Turning a Mag into a monster

Ive got a 3-D mag with mag's LED which is decent, bud id really like brighter.. Im a bit confused on where to go brighter. I wouldnt mind changing the reflector as long as i still can focus the light. My only other criteria is that id like to retain the WEIGHT and durability of the light (its been used as a hammer several times) after the upgrade.

I also have 2 Mini-mag AA id like to upgrade as well. The above criteria doesn't apply to them.

TerraLUX LED upgrade might be brighter than the stock LED, but I don't know.

But for premium LED upgrade, you could go for a Malkoff Drop-In for $75

The best LED upgrade(Besides modding) would be to buy as Malkoffdevices Drop-in. A big jump over the MagLED. The Single Seoul P4 LED Elektrolumens drop-in won't out throw the MagLED drop-in but the Tri LED one should out throw the MagLED.

The Terralux drop-in is a cheaper solution(But not as bright as the above).

The newer LEDs(Cree XR-E P4 to R2 bin, Seoul P4 U bin, and Luxeon Rebel 100) have double or more the efficiency of the Luxeon I, III, V and K2 LEDs(The Luxeon III is used in the MagLED). That means for the same power, the newer LEDs would make double or more light then the previous LEDS.

:welcome:

P.S. this light has similar output(But much less throw) as the MagLED that you currently have.

What Joshatdot and Gunner12 said.

And if you want to make it screaming bright, you should try the ROP-mod. Allthough that is incadescent, so you might not be able to use your light as a hammer anymore without breaking the bulb.

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/120462
If you're tight on cash, you can get the reflector and 3AAtoD-adapter at www.kaidomain.com. The other parts shouldnt be hard to get.

the terralux will be 2-3 times as bright as what you have now.
the malkoff will be 4-5x

off all three the terralux is the lumens to runtime to cost champion (even when you take out the cost factor)

There's another new option for the 3D Mag. Elektro-Lumens is selling a 3xP4 drop-in for the 3D Mag for $99.99. It's a very slick module, which out-shines the Malkoff by a good bit, but it only works with a 3-cell light. They also have a 1-LED module for $49.99.

Jmark said:

Ive got a 3-D mag with mag's LED which is decent, bud id really like brighter.. Im a bit confused on where to go brighter. I wouldnt mind changing the reflector as long as i still can focus the light.

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I can't speak for your purposes that you "need" a focusable light, but as a long time user of Maglites myself, I also got used to the focus feature and thought I "needed" it in other lights I'd buy.

Wrong.

With the super-bright LED lights available today, focusing isn't that much of an issue anymore. I think you'll find that a good "thrower" equipped with an OP reflector will give you exactly what you want without futzing with focusing.

Additionally, I never thought much about the really crappy artifacts that range all over the place with the Maglites, even when they're converted to LED use (I put a Terralux in one of my 3-D cells). But now that I've gone to LED lights almost exclusively, artifacts from my Maglites drive me nuts. And you ARE going to continue getting nasty artifacts with an LED converted Maglite that's focusable.

The ability to focus isn't that practical or useful anymore because of the huge amount of light these new ones put out, so I would echo the suggestion to go with the Electro Lumens Monster Throw's. These LED's put out so much light that you are going to get PLENTY of "throw" as well as PLENTY of spill from any of the well designed ones.
For my part, and in context of your wanting to turn your Maglite into a "monster", I just ordered the Elektro Lumens Monster III, a triple LED head that is supposed to put out 600 lumens. (Note that the EL's can only be used with 3-D or 3-C cell lights, NOT 2, 4, or 6 cell.
That's pretty "monster" for a Maglite drop-in that doesn't require any modification other than to sand off a little bit of anodizing to make proper contact.

Have a look at this thread showing installation and beamshots of a single LED Elektrolumens Monster Throw.
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/181157

Zenster said:

The ability to focus isn't that practical or useful anymore because of the huge amount of light these new ones put out..

