mitchfried
Newly Enlightened
- Joined
- Feb 24, 2003
- Messages
- 54
I'm on now, will report back in 30 minutes.
Reviews of TLE-6EXB (2-3 C/D Maglite Drop in)
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mitchfried
Newly Enlightened
- Joined
- Feb 24, 2003
- Messages
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OK, ran the 3D for 60 minutes. Uneventful, maybe dimmed slightly, but I'm no scientist like some of you guys, so no measurements. It started right up again after I ended the run. The head was left hanging over a table, meaning there was air cooling only. The head itself wasn't even warm. I took it apart to check the heat of the module itself. My finger says "Hot!"
Maybe I just have a good one, or perhaps the other posters just were unlucky? My second 3D was sent to Chicago as a gift, so I can't compare.
Maybe I just have a good one, or perhaps the other posters just were unlucky? My second 3D was sent to Chicago as a gift, so I can't compare.
WadeF
Flashlight Enthusiast
Good to know there are working units out there. Mine would dim and go very blue in 3-5 minutes. You wouldn't be able to miss it if you had this problem.
cbubu
Newly Enlightened
When I got the TLE-6EXB, the heatsink was slightly moving : in fact the LED bottom didn't have a good contact with the heatsink. I unsoldered one pin of the LED and put thermal adhesive between the LED bottom and the heatsink. 24 hours of curing and now the TLE-6EXB is perfectly working with a 2C : I tried last night during 30 mn and no flicker, no change of tint, still bright ... may be just a defective initial gluing which doesn't allow the LED to be cooling ?
bguy
Newly Enlightened
In addition to the TLE-6EXB I have coming, I also order a TLE-5EX for the minimag.
Personally, I'm not buying new Mags as hosts for these "bulbs" as for the price of the bulb, I could buy a whole cree based light. I'm just getting these things as updates to lights I've had around for 20 years.
Bradley
mitchfried
Newly Enlightened
- Joined
- Feb 24, 2003
- Messages
- 54
I have three of those new minimag drop ins and they work perfectly. Not as bright as some of my Chinese lights, but I like the form factor and they do get oohs and ahhs from non-flashaholics.
MattK
Flashlight Enthusiast
Hi Folks,
Sorry that I'm just now replying to this thread but I didn't know about it until a customer and CPF member pointed it out to me last week and then CPF was down the next day. DOH!
Anyway, We've shipped almost 200 of these units and at last count have had like 8 RMA requests so clearly the issues some users are experiencing are not endemic to the product.
I've now tested 4 units and not been able to reproduce the problem, nor has TerraLUX using a controlled power supply at various voltages. TerraLUX tests every unit before shipping but only for a brief period.
I suspect that what we're looking at is a manufacturing defect on a small number of pieces, not a design defect, as the boost circuitry being used is a modified version of that being used in the TLE-5 and TLE-5EX - a proven circuit design with 10's of thousands of units on the market.
Anthony Catalano, the Founder/Principal of TerraLUX, has asked that anyone experiencing a problem please contact TerraLUX directly and not BatteryJunction for a return/exchange as they'd like to quickly get as many units in hand as possible that are exhibiting the issue. I want to be clear though - all Seoul SSC P4's typically run a bit blue - they want the DOA units, the units that turn VERY blue, very fast etc.
TerraLUX can be contacted as follows:
TerraLUX, Inc.
1501 Lee Hill Road,
Unit 4
Boulder, CO 80304
Ph: 866-498-1564
Fx: 303-942-3584
[email protected]
Tony is a busy guy so most likely you'll be talking to Jen who will arrange any call tags etc that are necessary. Jen's fantastic (I've been trying to steal her for a while now (SHHHH)) so please be nice to her - as I know you will be.
Thanks again for all of your great orders, kind words and understanding.
Sorry that I'm just now replying to this thread but I didn't know about it until a customer and CPF member pointed it out to me last week and then CPF was down the next day. DOH!
Anyway, We've shipped almost 200 of these units and at last count have had like 8 RMA requests so clearly the issues some users are experiencing are not endemic to the product.
I've now tested 4 units and not been able to reproduce the problem, nor has TerraLUX using a controlled power supply at various voltages. TerraLUX tests every unit before shipping but only for a brief period.
I suspect that what we're looking at is a manufacturing defect on a small number of pieces, not a design defect, as the boost circuitry being used is a modified version of that being used in the TLE-5 and TLE-5EX - a proven circuit design with 10's of thousands of units on the market.
Anthony Catalano, the Founder/Principal of TerraLUX, has asked that anyone experiencing a problem please contact TerraLUX directly and not BatteryJunction for a return/exchange as they'd like to quickly get as many units in hand as possible that are exhibiting the issue. I want to be clear though - all Seoul SSC P4's typically run a bit blue - they want the DOA units, the units that turn VERY blue, very fast etc.
