Looking for series AA adapters but only parallel come up . Are there li-ion similar in size to D cell ? Figure the 3-18 volt bulb in conjunction with 2 li-ion cells would be cheap 2 D cell upgrade .
I purchased these 3X series AA adaptors off ebay a few years ago. I’m sure you can find them there.
This looks like a good upgrade for an old 2D Maglight I have laying around and never use. How bright do you think it is with the 6 AA’s?
The new ones claim around 1000 lumens. I don’t think mine is anywhere near that at 7.2 volts. The beam is flood with vague hotspot so it’s hard to estimate it’s lumen output, at least for me.
Don’t forget mine is around 6 years old. They probably up it’s output over the years.
I’ve purchased Mag upgrade bulbs from this site previously, haven’t tried the newer ones yet.
I purchased “P13.5S 3V 1W” LED bulbs for Maglite 2D and 3D. I didn’t want to spend much considering you can buy very good flashlights for not much money nowadays. I just wanted to spend a few bucks to save the Maglites from being thrown away due to obsolescence. Cost was $7 for two shipped.
2D with 2x NiCD D cells ~2.6V = moonlight…terrible (worse than incan)
2D with 2x fresh Alkaline D cells ~3.2V = bright, acceptable
3D with 3xNiCD D cells ~3.9V = bright, very acceptable
3D with 3x fresh Alkaline D cells ~4.8V = bright, very acceptable
So I am happy with it for the 3D. $3.50 to keep an old friend working a few years longer.
But for the 2D it is no good
Maybe I could mod the 2D to run off 1x18650 ?
Back in the hotwire days 2x 18650 mods used to be common in 2D mags. Typically used PVC tubing as a sleeve for the batteries, and the tail spring needed shortened to account for the increased length. A single battery configuration would allow you to create a dummy cell any length you wish to avoid the tail spring issue.
I have the complete opposite desire. I like the old incandescent mags. I hate the “new” LED mags. (I use that term loosely, since mag is so far behind the competition in LED lights.) Their LED tints and beams are so awful. And while the old incans had horrible beam artifacts, the incandescent light was very nice.
If I could convert my LED mags into incandescent versions, I’d do that. At least then they’d have some retro charm.
Enlighten me on creating a dummy cell please .
[quote=pennzy]
[quote=Kindle]
The easiest method would be to cut a wooden dowel to the desired length & run copper wire from end to end as the conductor. Brass thumb tacks work great to secure the wire at each end & create a de facto terminal.
I decided to try 3x C-cells in the 2D maglite instead because I have tonnes of spare NiCD C-cells and that gives me a steady ~3.6V which works well with this 3V drop-in.
I just have to figure out some kinda spring for the tailcap but it should be pretty straightforward.
Thanks for the ideas .
You can reverse or cut down the stock spring to fit, you’ll probably need to de-anodize the inside of the tail cap.
If you pop one of the Fusion 36 modules in a 2C Mag , and power it with a pair of 18500 Liion batteries in a sleeve to minimize rattling , you can make a fairly bright and elegant looking flashlight .
Although I have not seen the LED “upgrades” , I have to say my incandescent Mags look like ghosts on a wall and very dim . What am I missing ?
You’re right. The AA and AAA incans were horribly dim. But the 4D and 4C bigger incan lights were reasonably bright, and still okay today for most purposes. We’re spoiled by 1000+ lumen lights now, but it’s really far more than we really need.
I just like the feel of warm incandescent light. They’re nice indoors, ceiling-bounced. Not practical to carry outdoors any more, since a small 18650 light (or even a single AA light like a Zebralight) will blow the mags away. But I still have a soft-spot for those old incan lights.
My favourite indoor light happens to be a Convoy with a 7A tint LED. So, yeah, I like warm tints.
I checked with over 20 of the different sellers on ebay, and noticed they listed two voltage options, 18v and 3~18v. ALL of them “seem” to be sold out of the warm white in the 3~18v option. makes me wonder if its all just the same seller with dozens of different ebay account names…
Are you talking about the Fusion replacement or the $2 ones?
Mine don't work in 2* applications unfortunately. The one I have in my 3D is cool white.
2 dollar ones. I have an old 3-D cell Maglite with a burnt out incan bulb that is collecting dust and could use a mild upgrade.
Yeah, go fo it, for $2 you can't go wrong!