After seeing the different mags Old-Lumens produced, and the different video`s he posted online,
I wanted to try this out!
And maybe this will also inspire more people to do..
So I started off with the taping, the tip I got of one of OL`s videos. To make 5 little crowns...
I only used cheap (1dollar) hand-tools and didnt even have a clamp or anything to hold the head in place. So I used my left hand to hold it, and used my other hand to file.. (cumbersome)
This is the picture of the original maglite 3d.
And here you can see the 5 different points where I wanted to have little grooves.
Next, after I finished.. Its not as smooth as I wanted... but it doesnt have to be a shelf queen... Just an emergency light for in my emergency kit!
Screwed back on..
Next I wanted to make another couple of vertical grooves along the head..
So I started off with very unprofessional lining on the head.
Again I took the head off, put tape on both sides of the blue line (for not scratching when I would slip), and started filing... holding the head tight in 1 hand, and filing with the other....... Probably shouldnt had done that..
It took a long time. Slipped a few times, and damaged the surface of the head on each side of the groove a bit....
Anyway.. so I stopped after I finished 2 of them.. Not sure if I will continue with the other 3 grooves, but who knows...
This is after:
Not so easy to see the vertical groove, but you have an idea what I mean.
The next thing I would like to do is the tailcap.. again 5 grooves, just like the head..
So far, Im happy with the results... not as good as OL`s!.. But still better than the stock mag..
Seriously, to try that without a vise is a very difficult task and I sincerely admire your determination.
Finish the head. Have fun with it. As you say it's not your shelf queen. You can always use sandpaper (coarse to fine), to work out the scars and then polish it by hand.
To mention my name is far too much praise, but I thank you for the honor you give me.
Your's is not as good as OL's, it is better than OL's, because it is done without even having a vise!
But the thing is.. my mag has this silver coating, and the places I filed and polished have a different look! so when I sand the scars, it would be visible. 2 different colors... (but still pretty close I guess)
yes, I might finish the head.. just have to wait a few days, to see if I still want to do it.. it takes a lot of energy!
especially without a vise!
Yes, two different colors. Sand the whole head or tape off an area around the flute ( tapered like the flute itself) and sand that area, around each flute.
I did the cross, also by hand...
fortunately mine is silver, so the times when I slipped are not noticeable! ;)
It takes quite a long time to do, so I stopped at this point.. not thinking about doing any more..
I actually wanted to have double lines, but this is okay for me.
but it was a nice experiment!
I tried to be careful, but I didnt count well.. so I was off by about 1 groove, as you may see that the black dot is not exactly in the middle.. anyway.. Im still pleased with the result.
by the way, the whitish ring under the head is GITD tape... its my emergency mag-light.
Nice work. If you did not point out the errors you would be the only one that new. The x looks really cool. It sorta reminds me of the x on the rechargeable Sony batteries. You guys may well start a craze here if your not careful.
And now, inspiration from inspiration...I may just have a go myself! :) Really like that pattern in the knurling, sure changes the simple ordinary Mag in appearance and makes it look like a much fancier light, probably also adds some grip and location to the switch by feel.
It's really great and I'm glad to see someone else trying their hand at it. Hand work has all but disappeared and it would be great to see people go back to it. It's a method of personalization and personal satisfaction, when something comes out looking good, from your own hands.
I just the other day built a huge copper pill for a 1D Mag, had to slim down a 1 3/8" dia. chunk of copper that's an inch long in order to get it to press into the tube. I put 3 XM-L2's under a 50mm Ledil Optic and it's doing over 3000 lumens from a single 26700 King Kong 5000mAh cell.
That just FEELS good! :)
My tools are basic, the bench drill press I use is from Harbor Freight and was crap when it was new over 25 years ago. I cut this chunk of copper down with an old HSS planer blade clamped in a drill press vise that's broken. The only way I could chuck it up to spin it was to drill and tap a 1/4 x 20 bolt hole and as easy as that sounds I have yet to get one true...the part wobbles and cause much more issue to cut it back true. But persistence is double edged and I'm as stubborn as I am persistent...
So yeah, I say go for it! The rewards are very much worth it! :)
Edit: By the way, this piece of copper came to me with extremely rough saw cuts on each end...I had to use a file to get it trued up and cut smooth before sanding it down for the emitters to sit on. Painstaking work! And ya know? The harder it is the more it's worth it! ;)
