I’m looking to pick up several of these to scatter around the house. Suggestions?
“Neutral” and “decent CRI” are kind of broad. Do you know the numerical color temp range and CRI range that you’re looking for?
I have a 4200k light that I think looks good, and a 6300k that’s a little too bluish for my taste. I haven’t tried anything in between, but I’m guessing I would be happy with something 4000-5000k.
Could you swap the emitter in a couple of fasttech cheapies?
I would be down for doing that. Where do you guys get bare emitters? I’m pretty new to the flashlight scene, so I don’t know all the resources yet. But I’m handy with a soldering iron so I’m willing to try it.
This link will take you to Fasttech, and their 4C tint XML 18650 lights. Most of them are right around $20.
I think 4C is in the tint range that you’re looking for - between 4300-4500K. CRI should be around 75, which is about average. If you want higher CRI than that, then things will probably get more expensive.
Awesome thanks. Is there a spreadsheet or something that explains the correlation between tint ratings (like 4C) and Kelvin ratings?
There’s a thread about it somewhere…
Here:
Illuminationsupply have a nice selection, as do Cutter and intl-outdoor. You might not need bare emitters as they supply them ready mounted too. There are many other retailers, but I trust these three to actually supply the bin that I order.
Thank you guys. All very helpful info. Time to do some shopping 
If you are not looking for max output, your title describes the Nichia 219 B10 emitter (4500 w/92 CRI). Illumination Supply sells them bare for $4/each for 10 or more. I think $4.50 for less then 10. Sunsky may still be selling the 501b hosts cheap with a discount. Like 3 hosts for $12+ total. Fasttech sells p60 reflector/pills combos for about $2 (fit 501b’s). They also sell nanjg 105c drivers for about $3.
http://www.fasttech.com/products/1605/10002206/1164600-empty-aluminum-drop-in-module-wbrass-pill
The Nichia 219 sounds like what I’m looking for. I don’t think I want to build a flashlight from scratch though. I see it says it’s compatible for direct replacement for Cree XP-G LEDs. Can I basically buy any flashlight with a XP-G, and solder the Nichia in place of it? Anything that I should look out for that would make it not work?
There are some variables there. Disassembling a light can be anywhere from easy to impossible depending on the light. The amount of time and effort required for disassembling some lights can be surprisingly high, and it just isn’t worth it IMO. That’s why I think it is easier to build up an empty host rather than mod an existing light.
Keep in mind that with the Nichias you would be giving up a significant amount of output compared to an XML T6, as much as 50% at 1.5 amp. Also, you would likely have to reflow them on a suitable pcb yourself, and this can be tricky if you don’t have reflow soldering experience. The majority of LED flashlights take 14-16mm pcb, and Illumination Supply does not sell Nichias on 14 or 16mm pcb.
It can be a fun project if you’re willing to give it a go. But it can be a bit challenging at times, and will usually be more expensive than buying a ready made light.
doesn’t illumination supply do the l10 with a nichia? its not in the least bit cheap at $20 - $30 but it would let you try it out for minimun effort on your part.
Hi and welcome khaangaaroo. What a strange name you have.
rojos is correct. I find it easier to assemble a light from scratch. Many times the emitter is cemented to the pill with adhesive and can be quite difficult to break free. Also, the drivers in most lights don’t have the best choice of modes.
Rojos is also correct that you will need to get a base for the led and reflow them together. I found it quite easy from the first time, but I was probably lucky. You can get pcb’s very cheap for aluminum to $2/each for copper. Copper with a direct thermal path is much better. If you go that route, someone can get you a link to a couple sources. I say build from scratch because you will have to do the hardest a part (reflowing) either way. The rest is very easy. Once you have the parts in front of you, you will see how easy it is. Building your own is very satisfying for many people.
Best of luck.
I guess I would want to do both eventually, build one from scratch and modify an existing light. If I can find one I like that’s easy to disassemble, I don’t mind the challenge of removing the LED and reflowing a new one.
Where do you guys shop for empty hosts? The ones I see on fasttech all look kind of the same.
Mostly Fasttech and CNQualityGoods. CNQ has a bigger selection, but their shipping is a little slower and communication can be iffy.
If you want to build some P60’s, the hosts from Solarforce Sales are highly recommended, and drop-in parts are available at Fasttech. A P60 drop-in is probably the easiest for a first time build.
If you’re unfamiliar with P60’s, check out Flashlight Wiki:
http://flashlightwiki.com/P60
There’s a how-to DIY P60 drop-in build written up there as well:
http://flashlightwiki.com/DIY_P60
- A note about buying DIY components from FT: For purchases over $15, FT ships Expedited which takes about a week . For purchases less than $15, they normally ship Standard unless you pay a small fee for Expedited. Standard takes over a month
. So if you have a choice, you might want to choose Expedited.
There are quite a few good Chinese vendors. I haven’t shopped for xpg lights, but a quick search of Ultrafire lights at Lightmalls shows several xpg lights.
http://www.lightmalls.com/ultrafire-flashlights?dir=asc&order=price
The light in this thread is a tad more then the ones above, but has better heat sinking capability. If you ever want to push an emitter hard, this light would be better than P60 type lights.
I'd just buy the heatsink/star instead of trying to re-use the one in the light I think illumination supply has stars for xpg / nichias for fifty cents each ??