PT EOS Seoul & Reflector Mod Writeup

[cave dave]

PT has a whole series of bike specific lights. But the EOS and APEX provide more bank for the buck IMHO.

PT switchback

[cave dave]

I just modified an EOS bike. Before I took it apart I compared it stock it to my modded reflector EOS and didn't see a huge difference brightness. When I took it apart I found out why, it had a S bin LuxI in it (SXPJ). I think the first EOS mod I did had a Q bin to begin with so I saw a huge jump that time.

Anyway since I'm going to use this as a helmet light I left the optic in. With a UVOH P4 in it did get brighter and the beam and tint improved.

Anyway this is just to say your mileage may vary.

[Supernam]

I think the best benefit from this mod is that you can use a lower level to achieve what you needed before for the same brightness. Most people don't run their headlamps on high anyway while hiking or camping. With the Seoul, I can run on the "low" setting and have enough light while extending runtime. Before, the low setting was too low for nighttime hiking. I not only want to see my feet, but the trail at least 15 feet ahead.

[greenLED]

I got to swap an R and a Q bin out of my Eos headlamps. The results are obviously brighter (did a bounce test and all), but nothing really to write home about. Maybe I'm just desensitized to the "brighter is better" bandwagon or something.

Yes, the headlamps are now brighter, but I wasn't "wow-ed" by the change. Anyway... I think part of what makes it hard to gauge differences is that the beam patterns are so different between the stock optic, the IMS17 I had in there before, and the new Khatod reflectors.

I used a stippled Khatod reflector in one, and left the stock optic in the other. The stippled reflector gives out one of the nicest, smoothest beams I've ever seen - it's gorgeous! and I'm not much of a wall hunter anymore. In any case, it's perfect for reading.

I tried a smooth Khatod reflector, but didn't see much of an improvement in beam over the IMS17, so I stuck with the stippled one.

I'll try to take some pics to add to the beamshots posted before.

Now I'm debating whether I should mod my Apex too, or save that emitter and mod something else.

[cave dave]

Now I'm debating whether I should mod my Apex too, or save that emitter and mod something else.

Of course you should mod the APEX. Are you new here or something?
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Just kidding, I wanted to use the new icon.

[greenLED]

Of course you should mod the APEX. Are you new here or something?
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Just kidding, I wanted to use the new icon.

Thank you for the warm welcome, cave dave. I've been lurking for a while, and only recently started posting. So much too learn. What's the cheapest, brightest, smallest, best light I can buy for $4.78?


Actually, I felt like I should be for the other day I absolutely needed a light and didn't have one on me... Yeah, that's right, not even a keychain light - nothing, zip, nada, zero, nuh-uh...

Banned, I tell ya,

[jch79]

Of course you should mod the APEX. Are you new here or something?
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Just kidding, I wanted to use the new icon.

Hey, I designed that icon! And I'm happy to use it in welcoming "greenLED" too!

john

[mikodude]

Hello, I'm a first time modder, long time listener, err, reader. Whatever...

I modded a few things last night, using some cree Q5's. First up was my beloved Eos. I was hoping for a lot from this mod, but I have to say I'm not completely impressed. I use this torch a load, from around the house/shed to strapping it to my helmet for night rides. I like the spot that comes out of this thing, and wanted to keep it that way. I found that I had an RXOH luxeon in there. Installing the Q5 left me with a beam with far less focus with the standard optics (which I wanted to keep). There is more light, but now it's everywhere.

To use the standard optics I also had to cut steps into the optic holder so that it would clear the substrate that the cree is mounted on. I think the beam is not so good, because if you look at the emitter it's sunken in the lense, compared to the luxeon which has a big dome, and the emitter actually stands proud of it's mounting.

All up I'm a bit disappointed. I've now ordered some Seouls (can't help myself!) and judging by their mounting I think they should look a lot better with the stock optics. I shouldn't have got caught up in the lux hype right from the start!

I also modded an old Cateye opticube for bar mount. For some reason there is less light coming out of that, and it's supposed to be running at 1A!

That's a whole other story. I have beam shots which I'll add at some stage.

Moral of the story, if you want to keep the spot with the stock optics, Seouls may be a better option. I'll post more as I go.

[greenLED]

Look, another new-comer! Welcome to CPF, mikodude.

Yup, the focal point on the Cree package is very different from the Seoul emitters. The Seoul emitter is 0.03" lower than the Luxeons, so you can still use the stock Lux optics and/or reflectors with minimal change in beam pattern. The XR-E's are a different story, and are generally a pain to retro-fit into Luxeon optics.

Hey, look at that! I sound like I know what I'm doing. Not bad for a newbie, heh, J?

[mikodude]

Thanks for the welcome!