TerraLUX can be contacted as follows:
TerraLUX, Inc.
1501 Lee Hill Road,
Unit 4
Boulder, CO 80304
Ph: 866-498-1564
Fx: 303-942-3584
[email protected]
Tony is a busy guy so most likely you'll be talking to Jen who will arrange any call tags etc that are necessary. Jen's fantastic (I've been trying to steal her for a while now (SHHHH)) so please be nice to her - as I know you will be.
Thanks again for all of your great orders, kind words and understanding.
bguy
Newly Enlightened
Well, I got my order today, and I'm disappointed. First thing is, it wouldn't stay on for more than 1 second. Also, the Terralux is greener, and doesn't seem as bright as the MagLED. What happened to the "up to" 150 lumens they advertised?
I played with unscrewing and screwing it back on, to make sure it was threaded in right. And it was. Same result, blink, and off. I did apply battery directly, and it works. So it's not outright defective. I think it's due to the uneven pointy blob of solder on the end of the bayonet. But one shouldn't have to fix these for them to work. After I filed it flat it works better, but still blinks out randomly. I then tried it in the other Mag bought at the same time about 10 years ago, and it seems to work fine.
As I said, I'm disappointed. I expect an SSC replacement to exceed what I have from a Luxeon. If I didn't have the MagLED, I'd be thrilled to have something this bright. But it appears to be dimmer due to it being a little more floody. I would reccommend sticking with the MagLED for anyone thingking of it, since it's cheaper, brighter, and whiter.
I did an 11 min run to see if it faded and color shifted like many people comnmented on. I used a MagLED left off as a base for comparison. It didn't do anything major. But it did appear to shift to green a little more, and get a little dimmer. I took the head off and the LED base was "OUCH!" hot. Probably 150- 160F.
As for the TLE-5EX for my minimag, I like that! But then Maglite didn't come out with a dropin to compare it to. It's got a smooth floody beam about as bright as a moded Elly. But the Elly is pretty ringy. It doesn't throw like the 3AA minmag LED, but I did say it was floody. And the 5EX is warmer color than the 3AA Mag.
Bradley
Edit: I wanted to add that order processing and shipping from Batteryjunction was wicked fast! I ordered really late, and when I woke up I had a ship notification.
I played with unscrewing and screwing it back on, to make sure it was threaded in right. And it was. Same result, blink, and off. I did apply battery directly, and it works. So it's not outright defective. I think it's due to the uneven pointy blob of solder on the end of the bayonet. But one shouldn't have to fix these for them to work. After I filed it flat it works better, but still blinks out randomly. I then tried it in the other Mag bought at the same time about 10 years ago, and it seems to work fine.
As I said, I'm disappointed. I expect an SSC replacement to exceed what I have from a Luxeon. If I didn't have the MagLED, I'd be thrilled to have something this bright. But it appears to be dimmer due to it being a little more floody. I would reccommend sticking with the MagLED for anyone thingking of it, since it's cheaper, brighter, and whiter.
I did an 11 min run to see if it faded and color shifted like many people comnmented on. I used a MagLED left off as a base for comparison. It didn't do anything major. But it did appear to shift to green a little more, and get a little dimmer. I took the head off and the LED base was "OUCH!" hot. Probably 150- 160F.
As for the TLE-5EX for my minimag, I like that! But then Maglite didn't come out with a dropin to compare it to. It's got a smooth floody beam about as bright as a moded Elly. But the Elly is pretty ringy. It doesn't throw like the 3AA minmag LED, but I did say it was floody. And the 5EX is warmer color than the 3AA Mag.
Bradley
Edit: I wanted to add that order processing and shipping from Batteryjunction was wicked fast! I ordered really late, and when I woke up I had a ship notification.
Last edited:
WadeF
Flashlight Enthusiast
I'll give TerraLUX a call on Monday. I posted some beams shots on my web gallery here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/wadefulpng/Flashlights
The last 4 pictures are the TerraLUX going from white to blue. The last two pictures are the most accurate as I locked the exposure, focus, and white balance to daylight. The first two, where the beams are brighter, I locked the exposure, but not the white balance, however they still came out pretty accurate.
Also the unit gets almost too hot to touch. Is that kind of temperature normal, if the unit was working properly?
http://picasaweb.google.com/wadefulpng/Flashlights
The last 4 pictures are the TerraLUX going from white to blue. The last two pictures are the most accurate as I locked the exposure, focus, and white balance to daylight. The first two, where the beams are brighter, I locked the exposure, but not the white balance, however they still came out pretty accurate.
