Milkyspit's MC2 Thread (also Milky Tester) Part II

[souptree]

Scott, I would love an MC2 with the Kingbright Orange emitter if one can be made available to me. My orange A2 remains one of my most used and favorite lights. I have wanted a MilkyCandle for a long time and if there's an orange one out there for me, well I just can't resist. :thumbsup:

No worries, you're not too late. Actually, you're going to get a special treat (hope you see it that way too!)... I was one unit short so your second MC2 will actually be the one I made for myself! It's a Nichia GS based light with the custom-recalibrated firmware just like the others, but as the backup LED this one uses a wide angle Kingbright ORANGE rather than the standard amber LED. The Kingbright Orange 5mm is one of my favorites... the color is IMHO gorgeous and the LED itself gives off an almost shimmering quality when running... very pleasant to look at. Hope that works for you.



No spacer required! The tailspring is on a threaded mount, so you unscrew the spring assembly (not enough for it to fall off, stop just short of that) to run with a single cell, and screw it back down when running with two cells. I personally dislike spacers and adapters because they would just represent one more accessory to get lost... wanted to come up with a solution where the light itself was already outfitted with everything it needed, and that's exactly what we've got with the current design.

On a related note: the nylon cup in which the tailspring sits can be popped off, it's not glued in place... this doesn't ordinarily present a problem because it's not a load-bearing element, the spring tension falls on the machine nut inside the cup, not on the cup itself... it yours ever does get crooked or fall off, just pop it back onto the machine nut and all should be well.

One other very minor note: I'm shipping all these units PRELOADED with 2x123 nearly-spent cells (they register 10% or 20% on my ZTS battery tester)... I do this to keep the spring assembly from flopping around during shipping, also to demonstrate how the unit runs well even on badly depleted cells. Or maybe the whole project is actually my secret plan to dispose of my own spent 123 primaries! (Hee hee.) :laughing:

 

[milkyspit]

Scott, I would love an MC2 with the Kingbright Orange emitter if one can be made available to me. My orange A2 remains one of my most used and favorite lights. I have wanted a MilkyCandle for a long time and if there's an orange one out there for me, well I just can't resist. :thumbsup:

Souptree, okay, I found one more Nichia GS and have a Kingbright Orange, so yes, I can build that for you. Price would be $59 plus shipping just as the above batch of MC2 were priced. Send me PM or email or call if you wish, or just go ahead with the Paypal and I'll get the light on the way to you. Hope this helps.

 

[gottawearshades]

I tried out the new Milky Candle last night. Cool. Brighter than expected. I can easily read by it on High. About what runtime could I expect on High with two fresh cells?

One thing, though: I won't be flying with it. Sure, this is not a pipe bomb. It's a flashlight light. Yeah, right.

 

[milkyspit]

I tried out the new Milky Candle last night. Cool. Brighter than expected. I can easily read by it on High. About what runtime could I expect on High with two fresh cells?

Hi GWS, high output should run for approx. 70 hours continuous on a pair of fresh cells... after the cells will no longer keep the white LED running on high, they'll probably still work on medium and low outputs for a while longer.

One thing, though: I won't be flying with it. Sure, this is not a pipe bomb. It's a flashlight light. Yeah, right.

:laughing: oo:

 

[StrayLight]

Okay, having just discovered the world of Milky mods, this may be more addicting than McGizmos. I received my first MC2 this week, and while I love it's not-so-cutting edge performance, I have some thoughts on another build:

A Nichia 083 (or similar HI-CRI LED) with a Kingbright orange LED built on whatever board has the ability to drive the white on a single cell (same as the most recent MC2s) under some sort of floody optic like this one, on the right, posted by nein166:

I know this particular MC2 is built with a 20mm LED, but I'm looking for a similar flood output, preferably from a domed optic, from both the white and amber/orange LEDs.

If this can be done, I'd take at least three of them.

Too cool, these Candles.

 

[HoopleHead]

discovered the world of Milky mods, this may be more addicting than McGizmos.

my sentiments exactly :thumbsup:

 

[milkyspit]

Hi StrayLight,

Okay, having just discovered the world of Milky mods, this may be more addicting than McGizmos.

I'll be happy to build whatever you wish, just give me a holler whenever the time comes!

I received my first MC2 this week, and while I love it's not-so-cutting edge performance...

With a Nichia GS the MC2 is delivering darned close to cutting-edge performance. The thing one needs to remember is, the MC2 was not built for gobs of output from a package that size, but rather for optimal lumens per watt coupled with some insanely long runtimes and the ability to use "spent" cells as fuel.

