So I finally took the plunge, dusted off the soldering iron and went for my first mod yesterday
I got one of these:
MXDL 3W a month or so back. For the money it’s not a bad little light but it seemed a little under powered and then I managed to break off one of the leads to the emitter whilst taking a look inside. Time to get creative…
I ordered one of these Direct Drive circuits from FT. Part of the reason I went with this was the lack of spring and any components on the back of the board as the +ve battery connects directly to the board. They seem to have changed stock since I ordered although the circuit is the same they now have contact springs. To go with this I fancied a look at the U2 XML’s so ordered one of these XML U2 1B emitters, again from FT.
Bits arrived yesterday and seeing as I have a week off work I decided to play… It works! :bigsmile: The driver board is a little loose and I need to do something to secure the emitter board to the pill. I had to enlarge the hole in the reflector to fit the XML but fortunately cheap plastic is easy to work with and also avoids potential shorts. I need to fill the pill with thermal gunk and tidy up the ground connection with a bit of solder fill. I’ve also been busy with the file shaping the tail end to make it a bit smoother in the hand. I’ve also decided that I’m going to flame the body - might as well practice with this cheap experimental platform.
I know in the grand scheme of Mods that this is hardly even on the radar but it got me back in touch with my inner child. I’ve not had a soldering iron in my hands for over 8 years, since I was last making cables for my Hi-Fi. Thanks to everyone for convincing me to have a go!
I enjoy modding these cheap lights. I’ve done two so far, both with XM-L T6 NW. One is 350mA for my son (he calls it super bright). Mine is one mode, 1A. I stripped the driver board and found spots for the three 7135 chips. The driver board is unique because of the one-sided ground.
I’d like to have L-M-H modes, and someday I’ll update the driver to do that. Moonlight would be nice too.
Thanks for sharing!
Well done Chimp, I also have this light, think mines blue, not done any serious modding yet, but you’ve given me some new inspiration, and as said thanks for posting.
I have a light that I am going to try 15 X T6 on, want to to see what it is like, mental comes to mind, but fortunately most of my wants never happen!!
With the led being 7000K, isn’t that very blue/purpely ?,
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To be honest I cocked up on ordering. I forgot to check the ANSI chart and went to the other end than the one I was thinking. I’ve only had it on for a couple of short blasts indoors so it’s kind of hard to tell on the colour front yet. I suspect being DD that it might change a little with charge but that’s all for field testing and some beam shots. The stock driver was very green, this one does look more white although it’s not warm. One thing that’s not in debate is the increase in output. Certainly a lot more than stock and with the XML being deeper into the reflector it’s a very nice flood.
I really need something like Fujik - anybody know if Maplins stock something that would do the job for a reasonable price? I’m not sure I can handle the wait for a DX order to get this one finished.
I really need something like Fujik - anybody know if Maplins stock something that would do the job for a reasonable price? I’m not sure I can handle the wait for a DX order to get this one finished.
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They don’t stock Fujik, but do stock around 10 different ones(pastes) as well as pads.
I’ve used the pastes before, specifically the ANTEC Formula 7 Nano Diamond Thermal Compound, with excellent results, on page 122, part number N98NA.
Hope that helps,
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