2D Mag85 Questions

[RichS]

I have several high output lights now including an M6, Boxer24w, Mag61, Rattlesnake, Vector, etc., but nothing puts out the beautiful, powerful, darkness-obliterating white incandescent beam of my Mag85. I have a 3D 3x18650 config and it is great.

However, I like my Mag85 so much that I want to make it a little more practical. I want: a.) more runtime, and b.) a more compact light.

So, I would like to go with a 2D config, dual-bored with 4 18650s in a 3S/1P configuration. However, after doing some searching and trying to get started, I am a little stuck so I'm coming to the experts for help.

- Who does dual boring on Mags here on CPF?
- Are 18650s in a 3S/1P configuration be the best / longest running battery config in a 2D Mag?
- Would I have to solder connections to the batteries in this config, or is there another way so that I can keep the batteries loose for separate charging?

Thanks in advance for your help!

-Rich

 

[Stereodude]

There's really no such thing as a 3S/1P That's just 3 batteries in series. You can't use 4 batteries and get the voltage of 3. You would have to use a multiple of 3.

Can you use 3 "C" Li-Ion cells in a cut down D?

 

[Probedude]

There's really no such thing as a 3S/1P That's just 3 batteries in series.

Blame the RC Lipo manufacturers. This is how they spec packs. The number before the S is the number of cells, the number before the P is the number of series strings in parallel. They actually do label them 3S1P, or 2S1P, etc.

See here
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=1764394


Rich,
I built a 'regular' Mag85 (Mag 3D light, 9AA holder). The 1185 bulb is 9.6V lamp. With 9AA it is overdriven to 10.8V. 18650 are 4.2V fully charged, ~3.7V discharged. 3 in series gives you 12.6V - 11.1V. I did a discharge of a 18650 at 2A and it held voltage pretty well.

Is it okay to run an 1185 bulb from 3 lithium cells in series?

FWIW, I just put in freshly charged Eneloops in my Mag85 and promptly burned out the bulb . Probably was at ~1.5V per bulb or 13.5V for 9 qty :mecry:

 

[FILIPPO]

ina a 2D you can use a 9 X 2/3A battery pack (that is nimh and 1500mah), you need a tri-boring that you can have done by Jesus (a CPF member).

your question is diffucult becouse with a smaller host you must get smaller cells with less capacity and than less runtime too.

if you change your mind and decide to update your old mag85 you can look for 3 "D" li-ion that are rated for >5000mah and with them you'll sure get more runtime.

 

[MikeSalt]

Also consider the NiMH offerings from luxluthor. His custom battery packs will fit into a 2D with tri-bore or quad-bore configuration. Whilst your Mag is in the capable hands of Jesus, you could even have it shortened to 1.5D and quad-bored, there is a battery pack for that too.

Need more runtime? No problem - buy a second pack. With all the cells welded together and carefully wrapped, carrying spares and swapping them out is no problem at all.

 

[RichS]

There's really no such thing as a 3S/1P That's just 3 batteries in series. You can't use 4 batteries and get the voltage of 3. You would have to use a multiple of 3.

Can you use 3 "C" Li-Ion cells in a cut down D?

Thanks for educating me on this and for the good alternatives listed. It looks like if I go with 3 "C" lion config I will get the longer runtime I wanted along with making the light somewhat more compact (36mm shorter??). I think this will be my best bet until AW comes out with 1/2 D Li-ions...:devil:

Anyone know who could cut down my 3D Mag for me?

 

[FILIPPO]

Anyone know who could cut down my 3D Mag for me?

rty to PM JESUS HERNANDEZ....

he can also TRI-bore, QUAD-bore, Fin heads...

 

[Stereodude]

Thanks for educating me on this and for the good alternatives listed. It looks like if I go with 3 "C" lion config I will get the longer runtime I wanted along with making the light somewhat more compact (36mm shorter??). I think this will be my best bet until AW comes out with 1/2 D Li-ions...:devil:

I'm not sure that a 1185 bulb is compatible with 3 Li-Ion batteries. I'd check that first. I'd also be tempted to go with a cut down / custom length C body Mag if you're using Li-Ion "C" cells since there's no real advantage to putting them in the wider D Mag body.

 

[2xTrinity]

Thanks for educating me on this and for the good alternatives listed. It looks like if I go with 3 "C" lion config I will get the longer runtime I wanted along with making the light somewhat more compact (36mm shorter??). I think this will be my best bet until AW comes out with 1/2 D Li-ions

3Cs would fit in a 2D, as you can fit the narrower C-Cells , but if you're going to go with AW Cs, you should actually get a 3C mag IMO. - i'ts not like all the "magic air" in the larger 2D is going to giev you any extra runtime...

