How hard was it to get the xp-ls to fit in the optic?
Dedomed no work is necessary. Domed doesn't fit without modifying the optics, which are difficult to open up without destroying the clarity or uniformity of the lens opening.
I wonder if it might be prudent in lights such as this to Arctic Alumina Thermal Adhesive the wires into place after all is established and working well? Just in case one does desolder from heat, it won’t shift and cause that short problem. Cheap enough insurance anyway.
It’s funny how you say be careful watch out for desolder problems—I added a brass spacer to my tail spring in my P60 version of this light—seems like it desoldered and moved—I don’t remember it being that crooked on the spring—might have been a cold joint- I know one thing the battery is quite hot as well
The problem with AA is that at temperatures hot enough to desolder a lead the bond actually gets quite weak, although it may provide some insulation to the top of the wire to keep it from contacting.
JB Weld will tolerate much much higher temps.
I thought I read somewhere that with dedomed xp-l’s you have to sand down the legs of the optic… Is that not the case?
The substrate & die are the same thickness as the XPG2 the optics were made for, so no. I have tried adjusting the optics up and down from stock, and it either makes no change or makes it worse. Nothing to be gained there.
There is a very very slight gap between the base of the optic and the substrate of the die, but to lower the optics would require a precise lowering of the shelf on the leg where the optics are supported. The leg positions the optics by being in the hole in the star, it’d be far easier to mess it up than to help it.
If you want to experiment anyway, the thing to do is to drill a countersink in the 3XP board, don't try messing with the TIR. They're too fragile and too hard to cut the step on the legs to exactly the same height. It's much easier to get them all the same by drilling the holes deeper (which is still not all that easy, you need some fairly precise machinery).
I think I’ll just stick with the way it is. Thanks for the replies!
If a lead desoldered:
1.) wouldn’t this only occur with the light on, and cause the light to go out? You would know, and it cannot happen off/in the pocket?
2.) would the driver make magic smoke and (hopefully) kill the connection before the “thermal event” we all worry about?
Thoughts?
I heat shrinked my connections for what it’s worth…
Also! I filled the pill full of high temp RTV on my last build. That should certainly protect against stray power wires grounding
The traces on the BLF drivers are pretty beefy, so unlikely to pop like a fuse like you would get with the skinny little traces on a 105C. The positive wire is the only issue, and only when the switch is on (if it's a clicky switch light - e-switch drivers have a complete circuit to the driver at all times).
WD, if the positive lead came off then yes of course the light would go out, but the switch is still on and the power is still in that lead….if it touches ground then you’ve got a direct short that will at the very least tend to fry the driver if not causing much worse reactions. Bad things like that take precious little time to escalate.
what would be the difference in lumens be with the 6a, and the one that you made for the op?
You can illustrate the difference easily just by swapping the hot 20R for a plain ol' low-drain ICR. Just that one change will give around 5.5-6A instead of... whatever the hell these things otherwise run at which I have no way to even measure accurately.
A lot of times I put a lesser cell in one of my hot rodded lights to favor the switch and take a load off the emitter. If/when I want full blown it’s easy enough to stick one of the top cells back in. Likewise, if you’re going to loan out a light you can put a protected cell in it and limit it’s output while making it safer for a “noob” to use.
I want this light any links?
This is the host @ $9.15
This is the copper spacer you’ll need, $11
Carclo 10507 optics, $2.50
Triple XP-L mounted on Noctigon, dedomed, with gold plated jumpers $29.50
17mm BLF17DD driver, $14
Samsung INR 20R, $6.50
Shipping around $5.
Approx $80, plus labor to build unless you do it yourself.
.Likewise, if you’re going to loan out a light you can put a protected cell in it and limit it’s output while making it safer for a “noob” to use.
[/quote]
Loaners are the failed,practice and el cheapo lights