Just put together a couple of basic lights for a workmate;
Convoy M1 host, 4*7135 driver re-flashed for 1 mode only, with XM-L2 T6 3B that I stole from the other light;
Convoy S2+, 4*7135 driver re-flashed for 1 mode only, fitted with the KD 219c triple board & optics.
It’s no doubt been mentioned before, but I found the locating pins for the KD triple optic stick out far past the underside of the copper board & need to be filed down, otherwise the board is left ‘floating in the breeze’…. :exclamation:
Today I modded a Skywolfeye ultra-cheap AAA zoomie. The parts added are almost 10 times the cost of the flashlight: two XP-E2 leds, a 10mm Sinkpad, a Mtn 12mm FET driver.
I first finished the mod with a dedomed XP-E2 R4 3A on a non-DTP board, but the led appeared to draw 2.1A and was not happy, I only got 112 lumen OTF and 7.5 kcd throw.
So everything was disassembled again and a 10mm Sinkpad was sanded down to 1mm thickness and 7mm diameter. I did not trust the overheated 3A led anymore so I went for a XP-E2 'Torch'.
Now the results are a bit better: 170 lumen and 12.5 kcd. I had calculated that from this tiny lens I should be able to get to 18 kcd, so kt is not perfect yet. But this was not a perfect day anyway (among other things, it rained all day).
So finally I removed the led and board and used a Sinkpad with Torch-led, but made no pictures, the end result:
I love these mods with cheapo hosts with expensive goodies in them
Which brings me to this headlamp project. A real cheapo 3xAAA headlamp I’ve modded with a MT-G2, two Nichia 219Cs and a 2 x 18650 battery pack modded for 2S:
Project Gemini, yet another headlamp mod. But for the first time the victim is not a cheapo. I converted a Fenix HP25R into the quad it wanted to be from the start:
My little grow light fixture is completed, waiting on my power supply to get here… supposed to be on the Fed Ex truck and on it’s way for delivery today.
While I intended to use the Cree CXA1512F COB as a mule, I ended up giving it some help with a modified Illuminations Machines 35mm diamond grid reflector…
The Delrin plug is bored for the 5/16’ 6061 rod that it’ll hang on, the inline power jack is wired and ready to go. I plan to run it at around 700mA at some 18-19V, looking for 750 lumens or in that ball park. This is a 5000K 90CRI+ variant
While the Reaper is growing under the MT-G2, I’m hoping this will let it really put down some roots and give me those devilish little ugly peppers I crave.
I’m not sure if your Reaper is going to appreciate this light any better (and give you more peppers) than light coming from a 3 dollar ugly tinted e27 ledbulb, but for us, humans, that is a beautiful lamp you made!
I’ve completed the stand, it’s in place and waiting for the power supply.
I was hoping that the high CRI combined with more lumens would make a large difference. The MT-G2 is currently being run by a 6V 1.5A wall wart, so it’s pretty underpowered. The Reaper is growing under it though, hence the thought that better light would let it grow faster.
I went ahead and modded first custom firmware, for the Emisar D4.
Very simple stuff (not like I have the knowledge to do anything fancy). I just removed the mode memory, (Or rather, it always remembers the same level) and now, a single click will always take me to full 7135 power (125 lumens). This way, I always have access to moonlight (long press) medium (single click) and turbo (double click). And if I need any other mode, the ramping is still there, right after moonlight. Basically, I don’t like not being sure about what my flashlight will do once I press a button, so I dislike memory mode. So now, I have the best of ramping UI (being able to choose any specific brightness I want) and the advantages of discrete modes (easy to get to certain pre-defined levels).
Took a few tries, but luckily, my driver testing setup worked well enough.
I also changed the led leads from 22awg to 18awg. It had no effect on the output, according to my “approximating sphere”.
Now, I’m trying to find a way to remove the tailcap pcb, so I can place a magnet there. With some luck, a 1mm or 1.5mm magnet will have enough strength to hold the D4 up, which is the biggest magnet I figure will actually fit in there.
Nice adaptation kaybi, that would improve the D4 for me too, my fixed brain can’t handle the uncertainty of MM. Unfortunately I don’t have your computer skills.
About the tail PCB: be sure to want to remove it, it ensures the manual lockout even once the anodisation in the threads has worn away.
