What did you mod today?

Flashlight Modding and DIY Parts
9374

Minor mods tonight to my Sofirn S11 zoomie:

  • Converted it from screw-zoom to push-pull-zoom. Took about 15 minutes with a handfile to remove the threads on the neck. Now the zoom is much faster and more convient to operate.
  • Removed frosting from center element of the TIR optic. Took 15 minutes with jeweler’s rouge and some Q-Tips. Without the frosting the beam is a little throwier (I think… I didn’t measure since my lux meter needs a new battery). Flood mode is also now more like a LED Lenser with the beam fading out rapidly after the main circle of spill. The very wide outer spill was caused by the frosting and is gone.

Both the center and side elements of the TIR optic have approximately the same focal point…. so with frosting removed throw should increase. Having the same focal point for both elements is like LED Lenser and unlike recent Coast lights.

9375

congrats on getting the light open

please share a link to the strap wrench that works for you,
mine are worthless

9376

I put together Convoy L21A, XHP50.2 3V version and Convoy ramping driver for SST40.
Pulls 7,5A from Efest IMR21700 5000mAh, but I am not happy with it, kinda expected a bit narrower beam, better throw! XHP series with the dome, what was I thinking :person_facepalming:
I only wish I used less thermal paste :person_facepalming:
Next test: same host and driver with Osram red projection led, this one peaks at 8A and has no dome, I have a good feeling about it :slight_smile:

9377

Slice it!

9378

I will try but from my experience with other leds kinda don’t like that method much, I was never too happy with my results so I focused on dedoming but this led, generally XHP series doesnt like chemical deoming so slicing it is then.

I also have some of those Osram white flat leds with rectangle die, more powerful version of NM2, might try that as well!

9379

The first (“Mastergrip”) was part of a 3-pack from long ago, when I was a child. My dad got the 3-pack, gave me one, kept one, and gave his father the last. I can’t find any current listings for it.
The blue/black is “from Lowe’s store-brand ”Kobalt”“:https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kobalt-2-Piece-Household-Tool-Set/50029434

9380

Yes they are, here’s the red one: DIY S2 PLUS LED FLASHLIGHT HOST 118MM X 24MM - RED

9381

Yes, I was thrilled about that too. Now I just have to resist the pink and purple ones! :heart_eyes:

9382

I decided I have too many black lights. In addition, my Sofirn SP70 is too similar to my Convoy L6 - and they’re both black.

So, I figured I’d bake the SP70. I had to disassemble it some for the driver swap I’m doing soon (MTNE order shipped today!). I was going to pull the tail switch for a bypass (and maybe Blue springs, too) as well. So really the only additional step I took was picking off the O-rings and stripping the lube off the threads.
Prep:

You may notice something I forgot: The head is assembled from two pieces. (I tried later and can’t separate them anyway, but some sort of residue bubbled out from the crack a bit during baking).
After the first round, which was a while at 550F on the “bake” setting on my oven.


I decided I wasn’t happy with how dark the tube stayed. Unless a flashlight with HCRI was shining right on it, it was hard to tell the difference even side-by-side with a black flashlight.
So I baked it again - this time I put it in the oven before preheating, and set it to 550F on convection bake.
It came out nicer, and I couldn’t be more pleased:

Finished product under 4000K SST20 (plus cat tax):

I was expecting the whole thing to turn somewhere in the brown to sand color range, but I really like the green, too. (Looks a lot like Sofirn’s green mentioned in freeme’s EC03 group buy thread ). It’s also just that much better that the colors happened to alternate.

Oh, you monster. I didn’t have to know there were purple and pink versions up there… My wallet really didn’t need to know.

P.S. I’m trying to get better at remembering to take pics of my mods, so hopefully some recent posts have been more fun to see than my typical walls of text.

9383

Check out this post: Sofirn C8F host. 21700 C8F Available - #129 by contactcr

The matte black convoy anno can make some brighter colors if you use a torch and be mindful of the thinner sections.

It’s interesting how each anno is different with heat applied.

