thanks for sharing
VERRRRY NICE
Excellent mod, match :crown: Do you have any wall beam shots?
I was just playing around with NiZn cells in this just to see what it would do. I was actually suprised. They drove it for over a half an hour (when my patience ran out). Obviously not as bright as the 14500's, but still brighter than the Zebra SC60. Here's my little comparison with the NiZn added:
Zebralight SC60: 9.3lux
Mini-match (NiZn): 11.5lux
Mini-match (14500's): 20 lux
Manafont XM-L drop-in (3.2A taildraw): 25 lux
Not suprisingly regular alkalines would not fire it up.
Ok...here's some white wall shots as compared to the Zebralight SC60.
SC60 always on left, Mini-Match on right:
Very nice work Match. I admire you guys that have the patience and skill to create items like this
Very impressive Match! Thanks for posting.
It would be great to find a driver with modes for this light
i think you should start selling the heat sinks/pills
Update:
I have finally been able to source another driver for this project. The only problem was it was 19mm vs 17mm, which required a complete rework and redesign(big pain in the butt...). It was just easier to start with a new light (red one this time
). Here's the list of changes:
- 3.2A supplied to the triple xpg star
- Neutral White
- 3 Modes: low, med, high
-Mode memory
- Reverse battery protection, low voltage protection,and probably most importantly, thermal protection ( the board will drop to low mode if temp gets too high)
May I present the Mini-Match version 2.0
I'll try to get some better pics and some beamshots up later.
Wow what a set of features. Looks like a sellable product in a much higher range than budget easily.
Neutral tint + multimode with no-strobes + thermal protection.. thats a dream.. I want one.. 
OMG the red!!! Its just FASTER!
but seriously speaking, where are you getting these drivers!! I cant find 3A drivers that don't suck because of strobes!
Did I say that I just drool uncontrollably when I see your work...
Love it!!
I would like to know more about how the temprature protection works. Could it be added to any other flashlight?
That is nice!!!! quick send me your paypal addy - I want one. 
You da man Match!!!
link to drivers? lol
link to drivers? lol
*A Note to those that have PM'd me about buying one:
I enjoy making "one-offs", but this torch is neat enough that I'd be willing to make a few more. Seeing as this is a budgetlight site though, the problem becomes cost. The parts alone come to just over $60... Here's the cheapest I can get the base materials for:
Mini-Mag host $10
3XPG star $20
Optics $2
Driver $13
Copper(unmachined) $10
Misc(glue,wire,etc) $5
The bulk of the work is in machining the copper heatsink from barstock,milling the host head, and then hand lapping them to perfect fit. The rest is rather straight forward in modifying the star to parallel emitters, thermal-potting the driver, soldering everything up, modifying the torch tube, making the ground strap over the driver, and testing. If I haven't mentioned it yet, IMR 14500's are required due to current draw.
With that in mind, the lowest I could make them for would be $100. This price is for current members here only, for I think they'd go for a fair bit more on some "other" site. If someone wants to make their own, you'll have my full support. Just pm me and I can send you the machining design and dimensions I came up with.
Other than the downside of cost, the neat thing about getting one is since they'll be made to order, one can specify host color(black, grey) and tint (Cold white, neutral white, warm), since I haven't ordered any emitters yet. Also, you'll be guarenteed to have the brightest stock looking mini-mag in town
.
So, if I haven't scared anyone off yet, let me know what you think. Then, Mr. Admin permitting, I'll start a sales thread in the sales subforum. I'll try to get some beamshots of the mini-match 2.0 up tonight.
i have a better idea.
since this is a DIY friendly area, sell the copper slugs youve machined!
that way we can decide what leds, if we want 3 or 1, and drivers of our choice.
this would allow for many variations of the mini-mag!
most people dont have access to the machines to do this, but since you do, sell the slugs for 10-20 bux, and ill be sure to be in for one
make them available for 19 or 17mm driver boards too lol
[quote=xP.1337]
i have a better idea.
since this is a DIY friendly area, sell the copper slugs youve machined!
that way we can decide what leds, if we want 3 or 1, and drivers of our choice.
this would allow for many variations of the mini-mag!
most people dont have access to the machines to do this, but since you do, sell the slugs for 10-20 bux, and ill be sure to be in for one
make them available for 19 or 17mm driver boards too lol
[/quote]
I wish it would be that easy.... making those things is a big PITA, and the copper alone is $110/ft for the barstock. Any variation from the current design would mean the pill wouldn't work and would still need modification. Take bore depth for example... The 3X carlco lens is suprisingly shallow, which allows room for a thick pill base and driver while still fitting in the small head of the torch. Even the single emitter carlco lens is too tall.