Malkoff M61 Modded

[lewong]

I received my Malkoff M61 last week. I bought it with the intention of modding it with the Shiningbeam three-mode regulated circuit board (SKU 1218).



First, I removed the potting and contact spring. In the process, I destroyed the Malkoff driver board. I used a Dremel to reduce the diameter of the Shiningbeam board so it would fit inside the drop-in.

The Shiningbeam board works as advertised - I measured 1.4 A on high, 450 mA on medium and 65 mA on low. I’m not enamored with the yellow-green tint of the LED; maybe I’ll replace it down the line.



I have also used the Shiningbeam board in a DX XP-G R5 drop-in (SKU 32954). Compared to the Malkoff, the DX XP-G R5 has more throw and a lot less spill. The color of the DX drop-in is very cool.

After disassembling the M61, it’s easy to see that this is a most robust, well-built drop-in - which is why I have bought many of Gene's products. I can see why a professional would be able to rely on this drop-in in a life or death situation. But flashlights for me are a hobby, which is why I wanted to mod this drop-in to have (a more useful for me) three modes.

[bigchelis]

Very cool mod.

I wish Gene would make them standard with 1.4A.

[Mettee]

Nice mod, makes it very usable with the modes. I like it. I agree it should be 1.4a and multi mode from the start.

...now I wonder why he doesn't.

[ozner1991]

because not everyone wants a multimode light, some people like me want a simple light that when turned on gives a specific output. having said that i still eds an pd30 but keep switching between it and a tk11

[lewong]

I put in a different tint XP-G for my above mod - it’s cooler and less green/yellow. After I swapped the LEDs, I wiped some hazing off the reflector with some chrome polish and inadvertently removed some of the finish. I needed a new reflector.



I searched for reflectors for the Cree XP-G and found that some people had mentioned that Don McLeish’s McR-20 Seoul reflector worked well. I ordered one from the Sandwich Shoppe and it was delivered in 2 days.



There is a recess around the top of the M61 drop-in that the stock reflector sits in – that’s the flat part of the reflector. I put a GITD O-ring in the recess and it held the McR-20S perfectly. My replacement LED board is thinner than the Malkoff board, which in this case helps with the reflector placement. The bottom of the reflector (with a thin insulator) rests on the LED board. The other end of the reflector is flush with the end of the heat sink.



The beam is very nice. Compared to my M60 or M30, there is less of a hot spot and more spill. The stock M61, IIRC, didn’t have as much of a hot spot compared to the McR-20S. I’ll post some white wall beam shots later.

So far in this mod, I have destroyed the original circuit board and damaged the reflector. But now I’m happy with a drop-in that has a great heat sink, a great beam and three modes (even though some might say I pretty much started out that way, except for the 3 modes).

[Noctis]

Was this mod hard to do?

I've been annoyed by the green tint myself, though it takes some time to notice it.

I can understand why the emitter isn't being driven hard, as Gene probably favors practical runtime over high output.

What I can't understand is why the emitter tint isn't consistent and most are greenish.

I'm fantasizing about swapping out the XP-G emitter for an SST-50 with a neutral tint. Though it might have to be direct drive since I don't know where to get ahold of a 2.8A driver. I also wouldn't mind trying to push out 5A in that brass body.

[lewong]

Noctis, it’s difficult to disassemble the module because of the potting. For the Malkoff to be so dependable, the components are really made not to be removed, unlike most two piece P60 drop-ins I’ve seen.

I’ve read that under-driving the XP-G causes it to be green, but even using this 1.4 A driver, mine was yellow/green, which is why I swapped it out.

I’ve have a 2.8 A driver from shiningbeam driving a SSC P7 in a P60 drop-in, but with the amount of heat that needs to be dissipated, I don’t think it’s optimal. The heat would be even worse with a SST-50. After 10 minutes on high, the XP-G in this mod gets pretty warm.