Let me change that humble opinion with some of my answers
The glass is a bit thin for that diameter and may not hold up under pressure especially if you knock it against something which WILL happen eventually.
I have actually had the mag head down to 120' and was cave diving with it. it is rather robust as it is strapped to the back of my arm and not hanging free or in a hand grip.
Silicone is not a good sealant for high pressures and salt water as it will seperate very quickly especially from the gasket causing a leak.
Like I said I have had it down to 120' in salt and fresh water...it is 2 years old...not problem...and to make sure I redid the bezel gaskets and silicone.
It is not clear in the pictures but i hope that the gasket is placed under the glass and not on top of it.
I'm not sure that the single o-rings in the bezel, head & tail will hold up against diving pressures as they are quite thin.
The bezel has the original rubber ring gasket pressed into place with silicone, the glass is pressed against tha, followed by the red high pressure gasket I made and was all pressed into place with the aid of the MR16 bulb for 3 days till properly cured
How did you seal the stock mag switch hole ?
The hole was sealed using epoxy steel compound and hold extremely well
http://www.lepageproducts.com/products/detail.asp?catid=21&subid=54&plid=280
Did you use proper diving bladders to seal the wire ?
I actually do not know what you mean. What was used were brass fitting found in the plumbing department that have a compression ring. All joints are sealed with Teflon tape while being screwed together followed by a wrap of self sealing silicone tape (high voltage construction use)
Also the mags are filled 1" deep of epoxy steel where the wire enters the mag.
Maglights are not meant for diving and need to be HEAVILY modified to make them dive worthy which is not worthwhile.
I think all above explains the modifications I have used.
The Otter case is made out of plastic and will flex under pressure, the epoxy used to seal switches & cable is not flexible when dry, so when the case flexes the epoxy will not. This will result in the epoxy seperating from the body causing a leak.
The type of plastic used to make the colored OtterBoxes is an ABS plastic that's reinforced with fiberglass. The type of plastic used to make clear OtterBoxes is high impact polycarbonate. All Otter Boxes (regardless of material used) offer the same protection.
I have also flexed the sides of th boxes to see if the epoxy does seperate...but thankfully I roughed up all surfaces with an abrasive to give a porous connection for the epoxy. the Surface of the adhesion is so small that the flex area is not a concern.
The rubber boots used to cover switches will be squeezed tightly against the lever stretching the material which may cause it to fail after a while. Silicone will not stick to rubber so the extra seal does not do much.
I have used similar switches on other boxes for years and have never had a failure. besides they get replaced every so often to minimize this risk. The silicone is the extra precaution for the metal and to prevent is becoming unscrewed.
The set up may be good for up to a few feet depth ( maybe 10ft ) but i would not go further down. you must keep in mind that the water will be applying pressures of up to 72psi or 5 Bar @ around 160ft which will put a lot of stress on all your holes, seams, etc and you have quite a few of those ( i can count at least 12 ). The best seals you can get are with the use of carefully positioned multiple o-rings and sometines even those fail !!
I am a recreational diver and not a technical diver so 120' is the limit, so pressure is less. and only 3 holes per case and 2 holes per flashlight.
I'm sorry for criticizing and maybe sounding a bit harsh but i am also a diver and i have tried to build similar lights many times but they never lasted more than 30 minutes under only 30ft deep water leaving me in the dark (dangerous) and ruining my dive.
If i where you I would not test it on your holiday. I would test it in a pool or lake (or the sea) first and test it at deeper depths than you plan on doing on your holiday to make sure that it can handle it. I would also recommend that you remove the batts, nflexes and led's for the tests just in case.
Harsh...no...a little pessimistic possibly......
Now..I am not the first one to do a mod like this...maybe the first to post here...but here is a picture of one built and it goes to 180'
As for testing...not a problem as I plan to do several dives with it empty to double check...as I have done this before.
I do not look at this as being critiqued at all...I see it as a leaning experience....which I hope other learn from.
I am sorry that you have not had much luck with your attempts....but I have even built CPVC cases all from scratch to hold 2 x 12v 7am/hr batteries that weighed 10lbs...and no leaks....
