---> Updated 10/26/20 ---- see below
Found this cheap host from Ocean State Job Lot. Usually they carry junk, but this one caught my eye. To my amazement, it unscrewed apart to reveal a very mod friendly LED/driver pill. Not bad for eight bucks. I made a few custom changes and did a quick emitter swap with a warm tinted SSC P4 I had lying around. Current draw is 660 mA on 2C NiMH cells. Puts out about 80 lux by ceiling bounce, 2x better than the stock emitter. Will probably beef it up with something a little brighter, just not sure what yet. It's not Surefire quality, but after my quick mods and lubing all the threads, I'm pretty happy with it.
Nice features
Specs
Design flaw here: Tailcap skirt is too long for thumb operation
Size comparison to various M@g C's
M@g 2C
M@g 1.5 C
8$ 2C host
M@g 1.25 C
2 C-cells
Exploded view (left to right)
LED/Driver pill (bottom)
LED/Driver pill (top) showing SSC P4 (left) and stock LED (right)
Current draw on 2C NiMH
Hand fitment
Beam shot 1 ft from wall
So the two flaws I found IMHO are the extra long tailcap skirt which makes thumb operation impossible (at least for me), and the reflector/lens go in from the top rather than underneath, i.e. the head and bezel are one piece :mecry:. Other than that, I would say a pretty nice find. I ordered an aluminum 35 mm reflector and glass lens from DX and hope they fit. Should give it slightly higher marks on the quality scale for just a few more bucks.
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Update 10/26/10
The SSC P4 I threw in this host was not what I ultimately wanted to use, but needed to find a better boost driver that would give decent output. The stock boost driver did not push the XPG very hard, so I came up with an alternate solution.
I had several of these boost drivers lying around from some cheapo AA lights I got at Ocean State Job lot.
After some trimming/grinding, I was able to parallel two of them and just barely squeeze the 2-stack into the threaded driver pill of the 2C host.
The stock emitter did not have a "base plate", so for adequate heat transfer, I ground down a 50 cent piece which sits flush against the driver pill and makes contact around the edges.
This makes for a nice base for the XP-G to sit on an provides sufficient heat transfer to the driver and body.
I installed the stock plastic 35 mm smooth reflector and plastic lens and was able to get the emitter focused pretty well. I have since received an aluminum textured reflector from DX which needs to be ground to fit. I also have a glass lens on order.
Current draw from 2 slightly discharged Accupower NiMh C cells
Beam shot ~ 1ft from wall
Beam shot across the room (during daylight)
Found this cheap host from Ocean State Job Lot. Usually they carry junk, but this one caught my eye. To my amazement, it unscrewed apart to reveal a very mod friendly LED/driver pill. Not bad for eight bucks. I made a few custom changes and did a quick emitter swap with a warm tinted SSC P4 I had lying around. Current draw is 660 mA on 2C NiMH cells. Puts out about 80 lux by ceiling bounce, 2x better than the stock emitter. Will probably beef it up with something a little brighter, just not sure what yet. It's not Surefire quality, but after my quick mods and lubing all the threads, I'm pretty happy with it.
Nice features
- Crenulated bezel - aggressive but not "sharp"
- Anti-roll bezel
- Tailstands
- Short length for 2C host
- Tailclicky
Specs
- 2C host
- Deanodized head/tail
- Modified tailcap spring
- M@g rubber boot switch cover
- SSC P4 emitter (warm tint)
- Stock boost driver
- 35 mm plastic reflector
Design flaw here: Tailcap skirt is too long for thumb operation
Size comparison to various M@g C's
M@g 2C
M@g 1.5 C
8$ 2C host
M@g 1.25 C
2 C-cells
Exploded view (left to right)
- Tailcap
- Body
- Neck
- Drive/LED pill
- Head/bezel (one piece)
- Reflector
- Lens
LED/Driver pill (bottom)
LED/Driver pill (top) showing SSC P4 (left) and stock LED (right)
Current draw on 2C NiMH
Hand fitment
Beam shot 1 ft from wall
So the two flaws I found IMHO are the extra long tailcap skirt which makes thumb operation impossible (at least for me), and the reflector/lens go in from the top rather than underneath, i.e. the head and bezel are one piece :mecry:. Other than that, I would say a pretty nice find. I ordered an aluminum 35 mm reflector and glass lens from DX and hope they fit. Should give it slightly higher marks on the quality scale for just a few more bucks.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Update 10/26/10
The SSC P4 I threw in this host was not what I ultimately wanted to use, but needed to find a better boost driver that would give decent output. The stock boost driver did not push the XPG very hard, so I came up with an alternate solution.
I had several of these boost drivers lying around from some cheapo AA lights I got at Ocean State Job lot.
After some trimming/grinding, I was able to parallel two of them and just barely squeeze the 2-stack into the threaded driver pill of the 2C host.
The stock emitter did not have a "base plate", so for adequate heat transfer, I ground down a 50 cent piece which sits flush against the driver pill and makes contact around the edges.
This makes for a nice base for the XP-G to sit on an provides sufficient heat transfer to the driver and body.
I installed the stock plastic 35 mm smooth reflector and plastic lens and was able to get the emitter focused pretty well. I have since received an aluminum textured reflector from DX which needs to be ground to fit. I also have a glass lens on order.
Current draw from 2 slightly discharged Accupower NiMh C cells
Beam shot ~ 1ft from wall
Beam shot across the room (during daylight)
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