I have some thoughts on another build:

A Nichia 083 (or similar HI-CRI LED) with a Kingbright orange LED built on whatever board has the ability to drive the white on a single cell (same as the most recent MC2s) under some sort of floody optic...

(...snip...)

I know this particular MC2 is built with a 20mm LED, but I'm looking for a similar flood output, preferably from a domed optic, from both the white and amber/orange LEDs...

First off, it's worth noting that the MC2 was designed around the concept of ceiling-bounce illumination. A floody LED won't deliver that as effectively as a more narrow-angle one does. Assuming you're willing to accept that compromise, then yes, I could build using other LEDs including a high-CRI Nichia 083 or pretty much anything else, for that matter.

One hurdle will be acquiring the 083 LEDs. My understanding is these particular LEDs won't be available for some time, and that McGizmo has some samples but not a large supply himself. I may be mistaken but that's my present understanding.

Building with this sort of LED, the most effective technique would be to locate a domed diffuser cap... something like a table tennis ball cut perfectly in half. This would provide the desired type of beam, although there would be remaining questions as far as how much light would be lost and whether the result would retain its high CRI characteristics. For now I'll assume these will not be showstoppers.

If the above is true, then I can build such a light at any time, given a source of suitable LED. Order anytime you wish! And perhaps help us find a super secret source of high-CRI emitters.

Seriously, there is nothing more than the emitters themselves preventing me from building the light you want.

 

[StrayLight]

With a Nichia GS the MC2 is delivering darned close to cutting-edge performance. The thing one needs to remember is, the MC2 was not built for gobs of output from a package that size, but rather for optimal lumens per watt coupled with some insanely long runtimes and the ability to use "spent" cells as fuel.

I was making a comparison to lights at the other end of the quantitative output spectrum and did not mean to offend.

Poor choice of words.

 

[milkyspit]

I was making a comparison to lights at the other end of the quantitative output spectrum and did not mean to offend.

Poor choice of words.

No offense taken! Okay, I was bummed-out for a few moments but no big deal really. Thanks just the same, appreciate the clarification! :thumbsup:

 

[StrayLight]

First off, it's worth noting that the MC2 was designed around the concept of ceiling-bounce illumination. A floody LED won't deliver that as effectively as a more narrow-angle one does. Assuming you're willing to accept that compromise, then yes, I could build using other LEDs including a high-CRI Nichia 083 or pretty much anything else, for that matter.

One hurdle will be acquiring the 083 LEDs. My understanding is these particular LEDs won't be available for some time, and that McGizmo has some samples but not a large supply himself. I may be mistaken but that's my present understanding.

Building with this sort of LED, the most effective technique would be to locate a domed diffuser cap... something like a table tennis ball cut perfectly in half. This would provide the desired type of beam, although there would be remaining questions as far as how much light would be lost and whether the result would retain its high CRI characteristics. For now I'll assume these will not be showstoppers.

If the above is true, then I can build such a light at any time, given a source of suitable LED. Order anytime you wish! And perhaps help us find a super secret source of high-CRI emitters.

I don't have a secret stash of 083 emitters, and I hadn't fully considered the "ceiling bounce" design aspect of the Candle. My intent with the domed optic is to create the illusion of a actual candle seen at elevation, but I don't want to otherwise kill the usefulness of the light... so what about a removeable dome?

In the absence of a source of HI-CRI emitters I would settle for the efficiency of the Nichia GS, assuming more of those could be procured.

 

[milkyspit]

StrayLight, the good news is I have a decent supply of Nichia GS inbound... my best guess is they'll arrive by the end of this week. Just learned of this today. (Yippee!!) Given the good news, I could build more MC2 units for you and anyone else interested... at least within reason... gotta count the number of housings I have on hand! My guess is I can build a dozen more units with the parts on hand. Let me know ASAP how many you might want.

As for diffuser, there are various solutions out there... SilverFox was experimenting with that aspect of things, and I believe Nein166 was, too... maybe they could chime in with respect to some good choices?

Also, there's one enhancement I've long delayed for lack of bandwidth (geek speak for not enough hours in the day!)... I've always wanted to program a flicker mode into the Milky Candle so the unit could more-or-less simulate a real candle for those after a bit more ambiance out of the thing.

 

[StrayLight]

StrayLight, the good news is I have a decent supply of Nichia GS inbound... my best guess is they'll arrive by the end of this week. Just learned of this today. (Yippee!!) Given the good news, I could build more MC2 units for you and anyone else interested... at least within reason... gotta count the number of housings I have on hand! My guess is I can build a dozen more units with the parts on hand. Let me know ASAP how many you might want.

Goody. I'll be in touch about those.

