Your Best Homemade Accessories and MacGyver-Like Flashlight Applications

Anonnn

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I want to create some kind of comprehensive list of homemade accessories we have all come up with over the years and the applications for which they can be used. I am always looking for more ways to use my flashlights and more reasons for doing so. I figured if we can tap into all of our unique and creative capacities, we can all benefit in the realm of our shared obsession. I will start:

1. Those clear plastic water bottle caps can be used as an extremely inexpensive light diffuser.

2. Cable ties (Zip Ties) work as a great way to mount your flashlights. The adjustable kind, although hard to find, work best because you can keep them in place and reuse them. You can use these on your bicycle handlebars for a BRIGHT bike light. All you have to do is tie one cable tie around the bike handlebar. Then place another cable tie between where the first one meets the handlebar and simply tie that second one around your flashlight. Tighten both of them down and you have a sturdy mount.

I use this same method regularly to mount my flashlight onto the steering wheel of my car so that I can use it as a dashboard light (my original one flickers and goes out all of the time).

I have also used these cable ties to turn my flashlight into a "headlight" after someone backed into the front of my car and took out my real headlight. This method has received many laughs and kept me from getting pulled over many a time.

3. The knurling on your flashlights can be used as a file. This might come in handy during an EHRF (emergency hangnail recovery situation).
 
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Anonnn

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

4. Some flashlights (e.g. Fenix LD10) have clips that can be turned 180 degrees. You can do so and then clip them to your hat to create a makeshift headlamp.
 

Cataract

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

GREAT IDEA!

I cut old CD cases to make home-made diffusers and color filters (the choice in color is not very good, though). With a pair of cutters, the plastic always breaks towards the inside of the cutters. I then use a sanding sponge to make them round. 400 grit paper makes a nice diffusion pattern and I can choose to have less or more diffusion. These fit very well in the fenix diffuser adaptors. I also have a few colored diffuser lenses.

I also dim some lights temporarily by making a transparent lens with the same method. Then I put a piece of electric tape with a small round hole in the middle (centering is key here) I put these in Fenix diffusers as well and I can dim my LD20 to about 0.2 lumens and keep the beam pattern intact. These can also be combined with my diffuser or colored lenses.

I also install the Fenix belt clip (yea, Fenix again)on my backpack shoulder straps to light up the ground and be less noticeable or invasive (need to walk a path behind some houses when I go test my lights and take beam shots)
 
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angelofwar

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

I use spray on "Glass Frost" to diffuse alot of my lights. Works great, and is easily removed from glass optics, and can be easily touched up.

You can also use a quailty light body (say you have multiple lights and one is a spare) as a storage tube (money/survival gear/etc.)
 

shao.fu.tzer

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

Some of my more recent discoveries:

1. A Glo-Toob FX holster can be modified to be a perfect Peak Logan belt holster - and it swivels so you can use it as a cap light.
2. An original Zebralight H30 pocket clip fits nicely on the clipless Thrunite Neutron 1C.
3. The spring steel clip from a DaZongTong anglelight works about 1000% better than the stock clip that comes with the Balder BD-1.
4. A Leatherman Wave nylon sheath is the perfect size to carry one of those 4 x CR123 aviator battery holders and it's MOLLE compatible.
5. Surefire 1.25" filters fit the Streamlight TLR-1/TLR-2 weapon lights
6. Pre-1983 pennies are pure copper and are perfect as mini-heatsinks/LED spacers once belt-sanded and holes are drilled into them.
7. Aluminum tape works great for testing before busting out the soldering iron (probably common knowledge, I just never thought about it)
8. Heat shrink tubing on too-small rechargeable cells is a great way to stop battery rattle.
9. You can stick a McClicky into just about any light with the right washers, spacers, spring-cutting, and experimentation...
 

angelofwar

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

3/4" PVC makes for a great "C" Cell-to-C123 Battery adapter...and rolled up paper for CR123-to-AA.
A diffused container (the plastic ones that the drink packets come in) make for great lanterns with a small light.
Glass cups (especially mason jars) makes for great light holders to get the ceiling bounce area effect lighting.
Pill FOBS make great CR123 holders, ane are especially useful for attaching a spare battery to the lanyard on the SF L1.
The white "$1" tylenol containers also make great single CR123 holders.
Cylindrycal film canisters are perfect for P60 lamps.
 

shao.fu.tzer

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

Cylindrycal film canisters are perfect for P60 lamps.


Ooohhh... I remember those... Great idea... I used to have a ton of them when I was a kid... Too bad 35mm film is all but obsolete now...
 

S1LVA

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

Scotch tape is a great diffuser. I removed the lens of my V10R Ti and covered both sides. Only covering one side made the beam a diffused oval. So I covered the second side with the tape perpendicular to the first side. Simple. Quick. Removable. And nearly free.

