The Legendary BLF Integrating Sphere starts here! (Delivered)

I believe so. I just found two more lights with these type of optics, a total of five lights now, and they all gave lower readings.
My biggest light with this type of optics is a lumintop ps03.

And I tried redoing the test but this time shining the light on the opposite end of the sphere and got the same reading.
The sphere does a good job trapping all the light. I even shined the light right next to the meter, and still got the same number.
The only place that DOES change the number is if you shined on the crack where the two halves meet together to form the sphere. I’m assuming there’s a super tiny crack and it’s literally right across from the meter.

You guys have all the fun. :innocent:

I’m still waiting for delivery of my sphere …

I can probably locate your tracking number if you need it. You are in Hawaii, so this is probably normal. I recall for a fact that your box was the second one handed across the counter at the post office.

I received my sphere earlier this week. I have only just started messing with it, but I like it! Just need to get the hang of using it. And, I don’t have many stock lights, and even less with what I would consider reliable ratings, so there will be a learning curve.
In regards to optics not pushing the light through the wall for high lumen, multi LED lights with optic measurements. Most of the lights I have fit in to this category. I am a lighting technician in theater, and I have access to all kinds of lighting filters. This weekend, I will take some neutral density light filters home to experiment. It is a grey gel with a known translucence. I am going to try 50% and 25% to see if I might be able to measure them through hole. I can also add them together for even less translucence.
We’ll just see how it works…
Thanks again Josh for doing this!

I just PM’d 1dash1 his tracking number. If anyone else is still waiting on delivery, please let me know asap. I am cleaning off my desk and these receipts are getting thrown away.

Hi, I didn’t see this thread until now. Am I too late to put in an order?

I have one of the surplus left. Posts 413 and 414 explain how the situation started and why I decided to offer the following… If you want (that one) immediately, I am asking $126 for shipping today. For anyone willing to wait for the next batch, just ask to be on the list and those will be $106. It will take a month to get supplies AFTER the list ends. And for anyone that wants to build their own, I am going to fully video document the next batch I make. And I will upload all my 3D printing files too. There’s a post somewhere in the 300’s or 400’s detailing my latest costs, basically it’s not profitable for me, but that’s ok, it was more an engineering hobby project for me. I really enjoy designing things.

I think we should all chip in a few bucks and pay for Toykeepers with all the invaluable work she has done here that most of us have gained from.

Start the thread :sunglasses: Count me in for $15

This is my busy season for work and I’ve been slammed. Plus I’ve been working on 4 vehicles- 2 of mine and 2 for family, all of which has left me with no time to play but tomorrow night looks good so far.

Phil

Done. New thread started.

“Toykeeper Appreciation Gift _ BLF Integrating Light Sphere” - Toykeeper Appreciation Gift _ Hardware Upgrades

EDIT: TK indicated that she would prefer some hardware that she could experiment with to expand the boundaries of what we are able to do with flashlights. She thought that was the best way to spend the money, to benefit the BLF community. So, we won’t be buying a light sphere for her.

Oh, definitely don’t take a loss on the project. It sounds like a fun project though, and I’ve considered making one on several occasions. Perhaps the documentation is what is really needed. :slight_smile:

Before this thread I hadn’t heard that the through-wall method has issues with non-reflector lights. It makes sense, but it hadn’t occurred to me. I should probably just stick with my convenient compact integrating milk carton, since it works well enough for my purposes and it’s easy to store.

I love designing things, but I like to move on to the next design project afterwards. The design was intended as a contribution to the BLF community. I took a slight loss in the beginning, but I made enough in the end that my wife won’t kill me for invading every inch of our home with a long running project :o

Yeah, easy to see how 15-20 12” styrofoam balls could impact living quarters. lol

2 sphere halves each, slowly rolling around as I re-positioned them for the next glue-on piece… plus all the boxes that were getting their sockets measured and glued into place. There were so many boxes! Plus random 3D prints coming off the printer… And piles of meters… Plus adhesive backed aluminum foil sheets with cups all over them… “Honey, don’t touch the AL foil - it’s like fly paper” :smiley: … It was an impressive mess :slight_smile:

Your wife sounds like a saint. :innocent:

She is :smiley:

So I'd like to know if anyone has found a sphere cal # that they're really comfortable with. The reason I ask is I have checked a few lights that I've built up and I really can't decide if what I'm seeing is real or not.

A light I trust is my Armytek wizard pro V2 that I've had for about 3 years. It's definitely constant brightness and I haven't had any kind of complaints about this light since day 1. It's the only Armytek I have . My meter cal is 555. Battery is an Samsung 30Q at 4.2V. It's #'s are

ml1-65,

ml2-780,

low-5100,

med1-9330,

med2-20700,

high-49300,

turbo-102700.

If I use sphere cal .0080 then those #'s pretty much line up with the manufacturers specs.

One more light I kinda trust, an "old" ThorFire C8S with pill and "new" driver. Sony VTC5 at 4.2V.

ML-175

Low-7330

Med-thru hole 61100, thru wall 1370

High-thru hole 154600, thru wall 3580

Okay so I just checked an Trustfire 3t6 that I built up using a zener modded mtn26dd kit with guppydrv universal firmware, 3 XML2 U4 1A's on noctigons that I hot dedomed, bypassed switch board/spring, bypassed driver spring, copper contacts, 20 awg wire throughout. 3 Sony VTC5's at 12.51V. The #'s are as follows-

ML-1525,

1%-8800,

2%-16300,

5%-32000,

15% thru hole 99500 thru wall 2780, (these were the reference #'s)

25%-170300 thru hole,

40%-7680 thru wall,

100%-18000 thru wall...

Last night I checked a B158 pill that I built up with an A17DD-S08 guppydrv and an XML2 U3 3D that I hot dedomed, bypassed switch board/spring, bypassed driver spring, copper contacts, 20AWG. Sony VTC5 at 4.21V....

These #'s were taken without the head/lens assembly installed.

ML-882,

1%-2950,

5%-13370,

15%-41600,

40% thru hole 116700 thru wall 2900,

100% thru wall 6700....

I need some feedback from the Pro’s :nerd_face:

I like .0060 for the sphere cal number.
And for thru wall measurements I came up with my own way of measuring. You can read up on it on the previous posts.
If your lazy to read, what you can do is take your thru wall measurement and multiply that with .238

Ie…your trustfire 3t6 is 18,000 x .238 = 4,284 lumens

Convoy L2, XHP-70 P2 1C on 20mm T-PAD, Zener mod MTN-20DD kit with SIR800DP FET and guppydrv universal firmware, bypassed (20awg) switch board and springs with copper contacts, 2 Shockli 3500mAh IMR26650's at 4.2v apiece. Sphere #6 cal .0060, meter cal 555

ML 3820 lux - 22.9 lm

1% 12220 lux - 73.3 lm

2% 20000 lux - 120 lm

5% 41700 lux - 250 lm

15% 129600 hole, 3700 wall lux - 778 lm

3700 x .238=880 lm

25% 6460 wall lux - x .238=1537 lm

40% 10300 wall lux - x .238=2451 lm

100% 25200 wall lux - x .238=5997.6 lm