How do you get started in modding

Just for giggles just to give you an idea about my eyes and such I took the drop-in out of my light and with my glasses could read Thrunite off the reflector of the drop-in. I then figured out that the pill unscrews from the reflector. I then tried to see the LED and that is where things go down hill. I saw this little tiny spec that was a different color than the rest of what I was holding and by feel could I tell that there was a dome over the top of the LED. Now I think if I were to do any of this soldering I would need serious magnification beyond what I own. LOL How about this....why not send Match or Foy to my house and give me hands on training? LOL

Excellent instructions on modding a mag, Bob! A mod that would be perfect for simpleman or anyone that finds soldering too challenging (or just wants an easy, effective mod).

On another note, modding cn be as simple as changing the tail switch boot to another color or installing a GITD o-ring as a lens gasket. Modding can be as simole as that to manufacturing your own body components on a lathe. If you've done anything to a light to make it different than it was when you got it it then you are a modder already. :)

Johnny

Found a pretty good thread on soldering for beginners

i knew how to solder (mostly) and had ugly donut hole with p7 in mte.. so i tried to swap it for an xm-l and it isn't pretty, but it works nicely

you'll find that replacing leds and drivers is easy and fun

but modding like match? that requires serious skills!

I pulled out my Looky which I use when I need stronger magnification than my glasses and even with that I still can not see the solder joints on the pill nor the lines in the LED like you see in those closeup macro pics. Just FYI. So maybe I will have to stick to those basic mods if I decide to do so. :) That is ok and just fine, hey you have to learn somehow. Here is that looky.

http://www.amazon.com/Looky-Color-Video-Magnifier-Battery/dp/B002NUV3Z6

No I did not buy this crazy overpriced item, the dept. for the blind did and I am thankful for that.

How did I start? CPF when I joined back in 03 when it was friendlier. I still use it for info on modding.

That, plus screwing up! Learning by my mistakes. Best to practice on a junker light first and if you ruin it, so what? (I got good at my antique radio restoration hobby also but I won't tell you how many times I got knocked on my arse also!!)

I do not, and have never owned a lathe. Only access I have is to a bench grinder. Otherwise, I use all hand tools. Same fixed income boat as you so I still use the tools I had from before I had to quit work in 2004.

You can do it though... here's a plug for the mods I did. Needs to be bumped so others can see it anyway. Hand tools only.

The rush that you get when your mod lights up and works... nothing like it!

Start out simple, go slow, walk away immediately if you get frustrated and come back to it later, and learn the best time of day for you, when you feel the best. My best mods come at 3 in the morning; I'm a night guy. I do yoga to keep centered-nothing like it for me-so modding right after a yoga class is good, right after I've meditated and gotten in the 'zone.'

And don't listen to the rich guys on CPF that tell you to spend big bucks! Take what you need and leave the rest.

Rich

Neither can I. Not because of anything other than age-impaired vision. I used to be able to read the 1 point Flyspeck Sans font as printed on most motherboards (And their manuals), but now i can't. I often see things in my photographs which my naked eye had missed.

A good scanner can be useful for seeing stuff my eyes can't. You can then magnify it to a suitable size.

A couple of weeks ago I managed to repair a watch - the local jeweller had quoted a week's pay to fix it. The parts cost about an hour's pay.

And the 6 hours it took me to fix it - but it was a learning experience. I was still ahead of what the jeweller wanted to do the same job by about 30 hours' pay.

My first mod was on a (By the standards of the time) cheap light (I paid something like $40 for it) I'd broken. 6 years later it still works even if it is rather dim by today's standards. I own single AAA lights that are brighter.

" . . .why not send Match or Foy over . . ."

Match, not Foy. I'm on about the same level as you, my friend. Match is on a whooool 'nother level.

The only difference between me and you is I have almost no fear of ruining something I take apart. (and I've got the resulting pile of destroyed stuff to prove it) Breaking things seems to be a sub-hobby to every hobby I have.

crashbangboomFoy

LOL fair enough. I do not have that kind of money to throw away. LOL :) Just kidding. I do not do well with failure but if I am gonna learn to mod then you will have to mess up to learn. I mainly keep things stock as in that setup...things normally just work. LOL :)

Just started modding flashlights myself. I don't have a lathe either so anything professional looking like Match does is beyond me.

That said, there's still quite a lot of modding you can do with fairly ordinary tools. Some tools I've used:

  1. learn how to solder - this is necessary for wiring up driver boards to emitters. If you're concerned about not being able to see the tiny wires, you might want to purchase an illuminated magnifying arm lamp. I'm using a cheap 15+ year-old radioshack soldering iron, with a cheap radioshack heatsink stand and a container of tip tinning compound. I also have a desoldering vacuum pen thingy in case of accidents. Works great.
  2. Tweezers / needle nose pliers - very handing for unscrewing pills or switch mechanisms.
  3. File and vise - used to file down too-large drivers so they fit in the body of a flashlight. I also used this is as a sloppy way to remove anodizing to improve heat transfer, and to file down the body of a telescoping light so that head could retract further into the body for a wider zoom and more compact light.
  4. thermal grease and possibly thermal epoxy - should be available at your local computer or electronics shop or you can buy online.
  5. Nyogel lubricant for o-rings and threads.
  6. Thin sheet metal - I use copper, brass and aluminum. Available at local hobby shop or hardware store.
  7. Research - Flashlights aren't that complex and there's a lot you can do with them if you're creative. If you're planning on modding a light, make sure to do your homework online. Read up on what would be appropriate upgrades and what might be dangerous. If you're planning on using Li-ion batteries make sure to thoroughly read up on their risks and limitations.