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That's only partly correct. The Malkoff drop-in, even though it uses a camless reflector, benefits from focusing by raising or lowering the head/reflector in relation to the emitter. There's a sweet spot which provides the tightest cleanest beam. Crank the head further from the emitter, or tight down to the body, and you get a pronounced donut or black spot in the center of the beam.

With the EL modules, particularly the 3-LED model, each reflector maximizes it's own beam. The MT-3 should be thought of as three beams, rather than one. You can actually see the '3-leaf clover' pattern of the 3 individual beams, closeup on a white wall or ceiling. The module is in the head of the light, rather than the body, and it does not benefit from the position of the head in relation to the body.

I have about 10 D and C cell mags and all of them have LED modules. I NEVER use the focus feature. I like the most focused center possible. You still get enormous amounts of spill. Anything else just gives you a huge black hole in the middle with no added spill and even more artifacts. In fact, I usually use Locktite 242 to keep mine focused.

I really like the Terralux. It's cheap and doesn't fade over time like the Mag drop-in. Just take the bulb retainer and put it in the tail cap foam along with the replacement bulb so you don't lose it. It is also prefectly focused when I screw the head on all the way, but that could just be a fluke.

I guess the Luxeon stars are good thought

donn_ said:

That's only partly correct. The Malkoff drop-in, even though it uses a camless reflector, benefits from focusing by raising or lowering the head/reflector in relation to the emitter. There's a sweet spot which provides the tightest cleanest beam. Crank the head further from the emitter, or tight down to the body, and you get a pronounced donut or black spot in the center of the beam.

Click to expand...

That's my point. Even with a good LED drop-in like the Malkoff, focusing is worthless other than to get the BEST beam.
But to think of it as being focusable in order to vary the beam from being a narrow thrower to being a flood doesn't make any sense.

With the Terralux in my 3-D cell, there are really only two focus "positions", and nothing that would be considered a focus "range" from throw to flood.
The two positions are:
1. Adjust the beam to the tightest possible which gives the best throw.
2. Adjust the beam out until you just begin to see a donut hole in the middle, and then adjust tighter just a smidgeon until the hole disappears. It's that position that gives the best overall, useful beam.

Any other focus adjustment is just plain ugly, and you get a big hole and no really good light, even in the spill. I don't think it's unreasonable to assume that the Malkoff works exactly the same way because whether you use the Terralux or the Malkoff, you're still stuck with the original Maglite reflector no matter how you focus.

As far as the ELektro Lumes Monster III goes with it's 3 LED's, you may be able to see three individual lights on a wall up close (like inches), but from the beam shot I saw in another thread that was done at only 12 feet, the hot spot appears to be perfectly round.
To me, a 600 lumen light is not a light I would use to light things up only a foot or two away, so I think your thoughts about seeing 3 individual lights from the Monster III isn't based on the reality of how it works.
There are other multi-LED lights on the market, and I've seen none that exhibit any tendency to appear as individual spots in normal use.

Check out the beam shots here, and note that both of the lights shown (the Monster III is on the right) are configured with 3 LED's in a non-focusable head.
http://elektrolumens.com/DropIn/MonsterThrow.html

Zenster said:

That's my point. Even with a good LED drop-in like the Malkoff, focusing is worthless other than to get the BEST beam.
But to think of it as being focusable in order to vary the beam from being a narrow thrower to being a flood doesn't make any sense.

With the Terralux in my 3-D cell, there are really only two focus "positions", and nothing that would be considered a focus "range" from throw to flood.
The two positions are:
1. Adjust the beam to the tightest possible which gives the best throw.
2. Adjust the beam out until you just begin to see a donut hole in the middle, and then adjust tighter just a smidgeon until the hole disappears. It's that position that gives the best overall, useful beam.

Any other focus adjustment is just plain ugly, and you get a big hole and no really good light, even in the spill. I don't think it's unreasonable to assume that the Malkoff works exactly the same way because whether you use the Terralux or the Malkoff, you're still stuck with the original Maglite reflector no matter how you focus.

