but they do also look from the photo to be almost flush with the brass ring ?

As I said on the other thread, anyone who listened to the people who said ordinary pan-head is OK are, I think, in danger of introducing a potentially serious problem for themselves.

I could only recommend for most people staying with countersunk screws for now, which look to be safe, but ugly.

Only special thin pan-head screws would be suitable, which are not easily sourced for most people.

Putting a small solder blob accurately in the centre of the button top will give the edges vertical clearance.

[Tom_Tom]

@bwl123

Putting a small solder blob accurately in the centre of the button top will give the edges vertical clearance.

It’s no longer a concern, now knowing that the original screws sit well below the height of the brass ring.

It just means that when choosing alternative screws you need to be aware of this potential issue, and be sure to choose ones that also sit well below the brass ring. Hence the interest in “wafer head” laptop type screws.

It would only become an issue with the original screws if they came loose.

[Tom_E]

Wow, wish I found those eBay brass screws earlier - been look'n for those for a long time now. The heads are lower profile than standard pan heads - "round pan". The head height of the M3's is 1.7 mm should be about even with the brass ring. so should work for the driver.

For the springs to bypass, I'm yanking out the inner springs - not needed, just get in the way. They are real thin, literally I'm using a tweezer, work them out near the base of the outer spring and then rip it of the the pad - no damage on the one Q8 (4 springs) I did. Not eve much solder holding it down.

This is a nice ref on screw types: http://www.globalspec.com/learnmore/mechanical_components/mechanical_fasteners/screws

[Lexel]

when you bypass the springs from inside you can strip the insulator off the copper wire, so its easy to get it in the middle of the springs