"Thor K 2012" -An Lk14 build (600 watt Q4559X)
Finally, after several months of acquiring parts and tools and putting this beast together, it is finished. It uses a 600 watt GE Q4559X 28v Par 64 lamp, regulated to 30 volts with JimmyM's JM-PhD-X1 voltage regulator. It is a single mode light, but I purchased a programmer so I can add modes later if I want. This is my first flashlight mod/build, and actually is the first project I've ever soldered as well. Picked up a Hakko fx-888 and it was easy peezy.
Inspirational and historical credits:
Original LarryK14 thread
Petrev's "Thor X10 Mod"
BVH's Regulated LarryK14
Parts used in this build: (prices include shipping)
-"Cyclops Thor X 10 Million Candle Power Spotlight." Purchased used on Ebay. =$30
-GE Q4559X Par 64 Quartz Halogen Landing Lamp =$40
-JimmyM's JM-PhD-X1 PWM Voltage Regulator =$85
-2x ZIPPY Flightmax 5000mAh 6S1P 20C LiPo's =$100
-2x C&K Components DM22J12S205PQ Double-Pole Single-Throw Rocker Switch =$15
-Illuminated Momentary Pushbutton Switch, 22mm, Red LED, Stainless =$20
-2x FrSky Lipo Voltage Sensor FLVS-01 =$30
-2x 12" 6S JST-XH balance extension cable =$7
-Anderson Power Pole Connectors =$10
-12AWG silicone wire, 3 feet of black and red =$10
-OP/TECH USA 0901012 S.O.S. Shoulder Strap =$25
-2x Sunon 40mm 8200 RPM MagLev Fan (MB40201VX-G99) =$30
-2x Black 40mm Fan Grill =$5
-2x small plastic boxes (harvested lids for voltage display covers) =$9
-Misc. Hardware (nuts and bolts for the fans, split rings for strap, etc.) =$5
Total Cost of Materials: Roughly $421 USD
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The non functional (dead battery) host as seen on ebay:
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The build:
(Not necessarily in chronological order, and some pics taken after light was completed because I didn't take pictures of everything I did during the build.)
First I cut/ground off excess plastic from the body so that the bulb would fit under the bezel. I eventually cut more off than this picture shows. In the Thor's stock configuration, the plastic bezel is screwed into risers in the body, and the back of the bezel sits off of the body about an 1/8" [3mm]. The rubber shroud has a lip on it which fits between that 1/8 gap and a big lip on the body. You can see the lip on the body in the above picture of the stock "AC charger" ports. Conveniently, after cutting off the threaded risers such that the bezel sits flush on the body, the rubber shroud has enough length to wrap around the lip of the body. Because of this, I didn't have to use any screws to retain the bezel to the body. It is held tightly by the rubber shroud. I did however have to glue the bulb into the bezel. I used Silicone RTV and applied it liberally, also putting some on the bulb to prevent light from shining back into the body.
Next to cut out the holes for the fans and voltage displays.
Installed the fans and voltage displays. The fans are 40x20mm, 8200 rpm 12v fans and are said to produce 10.8 CFM air flow each, at 27.5 decibels. They are pretty quiet and their sound is not annoying.
Next I cut out and painted a little plastic piece to cover the holes for the stock charge ports, then glued it in place.
Installed voltage display covers which are lids I harvested from tiny clear plastic boxes, ground down brass tacks to cover the holes where the stand used to attach, and an illuminated momentary switch. I did not want the stand on the light because it is a bit bulky. At this point I completed all of the soldering and wiring and mounted the regulator board. To mount the board I drilled a hole through a piece of foam and glued it to the top of the battery compartment. I fed a large zip tie through the hole in the foam block and zip tied the board to it. I left some of the cables a bit long so the components were easier to work with and install, then I wrapped them up and zip tied them so they are retained. The wrapped up yellow and black wires on the lower right are extra cables that I soldered to unused poles on the power switch in case I need them for some future functionality. The gaggle of black wires on the right is the 6S extension cables folded in half.
I replaced the stock switches with two double pole switches so I could control more items per switch. The bottom switch turns the board on, which turns on the fans, and also illuminates the momentary switch. The fans run off of the 12v aux outputs on the JM-PhD-X1, as does the illuminated switch, so when the board is turned on, so do they. The top switch turns on the OLED voltage displays. Each battery gets it's own voltage display which plugs into the battery's 6S balancing cable and displays the total pack voltage and individual cell voltages within the pack with a claimed +/- .03v accuracy. The ground lead of the balance cables needs to be connected to the switches for this to work.
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The finished light: (pics taken in direct sunshine which makes minor blemishes stand out)
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BEAMSHOTS!!!!!!!
Its dark.
Not so much anymore. Distance to the far fence is approximately 425 feet. [133 meters]
Distance to the far fence is approximately 585 feet. [179 meters]
Better beamshots to come...
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Run time is about 20 minutes which is what I was aiming for. Not bad for such inexpensive batteries! I have not timed it yet though. The front of the bulb gets very hot with continuous operation but has not melted the bezel and I have left it on for maybe 10 minutes straight. When I replace the bulb some day I will add a thin silicone O-ring so that the bulb doesn't touch the bezel.
