Texas_Ace BLF Calibrated Lumen tube / Sphere No math skills needed - Several spheres still available

It will not seal perfectly but it should still give a reasonably close reading. You will just need to add a little bit for the light that escapes due to an imperfect seal. After some experience with the tube you will figure out a reasonable amount to add by playing with other lights of similar output and pulling them out of the tube slightly.

Ok, I will look into it. I don’t think I will get time to do this until Friday at the earliest, Remind me tomorrow if you can. I will be silly busy the next few days.

How about a spare diffuser ring with a custom cutout for the fins so it lies flat? I’m mostly curious because I do a ton of testing with modded Armytek headlamps so it’s worth the extra effort to me.

I will take one. Thanks.

100$ for a PVC pipe does not sound budget to me. I’ll pass that one.
Mike

i tried to use the same, but without diffusor.
may be some semi-transparent paper will work, have to check.

problem here was such - it felt like low brightness was really not precise.

have you checked low bright modes there? are they also precise like higher ones? if yes, i have to test my tube over again.

You are not just paying for materials, you are also paying for knowledge, experience and calibration.

The fact that several people will have the same design calibrated so closely to one another also means that flashlight reviews from them can contain accurate lumen readings. Multiple people owning these means more models of flashlights can be tested. This is good because you can’t expect just a few people around the world with high end and expensive spheres to be able to test every light that comes out.

Besides, the more professional ulbricht spheres cost thousands of dollars. $100 is much more affordable for the more serious flashlight hobbiests.

Ps, plus it can measure a huge range of output. From at least 150 lumen to 25k lumen. It’s easy to use and there is no math involved. Flooder and throwers don’t matter. That’s pretty awesome in my eyes.

It is possible I could 3D print up a custom ring that could be used for this if they all have the same size head. Can you get me a measurement of whatever edge you would want the light to seal to?

I have been using my sphere for almost 2 years now and have not had any issues at low or high brightness. It took a LOT of work to get it to the point though. Easily 6 months calibrating and tweaking the design. It looks simple now but there were dozens of versions before this.

I would not take it’s numbers down at at 5 lumens and less to be perfect but that is the price that is paid to allow for lights over 25k lumens to be measured. It will still register moon mode on most lights though.

This latest design should be even better since the diffusing sheets are much more ideal for this.

Also, all the LED tests in my sig were done with my sphere like this, so there is a pretty good dataset on it already as well.

Yes, it is not “budget”, nor is it a necessary tool for many of us.

But it IS a Texas Ace built and calibrated tool for accurately reading the output of various flashlights. The materials (including a measuring device—Lux meter), versatility, construction, calibration, accuracy, and work put into this device will justify it’s cost to those of us who desire accurate light output measurements with minimal hassle.

If Texas Ace is building it, you can count on it’s quality. I suspect the materials alone will be close to his costs and a small percentage will go to pay for his time and expertise.

In that regard, it may not be “budget” but it will definitely be a “bargain” for what those customers receive.

I suspect many would rather spend $100 on an awesome flashlight…and he makes those too!

I’ll take one. Would be great for all the reviews I do on youtube.

I'll take 1.

T_A, that's some fine engineering and tuning work you've done there! :) Congratulations on making a precision instrument from something that took a little "black magic" to just come close to actual numbers. Again, well done!

-Ben

Where is the list T/A/ Sign me up, I’ll take (1) please. :+1:

Thanks, making the first sphere was a labor of love for sure. Many many times I wanted to just give up but then I would get a new light and want to know how much I was being lied to and would keep trying.

The naked LED tests were a key part of the setup and testing, it really improved the ability to get good numbers across the board when I did those and applied what I learned from them.

I will most likely use some naked LED’s on my bench for calibrating a lot of these since they are much more stable in output then most lights due to the stable input power and massive heatsink.

I think I have everyone added to the list up to now, let me know if I missed anyone.

Considering lawyers and engineers charge a couple hundred dollars an hour for their time and expertise, paying $100 for a quality lumen measuring device that requires a huge chunk of time for R&D and the TA quality is definitely a bargain. Also material and shipping cost money so I don’t see TA making much profit for this. Remember earning profit is not an evil thing. Everybody needs to eat and live. Some people put in time and effort at their job to get paid by their employer, while some people put in time and effort to get paid by customers.

:crown: :+1:

Those 4” PVC street 90s are not very cheap / plus a meter with all the acc to make it a working device not to mention that free shipping we all can aquire for something that big—- $100 is a steal—you couldn’t buy mine for a $100

This looks like a good way for people to get decent measurements… and it always helps when different people’s numbers can be compared to each other.

I’ll stick with my “Integrating Milk Carton” for now though, since it’s small and seems good enough for my purposes. :slight_smile:

in for one

This PVC has an ID of 3.5” at the opening for the light, I forgot to put this in the OP.