Springs!!

If you had another run done, Iā€™d definitely be in for some. Maybe 25-50? Timing dependent, 100?

(it was a real bummer when I used the last of my djozz springs)

Edit: And for what itā€™s worth, I like to clamp my curved jaw hemostats on the coil of the spring just below the end Iā€™m soldering the wire to, then do the soldering with the solder wire directly applied to the spring/22Ga wire to get the most of the resin core inside. The stats absorb heat to keep the entire spring from overheating.

Flip it and do the other end, then you already have solder on the spring when you solder it to the switch/driver pad, which makes that go much easier as well. :wink:

The exception is when bypassing the pcb the switch is on, in which case I like to remove the switch, mount the spring, solder the wire to the top of the spring once passed through the board, then replace the switch and make the wire to switch connection simultaneously while attaching that side of the switch to the board. Again, clamping the stats to the part of the switch lead that comes out of the plastic housing keeps that connection from melting the plastic. This process keeps the switch pristine, so itā€™s not overheated internally and works smoothly.

Gosh, takes much more to say it than it does to simply do it.

good thread.. came accross this post from below thread

in a similar power bank the voltage drop at .5A was 110mV from one end of the sprint to the other end on the pcb.

Sorry for bringing a shovel to a flashlight forum, but I had to dig this thread up.

Never seen this test before so itā€™s really interesting to read all this information.

So in short. If you can, bypass the spring. It can only do good.
Really have to try that to some of my lights. luckily the (only real) hotrod with the fet driver I have has already both springs pypassed.

Yes, an interesting test indeed!

I did my first bypass a couple of dayā€™s ago, the smallest one shown in this test - 5mm tall spring from a Qlite/ Nanjg driver. So frustrating trying to keep it in place whilst soldering.

The spring is so small it needs to be stiff to avoid being compressed too much, if you drop the torch vertically on itā€™s head it does very little to absorb the energy of the heavy cellā€™s, I dropped mine the other day and the button on top of the Panasonic cell just collapsed, the driver was fortunately still intact.

Iā€™m going to see if I can find a taller softer spring which I can then braid.

I know #8 wasnt the top performer, but ive been looking for a source for that spring. i had two of them. I believe they were added to a driver order from mtn. The reason im looking is that they fit perfectly over the top of the nanjg spring to give a little compression before the battery presses on the stiffer nanjg spring. anyway, if anyone knows where to get them, please let me know.

Thanks your details :+1:

Do you have any springs big enough so i can make a pogo stick lol? Imagine bypassing the spring on a pogo stick and then trying to jump!

Ordered these, cheap and I though they can be usefull to add to biger on tail or over smaller at driver side
https://www.fasttech.com/p/1347100

I have some lights,small and medium,ie BLF A6,Astrolux S41,
Olight M1X Striker,Nitecore P12GT,plus a MH27,EagletacS200C2, Olight SR52-UT,and Acebeam K70.
Which of them would benefit more from a spring bypass?I mean I can see the difference with my own eyes,not my luxmeter only. :slight_smile:

The BLF A6, and the Astrolux S41 (depending on which version you have) since theyā€™re direct-drive. Maybe donā€™t expect a drastic change. I honestly couldnā€™t tell a difference. Maybe a slight one, but a bright light is bright. If you donā€™t have a stock version to compare it to directly, you might not notice a change.

Iā€™m nearly out of the heavy ones you had built and sold. Nudge nudge wink wink. :slight_smile:

I was going to have a new batch built (only difference: 9mm diameter base size instead of 10, to make it fit a standard switch board), but the contact I had at the spring factory is not working there anymore, and they lost the details of my previous order, so I had to figure it all out again, and then I ran out of hobby time temporalily, and then forgot about it.
I will have another go at it in September (out camping with the family at the moment :slight_smile: )

God on ya. For the camping with the family that is. :stuck_out_tongue:

Keep us informed;)

Because I destroyed the led of my Astrolux S1,I sent it to a friend who changed the led and bypassed the springs.
As it had passed enough time because the led came from China,I had forgot that the led which is now in,is not the original,but a XP-L Hi,so when I measured the intensity with my luxmeter,I found 19584cd,while it was 11500cd with the original led.Really the S1 shines. :slight_smile:
Of course,after 10 seconds I feel intense heat from the light now,much more than before.

Bypass a spring dont need to look ugly, just a good soldering iron and used to solder SMD stuff

So, djozz, are you planning to make some springs again or not?

No, lazy me postponed it for a few years and now led4power has made the exact spring that I was planning. Thanks L4P!
https://led4power.com/product/gold-plated-phosphor-bronze-high-current-spring-12x9x1mm/

Thank you for the answer. The reason I asked for this is that I am currently in contact with some Chinese OEMs to make some customs very high current beryllium copper springs, or phosphor bronze springs.

Also, I had completely forgotten about led4powerā€™s springs. But they can ā€œonlyā€ handle 6-7A. So, I decided to take it into my ones hands so we can get the best springs available in the same size category.

I have asked them quotes for 200pcs to 1000pcs depending on the seller for these materials:

C54400 Phosphor Bronze B2 with 19% IACS

C17530 Beryllium Copper at 38% IACS

C17500 Beryllium Copper with 45% IACS

From what I have asked from a materials engineer friend(I am so lucky to be friends with him), it would be best to take 38% C17530 Beryllium Copper as it is much easier to machine and less susceptible to compression compared to C17500 45% IACS. What do you think?

All I know about springs is in the OP, but your plan makes sense.

Iā€™m not sure what your conclusion is from ā€œthey can only handle 6/7 Aā€ ? It just is a way to explain that the resistance is lower than pure copper, I guess that it is the same as the phosforbronze spring that you are planning.

Are you going to sell the springs and are prepared for the hassle that comes with it?