Was doing my Imalent MS18 runtime tests again, and while the 4 brightest modes went without a problem,
the 10,000 lumen mode had some issues.... some hot issues...
Keep in mind that you would notice this much earlier when you are holding it in your hand, and outdoors with a wind it may not reach these temperatures.
But I noticed a strange smell that just got stronger, and then I even heard the flashlight ticking. So I thought something was wrong because I remember having this same problem with my Q8 a few months ago.
Here are 2 thermal images I quickly took
I quickly took a fan and pointed it at the light to cool it down.... pity the MS18 didn't turn on the fan by itself.
Solder melting point on the other hand is much lower, depending on the solder type. And if the external temperatures were so high, it is very likely the internal temperatures were very close to that point.
My biggest concern would be the batteries, if you wreck a light that sucks but explosions and HF gas or the potential or long term hidden damage to the batteries is what scares me.
lucky you caught it.
thermal runaway of li ion is not pretty.
pissed off batteries plus tightly closed aluminum tube = pipe bomb!
bad design if its driver allowed this.
hey lets just dd 18 xhp-70 in this to one up the other guys.
who cares if a few explode.
Mine got really hot but it was after continuous use for some time and then the activation on the 60.000 and 100.000lumens.
Then a “HOT” signal appeared in the OLED screen, the fans were already working and the light eventually shut off (I guess, i can’t remember if it was me that clicked or if it shut off, but I’d bet on the second one).
But yes, it turned really HOT! I wouldn’t expect it to behave differently (on these levels).
On 10.000 lumens, it is weird and not good :zipper_mouth_face:
But on the other hand, LEDs are designed to accept heat during operation and reflows. They’re pretty tough. And the operating life of an LED tends to be orders of magnitude larger than the rest of the flashlight anyways. If an LED loses half its operating life from misuse it will still likely last much longer than the rest of the light.
My biggest concern would be the batteries blowing up. And if that didn’t happen, overheating might cause the rubber switch boot to melt, or the solder on the driver and/or star to melt.
The electronics like inductors, FETs, caps, resistors, .etc and leds would survive that, but the solder joints wouldn’t if using sn/pb solder for reflow…wires coming loose can cause shorts and that’s what kills things. Shame on imalent for omitting a continuous cooling loop for turbo on that near $700 light capable of hundreds of watts of output.