Just today I turned a 17 lumen mini-maglite into an 800 lumen ultra floody XM-L beast using a soldering iron, a drill, and a hand file. I love modding! Thanks to Match for the excellent idea. 8)

That is just freakin' awesome, nice job. :) I have a three D cell Maglight and I am thinking about getting the Fusion36 drop-in for it. Then again I might be able to talk someone from this forum into doing a mod for me. LOL Just kidding. :)

Well... you're bound to do some mistakes when you're learning the hobby. Practice makes perfect many elders used to say...

I had my share of mishapp's and learned alot from them. Creativity and a bit of MacGyverism are perfect companions.

Just start with the essential tools (solder, soldering iron/station, duct tape - lots of, thermal glue, pliers, tweezers...) and do a emitter swap first, then try a driver swap. Once you do taht and satisfied with the results only your immagination is your limit next...

True, I just killed (dedomed) a Q5 emitter last week and I'm not really a beginner.....

OK it seems that soldering is just a must have. So what does a beginner need to get started? Which soldering iron/station, solder, tools, etc? Can you get these items from our China sites and save money like we do on lights and knives?

I give you a list of what I use, but there will be probably other suggestions to come, from our modding professionals.

I use this iron:

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/heat-adjustable-60w-electronics-diy-soldering-iron-100-400-c-220-240v-ac-22253

then you need solder, something like this:

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/1mm-1-meter-rosin-core-solder-16027

and some flux:

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/goot-super-soldering-flux-6502

and maybe something to remove solder, like that:

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/goot-wick-soldering-remover-1-5mm-x-1-5m-6252

and this soldering paste is not a must, but I find it useful:

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/lodestar-soldering-paste-50g-4711

Thats solder and flux in one. I use it for pre-tinning wires and solder points.

Ah, I forgot to mention I use also this, because I have a bad eyesight:

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/led-illuminated-cheaters-magnifier-with-3-magnifier-glasses-1-5x-2-5x-3-5x-11259

So all of that for around $25? Not bad at all heck you would pay that alone for the soldering iron in a local store. I thought you needed one of those "high end" soldering stations with temp control and stand and such. Now lets say you were going to do 12-20 gauge car wiring, what solder size would be needed for that? To solder in stereo connections in the car rather than taping them for example or replacing a damaged pigtail harness on the blower motor?

My Weller WLC100 Soldering station was the best $50 I've spent. Soldering with a quality machine is SOOO much easier than all the crap cheapo soldering irons I've tried before. Makes me look like a pro!

The solder paste that Oldienea referenced is definitely on the 'must own' list as far as I'm concerned. It makes it much easier to tin leads and solder than using standard flux-core solder. And I'm very experienced with soldering... You can use a toothpick to apply tiny amounts to components and it melts and bonds very well. Just keep it tighly closed and in the refrigerator when not in use so it doesn't dry out. I paid about 3 times as much for about 1/10th of the volume that you get from DX to get some of the same type of product from another source locally so the DX is a great value... I keep a good stock of this handy at all times...

Soldering is a good first step for modding... Figuring out what you want to mod, and what you want to turn it into, is very useful too.

I still say there's no substitute for an older 140W Weller gun. A real one, not the modern plastic clone. Except for >3-legged SMT parts, I use mine for almost everything. I have a couple digital temperature control / LED readout pencil tip irons... which I pretty much never use. Unless the tip really is too large for the job, the ability to get heat into the joint FAST makes much nicer joints without overheating the board, components, etc.

simpleman: For automotive wiring, you need a gun, not a pencil-tip iron. A pencil iron is good to 18 gauge or so. A 100W cheapo gun is good to 12 gauge or so, with a name-brand good to 10 gauge.

I'd highly suggest a vacuum desolderer over the braided wire. You can get cheap ones for under $10, and they're much, much better. The wire simply will not pull the solder out of a plated via, between the lip of a driver board and a pill, or anything like that. A vacuum one will get the area spotless.

Before starting on a flashlight project, get some practice soldering. Take something old/random/broken/worthless that has a circuit board, and remove a few parts. Then replace them. Add a couple wires. Etc. Soldering technique can take some practice to get right. You're looking for smooth, shiny joints, not lumpy, grey joints. Be sure to heat the joint to where the joint itself melts the solder you're applying - don't use the tip of the gun to melt the solder.

--Bushytails