fisk-king
Flashlight Enthusiast
received the Milky Candle today :twothumbs
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Milkyspit's MC2 Thread (also Milky Tester) Part II
- Thread starter Sigman
- Start date
Help Support Candle Power Flashlight Forum
Sgt. LED
Flashaholic
http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=112779
Hey Scott, how hard do you think it would be to adapt an MC2 to work in that host?
OH and just as an aside, would an SST-50 work in a SF U2 if all you did was an emitter swap? Curious
Hey Scott, how hard do you think it would be to adapt an MC2 to work in that host?
OH and just as an aside, would an SST-50 work in a SF U2 if all you did was an emitter swap? Curious
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milkyspit
Flashlight Enthusiast
http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=112779
Hey Scott, how hard do you think it would be to adapt an MC2 to work in that host?
OH and just as an aside, would an SST-50 work in a SF U2 if all you did was an emitter swap? Curious
Sgt, yes, MC2 could be adapted to that host. The circuit would be somewhat different... actually it might end up a single-brightness thing, though maybe not! I'm not sure who has those particular hosts these days. If you already have one or know where might be a good source, IMHO it's worth a look. :thumbsup:
SST-50 could work in the newer U2A... the one with Seoul P4 emitter... but it would be NOWHERE REMOTELY CLOSE to full power. Approaching the effort with that in mind, I'm confident we would end up with a nice result. As for the older U2 with LuxV emitter, I'm thinking TWO of the SST-50 might be an intresting upgrade. :naughty:
Sgt. LED
Flashaholic
Excellent, excellent.
I have one of those beacons, NIB. :twothumbs
If we ditch the old bottom spring for a leaf spring perhaps and establish a new negative path instead of using the silver plate the bulb screws into then 2 CR123's can fit. Will need a tube spacer for the extra diameter and the LED's will sit higher into the dome than the bulb but dog-gone it should work!
My thought is that if the switch is retained and is in the mid position then the signal button can be used to select the mode. Hold it down for a bit then it'll set and you can use the switch or you could hold the momentary down and use your other hand to switch it on.
Remember the Rebel candle? :naughty: Can it be transplanted?oo:
I have one of those beacons, NIB. :twothumbs
If we ditch the old bottom spring for a leaf spring perhaps and establish a new negative path instead of using the silver plate the bulb screws into then 2 CR123's can fit. Will need a tube spacer for the extra diameter and the LED's will sit higher into the dome than the bulb but dog-gone it should work!
My thought is that if the switch is retained and is in the mid position then the signal button can be used to select the mode. Hold it down for a bit then it'll set and you can use the switch or you could hold the momentary down and use your other hand to switch it on.
Remember the Rebel candle? :naughty: Can it be transplanted?
oo:
milkyspit
Flashlight Enthusiast
Thank you for the kind words, dcbeane.
As to status: I've exhausted my supply of custom MC2 circuits (a custom driver I'd had made for the MC23 project), so until I have a suitable replacement, I can still build a unit having the same housing/general design, still regulated and very looooong running, but single brightness. That's not necessarily a bad thing... for the original purpose of a long-running emergency candle with predictable operation, such a light should fit the bill nicely. The more advanced bells and whistles that the MC2 driver had afforded (backup red/amber/yellow LED, battery test capability, multiple levels of brightness) would not be present.
Beacon of Light
Flashlight Enthusiast
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- Dec 9, 2005
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- 2,054
has anyone ever done a runtime test on this?
milkyspit
Flashlight Enthusiast
I haven't done an exact runtime on the single brightness unit, though during last autumn's one week power outage around here, I was running several in our home. The math suggests one should expect at least 56 hours runtime from a pair of fresh 123 primary cells... in my case, I was first using partially-depleted cells, running the lights perhaps 10 hours at a time, and still managed 30-40 hours from the cells, which seems about right... so until I have the patience to generate a 50-100 hour runtime graph, I'll go with the 60 hours as the unofficial estimate. That should be pretty close to reality, and in my experience it does indeed seem to match the reality nicely.
I hope I'm not resurrecting a long-dead thread but my searching led me here...
I'm interested in the MC2. Any luck in sourcing replacements for the circuits? Or is there a sales thread moving along elsewhere that I missed?
- Tim
milkyspit
Flashlight Enthusiast
I hope I'm not resurrecting a long-dead thread but my searching led me here...
I'm interested in the MC2. Any luck in sourcing replacements for the circuits? Or is there a sales thread moving along elsewhere that I missed?
- Tim
Tim, I currently have no boards on hand to build additional MC2 units. I'd like to say that I will build a next-generation version of the Milky Candle (MC3?) though it depends on me completing a suitable design for the next-gen circuit. I have some ideas on that front, just lack of time at the moment to get it finished. Been pulled in several directions in the past year or so. Hoping to get it ready for prime time eventually, as I'd like some more for myself, too! Thank you for asking.
Heheheh. I've got 4 1/2 year old and 1 year old boys. I can relate to having no time
I'll stay subscribed to this thread in the hopes that things even out for you in the future.
