I started a thread here but I think this is a more appropriate forum.
I don't know anything about flashlight modding, so this is probably way beyond my capabilities but I have been looking through these forums and kinda pieced together an idea, I don't know if it's even viable tho, so you tell me.
I need a good thrower for work. Usually short 10-20 second bursts of light just to see what's going on "out there." I was looking at the specs on the new xhp50 emitter, https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/30860 and think it would be nice inside a convoy S light if I could power it with 2 16340's or 2 cr123A's wired in series https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/31080 with a smooth reflector to throw the beam. That would be roughly 5.5-6.5V average at 1600mAH(if the mAH of two 900mAH batteries combine to work like this wired in series?)=8.8-10.4W for roughly 1100-1400 otf lumens?! If the led is bigger itself AND it's not overdriven it shouldn't get as hot?!
Again I don't know what I'm talking about, is anything along these lines remotely feasable? I also don't have any idea about drivers so would it be possible to have one of you guys make the driver and attach the emitter or is that something I could potentially do myself?
If you want a thrower, skip the S-series convoy EDC-sized hosts. For a ready-to-go option,try the ZY-T08 (I don't own one of these yet, but they are well reviewed):
I agree with pretty much everything keltex said. The S-series lights will be more floody because of the small reflector. I would go with an C8 from fasttech. Even an XM-L throws well in a C8, with nice spill to see where you’re walking. you can customize it a bit on the site as well.
this one is a very good configuration: http://www.fasttech.com/products/0/10002364/1272100-convoy-c8-cree-xm-l-t6-3c-2-group-35-mode-led-flas
or you can go through mtnelectronics and he can de-dome the emitter for an even tighter beam.
All else being equal, a larger reflector diameter or smaller emitter area gives more throw. The XHP-50 has a large emitter area, so it would need a rather large reflector for long throw. This is the reason we see a lot of people building throwers using the XP-G2 even though they could get a lot more lumens from an XM-L2 or XP-L.
Maybe the OP was after a Convoy S for the reason of its small size?
I had a similar request, though I did not actually need a lot of throw, I wanted a tight beam…which will result in a lot of throw…also in a small form factor.
So go and have a look at this thread
You will see links there to 5 degree reflector/ refractor /optic unit son e-bay, that do fit a S series lamp, so i have been told. Not got around to it yet, too much else to try first
It's a great light, throws 400-600 ft with the smooth reflector option, and has enough spill to see where I'm walking and not just blind me at less than 10'. I ordered a couple of the convoys because I want more of a pocketable light, even tho I've been carrying the monster light around in my pocket on occasion. Here lately I've been leaning toward a q5 zoomie that just doesn't cut it in the brightness department.
I am dredging my way through the flashlight wiki, what if that emitter was put on this njang rohs 101AK board
Is that a doable concept that would be good for a first timer to attempt or am I way off base? Would it come close to the lumen output I am thinking it would? Something a little better than a t6/U2 with better throw than a stock s7? I bought a 3 pack of smooth reflectors for S series lights, could try to de dome the LED if it would help with throw as well?
Im going to have 2 7135*8 xml2-U2-1a lights (s4 & s6) but I want to see if I can get a throw out of them (smaller platform) anywhere near the equivalent of my monster light.
wow I apologize for the links in the OP, I don't know what happened there.
As Zak said, the bigger the emitter, the harder it will be to get it to throw very far. If you want a small tube light to throw, you’re going to want a zoomie or a maybe an XR-E would work decently in an S2, but your overall lumen output will drop.
The driver that you linked on shiningbeam is basically the same as the one in your convoys, but with half the power
If you don’t want to do the modding part yourself go to intl-outdoor and configure your C8 as you’d like. LINK
I’d go with:
Reverse clicky, (You have to switch the light off all the time with forward clicky, I don’t like it.)
Neutral White - XP-L V6 3D ( +$1.99 ) for highest neutral output,
and whatever mode spacing you preffer.
It already has AR-Lens and a soldered copper star, can’t beat that at that pricetag.
Just to clarify something no one has addressed so far, two batteries wired in series DO NOT combine capacity in addition to voltage. Parallel cells double Ah (capacity), series cells double V (Volts or electrical potential). For example, take two 3000mAh 4.2V cells. Each one is 12.6 Wh (Ah times V), so together they would be 25.2 Wh: 6000mAh and 4.2V in parallel, and 3000mAh and 8.4V in series. If both capacity and voltage were doubled when they were connected in series, that would be 8.4V and 6Ah, equaling 50.4 Wh. That is 4 times the power of an individual cell, which is impossible.
yep there it is. I wasn't sure, I work with alot of 12/24v systems and I'm used to wiring batteries together but never knew or cared about the capacities, that's what generators and regulators are for.
i want to build a thrower! what's the best way to go about that with a convoy s lol :p
I won the lens lottery and ended up with a good optic, and started with a known-good high-bin emitter that is overdriven slightly. This light is optimized for throw, and is thowier than a similar S-type host due to the larger lens, but is still easily outthrown by C8-type lights. It's still a lot of fun though due to the small size and can be handy. If you can find an appropriate optic for the Convoy S-lights, a dedicated thrower with an overdriven XP-G2 would be a fun project...
The Nanjg 101AK is a good driver for low-powered EDC lights but is limited to 1400mA so you wouldn't get maximum brightness which will be essential for maximum throw. Stick with the 2.8A Qlite if you want bright...
Also, keep in mind any of these Qlite/Nanjg drivers won't work with two cells in series; they are for single-cell or parallel use only.
The throwiest option for the S2 (or really any flashlight) is a dedomed XP-G2. I can’t speak to the 5 degree optic, whether it is throwier than the stock reflector, because I’ve never used one, so I can’t compare. This will be throwier than the stock orange peel reflector. It will work with the s2, s5, s6, s7, and s8, which have a deeper and throwier reflector than the s2+ and s3.
I skimmed the thread just so I could say that you’ve got both feet firmly planted in the wrong places based on your stated goals. Why don’t you (zoom zoom) fill us in on your requirements such as:
size
budget
runtime
range / beam width
To answer some of the stuff from your OP in my own way:
XHP50 is a bad idea for a thrower. It is probably only appropriate for multi-LED multi-cell flooders. EDIT: it is a bad idea because it’s a multi-die emitter with a large surface area and a low surface brightness. The multi-die aspect ensures an ugly beam when tightly focused (cross / plus / ‘x’ / donut in the beam). The size/shape of the light emitting area can only give a broad beam with limited penetration.
Tube lights are bad ideas for throwers. Achieving high efficiency and good focus is easier with a larger reflector.
De domed xpg2 sounds cool, do you guys know if there's a previous members build I could copy off of? (I'll search after I post this) The more I look into the pre packaged drivers and leds the more I think I could pull it off and do one of my own. It would be sweet if I could have 3 convoys one 7135*8, one 7135*4, and one custom light all side by side.
on a side note, I did order 3 of those smooth reflectors you posted legolas, I'll order a couple of those 5/10 degree optics and see if they're worth using too and what is best. Right off the bat I'll have two 7135*8 flashlights with low/med/hi modes so I can compare.
Thanks for for the comment wight, I just saw it. I'll check out your link! like I posted I have a 1000 lumen light that throws and is plenty wide enough for me, right now I want a small pocketable light that is as bright as I can get on a high mode setting and I'd like for the beam to reach out and touch somebody at 1000'. Since that's not possible as close to 1000' as I can get will do! For now my monster flashlight does an awesome job at throwing light but I am also going to be in the market for a medium size flashlight that is dedicated to throwing as far as possible. I don't care how wide the beam is it does not matter at all. I work on the river, the further I can see the safer everything is, and I don't mind spending $100 on a flashlight if it's bright enough to justify it.
Sorry zoom zoom, I missed that post (#5). I’ve read it now.
There are plenty of BLF discussions on which of the Convoy tube lights is the best for throw, here is one: Convoy S2-S4-S5-S6, Which Is The Best Thrower? From what comfychair said, it sounds as if the S4 reflector is what you want. (and probably an XP-G2, good cell, and DD driver…)
In case you haven’t seen them, another thing to play with would be the Ahorton lenses. You’ll have to stick with a larger host for that (eg the size you have now), but you should be able to extract more throw than your current light.
@ lawenforcementguy: Check the FastTech TIR options. They have those in several emission angles up to sixty degree. I have the forty-five degree optic in my light, which makes a nice floody beam. I tried the sixty degree optic and found that to be too floody, it was like using the light as a mule.
Thanks for your input! I read through the whole thread by DrJones that you linked in your previous post, a couple times. I thought I was following what he said pretty well, then I grabbed a pen and paper and drew what seems to be a 5 year olds rendition of speakers with sound waves and managed to thoroughly confuse myself even more. Lol, I'll work it out eventually. That thread could use a few simple illustrations.
A de-domed XP-G2, as has been said, throws nicely in the S2. I like the S2 as a thrower over the larger lights mainly because my shoulder is messed up and I just can’t get the big lights to fly like the smaller ones.