No harm no foul......:twothumbs
The glass is a bit thin for that diameter and may not hold up under pressure especially if you knock it against something which WILL happen eventually.
I have actually had the mag head down to 120' and was cave diving with it. it is rather robust as it is strapped to the back of my arm and not hanging free or in a hand grip.
Silicone is not a good sealant for high pressures and salt water as it will seperate very quickly especially from the gasket causing a leak.
Like I said I have had it down to 120' in salt and fresh water...it is 2 years old...not problem...and to make sure I redid the bezel gaskets and silicone.
It is not clear in the pictures but i hope that the gasket is placed under the glass and not on top of it.
I'm not sure that the single o-rings in the bezel, head & tail will hold up against diving pressures as they are quite thin.
The bezel has the original rubber ring gasket pressed into place with silicone, the glass is pressed against tha, followed by the red high pressure gasket I made and was all pressed into place with the aid of the MR16 bulb for 3 days till properly cured
How did you seal the stock mag switch hole ?
The hole was sealed using epoxy steel compound and hold extremely well
http://www.lepageproducts.com/products/detail.asp?catid=21&subid=54&plid=280
Did you use proper diving bladders to seal the wire ?
I actually do not know what you mean. What was used were brass fitting found in the plumbing department that have a compression ring. All joints are sealed with Teflon tape while being screwed together followed by a wrap of self sealing silicone tape (high voltage construction use)
Also the mags are filled 1" deep of epoxy steel where the wire enters the mag.
Maglights are not meant for diving and need to be HEAVILY modified to make them dive worthy which is not worthwhile.
I think all above explains the modifications I have used.
The Otter case is made out of plastic and will flex under pressure, the epoxy used to seal switches & cable is not flexible when dry, so when the case flexes the epoxy will not. This will result in the epoxy seperating from the body causing a leak.
The type of plastic used to make the colored OtterBoxes is an ABS plastic that's reinforced with fiberglass. The type of plastic used to make clear OtterBoxes is high impact polycarbonate. All Otter Boxes (regardless of material used) offer the same protection.
I have also flexed the sides of th boxes to see if the epoxy does seperate...but thankfully I roughed up all surfaces with an abrasive to give a porous connection for the epoxy. the Surface of the adhesion is so small that the flex area is not a concern.
The rubber boots used to cover switches will be squeezed tightly against the lever stretching the material which may cause it to fail after a while. Silicone will not stick to rubber so the extra seal does not do much.
I have used similar switches on other boxes for years and have never had a failure. besides they get replaced every so often to minimize this risk. The silicone is the extra precaution for the metal and to prevent is becoming unscrewed.
The set up may be good for up to a few feet depth ( maybe 10ft ) but i would not go further down. you must keep in mind that the water will be applying pressures of up to 72psi or 5 Bar @ around 160ft which will put a lot of stress on all your holes, seams, etc and you have quite a few of those ( i can count at least 12 ). The best seals you can get are with the use of carefully positioned multiple o-rings and sometines even those fail !!
I am a recreational diver and not a technical diver so 120' is the limit, so pressure is less. and only 3 holes per case and 2 holes per flashlight.
I'm sorry for criticizing and maybe sounding a bit harsh but i am also a diver and i have tried to build similar lights many times but they never lasted more than 30 minutes under only 30ft deep water leaving me in the dark (dangerous) and ruining my dive.
If i where you I would not test it on your holiday. I would test it in a pool or lake (or the sea) first and test it at deeper depths than you plan on doing on your holiday to make sure that it can handle it. I would also recommend that you remove the batts, nflexes and led's for the tests just in case.
Harsh...no...a little pessimistic possibly......
Now..I am not the first one to do a mod like this...maybe the first to post here...but here is a picture of one built and it goes to 180'
As for testing...not a problem as I plan to do several dives with it empty to double check...as I have done this before.
I do not look at this as being critiqued at all...I see it as a leaning experience....which I hope other learn from.
I am sorry that you have not had much luck with your attempts....but I have even built CPVC cases all from scratch to hold 2 x 12v 7am/hr batteries that weighed 10lbs...and no leaks....
No harm no foul......:twothumbs
