Okay, I see the point your making. I would not think that one output bin of difference would mean the forward voltage was noticable different. I know it can change with different color temps, like a NW may draw more amps than a CW, but I think there are a lot of other variables involved.
My stock driver C8F 21700 was drawing about 6.3A and 2300 lumen from a 30Q battery. With the FET swap, it draws 8.2A and 2600 lumen.
From the 18650 version reviews I found it seems everyone was getting between 8 and 9 amps from a high drain 18650. So it doesnāt seem like there is any big change in amp draws between the 2 drivers when using 18650 cells. This would indicate the xpl emitters are the same, right?
I donāt think I would look at contactrās numbers as itās a different driver and different emitters.
Both XPL2 and LH351D have relatively low fwd voltage so it seems more likely something else not allowing it to pull >10A. Seems more likely to me that it would be the driver. The difference between my long 20AWG wires and stock wires that are 22AWG and shorter is only like 0.05V drop isnāt it? Seemingly not enough to make such a big impact.
Yes. 3050 lumens@10A at Turn On and 2900 lumens@9.5A at 30 seconds.
I think Sofirn should have officially rated it 3000 lumen instead of 3500. It is basically the same as the 18650 version (in theory), but with a bigger, higher drain battery. It doesnāt make sense that a bigger battery alone would add 1000 lumen.
Maybe if they also used some heavier 18ga led wires we would see more than a rough 1A and 300 lumen increase in output?
This could be misleading to some people. Thinner and longer wires decrease current, so I think you mean āhe is using VERY long 20AWG leads, meaning the potential current is probably quite a bit higher (if he were to swap to shorter and thicker wires).ā
I donāt want anyone getting confused.
Ah, Iām already having trouble remembering stuff with this light. I think Iāll try some 18 gauge wires and see what happens.
You are right I should not comment on stock lights :person_facepalming: especially since they donāt exist at my house. I got confused because of various mods in this thread.
I think I figured out a small design flaw in the manufacturing that is causing reduced output.
It seems the new aluminum driver retaining ring is not able to fully tighten down on the driver (at least my driver). I thought it felt strange as it only tightened up to one point and then would go no further. I used some marker dots to confirm this. The ring seems to be squeezing the driver lightly instead of firmly.
The 2A difference I saw earlier with my battery tests and again a 1A difference after I swapped to 18 ga led wires. I can move the driver around when the retaining ring is about 1/16 of a turn from its ātightenedā position.
So maybe the driver pcb is a bit thinner than it was supposed to be or maybe the threads are not cut far enough. Maybe they should have continued using a brass retaining ring. Iām not sure.
Add a tiny copper wire and see if it helps? They also anodized the driver side threads which im not a huge fan of. I think its better for heat transfer not to?
Lastly, my old 18650 sofirn bypassed tail switch broke and i probably havent changed that thing a dozen times. The wire was far too thin for how much solder they used.
Replaced the spring and bypass on that one and got 3,670lm at 0s with Samsung 25S. That one has LH351D 5000K 80CRI
Does anyone know is 42mm glass will fit into C8F? My host came with lens with no coatings so want to upgrade but Iām not sure if 42mm one from intl-outdoor.com will fit or should I just get 41,8mm.
TBH I did order stainless bezel a while ago, just forgot about it, so the whole question was actually irrelevant :person_facepalming:
Thanks for the answer anyway
I got new driver of 21700 C8F from Sofirn so I have 1 extra driver will order the host to built one with different LED but canāt decide which one to go XPL Hi for more throw or LH315D 5000K for 90 CRI ,what do you think ?
More flood you say? Hmmm, what are the options for getting these leds? Can they be bought reflowed on a board or do you have to buy a host, use that mcpcb and reflow yourself?
You can reflow them yourself, but most of us, not including me of course, donāt have solder paste+temperature controlled hotplate. So it is out of the question unless you have it.
Leave a message saying you want 4000k 90CRI LH351Ds or 5000k 80CRI LH351Ds reflowed instead of the 219C, since they are about the same price He wonāt mind at all.
I guess I have to buy a 21700 host from Sofirn and reflow the leds myself. Iāve got a cheap hot air station so I can clamp the mcpcb and heat it slowly from the bottom. Iāve got solder paste, but I think you can apply some wire solder to the pads, add some extra flux and then hot air to do the reflow. I need to watch more youtube hot air reflow videos.