Also the unit gets almost too hot to touch. Is that kind of temperature normal, if the unit was working properly?
Last edited:
mattchase
Newly Enlightened
I have a question about my TerraLux LED. I noticed that it is soft and a bit squishy, more like a clear rubber bubble than a plastic LED. Is this normal? I checked 2 of my other LED lights (a Luxeon I and a Luxeon III) and both are hard plastic as I had expected them to be.
I haven't done any testing with mine yet to see if it suffers any of the problems listed in this thread, I've only turned it on long enough to shine around the room then back off again. I'm hoping to get a lux meter next week so I can do some readings with it and then will let it run for awhie and see what happens.
I haven't done any testing with mine yet to see if it suffers any of the problems listed in this thread, I've only turned it on long enough to shine around the room then back off again. I'm hoping to get a lux meter next week so I can do some readings with it and then will let it run for awhie and see what happens.
Modern_Major_General
Newly Enlightened
- Joined
- Jul 27, 2006
- Messages
- 140
That is normal.
pokkuhlag
Enlightened
Hi Folks,
Sorry that I'm just now replying to this thread but I didn't know about it until a customer and CPF member pointed it out to me last week and then CPF was down the next day. DOH!
Anyway, We've shipped almost 200 of these units and at last count have had like 8 RMA requests so clearly the issues some users are experiencing are not endemic to the product.
I've now tested 4 units and not been able to reproduce the problem, nor has TerraLUX using a controlled power supply at various voltages. TerraLUX tests every unit before shipping but only for a brief period.
I suspect that what we're looking at is a manufacturing defect on a small number of pieces, not a design defect, as the boost circuitry being used is a modified version of that being used in the TLE-5 and TLE-5EX - a proven circuit design with 10's of thousands of units on the market.
Anthony Catalano, the Founder/Principal of TerraLUX, has asked that anyone experiencing a problem please contact TerraLUX directly and not BatteryJunction for a return/exchange as they'd like to quickly get as many units in hand as possible that are exhibiting the issue. I want to be clear though - all Seoul SSC P4's typically run a bit blue - they want the DOA units, the units that turn VERY blue, very fast etc.
TerraLUX can be contacted as follows:
TerraLUX, Inc.
1501 Lee Hill Road,
Unit 4
Boulder, CO 80304
Ph: 866-498-1564
Fx: 303-942-3584
[email protected]
Tony is a busy guy so most likely you'll be talking to Jen who will arrange any call tags etc that are necessary. Jen's fantastic (I've been trying to steal her for a while now (SHHHH)) so please be nice to her - as I know you will be.
Thanks again for all of your great orders, kind words and understanding.
MattK, you gotta check this mini review out. It explains the possible failures on this module:
http://www.molalla.net/~leeper/tle6exb.htm
Durango360
Newly Enlightened
This is what mine looked like before I fixed it by adding thermal compound under the pill that was not touching the heatsink on one side. All is well now.
My UCL glass arrived after I took these pics...what a difference!
Fenix P3D on left
Underexposed 2 stops:
My UCL glass arrived after I took these pics...what a difference!
Fenix P3D on left
Underexposed 2 stops:
MattK
Flashlight Enthusiast
Mini-Review, indeed ! That's an awesome analysis !
TerraLux oughta' hire this man to review their circuit designs --
BEFORE they begin mass-production !
Newbie, you REALLY know yer' stuff, my friend ! :wow::goodjob:
:bow: -- :bow: -- :bow: -- :bow:
- and to pokkuhlag, thank you for the link to Newbie.
TerraLux oughta' hire this man to review their circuit designs --
BEFORE they begin mass-production !
Newbie, you REALLY know yer' stuff, my friend ! :wow::goodjob:
:bow: -- :bow: -- :bow: -- :bow:
- and to pokkuhlag, thank you for the link to Newbie.
scottaw
Enlightened
So, i've posted this thread a few times, seems i got super-lucky with mine. Good tint, didn't dim after a few minutes use, great light, etc. Just added a UCL lens last week with the LDF, wow, awesome, pretty much exactly the light i wanted it to be. So i take it camping to get some real use out of it, and test it out in "real world" conditions.....and some jackoff steals it while im asleep. "ohhh a maglite, i'll take this" and the most annoying part....he thought he was getting a sweet $15 flashlight, when in reality he got a $50ish awesome flashlight. Will i rebuild it? probably not, i have other lights that work for my needs, but i've had that mag for over 10 years, and i really liked it. Oh well.
eyeeatingfish
Enlightened
- Joined
- Apr 19, 2007
- Messages
- 920
Whats the difference between the EX and the EXB?
Same price form what i can tell... Am i missing something obvious?
Same price form what i can tell... Am i missing something obvious?
