Hello folks, I am long time reader of this forum but now i have some questions to ask, i have plans to build nice EDC flashlight for a friend, the problem is it needs to be with batteries that can be bought of the shell, I am thinking of CR123A as a nice candidate for this because the light will be very lightly used, not more than an hour a month, and i don’t want to make him buy charger and 18350/16350 li-ion because the light will be a gift.
My plans are, Convoy S2+ host with 18350 tube, already have host, tube is on the way, but i have problem choosing a driver, what i have is 1~2* AA/AAA 5-Mode 800mA Linear Booster Driver with operating voltage of 0.9~3.6 -volt with the following specs:
- Booster driver mode when input voltage is 1.5V or less.
- Linear regular (constant current) mode when voltage is between 1.8V and 3.6V.
- Rated at 500mA current output @ 1.5V input.
Rated at 800mA current output @ 3.6V input.
So will this driver work well with CR123A and will it be able to give 300ish lumens on high with an XML-2 U2/T6 Neutral white led.
Fell free to give suggestions on driver and led combo, also be noted that i cannot order from MTN, so IOS, Fasttech and banggood are only reliable sellers where i can order parts.
I’ve used that same driver on a couple of CR123a/2x-AA builds, and it’s worked well. One, for a friend, is a P60 using an XP-G2, and it’s a very nice light with that combo.
Thanks for the suggestions but i will stay with the convoy just because it will be more valuable as a gift when the flashlight is somewhat custom than the ones that can be bought from somewhere.
Regarding the batteries and the size difference, yes i am aware that there is 2mm difference in width but i think i have solution for that i am waiting for the short tube to test it.
Also since keltex78 used the driver with CR123 and it said that it worked fine i am going to use that driver, but still not sure on led, XML-2 or maybe XPL HI or XPG-2.
I might build a prototype version of the light with the normal 18650 tube and then use discharged 18650, about 3.4 volts as a power source for that 2xAA driver so i can test different led’s.
Yup, I agree with the semi custom being better as a gift. I was more thinking you could put the driver you mentioned into that light. I have been shaking my S2+ around with a 16340 in it, no rattle. Same with a CR123, so it looks good for what you want…. good luck and hope they like the light!
Um, i think voltage low as 3V will not be necessary, the 18650 alternative is just for testing and i am trying to keep it in the operating voltage of the driver, i am interested in how the hot spot will be not output because i don’t have way of measuring it atm.
Thanks
Just a little comparison between S2+ hotspot and S1 Baton, the S1 is brighter but that is expected, S2+ is with XPL HI V3. Now i am thinking about an XML-2 with TIR optics which i also have at home, i have enough time so i can test all variations and see which one i would like the most.
So i finished this build, parts used:
Convoy S2+ host
18350 Tube
2AA 800mA Driver (it pulls more than 800mA, tested with fresh CR123 it was more like 1300mA)
XML-2 U2 CW led ( the one that i took out from the Brinyte B158, it has nice tick MCPCB, better the one i had put before) with stock S2+ OP reflector
I like how this thing turned out to be, not the brightest flashlight but sure it will be useful, i hope that the runtime will be acceptable.
AND, yes now i want shorty for me they are sexy.
Very nice build, if it is running 1300ma at the tail, you will get over an hour of run time. If I recall, the CR123’s are about 1500mah. That is a lot of use one minute or less at a time, which I would say is how most lights are actually used.
I am sure that gift will result in more requests….
One CR123 has very little run time. I would have just got an S2 with a regular tube and installed a buck driver so it would run on two CR123s.
I’m building a bunch of red LED C8s for some hunters that don’t do the Internet, and I didn’t want to have to supply an 18650 and a charger with each one. I’ve got some 17mm buck drivers in the mail so they can just buy CR123. If they want to invest in an 18650 and charger on their own…fine.
Well, he had seen some of my flashlights and he is impressed although they are not the most impressive lights out there but for some reason he is not pulling the string on buying some lights so here iam “helping” with that
For hunting i agree, runtime is important but in this case not at all, so i think the smaller the flashlight the better it is.