 

[Patriot]

I'm not sure that a 1185 bulb is compatible with 3 Li-Ion batteries. I'd check that first. I'd also be tempted to go with a cut down / custom length C body Mag if you're using Li-Ion "C" cells since there's no real advantage to putting them in the wider D Mag body.

3 Li-ion are great for the 1185 as long as you watch the charge. If you charge them all to 4.2V there is a good chance of insta-flashing. Other than that, I think a 3C with 3xAW C cells is the best 85 ever. It's the brightest and whitest anyhow. I agree putting them into a D body would be unnecessarily clumsy though. The 3C is perfect imo.

 

[DM51]

3x AW protected 'C' Li-Ions will be fine with a WA 1185. Bear in mind these cells are 53 mm long, not 50 mm like regular alkaline C-cells, so you would probably need a 10 mm extender to fit them in a Mag3C.

 

[warlord]

A 2D mag is a little bit shorter than a 3C mag. I think it's 10" vs 10 7/8" for the 3C. I opted for the 2D knowing that it'll fit 2D, 3C, 9xAAA, 2x 18650, etc without needing to be cut down or bored. IMHO it's just your preference.

 

[Stereodude]

3 Li-ion are great for the 1185 as long as you watch the charge. If you charge them all to 4.2V there is a good chance of insta-flashing. Other than that, I think a 3C with 3xAW C cells is the best 85 ever. It's the brightest and whitest anyhow.

Won't the Li-Ion cells suffer a much greater voltage shift and therefore a larger brightness drop as they discharge when compared to Ni-MH cells? :thinking: Operating range of 3 Li-Ion's is 8.1-12.6V.

Someone needs to make a good voltage regulator for incan bulbs. oo:

 

[Patriot]

Won't the Li-Ion cells suffer a much greater voltage shift and therefore a larger brightness drop as they discharge when compared to Ni-MH cells? :thinking: Operating range of 3 Li-Ion's is 8.1-12.6V.

Someone needs to make a good voltage regulator for incan bulbs. oo:

They maintain their voltage enough to initially give 11.1V for about 1300+ bulb lumens. 9 NiMH at 10.8V would be just under 1200 if I remember correctly. I can testify to the fact that my 3C is brighter than my 9AA was.

 

[RichS]

3Cs would fit in a 2D, as you can fit the narrower C-Cells , but if you're going to go with AW Cs, you should actually get a 3C mag IMO. - i'ts not like all the "magic air" in the larger 2D is going to giev you any extra runtime...

Well, this pretty much fits the bill for my original goal -a Mag85 with more runtime in a more compact host! I had no idea that 3 C cells would fit in a 2D Mag - this sounds perfect. I do have a 2C Mag which I really like as a 5761 host, and may take a look at the 3C as another alternative for the 1185. A 2D host was my goal initially, but now I want to check out both.

Thanks for all your help!

-Rich

 

[FILIPPO]

They maintain their voltage enough to initially give 11.1V for about 1300+ bulb lumens. 9 NiMH at 10.8V would be just under 1200 if I remember correctly. I can testify to the fact that my 3C is brighter than my 9AA was.

mmmh...I think it depends by which nimh we are considering...

I think good high drain nimh can hold more than 1,25 under load

 

[EssLight]

mmmh...I think it depends by which nimh we are considering...

I think good high drain nimh can hold more than 1,25 under load

Looking at Silverfox's excellent data
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=79302
In paticular for the CBP 1650 and Eneloops, under a 3+ amp load, they both start out delivering over 1.3 volts. After the first couple minutes, though, the sustained voltage drops below 1.25 V. And how much of this voltage reaches the bulb depends on the resistance of the setup. But for sure, freshly charged NiMH can start out at a high voltage.

Has anyone done load testing of the AW C cells, to get some data for comparison?

 

[FILIPPO]

Has anyone done load testing of the AW C cells, to get some data for comparison?

I don't know but I think that 5761 in the max for 2 AW "c" cells...
also with this set-up you should use a soft starter...

 

[RichS]

I don't know but I think that 5761 in the max for 2 AW "c" cells...
also with this set-up you should use a soft starter...

Agreed - I just got the AW soft-start/multi-level tower today for use in the 2C 5761.

The AW C batteries at 3300mah should have an amp limit of 6.6, right? I believe that would be 2C for these li-ions. Since the 5761 pulls 5.5 amps at 7.2v, these batteries should handle that load safely with about a 1 amp buffer.

 

[DM51]

The protection circuit on them is set at ~5.5A.