S1LVA
 

tam17

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

Homemade diffuser for Jetbeam PA40 (and any other flashlight with this type of recessed lens): Rim of a Coke Zero bottle cap fits snugly into PA40's bezel. Cut off the rim with an utility knife, even it out with 600 grit sandpaper, and now you have a nice black o-ring. Put a circular patch of self-adhesive translucent film (d-c-fix or similar, glued back to back) over the lens, fit the o-ring and hit the switch :grin2:

ndt1ja.jpg
 

scout24

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

See the "Zebralight mods" thread over in the Headlamps forum, there's a ton of good ideas there as well... :) I'd list a few, but credit where credit is due and all... davidt1 and some other members came up with some great ideas.
 

^Gurthang

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

Handy emergency diffuser: roll up some bubble wrap and use 1 bit of tape to hold it together and a second to attach to your light. Simple and effective.

BTW, NOT FOR USE W/ HIGH OUTPUT INCAN LIGHTS.....
 

jabe1

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

The best I have are :

Large 0-rings on straight bodied p-60 lights (read surefire 6P) to use as a small "grip ring".

On my bicycle handlebars, I've mounted AA lights by using D-handle mounts from commercial grade line trimmers.They have holes at 90° angles and are secured by 1/4-20 screws, much more stable than velcro, or some bit of plastic.

Also, a grip ring can be made for a Mag C by cutting the end off of a dirtbike handgrip, fits perfectly, and keeps them from sliding out of ones hand when wet or dirty.
 

bnemmie

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

A copper kitchen scrubbie makes a great pad to clean off the tip of your soldering iron. And its much cheaper then the ones you buy at electronics stores.

-Also-

A household dimmer switch can be wired in line of your soldering station if it doesnt have a tempature control.
 

1pt21

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

What an excellent thread :thumbsup:

Here's my contribution:

IMGP1644.jpg


IMGP1646.jpg


Two PVC couplers make for a nice battery spacer to run 2x 26650's in a 2D Mag with a cut-down spring. Joining them with a wrap of tape makes for a snug rattle-free fit :cool:
 

2vtx

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

The velcro zip ties work well for securing a light. You can get them at any retail store.
 

Anonnn

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

Those cone-shaped diffusers work great for evenings when you want to both surprise your wife with a romantic "candlelight" dinner and then afterward be called a "dork." You can even dim the flashlight if the mood is right. You're welcome.
 

chmsam

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Re: Your Best Homemade Accessories and Otherwise Macgyver-Like Flashlight Application

Any and all small plastic bottles should be measured to see on what lights they'll work. Those bottles are also very easy to trim to fit. Ditto for plastic caps and bottle tops (and so many people still ask why a lot of us EDC a knife and/or a multi-tool).

Won't even go into how useful friction tape, electrical tape, velcro, paper clips, and rubber bands can be.

Freebie solutions to emergency needs make you feel better, calm those around you, and bring out your awesome inner Macgyver-ness.

However, remember this -- unless you practice your Zen Macgyver scavenger, reduce-reuse-recycle skills on a regular basis, they will fail you miserably when you need them the most. You will then end up looking quite the fool in front of the very, very, very attractive person you had hoped to impress.
 

Chidwack

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I bought a wand diffuser to use on my Xeno E03. I love it and wanted to use it on other lights that I have. The head on my Klarus P2A is a little bit larger in diameter than the Xeno. I have some 3M VHB tape that I put around the base of the diffuser on the outside and then covered it with electrical tape until it fits snuggly over the front of the Klarus head. I then found that the whole thing fits into the inside of the strike bezel of my Olight M20s. It now fits all three of these lights and stays on firmly. I really like these diffusers.

Next I took the useless little rubber hand holder device that came with my Quark AA2 Tactical light. I cut off the loop to make a little band that fits over the tail cap of the light. I can slide it forward up the body til it hits the pocket clip and it's out of the way. I can slide it back so it sticks out past the tail clicky button and I'm able to tail stand the light. Now thanks to someone here on CPF I found another advantage to this rubber on the tailcap. Many times when I'm using the light and working with hand tools, I put the light in my mouth to keep both hands free. The rubber on the tailcap makes it much better to hold in my mouth.
 

Anonnn

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GREAT IDEA!

What an excellent thread :thumbsup:

Thank you! Thanks also to everyone here who has given me some new ideas to try out. I will definitely be using some of these when I stumble on the appropriate materials. Perhaps we can organize everything into appropriate categories inside one concise post at the top if we get enough content to merit such an action.

Here are a few applications for strobe: Using a light with an adjustable strobe speed, such as a couple in the MAG-LITE XL series, you can slow the strobe speed down quite a bit and use them as a warning light for your bicycle. The white light works good on the front, and you can add a red filter using one of the above methods for the back, attaching it with another one of the above methods. (I wonder if a red permanent marker applied to Scotch tape, a CD case, or a bottle cap would also work...??? I don't have them handy right now to test...) You can also use these slow strobes to impress your friends by imitating those ones found at disco parties.
 
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