HDS Systems #23

[jon_slider]

Is there a way to stop that from happening

maybe,
if you turn the output down...

the manual says:

"Your flashlight will double-blink once every two minutes to remind you that the battery needs to be changed when the battery is no longer capable of maintaining a 50 lumen output level and you are asking for an output level higher than the battery can maintain."

> I think it is lowering the lumens to preserve the battery

agree

 

[Dicaeopolis]

maybe,
if you turn the output down...

the manual says:

"Your flashlight will double-blink once every two minutes to remind you that the battery needs to be changed when the battery is no longer capable of maintaining a 50 lumen output level and you are asking for an output level higher than the battery can maintain."

> I think it is lowering the lumens to preserve the battery

agree

Thanks. I think it is trying to preserve the battery, but being a "tactical" light I would prefer it to not step down every time I turn it on in high. It is momentary mode high on that light when turned all the way. I guess I will just have to keep a fresh battery in it at all times and stick partially used ones in something else.

 

[jon_slider]

I guess I will just have to keep a fresh battery in it at all times and stick partially used ones in something else.

sounds like you are using depleted CR123...

the light cant get maximum output out of a depleted battery.

so even though you have the dial set to maximum, youre only getting about 20% of the potential output.. and the light is telling you it needs a fresh battery..

is there some reason you choose not to use rechargeable batteries?

per the manual:
"Lithium-ion rechargeable batteries are fully supported and recommended for lower operating cost. "

"No special actions are needed to use rechargeable Lithium-ion
batteries. Your flashlight detects them automatically."

"In general, primary (non-rechargeable) batteries provide longer
runtimes." [but only at a small fraction of maximum output]

"However, rechargeable batteries provide a lower cost of
operation and allow you to always leave home with a full battery." [so you can have maximum output]

fwiw, HDS considers 50 Lumens the minimum output to qualify as a "Tactical" output. So essentially it is blinking to tell you that your battery will soon no longer be able to produce a "Tactical" brightness.

A fully charged battery can give you 200-250 Lumens.. (depending on what LED your light has).

 

[Dicaeopolis]

It seems like a lot more than 50 lumens. I forget what LED it has, but it is one of the upgraded ones, probably 300 lumens or more full output. I really like the light. It has a big hotspot, good throw, and tint. I should start enjoying it more. I seem to use my clicky more, and have put rechargeables in there. I will probably switch to rechargeables. Is there a consensus on which brand works best yet? I know I was reading a thread recently with some opinions. I'm thinking that Vapcell INR 850mAh is recommended.

 

[jon_slider]

Vapcell INR 850mAh

yes, they work very well for me
Merry Xmas ;-)

 

[Mr. LED]

yes, they work very well for me
Merry Xmas ;-)

I've been using them for the last 4 or 5 years, did a capacity test last week and they're still 850mAh, impressive! I also like the Vapcell 18350 1400mAh.

 

[ilikeguns40]

I've had excellent experiences with both Vapcell INR 850mah and the Sanyo 700mah 16340 which HDS directly sells.

Zero issues. That goes with any Vapcell I've tried and any Sanyo battery I've tried

 

[muichimon]

After a year of using HDS, I noticed a bulge in the switch rubber, so I took it apart while cleaning. I saw in the HDS thread that this bulge was caused by the pressure of the gas generated by the battery, so I thought it would return to normal once the cap was removed and the gas was released, but there seems to be another cause. If the gas pressure is causing the swelling and deformation, the back side should be dented, but if you press down on the outer swollen rubber with your finger to flatten it, the inner side will swell. So I thought that this bulge was caused by the surface of the rubber that you can touch with your finger being altered and swollen. If there is a spare rubber boot, I would like to remove it and cut it off to see the cross section, but for the time being, I wiped off the dirt in the groove and confirmed that it lights up without any problem when I reassembled it.

 

[desert.snake]

By the way, someone try not silicone, but fluorosilicone, like the one Prometheus on Alpha uses?

 

[Mr. LED]

After a year of using HDS, I noticed a bulge in the switch rubber, so I took it apart while cleaning. I saw in the HDS thread that this bulge was caused by the pressure of the gas generated by the battery, so I thought it would return to normal once the cap was removed and the gas was released, but there seems to be another cause. If the gas pressure is causing the swelling and deformation, the back side should be dented, but if you press down on the outer swollen rubber with your finger to flatten it, the inner side will swell. So I thought that this bulge was caused by the surface of the rubber that you can touch with your finger being altered and swollen. If there is a spare rubber boot, I would like to remove it and cut it off to see the cross section, but for the time being, I wiped off the dirt in the groove and confirmed that it lights up without any problem when I reassembled it.
View attachment 55728View attachment 55729View attachment 55730View attachment 55731View attachment 55732View attachment 55733

I am having the same problem on two rotaries, and have been quite stressed about it, since they get worse everyday. I have posted pictures and commented here before. Unfortunately @Hogokansatsukan has not said anything about the problem.

Sending them back for replacement seems such a hard thing to do, because I don't live in the US and don't want to be without my flashlights. What I at least expected is that the boots would be as durable as the lights themselves, but they have been lasting only months of light use. I have a clicky from 2010 with the boot still intact, and a few months old 18350 battery compartment boot is already puffed up. It doesn't make sense.

@Hogokansatsukan please help us!

 

[LRJ88]

I am having the same problem on two rotaries, and have been quite stressed about it, since they get worse everyday. I have posted pictures and commented here before. Unfortunately @Hogokansatsukan has not said anything about the problem.

Sending them back for replacement seems such a hard thing to do, because I don't live in the US and don't want to be without my flashlights. What I at least expected is that the boots would be as durable as the lights themselves, but they have been lasting only months of light use. I have a clicky from 2010 with the boot still intact, and a few months old 18350 battery compartment boot is already puffed up. It doesn't make sense.

@Hogokansatsukan please help us!

View attachment 55777

This seems to just be random issues with the boots themselves, one of mine is swelling up a lot while the other one is just fine, so far i don't think anyone has conclusive evidence of what causes it all. It doesn't seem to cause issues with the performance of the boot unless it cracks, but i'll be switching out the swollen one for a raised boot soon since they apparently have less issues.

 

[Mr. LED]

This seems to just be random issues with the boots themselves, one of mine is swelling up a lot while the other one is just fine, so far i don't think anyone has conclusive evidence of what causes it all. It doesn't seem to cause issues with the performance of the boot unless it cracks, but i'll be switching out the swollen one for a raised boot soon since they apparently have less issues.

I also don't have a clue of what causes it. Maybe a bad batch. The main problem affecting the ability to tailstand.

 

[muichimon]

I am having the same problem on two rotaries, and have been quite stressed about it, since they get worse everyday. I have posted pictures and commented here before. Unfortunately @Hogokansatsukan has not said anything about the problem.

Sending them back for replacement seems such a hard thing to do, because I don't live in the US and don't want to be without my flashlights. What I at least expected is that the boots would be as durable as the lights themselves, but they have been lasting only months of light use. I have a clicky from 2010 with the boot still intact, and a few months old 18350 battery compartment boot is already puffed up. It doesn't make sense.

@Hogokansatsukan please help us!

View attachment 55777

Indeed, when I first bought them, they were as flat as the rubber boots on the left. I also own two HDS and the one I use more often has a larger bulge. I recently saw a post on Facebook by a user who changed the rubber boot to a metal one and am interested in this as a possible solution.

 

[Hogokansatsukan]

I haven't been on here since December.
You all have to remember I'm not on here much at all anymore. I've averaged 85 a week over the last 7 months at work trying to learn as much as I can... not easy for an old fart.
The boot issue has me puzzled as they are all made of the same material, and we get them made in huge batches...
I can only think of 2 possible theories. The battery venting... rechargeable vs. primary. Anyone notice a pattern that boots with primary batteries swell/don't swell or a difference with rechargeable? Related to this, since the boots are injection molded, perhaps the "mix" varies from the company we get the from... though it shouldn't as we are very clear about the composition of the boot... and we order like 10,000 at a time.
I'll see what Henry says when I'm off of work and see him next Wednesday.

 

[desert.snake]

Which of these substances can affect the rubber cap?

https://www.whoi.edu/cruiseplanning/files/1598464581590_17062_Battery_MSDS_Packet_2020-08-17.pdf

I just don't know what the smell that CR123 gives off consists of

 

[LRJ88]

I haven't been on here since December.
You all have to remember I'm not on here much at all anymore. I've averaged 85 a week over the last 7 months at work trying to learn as much as I can... not easy for an old fart.
The boot issue has me puzzled as they are all made of the same material, and we get them made in huge batches...
I can only think of 2 possible theories. The battery venting... rechargeable vs. primary. Anyone notice a pattern that boots with primary batteries swell/don't swell or a difference with rechargeable? Related to this, since the boots are injection molded, perhaps the "mix" varies from the company we get the from... though it shouldn't as we are very clear about the composition of the boot... and we order like 10,000 at a time.
I'll see what Henry says when I'm off of work and see him next Wednesday.

The boot on my CR123 body started swelling while i was still using the Duracell that was provided from you and kept doing so until i switched to some Keeppower 16340s, the boot on the 18650 body i bought from a member here is still in pretty good condition and is showing less changes overall. The mix itself sounds like it could possibly be a culprit, alternatively depending on how they mould them the process in which they do so, if they mould larger amounts at the same time the boots further down the line will have slightly colder material than the first ones in the mould, and the first ones will have the outside material stuck in place while more material flows through it.

 

[Mr. LED]

One user had this problem and disassembled the tailcap, only to find the boot did not de-inflate. If it's gas pressure, the material has memory and deformed permanently.

 

[rwolfenstein]

I decided to us a Fenix branded 16340 battery with on board charging. I believe its a 700 MAH battery and a 3.6 volt battery. I made sure that the voltage range could handle it before I put it into a 300 dollar light lol.

 

[jon_slider]

a 3.6 volt battery

that is just the "nominal" voltage. It is typical of LiIon cells that actually charge up to 4.2V

the only potential issues are
1. it is a Protected battery. It might trip protection and shut the light off unintentionally (reported here)
2. the Fenix is longer (by 1.5mm), than a CR123, so the HDS might crush the battery, reported here

this is the 16340 I would recomend: Vapcel
because it is unprotected and 34mm long (matches CR123a). It also has 20% more capacity than the Fenix..

 

[ilikeguns40]

I second the Vapcell T8 850mah. Thats what I run in my HDS. Also I run the 700mah Sanyo 16340 from HDS website