"Different is cool" when it comes to the Mule. What U got?

Look at this:


A mule aleph with a Nichia Rigel LED (CORRECTION!!! THE EMITTER IS A "083" Nichia) based Light engine. I don't need top tell you that this isn't the cleanest soldering work. I didn't do it so don't lean on me. OK? That said. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. It may not look pretty but it is beautiful. To me anyway.
Info on this one is that it is a Nichia Rigel LED being driven at 280 mAh. I get really good run-time and a nice quality of cool white light from it.
I was real lucky to get it. IMHO This Light engine is another example of "different is cool" when it comes to the Mule. Hey that rhymes.
Those disks which cover the Gut's are cool BUT...The bare glass bottom boat view is cooler. I like seeing what is going on behind the scenes. Any opportunity to see the action is good. IMHO.
I have a carbon fiber donut coming because carbon is cool stuff and makes a good heat sink. I also have a Tritium donut coming it will be clear allowing for a view of the guts and will have 4 trits in it.

I have stuck lux V LE in there. LUX III's this Nichia, Cree based LE's And I continue to look for Light engines, Not so much for their light output (that is important though) But also for the aesthetic value. Yes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and I am very interested in whatever new cool and unusual Light engines and assemblies you guys have cooked up in your labs. I know Don must have a few but there must be others as well.
Please feel free to post your good, bad, excellent and other images and drawings of Light engines "under the glass" for all of us to see.
Yaesumofo

Looks pretty cool to me. Does the builder of that LE have any more?

schiesz

I don't think so. If they did I am sure we would hear about it.
Yaesumofo

schiesz said:

Looks pretty cool to me. Does the builder of that LE have any more?

schiesz

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yaesumofo said:

I have a carbon fiber donut coming because carbon is cool stuff and makes a good heat sink.

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Howdy yaesumofo! :wave:

I like things that are different. Like??? :thinking: ....... :hahaha:ME! .... :eeksign: :sick2: :thumbsdow Sheesh, I hear you :green: but take it easy on poor kenster! :mecry: :nana: Anyway, I like your light engine :thumbsup: but a carbon fiber disk floating around in the Mule head will not be a anything I would call a heatsink. It will be absorbing heat from the small amount of air that is sealed inside the head and basically stay there inside the head the same as it would if the CF disk wasn`t there. If the CF disk is thick enough and thermal compound was used for thermal relief to the head??? :shrug: Blah, BLAH, BLAH kenster! It makes sense to me but

BTW, ignore the above rambling nonsense and what I think about anything because I am always wrong and of course... BUT HAPPY!


Ken :tinfoil:

I understand that carbon fibre moves heat quite well. I could be wrong...
Kenster you are a bit nuts but thats cool.
One of these days I will be lucky enough to fall into one of your super cool offers or deals..one can hope anyway..havea great day.
MOfo

yaesumofo said:

I don't think so. If they did I am sure we would hear about it.
Yaesumofo

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I think I know where the LE came from now, and its probably safe to say there will not be a lot more coming from there in the near future.

A source of cheap, low current LEs sure would do well right now with all these affordable empty mules that are making it out into the wild.

schiesz

Kenster is a rare bread in deed. I will never forget his kindness that he has shown to me.

I dont believe it is a mystery is it? I think the master himself McGizmo sent
Yaesumofo an entire Mule with LE awhile ago for his wife.?:thumbsup:

Yep...I like different.

yaesumofo, you have got some lights that exhibit a lot of personality. While I prefer utilitarian look of the light engine in your "mule excitement" thread, the Nichia is really cool just because it is so out of the ordinary.

It is like going to a car show and seeing an old slant 6 Plymouth Barracuda with a paisley vinyl interior, after seeing a hundred other cars with a big block and black interiors. The "different" car is the one that you remember.

Very cool. :thumbsup:

That LE doesn't have a Rigel on it. That is a "083" Nichia and the leads were soldered after assembly. The thin PCB had a great thermal connection to the E-screw and it was very difficult to get the solder hot enough to flow. The PCB was not designed for that LED either. That LE was built strictly for bench and field evaluation which it served faultlessly; aesthetics of presentation were never a consideration.

As mostly a favor to someone who contacted me for a "bargain LE", I let this one go. Had I known it would appear on the forum in Macro and all its glory with a side comment on the solder job :thinking: :shrug: No worries. It is what it is and does what it does.

The mules are already different and cool. I believe they appeal to those who (finally) realize that adequate edc lighting isn't all about throw, it is about a nicely, evenly, distributed flood of light.

The Aleph mules seem to be such a wonderful product. So many mix-and-match or "lego" options. I need to save some dollars and buy one.

