Replaced the tail spring (large blue) and beefed up the bypass (20 gauge) on my C8F 21700 w/ LH351D 4000K 90CRI
3,177 at 0s w/ lightly used Vapcell 3750mAh 24A 21700
3,486 at 0s w/ topped off 30T Vapcell re-wrap
They use so much solder on their spring pad I was worried I would kill the switch trying to get it off since I do not have hot air gun. I clamped alligator clips on both switch legs and it seems to be fine.
Going to call this one done.
Have one more host but not sure what LEDs I wanna use with it just yet.
The C8F with 21700? There was a whole thread Tracy started, get it from Amazon via code, PM her to ask for it.
Just got mine today, charging the cell as I type. ~33bux for the kit, ie with light/cell/charger/cable. And from Amazon, so you get it in a week vs a month.
(Shouldda tried for 2, but had hinky things with coupons before. Ie, try for 2, canāt get it, retry for 1, āyou have already used this couponā¦ā, ballsā¦, so I decided to play it safe.)
And I canāt believe Utorsh has its own version out there. Flash sale at GB, 30bux without the kit.
Them pir8s mustāve been working fulltime on itā¦
Yeah, does kinda bug me when someone (not Mikey, even though I got nfi where Uppuwhatever might be ) asks āWhere to get XYZ?ā, people chime in, then 40 replies later, get āOh, Iām in Lower MāBotho, and Amazon/GB/AX/anyone doesnāt deliver anything here.ā.
Ummm, so put it in yer profile, or say so beforehand, maybe?
Anyhoo, yeah, ātwas a nice deal. Think I wanna get another one. :laughing:
I wonder if thereās any changes at all (firmware driver, the varying lumens due to varying tailcap current between samplesā¦), other than the logo/branding?
I donāt see the point in measuring lumens at 0s only. Itās only for a split second, doubt we ever see that number other than in a lumen tube or similar.
I always measure at both 0s and 30s as it gives a more realistic rating. Also shows if a light can handle the heat
I just swapped out the older driver with Sofirnās replacement driver and measured it with both Samsung 40T and 30T and got 2,870 lumens at 1s. Basically no difference at all
Check if the driver ring is making good contact like Jason noticed on his? Solder blob or shim it if not. I would probably redo the spring bypasses too with 20g
First of all, we canāt expect a 920 lumen boost just by going from an 18650 to a 21700 battery. Sofirn seems to have overrated it at 3500. A more accurate rating would be 2900 to 3000 lumen.
I wonder if there was nothing wrong with the original FET? Maybe it was just a bad connection with the driver retaining ring?
When I swapped my FET, I of course retightened the retaining ring. I saw 2 extra amps at the tail. I assume this is from the new FET.
With the Sofirn battery:
Stock driver about 7.2A at tail
After FET swap about 9.3A at tail
Later I measured 7.7A
I fiddled with the retaining ring and got 9.6A
So did the new FET help or was it just the retaining ring?
At 9.6A I was getting about 2900 lumen so that is about all that can be expected. Letās say 3000 lumen at Turn On.
Yours seems to be performing pretty close to what I would expect. Only 300 lumen less at Turn On with the 30T. Try messing with the retaining ring to see if you can get a few more hundred lumens.
I can see your results are inconsistent. The VTC5D is a good high drain cell. I donāt think it should be 400 lumen less. All 3 of your tests should be about 3155 lumen. My guess is itās the retaining ring. Get it tight.
If you want an extra 200 to 300 lumen boost, try swapping the led wires to 18ga. I was seeing 3300-3400 lumen with this change.
Upgrading the driver spring bypass wire might squeeze a bit more.
Ps, I see in my notes that the driver retaining ring had a little bit of glue on the threads from the factory. Maybe this glue residue is hurting electrial contact?
I wasnt trying to compare difference between 40T and 30T. The replacement driver did absolutely nothing. I couldnt fet tje reflector out to replace the wires. The reflector is glued tight. I will try playing with the retaining ring