9384

Got my first pair of UCLp from flashlightlens.com today. After struggling to unwrap the first lens while leaving my nitrile gloves on, I discovered it to be an invisible circle!

Put it on my modded Supfire M6, and I’m feeling better that I may not be losing 1000 lumens to a cheap, non-A/R glass lens.

Oh, also, the UCLp was 2.2mm thick, and the original glass 2.5. Worked out great, as it nearly perfectly offset the slight gap I’d created at the bezel with thicker LED MCPCBs.

Package from Simon came today as well. Four blue lighted switches (odd, would’ve sworn I only ordered two…).
Installed one in my Jaxman M8 and my purple S2+. Also decided to rehab my Thorfire VG10S. It now has a Luxeon V (V2 maybe?), a basic three-mode Convoy driver of some sort that I found lying around, and a blue light in the tail. (Previously it had the Luxeon, the original dead driver, and I stole and promptly destroyed the tail switch from it.)

And, package from Hank. A pair of XM-L2 for my Olights. I’m a bit intimidated to open them - for the S15 Ti, I’m concerned about the switch, and for the S1 I’ve never had it open.
Edit: A couple hours later now. I got the S1 open with only one tiny nick on the head at the head/bezel interface. I started with a razer blade, then a small knife blade, then an iSesamo - which eventually sent the bezel and optic flying, when things finally let go. From there it was pretty straightforward. My 16mm Noctigons weren’t gonna fit, and rather than file I pulled out the hotplate to reflow. I don’t know what solder Olight uses but it didn’t melt until past 220C - Hank’s Noctigons had already let go before 180C. I also accidentally made a very special emitter - I dedomed one of the “old” XM-L2s. I checked it with my DMM, and it still works - the last XM-L2 I accidentally “dedomed” took the bond wires with it.

On to the S15 Ti, I once again had issues re-assembling it. Again, the reflector was shorting out to one of the MCPCB leads. It took me I think 5 re-tries with the leads to get it working. The ends of the leads have gotten gnarly at this point, and I really didn’t want to pop the driver out and run fresh leads, so try, try again I did.

I also gave everything optic-related a wipe with some disposable lens cleaning wipes I’ve got: S15 Ti reflector and lens, and the TIR holder and TIR for the S1. The reflector does have some scratches on it, but it can’t be seen in the beam - only when looking straight down the barrel on moonlight.
Some pics:


(I cannot overstate how difficult it was to take the above picture.)

9385

Well I think I finally found the sst-20 setup I wanted :money_mouth_face:

9386

3000k,
Ra/R9 = 99/99 !!!
duv = –0.0011 !!! :heart_eyes:

how did you get the duv to go below the bbl?

9387

+

3500K SST-20, i’d bet.

9388

I’d venture to say you’re correct, contactcr: SST20 vs XP-L HI - #6 by Danthemanz

9389

Please, sir. Spill the beans

9390

Sst-20 3000k + Lee Zircon 803?

9391

Sorry everyone, I did want to see if people could guess breifly, but then I feel asleep for the night.
The 100% correct answers were basically offered, but not by one person.

SST-20 3500k GB4, shaved as low as humanly possible. The special sauce was Lee Zircon 804 (804 I think, I have a pile precut and mix them up) In a triple within a Wuben TO46r using a 10507 optic. Power level 4 of 5.
I think I could get –0.0011 with an overdriven single without the minus green and I will build something else to try that.

I was playing with the zircon and the spectrometer to see where it would sit on the bbl, the epic cri numbers were quite a surprise actually. I had the light built for a few weeks and everything was perfect except a small shade of green I couldn’t get rid of.

9392

It’s times like this that I’m glad I’m colorblind and needn’t concern myself with things like DUV. :wink:

hmm… I think that’s the first time in my life I’ve claimed to be thankful for being colorblind

9393

I have a 4000k FW3A with an eliptical carclo and a Lee -green (not sure which) as a bicycle light and I gotta say it’s very pleasing to the eye. Very balanced colors and good saturation.