I wish I'd known about the differences before. Oh well, live and learn. I'm sure I can come up with some cool projects for the crees when paired with suitable optics.

[tibim]

Hello, I'm a first time modder, long time listener, err, reader. Whatever...

I modded a few things last night, using some cree Q5's. First up was my beloved Eos. I was hoping for a lot from this mod, but I have to say I'm not completely impressed. I use this torch a load, from around the house/shed to strapping it to my helmet for night rides. I like the spot that comes out of this thing, and wanted to keep it that way. I found that I had an RXOH luxeon in there. Installing the Q5 left me with a beam with far less focus with the standard optics (which I wanted to keep). There is more light, but now it's everywhere.

To use the standard optics I also had to cut steps into the optic holder so that it would clear the substrate that the cree is mounted on. I think the beam is not so good, because if you look at the emitter it's sunken in the lense, compared to the luxeon which has a big dome, and the emitter actually stands proud of it's mounting.

All up I'm a bit disappointed. I've now ordered some Seouls (can't help myself!) and judging by their mounting I think they should look a lot better with the stock optics. I shouldn't have got caught up in the lux hype right from the start!

I also modded an old Cateye opticube for bar mount. For some reason there is less light coming out of that, and it's supposed to be running at 1A!

That's a whole other story. I have beam shots which I'll add at some stage.

Moral of the story, if you want to keep the spot with the stock optics, Seouls may be a better option. I'll post more as I go.

Indeed you are losing alot of the potential of the Cree LED because you are not using optics or reflectors designed for it.

Seoul LEDs will yield better results because the radiation pattern is similar to that of the luxeon you're replacing.

I would not try this mod(or any other application) with a cree LED unless I planned to use a reflector specifically designed for it.

-tibim

[greenLED]

Hey, miko, check out this thread:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/...d.php?t=175166

Cree-reflectors that might fit an Eos with a little bit of resizing off the top and sides. Nothing a little sanding paper can't handle.

[Cuso]

Hey, miko, check out this thread:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/...d.php?t=175166

Cree-reflectors that might fit an Eos with a little bit of resizing off the top and sides. Nothing a little sanding paper can't handle.

Not bad newbie...not bad .


I want to add that I Modded my EOS last night with some Seouls from DX, its brighter, but not a retina scorcher. I put the blame on input voltage. I measured 3.2v, and this stars have an input voltage of 3.7v. IM goin to try some textured kathods for a change. The stock optic is a bit too artifacty for my taste.

[greenLED]

Thank you, Cuso. It's nice to be welcomed like that. Like I said, I lurked for a while before joining.

You won't regret using the textured Khatods - the beam is absolutely gorgeous. Of course it hurts throw, but for indoor use, it's superb. Maybe part of the reason I wasn't "wow-ed" by the emitter swap is because of the floody beam. I can see the Seoul is brighter when doing a bounce test, but it's hard to gauge differences in brightness just by looking at the beam pattern and I don't have any fancy gear to make graphs and stuff.

[Supernam]

greenLED, do you know a source for USVOI stars? I want something warmer than USWOH's since I typically use headlamps for outdoor stuff. Thanks.

[greenLED]

Check PhotonFanatic's sales thread in the CPFM:

http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=85330

[jch79]

+1 to PhotonFanatic as a source for SSC LED's - Fred's service, shipping and product are all A+

john

[Ivanhoe]

I've been reading this thread today and am intrigued enough to try this mod. With all the options/parts out there/ or those that are no longer, Is there a
recipe with vendors to get this mod done. I know there are lots of options and variations so any info would help. I would like to source two reflectors one smooth and one stippled or I can self stipple. (Is that a word?) plus the proper emitter. I have solder skills, love to tear stuff apart, hope to remember how to put it back together and just like to try new stuff.

Rod

[greenLED]

Ivanhoe, I got 2 Seoul stars and the corresponding Khatod reflectors from PhotonFanatic - the link to his sales thread is a couple of posts before this one. Depending on the type of beam you want (throw vs. flood), you can choose between smooth or stippled reflectors, respectively.

It took me about 30 minutes to do both mods, and I didn't break anything this time around. I usually kill the lights or have something go terribly wrong when I mod.

[Cuso]

OK , received my Fenix reflector (Thanks Qip!!) . The fit is almost perfect, I say almost cuse I had to do a little grinding on the reflector, but it fits like a charm after..take a look at the pics...


The reflector - had to grind down the threads and the bottom lip.





Mounted on the optic holder-notice the perfect fit





Beamshot- Im not so good at taking beamshot pics.





The finished product- Love it!!




I'd LIke to thank, Qip for providing the Fenix reflector, Sigman for selling me this awesome headlamp, Northern Lights for providing the Seoul Leds and you guys for inspiring me to do the mod ...Cheers

[jch79]

Wow, nice job, Hector! GREAT pics too!