Oh, no, I would remove the tail pcb to add the magnet between the tailcap and the pcb. So it would be put back in place afterwards. Which is why it would have to be 1 or 1.5mm, since it can handle cells up to 67mm, according to TK.
If you can’t flash the driver yourself, I’m sure someone else on the forum would be willing to. I would do it, but I live in Spain, so shipping the driver back and forth would cost as much as a new D4.
The modification to the firmware is easy as it can be, but I would be happy to provide the .hex if needed.
Yesterday I did a very experimental mod, I modded a Securitying AA zoomie (I bought it here) with a bistro driver and an Oslon Black Flat. The experiment was that the Black Flat was reflowed on a DTP-board, but to prevent electrical contact between board and pill (the thermal pad of the Black Flat is connected to led-minus), it was glued in with Arctic Alumina Adhesive. The question was if the thermal transfer to the pill would be high enough for this high power mod.
The answer is: no. The drive current on a purple Efest 14500 is over 3.5 A, with the output (flood setting) within 30 seconds dropping from 500 lumen to 275, so 45%. This is even worse than the first DQG tiny 18650 with its XM-L led on a frp board.
Still, the Black Flat is a tough led, so despite the huge temperature sag of the led, it works fine, and it has become a pretty impressive little flashlight. The numbers (37kcd at start, 27 kcd at 30 seconds) are worse than my best dedomed XP-G2 AA zoomie mods with same 18mm lens size (42 kcd steady), but the spot that the Black Flat produces is far better looking: very distinct square with even illumation, no dots.
Here’s a few pictures of the mod:
The lens was taken out and replaced by the lens from a sk68 clone (sanded the side to fit), this lens has a shorter focal length and enables focussing the spot to a sharp image of the die (the stock lens did not do that)
The stock driver is 14mm and clamped in in a weird way. I found that an exactly 15mm driver could be clamped in between pill and a tiny edge on the inside of the battery tube, it just needed sanding 1.2mm off the underside of the pill. I used a 15mm Oshpark board (made by Warhawk at the time) filled with the components taken off a Banggood X5/X6 bistro driver, except the FET that is too big, I used a LFPAK33 FET bought from Mtn Electronics.
The glueing in of the ledboard was a stressful and dirty job it was difficult to keep the board insulated, and when the adhesive was almost completely set I discovered that the holes did not line up and the board needed twisting, I barely managed to get that right. I made a 10 minute video of the process.
The led under lens in the finished light
Beam on the wall
Beam on the roof at the other side of the square, roof is at 40 meter.
There is a newest version of the Black Flat, with even better thermal resistance and without that corner, unfortunately only the 3-die and 5-die version is brought to the market, the single-die one is not being made (yet?).
Not yet. We should be ready that most modern small die leds that are made for automotive industry couldnt be used in flashlights.
But, anyway this osram leds looks very pretty in comparation with crees. Lumens drop from temperature increase is much smaller, this can make big sense in flashlights.
MT-G2’s make great little grow lights. Here my crystal red shrimp tank. Its only source of light is the mt-g2 I have wired up to a wall wart. All the plants in the tank are very happy.
I am curious how well the upgrade cobb led works out though.
Upgraded my plant light by removing the Delrin plug and making an aluminum tube for it so heat would rise through the aluminum and also up and out… even the rod it hangs on will help disperse heat. So now I’ve cranked it up to a steady 0.425mA and it’s making 962.55 lumens via my light box…… I used the meter to measure at the ground level outside and this light is making pretty close to TX sunlight, without the massive heat.
With holes in the aluminum tube spaced at 1/2”, and holes in the vertical post at 3”, I’ll have nice adjustability as the plant grows.
electric jelly, your shrimp look content under that MT-G2, what power level is the wall wart or have you measured at the emitter? I went with this COB as I knew it was rated at 90+ CRI, and it makes a nice floody light with no artifacts. (and I had one sitting around doing nothing)
Edit: Since I changed from the MT-G2 to the CXA1512F COB (Aug 19, 2017) it’s been really growing, you can see daily changes easily. Like a hot little weed, it is! (Yes, the past 3 days have shown a marked growth improvement. )
(Yes, the past 3 days have shown a marked growth improvement. 