Some more repair help in order as found in thread:
- Hank: Stuck head/ stuck retaining ring fix.
Try a drop of penetrating oil (ânano-oilâ works well for me â âoogle it for more, itâs debated among watchmakers, gunsmiths, and other users of moving parts)
and/or a drop of tuner cleaner/electronics cleaner/lubricant (I have an aerosol can from somewhere)
Donât pour the oil in and donât spray the lube in directly.
Just take a drop, smallest possible amount, put it in on the end of a toothpick, and draw the tip all the way around the circle wetting it where it can work its way into the threads.
Then put it so gravity works for you and leave it overnight.
Wipe out the threads with something that wonât leave more stuff in the threads where theyâre rough â microfiber cloth maybe.
Look hard for any little âbouldersâ of swarf sitting and jamming the thread where the ring needs to turn.
Wiggle the ring gently with the needlenose pliers.
Wipe and maybe oil/lube one more drop, no more.
Why all this? Guessing/speculating these were assembled without being cleaned and/or in a dirty environment, so itâs possible any sort of stuff is down in the threads in small sized bits.
Anything from metal filings to, well, anything. So you may be trying to dissolve something, or dislodge something.
This is basically how I got the stuck head off my light.
- ToyKeeper: More about retaining rings.
If the driver retaining ring turns a little then stops, donât force it. Instead, turn it to the middle of its loose range, grab it with tweezers, and turn while lifting up. It may need a bit of help to âcatchâ the next set of threads.
On some units (including the EE ones), it seems there is a small gap between two sets of threads there. It can be tightened easily since it falls from one set to the other, but unscrewing it requires a more delicate touch.
- ToyKeeper: TK's collection of info throughout the G.B. Check post #52 for pics and more in depth info.
Mode regulation:
Group 1 7135 power FET power
Moon 0.8% 0
Low 8% 0
Med 1 43% 0
Med 2 100% 2.7%
High 1 100% 22%
High 2 100% 54%
Turbo 0 100%
Group 2 7135 power FET power
Low 8% 0
Med 90% 0
High 100% 35%
Turbo 0 100%
Modes between 5 lm and 155 lm will keep the same lumen level for most of the batteryâs life because those modes are regulated.
Modes above 155 lm will gradually decrease as the battery charge drops, with the effect being most noticeable at the highest modes.
Moon will also gradually decrease with voltage.
Another way to look at it:
Mode 1: ⌠moon is always weird; gets dimmer on a low battery
Mode 2: regulated
Mode 3: regulated
Mode 4: 85% regulated
Mode 5: 36% regulated
Mode 6: 20% regulated, mostly direct-drive
Mode 7: 100% direct-drive, drops with voltage
The semi-regulated modes will still drop with voltage, but the slope of that curve will be less steep than if it were direct-drive.
Mode group 1:
1: 0.45 lm / 2.66 mA / 39 days
2: 10.1 lm / 11.87 mA / 8.7 days
3: 64.5 lm / 139 mA / 18 hours
4: 187 lm / 385 mA ? / 6.5 hours
5: 417 lm / 1.48 A ? / 100 minutes
6: 798 lm / 2.96 A ? / 50 minutes
7: 1386 lm / 5.65 A ? / 26 minutes
Mode group 2:
1: 9.72 lm / 11.87 mA / 8.7 days
2: 139 lm / ? / ?
3: 578 lm / ? / ?
4: 1386 lm / 5.65 A ? / 26 minutes
Mode spacing:
This is fixed in the BLF A6 and in the BLF X6v2. The approximate output levels of those are (so far):
- 0.35 lm (visually 0.70)
- 11.8 lm (visually 2.28)
- 65.9 lm (visually 4.04)
- 190 lm (visually 5.75)
- 427 lm (visually 7.47)
- 832 lm (visually 9.41)
- 1494 lm (visually 11.43)
The âvisual stepâ gaps here are: 1.58, 1.76, 1.71, 1.72, 1.94, 2.02. Those last two are a bit brighter since it was calibrated without spring bypasses, and this sample had a spring bypassed. In stock form, each level is about 1.7 âperceptual unitsâ away from its neighbors. And the brightest mode looks about 16 times as bright as the lowest mode (though in reality, itâs ~4200 times as bright).
