Red Light Primary Headlamp - Waterproof, Metal, No Memory?

[ElectroPulse]

Hello, all,

I'm looking for a headlamp (or a programmable, moddable host) with the following qualities:
-at least two emitters (red and white)
-no memory, push the button from "off" state and it always goes to the lowest "red" state. Need to have to hold the button from "off" state to get to white.
-Will get banged up, so needs to be made of metal
-Needs to be waterproof (ideally IP68)
-Uses 18650 batteries

Any suggestions? The one I've currently got has the correct function, bit is plastic, not waterproof, and runs off aaa batteries. I've been having difficulty finding one without memory like that.

Thank you

 

[kerneldrop]

Any suggestions? The one I've currently got has the correct function, bit is plastic, not waterproof, and runs off aaa batteries. I've been having difficulty finding one without memory like that.

Thank you

I guess my first attempt would be to order a Convoy 18650 headlamp then swap the LED for a deep red and swap the driver for one that meets your criteria. You may get lucky and their driver suits your needs.

 

[ElectroPulse]

I guess my first attempt would be to order a Convoy 18650 headlamp then swap the LED for a deep red and swap the driver for one that meets your criteria. You may get lucky and their driver suits your needs.

Which one do you suggest? I've not been able to find any of theirs that meet the "have two emitters" requirement.

 

[kerneldrop]

Which one do you suggest? I've not been able to find any of theirs that meet the "have two emitters" requirement.

oh my bad, didn't see the two emitters.

Try a Sofrin D25LR. It's $20

H25LR(D25LR) Rechargeable Headlamp

Character: 1. High CRI White Deep Red Emitters: The D25LR headlamp utilizes dual LED Emitters. One of which is the LH351D 5000K CRI 90 High for a nice comfortable white beam. The other LED Emitter is the SST20-DR Red LED, which produces red light in the wavelength of 660nms which helps to...

www.sofirnlight.com

 

[3L3M3NT]

Some of the options that I can think of are a custom headlamp from Sky Lumen that you get to pick the LED for.
https://skylumen.com/products/klarus-hl1vn-18650-headlamp?_pos=2&_sid=4778c5e20&_ss=r

Otherwise some other headlamps to consider are:
https://fenix-store.com/collections/headlamp-series/products/fenix-hm61r-v2-rechargeable-headlamp
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/fenix-hm61r-v2-0-headlamp-review.482950/

https://www.armytek.com/flashlights/types/multi-flashlights-headlamps/

Other than those I can't think of too many more that come close to meeting your requirements.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[bigburly912]

Yep. Email Vinh at skylumen.com and tell him what you are looking for. May dig around in his available options and find one that suits your needs. Seems like he had one up recently that would be close.

 

[kerneldrop]

if I'm spending $80 on a headlamp then I'm getting a Zebra.

another option is to get a Malkoff headlight holder and order two Convoy S2+ lights. Light on left side of head can be white and right side of head can be red. Excellent set up for someone demanding of 2 color headlamp.

I have a couple headlamps with sliding red and green plastic pieces. Makes going from white to red easy and fast.

 

[ElectroPulse]

Thank you for the suggestions, all!

Spent some time looking into each of them. None seem to have the type of interface I am looking for out of the box. When looking into moddability of them, I ran into the Wurkkos HD15R - there are a number of people that have modded them (looks like primarily just the emitters, though, so am not sure about the driver), and reported they were easy to disassemble. Given it's currently just under $24 on sale, just ordered one to play around with and see if I can either learn how to flash custom firmware onto it, or see if I can find an aftermarket driver that would work for it. At worst, it'll either be a cheap learning experience or I've got a cheap spare waterproof headlamp for other uses.

If that doesn't work out, I'll contact Vihn at Skylumen and see if he's got anything.

Thanks again!

 

[jabe1]

I think the Sofirn D2LR is closest to what you want, and if you switch the emitters, ticks all the boxes.
Standard UI activates white led from off, or red with a hold from off. Less than $30.

 

[bigburly912]

Thank you for the suggestions, all!

Spent some time looking into each of them. None seem to have the type of interface I am looking for out of the box. When looking into moddability of them, I ran into the Wurkkos HD15R - there are a number of people that have modded them (looks like primarily just the emitters, though, so am not sure about the driver), and reported they were easy to disassemble. Given it's currently just under $24 on sale, just ordered one to play around with and see if I can either learn how to flash custom firmware onto it, or see if I can find an aftermarket driver that would work for it. At worst, it'll either be a cheap learning experience or I've got a cheap spare waterproof headlamp for other uses.

