The McLux has landed!

[Nerd]

I have a feeling it won't be cheap since it's custom made. But who knows.. I sure won't mind a 3 123 version if it exist with a 5 watt white and a Mcflood reflector. But even if there is such an option, I don't think it will come cheap. Let's wait and see...

Aw... look, you guys made me left a puddle on the floor, and it's my own drool..... [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img]

[Kiessling]

ready to use with lots of battery packs and 1W and 5W and all colors of LEDS and ... and ...
bernhard
[img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[FalconFX]

This looks good, really good. Only quirk I might have is with the tail maybe catching onto something with their holes... Small price to pay, though, as the look is very clean.

Also, I'm not too sure if the clip can come off, but if it does comes off, that would be even better, as a light in a jean pocket with a clip and other stuff bouncin' around may not be too good, at least for my pref...

That's my initial thoughts. Now, I guess I'll stand next in line...

[yclo]

From the photos, the clip does come off since it's only fastened on the "guard" via two screws.

But I'm only guessing..

[zackhugh]

I posted in a different thread yesterday when McGizmo revealed it, but my reaction is still the same: I want one! And because it's custom and limited in supply, I'm willing to pay a premium for it. SkunkLights members are probably happy to hear that. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Steve

[Sigman]

Hats off to the "Team"!! I salute you... (and after 21 years in the USAF, a salute is absolutely RESPECT - I don't take it lightly!)

And yes I hope I have the opportunity to purchase!

[Sigman]

Question: If there are only going to be "50" available...is there a way to prevent a reoccurrence of the "CPF 50 Special" mad rush in which some folks donated in "hopes" of getting a G2 but didn't? (nothing wrong at all with donating to this Forum mind you, but when given a chance to get "something" in addition to all of the positive things that we constantly receive from the CPF...that was "ICING ON THE CAKE!!)

With over 3000 members here, it'll be like "winning the lottery"! Well maybe not to all, but I would certainly appreciate an opportunity to purchase one!

I think that's why we've been having "Server/DNS problems", this announcement was made and now the whole Internet is trying to get in here!! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[Sean]

Nice bezel down clip! Not even Surefire could incorperate that type of skilled craftsmanship! [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

[bucken]

Hope I can win the McLux lottery for one of these! If you can fit the head on an E1, then it will also fit the E2, right? An awesome 5W, maybe.

(Edit) Think I would prefer the EN finish, in a turn-key package. How difficult would it be to change the LED later? I would definately want to try a short-run-time 5W!

[MR Bulk]

Hey yeah, bucken's response brings to mind a question - with a 5-watt white in there, which optical solution is best? I know the NX-05 is only good for the Lambertian (no Bats in 5W) and it won't go with an SE 5W...so an SE 5W would use...McFlood? And if the driver is a BB500, any chance of getting the BB750 instead? Since I would only use this as a short-runtime 5-watter for quick, bright inspections and "wowing the boys"...

[Carpe Diem]

I`m in...for whatever!

[img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Termac]

Hello Skunks, I have been eagerly awaiting this "secret" product for many months, it seems. I'd like to get one of every part, including a long tail. Does the production McLux simply take complete badboy/Madmax sandwich modules? That is one thing which hasn't been explained to date.

I hope that was a typo, where you say 50 units instead of 500.

[Lucien]

Been away from the forums for a bit, and am I glad I came back now [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

I'd probably get in line for one of these, if for nothing else than for how good it looks... Is it too early for making this Christmas's wish list? [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img]

[B@rt]

[img]graemlins/icon14.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/icon14.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/icon14.gif[/img]

Smell the light?... [img]images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[aso]

Can we have a size comparison with the CPF standards?

[JollyRoger]

Guys, the McLux head will fit the E1, as well as the E2. What is inside it...well...if you would like one specifically with a BB500...or BB750 (for use with a 5-watt and 2 123's), then you might want to look into building your own, a buying the needed parts separately from Wayne's Sandwich shop.

For all practical purposes, the 5 watt and McLux might be overkill, unless you're trying to light up the driveway for a night-time game of basketball!

A 1-watt paired with the McLux gives decent flood and very good illumination for most jobs. Currently, the optics and the 5w do offer more throw, but I personally wouldn't use this combination.

The clip *does* come off, if you unscrew the two screws. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Tree]

Aso, there's some prototype pics Don's page here, I don't know how much different the size of the prototype is from the new release.

How much $ BTW?

[JollyRoger]

Final $$ have not yet been determined. But for now, all I can say is somewhere between $100 and $1000.
[img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
It's going to be a realistic price, guys. For the quality of the light and the amount of work that went into it, the price will be very well-justified.

[B@rt]

Here is a good pic for size comparison:

[FalconFX]

HOLY MO******....

SureFire heaven and a whole lot of lathe hours. An aluminum/steel masterssembly.
[img]graemlins/icon14.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/icon14.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/icon14.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/icon14.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/icon14.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Likin' it so far. Approximo same size as an E1x...

Very nice. A 5W can probably then be driven in it and be approximo the same size as an E2x.

[cave dave]

Very nice!How will these be distributed. Can you put me in for the lottery.

[bmsmith]

A small side note from me... I love the logo! Awesome light!

[JollyRoger]

cave dave, these will most likely be individually hand-delivered by darell.

just kidding! hee-hee.
[img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Most likely through dat2zip's sandwich shop.

The logo is a nice touch from our marketing wizard, hotfoot.

[LoneRebel]

This light looks fantastic. I'm interested depending upon the the final price. Great job guys!

[Darell]

Whoa! Look what happens when I wake up the next morning! Let me see if I can pick up all these. I'm sure glad Wayne and Roger jumped in!

