Having a hard time finding...

...40mm pre-made LED Stars.

This is my first post so please be gentle if I overlooked the answer but, I assure you, I have looked until I feel comfortable posting.

I am new to building canister dive lights and have just about finished my first two. What a learning curve. Soldering is so much easier in the YouTube videos....:shakehead

Question 1: Where the heck can I find high output LED's on a 40mm star to put inside of a C or D Cell Maglite head? I'm looking to build a 2000+ lumen canister light, however all I can find is Luxeon 40mm Stars out of Canada through Luxeonstar.com. However, all I can do is 700mA with a Flexblock driver and that only puts out about 1600 lumens because, of the forward voltage required to run the 7 LED's. I would like it to be a 3 or 4 LED set up, this way I can run higher mAmps driver and not have to worry about forward voltage.

Everything else I find with high lumen output come on 20mm bases.

I did find a MOD that shows using a domed glass and adjusting the 20mm star inside the handle of the light to adjust the beam. However, I like the optic that fits just under the glass on the light head (like the 50mm optic offered with the 7-LED Star from Luxeonstar.com. It is just clean looking and I like it better!

I did look inside the post on where to get supplies (thank you for that) but I did not see anywhere to get 40mm premade Stars and 50mm Optics.

Question 2: Anyone have any helpful tips on practicing soldering so I'm not practicing on $$$ products? :mecry:

If I this question has been asked to death, I apologize.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?314981

http://www.cutter.com.au/products.php?cat=XML+Leds+x+3+on+32mm+MCPCB

I just looked in my MAG-D head, and you could fit a 48mm board on the ledge that's a ways back from the lens. To go any deeper than that, you'd have to use a board smaller than 40mm unless you plan to machine out some of the head. I didn't measure carefully, but it looks like the ID of the hole is around 34mm.

As for soldering practice, go to the junkyard (or scrounge around your own place) for some old electronics. Tear them apart and have fun!

Unfortunately, stars are much harder to solder than almost anything else, but at least you'll get a feel for what should be happening.

40mm PCB ( they can solder them for you ) http://www.led-mounting-bases.com/category.php?id_category=33

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Question 2: Anyone have any helpful tips on practicing soldering so I'm not practicing on $$$ products? :mecry:

Click to expand...

As for soldering practice, go to the junkyard (or scrounge around your own place) for some old electronics. Tear them apart and have fun!

Click to expand...

- first you must have some middle power soldering iron to solder quick ( about 80W ) with adjustable temperature ( it is good to have some more powerfull soldering iron that can supply tip with temperature at agresive
(fast ) soldering

-you must have right tip on soldering iron http://www.psinter.com/index,484,RX-802AS.html
( look on replacement tip RX80HTR-1,2D for precize work to most useful (universal ) RX80HTR-2,4D - till for some very big connectors thick wires RX80HTR-5.4 )

-get a good soldering flux

-avoid tin without Pb (ok it is not ecological but.... saves headache ) use Sn60/Pb38/Cu2 0,8-1mm wire ( one friend uses some special tin with Sn50/Pb32/Cd18 where is soldering temp between 138 and158 °C )

-always clean tip with wet sponge (water) and never use some agresive resources such as file or steel wool ( some uses brass wool but i don't like it )

-get some desoldering tool (hand desoldering pump and desoldering braid )

-if you solder leds on AluPCB it is good to be pre-heated with some table coffe cooker ( must have flat surface ) and tem arround 60° C

and at end you can solder Sn on Alu very well with help of this flux '' UNIWELD UNI-4300'' http://www.ebay.com/itm/ALUMINUM-SO...089?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5d463ceb79

Thank you very much. I appreciate your input and giving me some places to look for supplies. Jeez you would think it wouldn't be this hard.

I can see a trip to the local thrift shop in my future to pick up something I can practice soldering on. OH and being in Washington State I can't wait to hear the lecture questioning why I want Pb in my tin and don't I know how I am personally destroying the environment using LEAD....you realize it is L-E-A-D. :huh:

When you say, it saves a "headache"...why?

BTW : RoHS ( tin without L-E-A-D) ... key word is ''tin whiskers'' not so problematic in DIY but in industry special in aeronautics

https://www.google.si/?gws_rd=cr&ei=MW2hUtukKojNswaL14DIDg#q=problems+with+tin+without+lead

lucca brassi said:

BTW : RoHS ( tin without L-E-A-D) ... key word is ''tin whiskers'' not so problematic in DIY but in industry special in aeronautics

https://www.google.si/?gws_rd=cr&ei=MW2hUtukKojNswaL14DIDg#q=problems+with+tin+without+lead

Click to expand...

Thank you Lucca Brassi (love the handle, btw)! It's great to learn something new every day!