Great looking beamshot, and nice modding job!

john

[qip]

very nice.....the reflector is a very nice flood too i bet

[Ivanhoe]

I see the mcr18 reflector is back in stock at the shoppe. Any reason to use this and sand it down or just order the mcr18 "s" which is shorter to begin with? I already have some khatods en route but wanted more options.

[Grox]

I just modded my EOS with a USWOH star and a 17mm Khatod stippled reflector. It gave me exactly what I was looking for - a useable floody beam perfect for walking around with.

Thanks for the great pictorial walk through! Without it, I wouldn't have done this mod.

[Ivanhoe]

I did almost the exact thing last night as Grox- only difference I am still debating which reflector to keep (the smooth or the stippled) I may need to get another eos !!!

[pec50]

For those of you contemplating an EOS purchase and mod, a good deal can be had at the LLBean sale area on the Trailblazer (rebadged OES) for $24.95 with free shipping.

[Ivanhoe]

great heads-up pec50!!!just placed my order!

[xcandrew]

I'd say that anything from 3v to 7v would be acceptable, but at 3v you will probably only get the lower levels running at full power. The PT EOS circuit does very well on a single Li-Ion, such as an 18650.

I ordered a Seoul star from DX, a McR-18 S reflector from the Sandwich Shoppe, bought a soldering iron, etc. and am looking forward to doing my first mod on a light ever. The Luxeon in my Eos is a PX1JW, so I think I might see about a 4X improvement in brighness(?).

While I'm at it, I was thinking that I might as well make an external battery pack or two. Could those of you who use/made external packs explain how you did the mod (maybe with pictures)? I'd like to be able to run the Eos on high for at least two hours, preferrably three hours in the cold (-15C to -5C) for nordic skiing. I was thinking of trying two things: a 4AA case (such as http://tinyurl.com/2r2576 )with NiMH batteries kept (slightly warmer) in a pocket, and a single or double 18650 (wired in parallel like http://tinyurl.com/37bd78 ).

What kind of runtime would a single 18650 give me in the cold? Would the double 18650 be safe?

Would these connectors ( http://tinyurl.com/3xckht ) be adequate? I would use the headlamp in rain and snow, but won't be dunking it underwater.

What is the best way to wire the Eos? I searched the archives and know about using dowel dummy cells, and soldering leads to the battery contacts, but they might not be good if I want to be able to quickly switch to using the internal 3AAAs. Would soldering the leads to the "GND" and "VBAT" on the circuit board, and threading the wires through the front part of the light rather than the battery case side be advisable? (And are those solder blobs next to the GND and VBAT?) I might have to file away bits of the inside of the Eos to make room for the lead near the GND, but it looks like there is enough room under the optic/reflector assembly to run the wires out one side and allow for a strain-relief knot.

Thanks for any help.

[Ivanhoe]

I don't have the answers to the battery pack but just wanted to say I just modded my second EOS with the McR18s reflector and everything went well. I did need to wrap the reflector with two layers of electrical tape as it ratteled around a bit w/o it. Easy fix, just trim the tape to about 1/8" wide and wrap twice. Very nice beam. It differs from my previous eos mod but more because of emitter tint than anything else. My second emitter has a much more pleasing (brighter) tint than my first. (both USWOH)

[Supernam]

I ordered a Seoul star from DX, a McR-18 S reflector from the Sandwich Shoppe, bought a soldering iron, etc. and am looking forward to doing my first mod on a light ever. The Luxeon in my Eos is a PX1JW, so I think I might see about a 4X improvement in brighness(?).

While I'm at it, I was thinking that I might as well make an external battery pack or two. Could those of you who use/made external packs explain how you did the mod (maybe with pictures)? I'd like to be able to run the Eos on high for at least two hours, preferrably three hours in the cold (-15C to -5C) for nordic skiing. I was thinking of trying two things: a 4AA case (such as http://tinyurl.com/2r2576 )with NiMH batteries kept (slightly warmer) in a pocket, and a single or double 18650 (wired in parallel like http://tinyurl.com/37bd78 ).

What kind of runtime would a single 18650 give me in the cold? Would the double 18650 be safe?

If you were using 1000mAh AAA nimh's, that would be 3.6v. An 18650 is 3.7-4.2v while fresh with more than double the capacity. You don't have to worry about too much voltage with this battery, because if you were using AAA alkalines, it would be about 4.5 volts. You'll be safe by a good margin. 2 18650's in parallel should give you 4x's the runtime over nimh's.

I looked that the solder blobs and can't tell if they lead strait to the battery. Perhaps a voltmeter will tell?