Originally posted by Jeff:
I simply like the light for its aesthetics.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">
Cool. So do we. Compatibility was just something we threw in. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

I didn't see what the light was made of. Aluminum or stainless?

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">The whole thing is aluminum, save the obvious parts and the *removeable* SS clip

[Darell]

The entire light is EN coated (or HAIII black) even over the blasting. Please note that the EN coating is softer and will scratch easier than the HAIII. But the good news is that the metal under the EN coating is roughly the same color as the coating, so from a slight distance scratches won't really show. If you manage to scratch the black one, the scratches WILL show.

Yes the head will fit on an E2 (or a long-tailed multi-123 pack), but the BadBoy boards we use won't handle more than the 3V it was designed for. For mods, a multi-123 pack can be perfect with a driver of your choice.

The emitter is Arctic Silvered to the massive bulkhead offering the best heat-sinking that I've ever seen. There is NO barrier for the heat to enter the entire massive/finned head and dissipate to the environment. The emitter can be removed by heating it to soften the adhesive and popping it off. This destroys the LED of course.

[Darell]

tri-mode beam configuration - As Wayne stated, this is not a "focussable" beam by any means. What we mean is that the light can be set up to look just like all the other LS lights running around out there with the optics in place. OR it can have the McFlood, or nothing at all. The McFlood is an awesome compromise and seems to work the best for us. Sometimes to impress your friends you have to drop the optics in to paint the spot on the far wall.

We aren't keeping you out of this thing. The optics can be swapped whenever the mood strikes you. The switch can be replaced, the SS clip can be removed.

If we build some turn-key units, there won't be many configurable items. Far too much to keep track of. If you want a colored LED, a different driver, etc... then you'll want to build your own.

[Darell]

Originally posted by Nerd:
I have a feeling it won't be cheap since it's custom made.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Thanks for pointing this out, Nerd. I said much the same thing in the announcement. This is not a retrofit of a $10 flashlight (no slight meant to the guys who do the awesome mods to every-day lights!). Except for the Kroll switch, this thing is completely built to our specs. We funded this small run so we could have McLuxes in our own pockets - and we knew the per unit cost would be steep because of the small quantities. We purposefully shot high on our quantities so other interested folks could have a shot at owning one. No way could we afford to pull off hundreds or thousands of these though.

[McGizmo]

Wow,

Quite a bit of interest here!

I'd like to throw in some comments observations here.

If you can't find what you want and can't talk someone into making it, your left with making it or getting it made yourself. There are certain features about the McLux that we liked and wanted in our own EDC's and we couldn't talk any of the *real* flashlight manufacturers into incorporating these ideas into their lines. As flashaholics, we wanted some simple mod building blocks so we could mix and match and mess around. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

There were a couple key and basic criteria that were addressed in the design and requirements of the limited production run of the parts:

</font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">1 watt (with option of 5W) Luxeon light source</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Beam shape options: flood or optics</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">simple and solid heat sink via integrated sink bulkhead</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">significant mass and surface area for thermal relief</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">simple and direct electrical paths for ground and positive</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">replaceable and accessible components</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">bezel down carry</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">multiple lanyard, tether and mounting options</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">compatability with other existing flashlight components; head and power pak</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">guarded tail switch with stand up feature</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">mineral glass or sapphire crystal lens options

• modularity where possible</font>

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial"></font><ul type="square">[*]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">stout material construction with components well protected from shock, environment and rough use (utility over style)</font>[/list]<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">As someone pointed out above, We let the function dictate form on this light. Personally, although I don't care for the beam from the optics, we all agreed that having this option was important and we already had the McFlood which was designed as an option to the Lumiled optics. The McFlood sets this light aside from others. There are many professional and fine lights available using the Luxeons and stock optics but where the McLux has gone off on its own is as a feature rich task light for in close work and a variety of means of carry and deployment where hands free use is desired. This is not a tactical light; rather it's a work and task light. We wanted a state of the art, quality tool that would meet most of our typical needs and not necessarily have the "wow" factor of other lights we have acquired as flashaholics. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] This was to be an EDC light.
Room has been provided in the electronics cavity for not only Wayne's current offering of Bad Boys and Mad Max's but for future wonders as well. At this point, we haven't a clue how this is going to pan out but we did get enough parts made so we can share some of them with our CPF friends.

I should also point out that the primary power source in consideration is a single 123 cell. Obviously the power pak length can be extended for multiple cells and other strategies. Leo had one drawing with I think 6 different lengths [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] To accommodate 2xA (Roger and his NiMH's [img]images/icons/rolleyes.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] ) or 2xAA or 3x123, Leo slipped some of the "Long Tails" in on us. I have already taken one of these and cut and rethreaded it to a 2x123 length so I could use a Copia 168b Li-Ion with a KL1 bezel.

We have kind of taken a "build your own to suit your needs" approach here since we certainly can't leave well enough alone and it looks like we're not alone in this!

It looks like we need to get more images available showing the components and possible assembly strategies. We can also try to document the various combinations of both the McLux components as well as the myriad of mixes with branded components.

- Don

[Darell]

Originally posted by FalconFX:
HOLY MO******....

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">
See? This is the kind of feedback we're looking for. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

Approximo same size as an E1x...

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Well, it is about 4" long. Longer than an E1, shorter than an E2. It is the perfect size for the hand. To create a light that was multi-configurable (and tail-switchable!) it had to be a bit longer. We even left some "growth" room in the PCB cavity for future WayneMagic™. The bezel-down clip makes this light just disappear on your pants or in your pocket, however.