If that doesn't work out, I'll contact Vihn at Skylumen and see if he's got anything.

Thanks again!

Mtnelectronics can set you up with components for modding. You can email and he will get back to you and set you on the right course. Good people

 

[bigburly912]

Also, have you checked out the HM70r from fenix? I have one I got from Vinh at skylumen. It does have intelligent memory but it will always come on in red unless you hold the button in to go to the white modes. I'm like you I kind of don't like memory modes but seems everything comes with them. I've used mine on several storms and hunting trips and it's held up fine. So it knocks off most of your tickers but not all unfortunately.

 

[ElectroPulse]

I think the Sofirn D2LR is closest to what you want, and if you switch the emitters, ticks all the boxes.
Standard UI activates white led from off, or red with a hold from off. Less than $30.

Thanks! It doesn't check the "no memory" box or the IP68 boxes, though - neither by themselves would be a dealbreaker, but both together makes the Wirkkos HD15R look more promising (IP68 would be nice, but not 100% necessary, so without memory I'd just get it and swap the emitters. If it was IP68 and had memory, I'd order it and see if I could find a compatible programmable driver to replace it). With both together, I'm putting effort into swapping the driver on a headlamp that is less waterproof than I would really like.

EDIT: Hmm... It looks like the memory may just be the brightness level within the mode you've selected... Which, given there's not much else out there I've found, could be an acceptable compromise. Any idea whether the emitters on headlamps would just need to be swapped, or if there are any amperage or any other considerations when switching emitters? (like if the traces going to the white one would be beefier, for example) If it's as simple as desoldering and re-soldering them around the other way around, even with maybe moving some resistors, that could be a good option.
EDIT2: Screw it, just ordered it. At that price, doesn't hurt to have another 18650 headlamp kicking around, regardless. Will check the modes and it it looks like it'll work, will crack it open and see if I can just swap some components. Might also look into trying to seal it better to up the waterproofness.

Mtnelectronics can set you up with components for modding. You can email and he will get back to you and set you on the right course. Good people

Thanks! I'll shoot 'em a message and see if they have any ideas while I wait for it.

Also, have you checked out the HM70r from fenix? I have one I got from Vinh at skylumen. It does have intelligent memory but it will always come on in red unless you hold the button in to go to the white modes. I'm like you I kind of don't like memory modes but seems everything comes with them. I've used mine on several storms and hunting trips and it's held up fine. So it knocks off most of your tickers but not all unfortunately.

I've not... Is that a custom modification from him? Looking at the description on their site, and the operation demo (), it seems to be starting out with white.

 

[jabe1]

Just found this photo on another forum.
It appears that only two wires (D1&D2) would need swapped, and the resistors for each led are on the led board. The Lh351 would fit on the left where the blank solder pads are.
I may take mine apart to check.

 

[bigburly912]

My apologies. Mine is a HL60r!! Always starts on blinking red then to solid red.

 

[ElectroPulse]

Just found this photo on another forum.
It appears that only two wires (D1&D2) would need swapped, and the resistors for each led are on the led board. The Lh351 would fit on the left where the blank solder pads are.
I may take mine apart to check.

Finally got around to revisiting this. Pulled mine apart, and there are no resistors on the board.

Any ideas how to get the other endcap off? (the side with the charging port). If I can get that side off, I think I could just swap the wires inside there.

EDIT: Nevermind, messed up the rubber button while messing with stuff to try to get the cap off, so it would no longer be waterproof. Looks like the cap with the button requires a 3-pegged wrench of some kind to fit into the holes, and I suspect they may have used some glue or something. I do see into there now that the button rubber was damaged (ended up just ripping it off to get a better look, given it was toast anyway), and it looks like the contacts just go straight through from the board to the connector at the top without wires, so not sure whether there would even be a way to cross them over. Even if I were to figure out how to get that end cap off, I'd probably end up having to do some SMD soldering (with packages smaller than the picture above) to get them switched around to get the voltages right. Going to take a look at the Wurkkos another time.

 

[jabe1]

We'll, that sure looks different…
Nothing like consistency. 😑