I think there may be a market, likely still small, for mulish light engines with Cree or Nichia emitters. As a certified geek who loves to use his toys on hikes, climbs, etc, I see value in having a selection of LEs, such as a very long-running, dimmer LE for when trekking at night on trails, then another LE that has more output for use in more urban environments. But I could be wrong, and it wouldn't be the first time.

I like the different discs for the mules too. This is another opportunity to further personalize a limited production/custom light. I'd love a GITD disc, a CF disc, a Ti disc, etc. Honestly, my wish is for purely cosmetic purposes. I also like to see the "guts" of the light too. Very refreshing and appealing to an old-time technogeek like me.

Ramble, ramble. I'd love to see a beamshot of this LE vs. a more standard Mule if possible, yaesumofo. Also an estimate of runtime too. I know I'd appreciate it!

Sorry about getting that wrong. I had no idea what type of emitter it was so I looked and tried to figure out what it was. I figured wrong. The Rigel seemed to fit the specs.
I am glad to know what it is.
It continues to serve faultlessly and I am sure it will continue to do so for years to come. I really like how it looks it has character.
I appreciate your kindness greatly Don.:thumbsup: If you did not want me to expose it I certainly would not have shown it on the forum sorry for exposing it.
It really emits a very nice cool white light which IMHO is quite perfect. the drive level allows for good run time. For me it is better than running a much Hotter running LUX III based unit. I pulled a bunch of Le's from different alephs I have around here and all of them run too hot and too bright for my use of the Mule.
I will tell you that I feel really lucky that Don chose to sell me this light engine. I knew that even if it was a bargain ( I still payed a good bit of quality green cash for it) qnd that if Don made it that it would be a good quality of light producing Light engine.

Yes it is what it is and it does very well. I hope it's exposure has not upset you.
Sorry if it did.


Yaesumofo

McGizmo said:

That LE doesn't have a Rigel on it. That is a "083" Nichia and the leads were soldered after assembly. The thin PCB had a great thermal connection to the E-screw and it was very difficult to get the solder hot enough to flow. The PCB was not designed for that LED either. That LE was built strictly for bench and field evaluation which it served faultlessly; aesthetics of presentation were never a consideration.

As mostly a favor to someone who contacted me for a "bargain LE", I let this one go. Had I known it would appear on the forum in Macro and all its glory with a side comment on the solder job :thinking: :shrug: No worries. It is what it is and does what it does.

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Looks good to me...:twothumbs

I completed two LE's, with the Nichia 365nm UV chip, so I know how hard those little square suckers are to work with...:mecry::sweat:

Yaesumofo,
I have no problem with you showing this LE. I consider it some of my finest work and I built this prototype solely with presentation in mind. :nana:

I don't need top tell you that this isn't the cleanest soldering work. I didn't do it so don't lean on me.

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So what, lean on me?

I am honored that you sent me something which you consider to be some of your finest work.
I will keep it safe and sound in it's new home.
I am sure by the response to the mule and the lack of Le's around here that there would be a steady market for a "budget" (I don't buy that really) Light engine. In the end it is more important to me that the Light engine is not a screamer. just a nice clean light with multiple hour run time.
Budget comes to mind in the miser sense. this LE sips juice in comparison to all of the Le's I have installed in flashlights around here. It comes down to the less is more thing.
I remember being the ???? beta tester or something on the miser mode PD with the Seoul emitter. I still have that and us Ethe "low " a lot. this is light with a permanent low. If they were easier to make I am sure there would be great demand. This would be the same if the Rigel emitter was used.
Cool stuff. I am running around with some of Don's best work in my pocket!!! Now that is cool!!!

Yaesumofo

McGizmo said:

Yaesumofo,
I have no problem with you showing this LE. I consider it some of my finest work and I built this prototype solely with presentation in mind. :nana:



So what, lean on me?

Click to expand...

I am honored that you sent me something which you consider to be some of your finest work.
I will keep it safe and sound in it's new home.
I am sure by the response to the mule and the lack of Le's around here that there would be a steady market for a "budget" (I don't buy that really) Light engine. In the end it is more important to me that the Light engine is not a screamer. just a nice clean light with multiple hour run time.
Budget comes to mind in the miser sense. this LE sips juice in comparison to all of the Le's I have installed in flashlights around here. It comes down to the less is more thing.
I remember being the ???? beta tester or something on the miser mode PD with the Seoul emitter. I still have that and us Ethe "low " a lot. this is light with a permanent low. If they were easier to make I am sure there would be great demand. This would be the same if the Rigel emitter was used.
Cool stuff. I am running around with some of Don's best work in my pocket!!! Now that is cool!!!

Yaesumofo

McGizmo said:

Yaesumofo,
I have no problem with you showing this LE. I consider it some of my finest work and I built this prototype solely with presentation in mind. :nana:



So what, lean on me?

Click to expand...