As far as the ELektro Lumes Monster III goes with it's 3 LED's, you may be able to see three individual lights on a wall up close (like inches), but from the beam shot I saw in another thread that was done at only 12 feet, the hot spot appears to be perfectly round.
To me, a 600 lumen light is not a light I would use to light things up only a foot or two away, so I think your thoughts about seeing 3 individual lights from the Monster III isn't based on the reality of how it works.
There are other multi-LED lights on the market, and I've seen none that exhibit any tendency to appear as individual spots in normal use.

Check out the beam shots here, and note that both of the lights shown (the Monster III is on the right) are configured with 3 LED's in a non-focusable head.
http://elektrolumens.com/DropIn/MonsterThrow.html

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I have to disagree with you on the first part. I have the Malkoff in a 3D mag and I have both the smooth and stippled reflectors. Once I put a reflector in there, I will focus it to achieve desired beam and leave it.

Yesterday when I was outside I had the smooth reflector on, I turned it a few times and got decent flood that I was looking for. IF you focus all the way, you get the donut. I know where and when to stop, so as to avoid the black donut. Either way I use my light outside and not on walls, but I notice a huge difference with the focus.

IcantC said:

I have to disagree with you on the first part. I have the Malkoff in a 3D mag and I have both the smooth and stippled reflectors. Once I put a reflector in there, I will focus it to achieve desired beam and leave it.

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You are in fact completely agreeing with me on the first part I mention.

What I said is that the only "focus" you really get is to focus for the best (you used the word "desired"... same thing) beam and leave it.

That is exactly the point I made which puts us in complete agreement.
What you do NOT get is a useful range of focus as most people who have not used these lights probably believe is possible. But it is not.

I want to be perfectly clear about this so that people don't rush out and think that they are going to have a truly "focusable range" Maglite when they drop in a drop-in of any brand.
They just won't.

Zenster..you are certainly free to disagree with me, but I would appreciate it if you would address what I write, and not try to put words in my mouth.

Nowhere did I say I saw "three individual lights on a wall.." Nor did I claim the hotspot was anything other than "perfectly round."

I said the MT-3's output was not one beam, rather three, each formed by its own individual reflector. If it were possible to move those LED's up or down in their individual reflectors, you would see differences in the nature of their beams.

But to think of it as being focusable in order to vary the beam from being a narrow thrower to being a flood doesn't make any sense.

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I've had lots of Maglites, and still do, with all sorts of different lamp and reflector configurations, but I've never had one which can be focused as you describe, without suffering from the same beam distortions I described from focusing the Malkoff. In my experience and opinion, the cleanest beam from an incan Mag is on tight focus; not all the way down, but up a bit in the reflector. When you crank it all the way down, or open it up to a floodier position, the beam becomes distorted.

Gunner12 said:

The newer LEDs(Cree XR-E P4 to R2 bin, Seoul P4 U bin, and Luxeon Rebel 100) have double or more the efficiency of the Luxeon I, III, V and K2 LEDs(The Luxeon III is used in the MagLED). That means for the same power, the newer LEDs would make double or more light then the previous LEDS.

Click to expand...

Nuwai NiCd light with a Luxeon 1 driven at 490mA. Swapped star for P4 (T-bin) from DX. Measured light output in total at 3x previous (photographic light meter, results not comparable with anyone else's but 1.5 stops brighter) at a drawn current of 290mA. So 3x the brightness at a little over half the current draw. Actually my current favourite light. Nuwai's website no longer admits to this device but it is an ALX-1213N. Modded one for a local cop who is delighted with it and his colleagues all want one.

Zenster said:

You are in fact completely agreeing with me on the first part I mention.

What I said is that the only "focus" you really get is to focus for the best (you used the word "desired"... same thing) beam and leave it.

That is exactly the point I made which puts us in complete agreement.
What you do NOT get is a useful range of focus as most people who have not used these lights probably believe is possible. But it is not.

I want to be perfectly clear about this so that people don't rush out and think that they are going to have a truly "focusable range" Maglite when they drop in a drop-in of any brand.
They just won't.

Click to expand...

Oh sorry misunderstood you. I then agree with you my friend. Yes there is no "range" as they speak of. It is either Flood or throw. Unless you count black donuts as range