Great progress and work. Nice tight joint there and those threads look good.
I got nothing yet. I can say this for sure. Mine won't have threads unless I have nuts and bolts in my build.
Well, it looks better on the picture than in reality…
Still, I thought it would be much more difficult.
But the 2 parts don’t align to great axially, bit of a banana…
I’m in the middle of filing it straight now, which diverts the end holes a bit from the axis, i.e. holes not exactly centred.
It will take some grinding to correct it.
The threads are really good though, better than expected.
I think I’ll order a Nichia to check it out.
Maybe I can use one of these LG’s I bought some time ago.
At 1 Watt they’re 100LM, so that’s not so bad.
I assume it has more than 1 mode? 
I could use some tips / suggestions for a driver though…
I have 2 kandidates.
A single mode “550mA” from FT
and the 5 mode version, high is also “550mA”.
But I think I would prefer 350mA maximum but at least 150mA on high mode, or just single mode.
I mean, a Topcraft AAA alkaline (Aldi) is a good battery, at a very low price, but not made for high current.
I have no encouraging experiences with NiMH…
For an Li-ion, sure, no problemo. The BLF Tiny10 would work beautifully with a single 7135 chip in this app. But it’s a 4.2V supply base.
Good start on the build already!
The new Nichia 219b 5500K performs better than a cool white xp-g2 up to 3.5A (above that, the xp-g2 takes over), with better tint. I guess your build will be less than 3.5A?
I could flash the firmware on an ATiny13A for you and put it on the 10mm board, you’d have 4 levels with a star engaged moon as a fifth level. With that on a board and one 380 binned 7135 chip you’d be in business. It’s all the protections of a standard 105c driver, but built on a shirt button sized pcb. You’d have to sandwich a contact pad on top of the chip, but that’s no big deal as I’ve just learned.
As a matter of fact, I’ve got one of those already put together and nothing to use it on. (This one is literally the components from an Qlite driver moved over to the 10mm pcb. 3 modes with a 4th moon engaged by star. Have to check, might have 2 7135’s on it, one on top of another, for 700mA)
Yours if you want to go with a 14500 Li-ion cell for your power supply.
Looking good Jerommel. I like the basic tools your using. I was gritting my teeth when l saw the spade bit, pliers etc but it all seems to be working fine for you with no carnage. I would've expected the spade bit to grab. How did it go and did you use any sort of cutting fluid?
How can I refuse that?
(It would be a 10440 though.)
I could even put a third 7135 on it, perhaps?
I have some 20 pieces AMC7135 here already.
But I really like the idea of it being able to use ‘normal’ batteries though…
And I’m filing (and rolling) now, but I must stop, because I fear I get to close to the threading…
That would really be unpleasant…
In fact, I may have to cut a bit off the tail, 1 thread…
Let’s get the camera…
I knew it was a AAA, which is why I referenced my little pride and joy. Man getting old sucks. Hush Steve.
PM me if you’d like me to send it to ya, you can use it on this one or perhaps something else.
Scott has a stack of 4 on one, making 1.5A, so I don’t see why not. Up to you and the space you have.
Thanks1
I ‘discovered’ the drilling out of alu pipe with a spade drill (speed drill) when I had to do a bicycle job, shortening the handlebar-ends, but it meant I had to drill out some more for the bar-end-gear-levers it had.
I tried a spade drill, and it worked rather well!
It kinda self-centres too, more or less…
Yes, it’s a bit crude…
It has a really coarse finish.
You can however let it spin high speed and scratch the inside to ‘perfection’…
I don’t use any oil with it.
sometimes it does grab… 
Maybe I should have bought a 10.5mm drill…
…and a 12mm…
Drilling holes out slightly with a normal drill bit is asking for trouble. It will grab every time. Your idea is probably the best with what you are doing and have.
I use an undersized round bit and wrap it with tape then sandpaper. It stays perfectly centered and leaves a factory finish. Takes time though. If you went to 3 cells a linear driver would work just fine but if you try and get high current from alkaline cells they will probably leak.
Jerommel’s chicken choker
Jerommel’s five knuckle shuffle
Jerommel’s clown puncher
you started it
You’re saying the Nichia is more efficient at lower power than an XP-G2 ??
So where can I buy Nichia 219?
MRsDNF wrote:
Drilling holes out slightly with a normal drill bit is asking for trouble. It will grab every time. Your idea is probably the best with what you are doing and have.
Thank you for this tip. I've been doing it wrong for a long time now and have had that very problem you describe. I was told by a machinist a long time ago to sneak up slowly on the hole diameter when accuracy is needed. Last night, I tried taking big steps and it worked great. You the man MRsDNF. 
darn…
messed up the tail bit…
In fact the thread was too deep, leaving 0.1mm…
Just ground down the threader a bit, cut less deep, try again…
…and if anyone can tell me who sells latest Nichia 219…?
I know that feeling with threads. I can at last smile at someone else's misfortune. 
I believe that RMM will be getting a shipment of Nichia 219 led's in soon.
Sorry to hear about the threads.
RMM is a great source for parts, especially if you are in the USA. If he can't help you, here are the best priced ones I know of:
I take them off the aluminum stars and reflow them to copper "XP" type stars.
Made a new tail part.
Gonna make a new main tube as well, because of the alignment problem I mentioned earlier…
It’ll only be better then the first attempt, so I’m not worried yet. 
Thanks for the links.
I just noticed an error in my last post.
The first bullet is for the new version of the 219 emitter. It is cooler tinted, but still neutral, has a lower Vf, and can handle higher current. I think its more efficient too. It's supposed to have a CRI of 92, but no one has verified that yet. It's probably my favorite emitter.
The second bullet is for the older version. I think this is the one you are asking about. It's slightly warmer tint and is confirmed 92 CRI. Has a slightly rosy tint. Probably my second favorite emitter.