*BLF LT1 Lantern Project) (updated Nov,17,2020)

The button on mine stays on when the lantern is on. When the lantern is at low brightness the button is dim, but it does stay on.

Does anyone know if LT1’s are in stock anywhere in the USA? I’m looking for a quick shipping time if possible. If not, I’ll just order from the Sofirn website. Thanks!

P.S. If anyone has one brand new in the box, that they want to get rid of… send me a PM. :beer:

I had a similar idea to this 6 month old post from djozz, and his suggestion is the only post that seems to have turned up in my search.

I just wanted to add that if anybody does this, I’m interested as well - thin FRP or flex PCB from Oshpark, or else an MCPCB in a group buy.

Or perhaps Clemence might be interested? The LH351D’s are pretty good, but I’d love to how the lantern looks with Optisolis or E17A’s in there, and perhaps try a slightly different CCT range.

So is the difference between version 4.3 and 5.0 strictly the USB C-C functionality? Or have there been any minor adjustments to the other functionality?

Given the tube diameter, I’m wondering if a beer cozy might fit on this. It would be a way to change at least part of the color for those who don’t want to wait until September to have a different colored body from black.

USB-C PD functionality like you mentioned, and 0 ohm resistors used to activate the 3/4 and 5 regulators as stock instead of having the pads manually bridged from the factory.

I think it was mentioned as a prior suggestion, but some DIP switches would be really nice in place of the solder bridges, even if they can be bridged using some graphite pencil lead.

Not really, its narrower than tall slender beer bottle (think Corona).

I’m even close to you. :slight_smile:
PM incoming

@DBSAR Been meaning to get in and thank you for producing this thing. Heard you got the Covid-19 and had some difficulties, I’m hoping you’re ok and things are getting better.

Look mate, this lantern is the biz. Much as I love my old paraffin (kerosene) Tilleys and Vapalux lanterns and the old wick storm lanterns for my camping adventures, they are a faff to deal with. I have a big canvas bell tent and recently had a paraffin spill onto the outside canvas when the pole holding the lamp (luckily unlit) fell onto it.

Your lantern, with the warm/cool and Anduril is perfect for my needs. It’s currently sat beside me indoors in preference to the ceiling lights, and as soon as we can get out for a few nights in the campervan it’ll be getting some proper use. Good work fella :+1:

Do you know what was the rationale behind the “ohm resistors used to activate the 3/4 and 5 regulators as stock instead of having the pads manually bridged from the factory.” A minor adjustment overall for efficiency, or to address a particular issue? I also agree that dip switches can be a very useful way to customize functionality in a more semi-permanent fashion.

OK, good to know — thanks! Might be possible to utilize a neoprene cover for a water bottle, trimmed to fit.

The biggest reason for this (IMHO) was to remove a manual manufacturing step and related QC needs. The originals required the first pads to me manually soldered at the factory. More than one example made it past QC with incorrectly soldered pads. There’s no knowing how many were sent for rework or how much time was spent on this manual process. Adjusting the traces to accept factory placed 0 ohm resistors lets them be placed automatically and consistently like the other components.

I believe it was due to a quality issue, not getting all of the pads 3/4 and 5 soldered correctly (or consistently). This likely had to be done by hand. By installing a 0 ohm resistor, they can just install the part there (like all the others on the board) and reflow the solder paste and make the connection automatically. That’s my suspicion anyway.

Edit: Amishbill beat me to it. by a while . . .

This is probably a strange question, but does anyone know where I could get a few more of the large orange o-rings that come with the LT1? Or even the actual size of the original ones?

I’d like to be able to put one in the groove above the diffuser and another in the groove below it.

Thanks for the support, much appreciated! :smiley: :+1:

Great, thank you for this Bill. While the odds of getting one are probably slim, if you’re unlucky to get one you’re stuck with having to mail it back… which adds significant expense & time. I think I’ll wait for the 5.0 version!

If you have soldering iron (or reportedly an old-school pencil) you can close or open the pads on your own in a few minutes. Having the wrong pads open or closed is a mis-configuration. This runtime vs max brightness adjustment was always intended to be a user-serviceable item.

Just got my LT1 a week ago. Love it.
A question,

When charging, mine stops with the batteries at 4.16v.
This is wonderful as far as I’m concerned. Helps with longevity.

Is this by design, or am I just lucky?

Glad you’re hanging in there Dennis.
All the Best,
Jeff

I have 2 that stop at 4.17v and 1 at 4.2v so I’m guessing it’s a matter of luck more than design.

Cool,
Glad I got one that stops a little low.
All the Best,
Jeff

I to prefer the lower termination voltage of charging, (better for the cells) the variation between lanterns is likely due to if your using different typs of cells in different lanterns i found, and variations in the TP5100 charging chip programming.

What are you all seeing for a low voltage cutoff?

Mine shuts down at 2.65v.
I had to use a single crappy cell to test that.
Using the 4 Sofirn cells, the darn thing shines forever!

Also mine is the Rev 5 version. I got only about 1.5a max charge using the included cable.
The power supply I used is capable of more. It’s a QC 3.0 (supposedly).
Don’t care really, it’s a wonderful lamp.
If I need faster charging the Vapecell S4+ gets thing done quickly.
Just curious what you are getting.

All the Best,
Jeff