Making a P60 Copper Smoothie

copper1

I'm at it again!

I'm starting to feel like it's more fun making these "from scratch" lights than modifying other production lights.

I bought a P60 Drop-in from Illumination Supply and since it's my first one ever, I had no light to put it into, so I took a piece of 1" copper pipe and waddya know? It looked like a perfect fit (almost)...

The parts in the photo are a section of 1" copper pipe, various copper fittings, the modified drop in, a McClicky switch, 6AAA battery holder (3series/2parallel), a 2.8A - 8*7135 driver and a glass UV filter.

The story is best told in the video shown below.

The LED will be an XM-L T6 and should come the first of this week. I will do some beam shots when it's finished.

I dig your mods .

Will it also run with a li ion? This one has my attention;)

The battery holder is 24.5mm x 110mm. The pipe is 26.2mm ID, so a 26650 would fit in the pipe, but you would have to make a spacer because of the 110mm length. Or if you made one of these lights yourself, just make it to length. The last one I did held 3 "C" NiMHs.

Very nice, as always O-L.

I may have a piece of aluminum scrap that would work out perfectly as a spacer. I'll let you know tomorrow.

My internet it too slow to load the video but it looks really nice.

I'm impressed and inspired.

Nice creation

Spacer? I am already all spaced out. Cool No need to look for one, the light is ready to go, except awating the XML, which should come today.

Thanks anyhow.

Thanks to all, for the positive comments. Much appreciated!

Well, the light is done. Undecided Not working as I planned, but working. It's the McClicky that seems to be acting up, or maybe it's made that way, but when I first touch the switch (just barely touch it), that's when I have to "mode change". If I just "turn it on" it doesn't mode change after it has been turned on. In other words if you just click it it's on and if you try to change modes after that.....Yell.... Oh never mind, it's just a really strange switch probably designed for some oddball light. I can't figure it out. Too hard to describe, but I don't know why it does that. Very disconcerting... Having to mode change by barely depressing the switch (before the click) and then when you got the mode you want, you have to continue depress completely and quickly in that moment, or it changes modes.

Well, I guess I could do something else with it, but you know? I'm done.

After a while it sinks in that (for me), what works is "Maglite & Direct Drive" or making my own simple switch, like the first copper light was. I cannot be trying to wire all these circuit boards. It does not work and these fancy switches just don't seem to work for me either. I just like simple on/off. Just like a flashlight used to be and that's what I'm going back to. Of course that limits me, as these cree emitters can't take direct drive nearly as well as the old "D" bin P7s did, but that's life too. A "D" bin P7 on four NiMHs direct is every bit as bright as these XML are and it doesn't fry like these XML do... ProgressFrown...

Oh Well, life is what it is. Here's a couple of final photos of it and it's history...Tongue Out

111

I ended up using the rotary tool to grind down the reflector some, to clear the wires and sink the reflector farther down onto the pill and I made an isolator from a plastic washer, by sanding it very thin.

222

The lens is held on with a bead of epoxy between the lens and reflector.

333

beam

I have yellow (cream) colored walls in the garage. Every beam always looks funky with cream colored walls.

Edit: The McClicky is ok, it's just a forward clicky. Modern technology will be the death of me...Tongue Out

Carry on!

LOL! I read the first paragraph in the last post and was wondering how long it would take you to realize your switch was fine…just back asswards. I personally don’t like forward clicky switches either. :wink:

Nice work on the light. It looks great!

nice job.

i think i'm starting to agree w/ the DD stuff, too...

so, have you already made a similar light w/ a step up converter on the end to use a larger reflector?

seems like a great way to build a fixed aspheric

Old-Lumens, very impressive as usual.

Great Job, O-L !!!

The light looks awesome.

Beautiful light, Old-Lumens - when you going to put it up for sale? Laughing

I dislike forward clicky too. First light I had with it I thought it was broken.

https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/5801

I think that's the one you were thinking of. Still in the works. Now I'm probably putting an SST-90 in it and "it" will be a 3D instead of the 2D, with the adapted head.

Actually this one was spoken for before I ever got the light finished. Those copper lights may be in demand as they get known better.

I'm going to do another one soon and it will be unique (again)...Wink

Thanks everyone for the comments.

I love the fact that a P60 drop-in can have such a nice beam with an XML in it.