Does anybody know if I need 6V max or is it like most builds out there and can take 8.4V input?
I am thinking 6V = using 4AA NiMH cells in direct drive mode
or
2 IMR14500’s in a 2*AA light likely something from Costco or Defiant LED. Tailcap will be twisty of course.
The 6V MT-G2 is the one people use with 2x18650 cells. At high current the MT-G2 has a higher voltage than 6V, 2x18650 cells have voltage sag, and usually there is some voltage drop in the flashlight (often the clicky), all this together makes the MT-G2 run fine on two li-ions. In the thread Hikelite links I described a MT-G2 direct drive build with two CGR18650CH IMR cells, with full batteries it runs at 8amps (3000+ lumens :-) ).
(I'm not sure if I bring much news here BigC, you've been around much longer than I :-) )
Thats what I figured those no-name IMR18650 can define the performance of DD builds and the 2nd offenders are the switches. So, I plan on a twisty of some sort.
Honestly, I think a 2*IMR 14500 tiny mule would be awesome. Completely inpractical of course and just to have that wow factor with my non-flashaholic buddies….lol
Reminds me of my Surefire L1 Mr. Lamdalights put a solid copper chunk in there with SST-90 soldered directly to the copper boardless. That sucker was a heavy tiny light with 5~6A of current off IMR 18500 and too hot to hold shortly after turn on.
Since the MT-G2 (on a copper board, when heatsinked) will not blow at any current below 16A, you can experiment with almost every battery configuration that outputs more than 6V
That is the fun with the direct bond to copper (available to a layman like me since the Sinkpad came out :-) ), it almost doesn't matter anymore how small and hot your flashlight is: the led just keeps going.
I just purchased the TitaniumInovations 3AA to 1D cell holders. 2 of them to be exact. I got the series variant, so each one will give me 4.2V~4.5V input. Effectively putting me in a perfect spot to overdrive this LED.
Now, I have to re-think what 2D cell host can be made into a twistie rather easy….lol
Since I will most likely have a buddy build me a 2D Mag Host with copper slug heatsink I think those two 3*AA holders will work great as a AA cell alternative.
I was thinking since I have a dozen NiMH D cells that I can purchase some D cell extentions. It would look like a 70’s 6D or 7D Mag….lol
Does anybody know for certain if I can even do 7D NiMH on DD ? Thats about 9.8V input when cells are fresh off the charger, but they very quickly get to the stable 1.2V input each. So, would you guys even try 7D cells or stop at the safe 6D cell configuration?
Only one way to find out... (would be easy to say that if the MT-G2 wasn't so expensive!)
The MT-G2 with a good thermal path can take quite a bit of abuse and draw a lot of power! My guess is that it is going to suck those cells down to a reasonable voltage quickly with the amount of draw it is going to put on them. It may be safer to try 6D first and see what voltage sag you get when turned on, then you can decide whether or not 7D is a good idea.
I went to AutoZone and purchased a $33 dollar 6D Flashlight. Almost identical to the homedopot Defiant 3D in terms of heatsink screwing out and incredibly easy to mod……
The 6D from Autozone is rated at 200 lumens via an XP-E emitter and its a 20mm star. So, the 20mm star MTG2 would fit like a glove.
The reflector is plastic and the Lens is too. Fortunately my UCL Mag Diffused lens are exactly the same size and it fits perfect.
The stock driver I am not sure what it is. But the XPE pulls .525mA at the tailcap with 8.4V input. So, thats pretty good 4watts~<.
Hopefully, I can finish the project this week and post results.
I couldnt find the 6D light on autozone.com. Is the heat sink as thick and heavy as the 3D defiant? Im looking forward to your mod pics. I bet this would accommodate 4 x 32650’s.
i’m thinking that light, mtg2 and b3 flex, or hb flex if mtg2 is 36v. should be very bright.
i recently build mtg2 4c mag, with deep rebel reflector, but i still had to use difuser film, cuz beam was full of artifacts. regular inc. mag reflector did not focus mtg2 at all. b3flex offers temp control, if glued to same heatsink as led.
Im sure George could set us up with an excellent driver, but then we would quickly run into problems with heat sinking unless a much larger deeply finned one could be made.
Its hard to beat the bang for the buck when considering the super easy Trustfire X7 MTG2 mod. The large stock reflector takes advantage of the MTG2 and casts a fantastic beam. It would have been nice if it came equipped with a 26650 or 32650 battery tube, but it already does well on its own with 3 x 18650’s.
)
Seems a little high to me.