Or in the 4-mode groupâŚ
- 11.8 lm (visually 2.28)
- 143 lm (visually 5.23)
- 588 lm (visually 8.38)
- 1494 lm (visually 11.43)
These gaps are: 2.95, 3.15, 3.05.
Hi, just a quick update with lumen measurements from a totally stock production unit in 3D tint. I used a Samsung 25R cell charged to 4.18V, and measured the initial output (not at 30 seconds).
Lumens at each mode, group A:
- A1 : 0.55 lm (visually 0.82)
- A2 : 11.79 lm (visually 2.28)
- A3 : 71.03 lm (visually 4.14)
- A4 : 197.6 lm (visually 5.82)
- A5 : 450.0 lm (visually 7.66)
- A6 : 874.1 lm (visually 9.56)
- A7 : 1351 lm (visually 11.06)
Lumens at each mode, group B:
- B1 : 11.81 lm (visually 2.28)
- B2 : 147.4 lm (visually 5.28)
- B3 : 613.8 lm (visually 8.50)
- B4 : 1351 lm (visually 11.06)
The âvisualâ units are a cube root of the lumen output, based on the âvisually linearâ scale used by selfbuilt. They represent how bright it looks to the eye, in arbitrary units.
Perceptual mode spacing: (visual increase per level)
- Group A: 1.46, 1.86, 1.68, 1.84, 1.90, 1.50
- Group B: 3.00, 3.22, 2.56
The levels could be a little more evenly-spaced, but itâs not bad. I calibrated the sample to 1.70 perceptual units between each group A level, and IIRC about 3.00 units for each group B level. But itâs close enough that it looks pretty even in person. And I expect it will vary per-unit anyway, so the spacing should be pretty close overall. Also, the space between upper levels will increase with a spring bypass.
- Some useful battery info from ToyKeeper:
FWIW, I usually try to keep my cells somewhere in the middle of their charge. Discharging too far can damage the battery, overcharging can damage the battery, and even resting unused at 100% charge for long periods can permanently reduce the capacity. I hear the recommended storage voltage is about 40%, to maximize the number of years a cell will last.
So, I generally charge a cell to 4.18V (picked a charger on purpose which stops a little early), use the light for a while until itâs down to one or two blinks, then switch to a different light and repeat the cycle. This way I get to use all my lights, and I avoid the conditions which reduce cell life.
The LVP functions should work reliably, and are intended to let you get the last few drops of power out of a battery without actually getting into dangerous territory. Draining a cell that far will use up its lifetime-in-years faster, but it wonât actuallydestroy the battery.
Quoting a guide from Texas Instruments⌠âAnother easy way to destroy an Li-Ion battery is by discharging it too far. The Li-Ion cell should never be allowed to drop below about 2.4V, or an internal chemical reaction will occur where one of the battery electrodes can oxidize (corrode) through a process which can not be reversed by recharging. If this occurs, battery capacity will be lost (and the cell may be completely destroyed).â
A 2.8V cut-off is a balance between using as much power as possible and avoiding cell damage. Thereâs only like 2 or 3mAh left at that voltage, so youâre not missing much. It also provides a longer window for the operator to react and click the light completely off.
The way it behaves in testing is:
- While the light is on high, voltage slowly drops to 2.7V.
- LVP kicks in and drops the output to medium.
- The battery recovers to 3.0V and runs for a while.
- Voltage eventually drops to 2.7V again, so LVP activates and puts the light into low mode.
- The battery recovers to 2.9V and runs for a while.
- Voltage drops below 2.8V again, but there is no lower level to drop to. LVP shuts the light off and enters deep sleep mode.
This has mostly been tested on a bench power supply though, since I have no 3.0V cells to test with and donât want to regularly inflict this kind of abuse on my 3.6/3.7V cells. Plus, it makes testing a lot easier and faster.
If the light was in a blinky mode when LVP hits, itâll âstep downâ to medium then proceed normally. You can also bump the mode back up if desired, but it will probably step itself down again within a few seconds.
About all I have time for tonight. Will do more later! Thanks for reading! :)