- Tim
Scott,
Were there ever any operating instructions for the MC-2's? I know the four settings and the multi-battery functions but somewhere in the back of my mind I thought that there was more capability here and I never remembered to get the instructions.
Thanks,
Fred
Were there ever any operating instructions for the MC-2's? I know the four settings and the multi-battery functions but somewhere in the back of my mind I thought that there was more capability here and I never remembered to get the instructions.
Thanks,
Fred
milkyspit
Flashlight Enthusiast
Hi Fred,
That's most of it. I used to insert an instruction sheet with each MC2... those little sheets pretty much explained the same things you just described. The one thing you missed: you can put a single cell in your MC2 and turn it on to check the condition of that cell (at least in terms of suitability for use in the MC2). A cell that's still in good shape (MC2-wise) will cause the amber LED to glow steady. A cell that's nearing the end of its useful life will cause the amber LED to pulsate. You can use this test capability to match pairs of cells in your MC2.
Beacon of Light
Flashlight Enthusiast
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Sorry to resurrect this thread that is 3 years old, but I was wondering if Milky was still making these or if a MC3 ever surfaced?
I can't find in my old messages on CPF but several years ago I bought what I'm guessing was a MC2 but IIRC it worked with single AA cells. I got it off the used marketplace and since I rarely used primary AAs it got put on my shelf and rarely used.
Since then I have bought a couple Joule Thiefs but they were strictly for 1.5v cells. All this time I was hoping for a 3v version that would work for cr123 cells. Is it possible the pvc candle light I already have (just have to find it again) works with cr123s? I don't recall it having 2 separate LEDs and I don't recall there being different modes on it either.
I can't find in my old messages on CPF but several years ago I bought what I'm guessing was a MC2 but IIRC it worked with single AA cells. I got it off the used marketplace and since I rarely used primary AAs it got put on my shelf and rarely used.
Since then I have bought a couple Joule Thiefs but they were strictly for 1.5v cells. All this time I was hoping for a 3v version that would work for cr123 cells. Is it possible the pvc candle light I already have (just have to find it again) works with cr123s? I don't recall it having 2 separate LEDs and I don't recall there being different modes on it either.
I have had my MC2 for seven years as a bedside light. I have never changed the cr123 that I put in it. I have a bag of expended cells of all sizes that won't function anymore in their intended lights because they are depleted. All of them work in my MC2. The ORIGNAL battery I have in my light now was a depleted one. I'm guessing I have a lifetime of "free " usage left for every power outage possible! Great light. My mixed LED assort. has low, med, high for the white LED's and the last turn or press lights the amber LED. Hope this helps.
Beacon of Light
Flashlight Enthusiast
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Yeah I just found the light I was referring to in my earlier post. I will take a few pics and see if someone can claim if it looks like a Milky MC2 or maybe his earlier model?
Bottom of light (tailcap exterior)
Bottom of light (tailcap removed)
Tailcap spring and washer
Looking down battery tube (looks like a smaller inner piece of PVC was used for AA battery size but seems to be glued? down as it is not removable)
Copper windings (I'm assuming to complete the circuit to negative terminal of battery)
Inner workings of module
Do any of these resemble the MC2 at all? What do I have here? I tried several times and there is only 1 mode and I'm not sure if this is even a Joule Thief type of light as the light is very bright.
Bottom of light (tailcap exterior)
Bottom of light (tailcap removed)
Tailcap spring and washer
Looking down battery tube (looks like a smaller inner piece of PVC was used for AA battery size but seems to be glued? down as it is not removable)
Copper windings (I'm assuming to complete the circuit to negative terminal of battery)
Inner workings of module
Do any of these resemble the MC2 at all? What do I have here? I tried several times and there is only 1 mode and I'm not sure if this is even a Joule Thief type of light as the light is very bright.
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Beacon of Light
Flashlight Enthusiast
- Joined
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I put in a dead Energizer AAA NIMH in this light and got nothing and then put it on my Opus BT 3100 V 2.2 charger for 10 seconds @ 500mAh to get a reading of 1.00 volts. Popped it in the light for 2 minutes of nice moonlight. Wish this thing put out this LEVEL of light regulated.
Then I found a recently charged Radio Shack 1000mAh NIMH AAA battery (yeah right, it's more like 500 mAh) and the light is blinding in comparison.
Wish I could find one of these type of things like the MC2 to use cr123 cells, and to be able to use lower modes as well as multiple cells to really drain them down. At least I discovered I could use AAA's with this as when I bought it, was intended for only AA cells. If anyone has one I would be interested.
Then I found a recently charged Radio Shack 1000mAh NIMH AAA battery (yeah right, it's more like 500 mAh) and the light is blinding in comparison.
Wish I could find one of these type of things like the MC2 to use cr123 cells, and to be able to use lower modes as well as multiple cells to really drain them down. At least I discovered I could use AAA's with this as when I bought it, was intended for only AA cells. If anyone has one I would be interested.