As for diffuser, there are various solutions out there... SilverFox was experimenting with that aspect of things, and I believe Nein166 was, too... maybe they could chime in with respect to some good choices?

Eh, link to thread perhaps?

Also, there's one enhancement I've long delayed for lack of bandwidth (geek speak for not enough hours in the day!)... I've always wanted to program a flicker mode into the Milky Candle so the unit could more-or-less simulate a real candle for those after a bit more ambiance out of the thing.

Sold.

 

[Crenshaw]

Also, there's one enhancement I've long delayed for lack of bandwidth (geek speak for not enough hours in the day!)... I've always wanted to program a flicker mode into the Milky Candle so the unit could more-or-less simulate a real candle for those after a bit more ambiance out of the thing.

thats actually very interesting! I envision one of those ambers with that flicker mode. Is it possible electronically speaking though? i mean, to end up with a flicker, not a strobe.

Crenshaw

 

[nein166]

FLICKER! Glad your going ahead and announcing this enhancement. Flicker shouldn't look anything like strobe Crenshaw. Think of strobe as on/off/on/off and flicker as on/on/off/on/on/on/on/off/on/off/off/on/on. Also I think Milky will be able to control the current so its not always on max.

So start burning the midnight candle, literally.

 

[Crenshaw]

FLICKER! Glad your going ahead and announcing this enhancement. Flicker shouldn't look anything like strobe Crenshaw. Think of strobe as on/off/on/off and flicker as on/on/off/on/on/on/on/off/on/off/off/on/on. Also I think Milky will be able to control the current so its not always on max.

So start burning the midnight candle, literally.

that sounds swweeeet, i was wondering, maybe you could use like, three amber leds in a bundle, so you can like, turn them on and off intermittently, so the "flame" shifts around..

Crenshaw

 

[milkyspit]

Folks, I just got a fresh bag of Nichia GS emitters, rank C0W. Supplies on hand to build some MC2 units for anyone who wants/needs some. Let me know via PM here or on CPF Marketplace, or via email.

 

[Troglodyte]

Milky, I just pmed you about 2 MC2s. If they are still available I,ll take 2.

Troglodyte

 

[StrayLight]

First off, it's worth noting that the MC2 was designed around the concept of ceiling-bounce illumination. A floody LED won't deliver that as effectively as a more narrow-angle one does. Assuming you're willing to accept that compromise, then yes, I could build using other LEDs including a high-CRI Nichia 083 or pretty much anything else, for that matter.

One hurdle will be acquiring the 083 LEDs. My understanding is these particular LEDs won't be available for some time, and that McGizmo has some samples but not a large supply himself. I may be mistaken but that's my present understanding... Seriously, there is nothing more than the emitters themselves preventing me from building the light you want.

Scott, I assume you've seen this thread: High CRI Nichia LED for DIY.

With Don offering these in lots of ten, it's still an investment hurdle if I'm the only one interested, and only for a couple. That being said, I am interested in using these, and I understand the floody nature of the Nichia 083 in comparison to your typical narrow-beam choice of LED for the MC2.

All the spec sheets for the 083 were posted in the thread as jpegs... it's jibberish to me, but my question is: are these LEDs even suitable for the extreme low power/long (regulated?) runtime design mandate of the MC2? If not, can you posit why not, and if so, who else wants these HI-CRI LEDs in a Milky Candle so we can get some of these built?

 

[milkyspit]

Milky, I just pmed you about 2 MC2s. If they are still available I,ll take 2.

Troglodyte

Got it, PM replied, got the Paypal, package in the mail for AM pickup. :thumbsup:

 

[milkyspit]

Scott, I assume you've seen this thread: High CRI Nichia LED for DIY.

With Don offering these in lots of ten, it's still an investment hurdle if I'm the only one interested, and only for a couple. That being said, I am interested in using these, and I understand the floody nature of the Nichia 083 in comparison to your typical narrow-beam choice of LED for the MC2.

All the spec sheets for the 083 were posted in the thread as jpegs... it's jibberish to me, but my question is: are these LEDs even suitable for the extreme low power/long (regulated?) runtime design mandate of the MC2? If not, can you posit why not, and if so, who else wants these HI-CRI LEDs in a Milky Candle so we can get some of these built?

StrayLight, I'll almost definitely grab a ten-pack of these regardless of interest, simply because I'd like some to play with. The cost of such a Milky Candle would of course be somewhat higher, in line with the cost of the 083... but that said, shouldn't be too big a deal to build it. If it turns out I need to do anything additional in the actual buildout, though, such as placing an optic or somehow protecting the emitter itself from harm, pricing could change. At the moment I do not anticipate that, but want to be upfront with the possibility just in case.

:shrug: