Need 15mm driver

A BLF boost driver (in 17mm and 15mm) that can run leds on a single AA or NiMh cell with a good user interface is wanted for years. It has been designed and works well (look for a thread by HarleyQuin) but it would need a manufacturer now.

MTN one would be good but shipping is too much for me :confused:

I need it for 18650 light.

15 mm 0.9V - 3.6V 3-Mode Boost Driver Circuit Board at Kaidomain
500-600 mA (1*AA), 700 mA (2*AA), 1500 mA (1*14500/1*10440)
But it is a boost driver so it is 12 mm thick.

That looks good.
I will order it and try.

I just wish there is no strobe…

Wonder does it have memory. I can deal with going back to High mode after shut off as long as it’s not next mode. I hate that with a passion.

You can either solder a resistor over the capacitor on the board (cap right below the + lead next to 6 pin chip) for a faster “reset to high” or put a heavy pencil scrub over it…it helps the capacitor bleed down resetting the “memory” of the next mode on those types of lights

Next mode is worst thing you can have in flashlight.

I already did pencil trick on some flashlights and it works.

We will see when I get driver :slight_smile:

If anyone has some more suggestions, feel welcome to share :slight_smile:

Hum, I am intrigued about the pencil trick!
I have 2 MTN drivers (15mm and 17mm) that I wanted to use with lighted tailswitch. However, the switch leads to that “next mode memory”.
I don’t have bleed resistors, but I do have pencils, so might try that to see if it works.
Are any of you able to post a picture on how to do that trick, where and how to put it?
Thanks in advance :+1:

About those drivers with lighted tail: these type of drivers need to interpret a short ‘off’ as jumping to the next mode, and a long ‘off’ as switching off (returning to the last remembered mode if memory is enabled, or else to the first mode in the sequence). the lighted switch messes with the timing, so that the short ‘off’ is extended to infinity, and there you have your next mode ‘memory’. My fix is increasing the tail resistors (thereby dimming the tail leds :frowning: )

I’m not sure if you can fix that with the pencil trick.

Oh boy… :person_facepalming: I’m done!!! :disappointed:
So, the pencil trick may not be useful for that situation, for what I understand from your words djozz.
I really wanted to avoid doing another mess with drivers soldering the resistors, but I really may need to do that :zipper_mouth_face:
I’ll need to order some of those resistors and check what I can do.

Right now I have 2 moded lights that I want to use with lighted tailswitch that are sitting inside a box because of that “next mode memory” :person_facepalming: That’s the result of “knowing nothing” about this!

Thanks again djozz! :+1:

I’m not sure you can use that trick in lighted tail.

Best is to put bleeder resistor on driver.

You can try to find capacitor on driver and “mod” it with pencil and see.

Yes, you can either lower the bleeder (strange enough) or increasing the tail resistors, to get your timing back. You do not want your bleeder too low because that gives a leak current when the light is on that makes your lowest modes pretty inefficient.

I found that the X5/X6 driver (with Attiny25) are very very finicky if a lighted tail is combined with modern low Vf leds or triples/quads (in fact then the driver feels low voltage too), then the lighted tail only works with high value resistors and very dim tail light.

On the other hand the BLF-A6 driver (with Attiny13) is way more forgiving and you can have pretty bright tail leds without problem (I use a 470 or 690 Ohm bleeder in this driver, depending on my mood).

Yup, it seems so, I’ll need to buy those :person_facepalming:
I just wanted to avoid buy 400 if I only need 2 or 3 resistors :person_facepalming:
Well, and the “damaging” driver possibility… LOL

Hum, I have 2 BLF X5/X6 drivers on the way, but I know they will probably work fine with the lighted tailacps, despite the values. I don’t need the light on the switch to be super bright, I just want to be able to find in the dark!
One of the lights will be used with a Luxeon V, while the other will probably be used with a triple MCPCB with XP-G2!

But these drivers:
a) Installed on a triple S2+: FET + 7135 Driver - 17mm - MTN-17DDm
b) Installed on Tool AA: FET + 7135 Driver - 15mm - MTN-15DDm

I really need them to be working correctly.

These are the lighted switches I have, ordered from Convoy Store.

Do you know if I need higher or lower resistors to make it work (the MTN drivers)?!

And sorry for being off-topic concerning the OP: 15mm driver :zipper_mouth_face:

The first one is Attiny13 based, so should be ok, the second one (for your Tool) is Attiny25 based, expect trouble with low voltage leds and triples/quads.

As said, the X5/X6 driver does not like triples or low voltage leds (Luxeon V is extreme low voltage) combined with lighted tails, expect it very very dim. That driver worked including lighted tail in the lights they were developed for because it was just a single XP-L in there, which has for today’s standard a fairly high voltage.

Thanks so much for the explanation djozz! I get you say now!!
This “modding” and assembling different parts has more to know than what I thought to make it work right!…

Just one question, though! The BLF X5/X6 will work “fine” with the Luxeon without the lighted tailswitch? Meaning, will the LED be “as bright as it can” or the output will suffer as well? Or even without the lighted switch it will not work properly?

My issue is not so much about the switch light intensity but more about the jump in the modes… (unless I only used 1 mode :smiley: )

If the lighted switch will mess with the Driver + LED functioning I will withdraw that option and use regular non-lighted switches! Functioning over beauty in my lights :stuck_out_tongue:

BTW, and as information, the 15mm MTN driver with Crescendo installed does not work properly with the lighted tailswitch (without resistors or other tricks…) :zipper_mouth_face:

Without lighted tail the X5/X6 driver should work fine, but I never checked it with the Luxeon V.

Thanks again for the answer! I will give it a try when they arrive :wink:
Thanks for clarifying these situations (to me, at least) :+1:

I have no idea what actually happens in those drivers, it is all empirical knowledge, having done many builds with these drivers and lighted tails.

“Flashlight science” is a lot about empirical knowledge (even when technical explanations are not available) :wink:
So thanks for sharing yours :+1:

I can make for you one of these if you are interested :

http://www.mtnelectronics.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=67_116&product_id=342

Max 1.75 amps , Biscotti firmware .