Code now public! BLF A6 FET+7135 Light. Short 18350 tubes and Unanodized Lights Available

I signed up early on for a NW. Please put me down for an additional NW and one CW.

This!

But seriously, I love the open-ness here. It fits right in with how I like to do things outside BLF. My entire career field is built on the ideas of transparency, participation, and non-hierarchical collaboration. As some would say, it’s like a bazaar, not a cathedral.

In information economies, the scarce resource is attention rather than goods, and it’s very possible to make a living by freely giving away one’s work. The way that works is… I don’t sell what I make; it’s given away for free. What I sell is the time required to build it (and after it’s built, it’s free for everyone). But for things like BLF, the time is free too. I mean, it’s even in the name — it’s what I do in my free time.

Like all, my time is limited but I’m interested in flashlight technology. My background is health care and I know nothing about electronics but I think I would enjoy getting into FL modding. I look forward to what you mentioned here Dale. Can you offer any further information. I want to learn but really could use someone to hold my hand through the beginning of learning curve. I’ve never even held a soldering iron. :nerd_face:
That’s my nerdy ready-to-learn face.

For what it’s worth, this is the thread for my first mod:

I found it helpful to practice on some old circuit boards. Also, flux is amazing stuff. I hear that hot-air solder reflow stations are even better, but I haven’t tried one.

It was also helpful searching youtube for videos on basic soldering techniques. The most important bit is that solder will flow toward heat. Or toward flux, which can greatly reduce the amount of heat required.

Wow, looking back did I really write that? Must’ve been the pressing sense of mortality, the missing forum members that MADE this place, the realization that the circle turns and we all fall off at some point or another. Where’s Foy? Erik? Wayne? Anyone seen David? Matt recently took a walkabout, after doing us all a world of good. And where’s Comfy? There’s a lot of people that helped a lot of people make this what y’all see here today.

I’d love to help, and I do where I can. I build drivers some, but seriously my memory is so stinking rotten I have trouble having confidence in what I’ve done, forgetting this morning what I learned just last night. So I hesitate to quote anything as I’m wrong more than I’m right. I’ve been pretty open about my mistakes and the reasons why. I make fun of it, but it’s true.

When it comes down to it, I’ll mod for whoever I can, while I can. Don’t want to get overwhelmed by it, nor do I want to accidentally do anyone wrong.

And I’m getting far enough along in this hobby to see that things can go wrong in a heartbeat from an experienced modder putting something in the hands of the not very experienced.

I just built my biggest hot rod yet. 9522 lumens from a triple. And it’s dangerously hot! The person I had in mind for it is known to insert a cell backwards from time to time, Or put wide flat tops in a light that can only take button tops. Yep, it’s true, and he’s not new! My conscience is waking up…

9522 lumens?? moves into the center of the action quickly Heya friend, I promise not to insert a cell backwards ever!!! :wink:

Somehow nothing is making sense, must be the meds and stuff. Going to bed and hoping to wake up with everything normal…

Put me down for another NW and a CW

Put me down for another NW too!

Hey Dale I miss some of the old members too. But life has a way of getting in the way of hobbies. I’ve been meaning to do some modding, but work is always calling lately. However, I do get a couple of extended weekends coming up in the next 2 months. So I’m heading out to do some camping in the Colorado Desert of Southern California. I’m gonna try to post some beam shots taken during the trips. I just got to figure out how to do that using just my iPhone since my computer took a dump. Anyways, I figure you just got to remember the good things like…. your loved ones birthdays, flashlights, and whiskey! Well that last one sometimes makes me forget.

Put me up for:
2 CW.
Thanks!

I am in for one NW!

Please do elaborate J) :smiley:

+1 :wink:

I guess it is a XPH70 triple? more details please :slight_smile:

EDIT
I was wrong it was a XPH50 triple :wink:

Let’s keep Bugsy’s thread about the A6 and how it’s coming along. :wink:

From what I’ve seen of the necessary components, pretty much at a minimum this one’s going to pull in the 4A range. With some full cooperation and all the right parts, you might see 50% more than that.

The real key to a light like this is in the low end. That’s where the primary usage will play out for most people. With the 7135 chip the lowest modes will be highly efficient and the cell will last a very long time. Stepping into the FET zone will obviously be a game changer, especially on the top end. This is why the 7 mode levels. Being able to keep 4 levels under 1A of draw can be crucial to long term operation of a small easily carryable light. Those top 3 levels are there when you need em though. :slight_smile:

I understood the XP-L led to have a maximum current of 3A.

Why is the led not failing when driven with higher currents?

We push all of em beyond the max, the 1.5A rated XP-G2 we push to 5A all the time. I just saw a little over 6A to an XP-L in the A6 a couple of days ago. The 3A XM-L2 up to 7A, the 3A MT-G2 to 12A and more. I’ve put the 4A rated XHP70 on a direct drive FET driver and saw a little over 12A. Not sure what the XHP50 will do as these are my first ones and I don’t see an easy way to get a reading out of this light.

Nature of the beast and all that. The new XM-L2’s die around 6A instead of 8A. I don’t think Nichia’s can be pushed as hard.

Because of the copper mcpcb, and it will probably fail sooner than when driving it at a maximum 3A, but with the ridiculous amount of hours they rate these LEDs for, i am happy to trade some of those for more light.

Have a look at Match’s charts, these should help you see the correlation a little more clearly. They’ll do over max on the aluminum star, but fare much better on copper.

I know you can run them over 3A on aluminum, but you can’t run them like this light plan to do (at least not how i plan to, including low resistance mods), if you don’t want to cook the LED.

I guess you could with a short turbo timeout and with a severely restricted lumens output, but whats the fun in that :wink:

But i am a bit curious what the performance would be, if i would happen against all the best intentions to only be a aluminum mcpcb in this light because we didn’t get to 500 sign ups.