PCC
Flashlight Enthusiast
C-Series
Here are two lights that I assembled recently. The first is based around a SureFire LU60 adapter. If you know anything about the LU60 you know that it will not fit aftermarket LED drop-ins (but the P60L fits just fine). I bored the front of it out to fit a ThruNite drop-in and shortened it a bit so that the drop-in bottoms out on the shoulder left inside after milling the shelf inside to allow for more room. The back side has been milled out to allow 18mm diameter cells to work.
I then shortened a Solarforce L2 bezel (I didn't want to cut down a Z44) as well as a SureFire A21. With this configuration it's a short 3P-style light. I'm using a stock twisty Z41 tailcap.
The long body is a Solarforce L2 rear body section. This is the result of boiling a Solarforce L2 body then separating the front from the rear section. Yes, Solarforce L2 bodies are made from two pieces and are epoxied together. Using the rear body section with the bezel/drop-in/LU60 I get a shorter than 6P light that still takes a full 18650. I can easily change from long to short configuration.
The drop-in is a ThruNite XP-G reflector section mated to a brass pill from a TLS TX-3 head. The XR-E has been replaced by an XP-G R5. The driver was replaced by a Shiningbeam "perfect regulation" driver with a short spring. Unfortunately, a CR123a primary doesn't have enough voltage to drive this driver at anything other than low. On a Li-Ion 18650, though, I get all three modes. It puts out an estimated 275 lumens OTF. The light with the longer body tube is shorter than your typical 6P. Here it is beside my G2X Pro. The G2XP is about the same length as a 6P.
I had originally started this project because I thought it would be cool to make a SureFire bike headlight. I have a Solarforce L2 tailcap that will thread directly onto the LU60 that I will be wiring up to an external battery pack. The ThruNite reflector throws a wider hotspot which is perfect for cycling. The "perfect regulation" driver should be good for about two hours on high on one 2200mAH Li-Ion battery so my 2600mAH batteries should be good for about 2 hours and 15 minutes or 4.5 hours if I run two in parallel.
E-Series
The next light started off as a SureFire KL4 bezel that was given to me because the previous owner was trying to open it up to fit a McGizmo McR20 reflector but was not making good progress. I was given the complete head minus the LED as well as the McR20. 30 minutes on the mill and the McR20 drops right in and is at the perfect height for good focus. The driver is from a Quark MiNi 123 that I purchased from someone who tried to de-anodize his MiNi. I was left with a MiNi 123 head that was silver and pitted but I got it for a good price. 5 minutes on the mill and I had extracted the pill. I then made an aluminum collar to fit this pill into the KL4 head.
I then bought a used E2DL body and obtained a new E1B tailcap. Since the MiNi is rated to 3V I can only run one CR123a battery in it but the body can accomodate two CR123a batteries so I made a spacer to make up the difference. The spacer is longer than a normal CR123a spacer because the driver board does not have an extension like the original KL4 nor does it have a spring to make up the difference. I plan on adding a spring to extend this. I'm hoping to use a 17670 battery in this configuration as well but am waiting for Redilast to start selling 17670s.
I've always wanted a clicky MiNi but 4Sevens won't oblige. If I get a E1 body I'll have my dream light.
The beam from the McR20 reflector and XP-G is really nice. The hotspot is about 2/3 the diameter of the hotspot from a MiNi 123 so it will throw a bit more. This has become my secondary EDC light, displacing a new G2X Pro that displaced a 6PL that used the same D26 module as the C-Series Frankenstein mentioned above.
Here are two lights that I assembled recently. The first is based around a SureFire LU60 adapter. If you know anything about the LU60 you know that it will not fit aftermarket LED drop-ins (but the P60L fits just fine). I bored the front of it out to fit a ThruNite drop-in and shortened it a bit so that the drop-in bottoms out on the shoulder left inside after milling the shelf inside to allow for more room. The back side has been milled out to allow 18mm diameter cells to work.
I then shortened a Solarforce L2 bezel (I didn't want to cut down a Z44) as well as a SureFire A21. With this configuration it's a short 3P-style light. I'm using a stock twisty Z41 tailcap.
The long body is a Solarforce L2 rear body section. This is the result of boiling a Solarforce L2 body then separating the front from the rear section. Yes, Solarforce L2 bodies are made from two pieces and are epoxied together. Using the rear body section with the bezel/drop-in/LU60 I get a shorter than 6P light that still takes a full 18650. I can easily change from long to short configuration.
The drop-in is a ThruNite XP-G reflector section mated to a brass pill from a TLS TX-3 head. The XR-E has been replaced by an XP-G R5. The driver was replaced by a Shiningbeam "perfect regulation" driver with a short spring. Unfortunately, a CR123a primary doesn't have enough voltage to drive this driver at anything other than low. On a Li-Ion 18650, though, I get all three modes. It puts out an estimated 275 lumens OTF. The light with the longer body tube is shorter than your typical 6P. Here it is beside my G2X Pro. The G2XP is about the same length as a 6P.
I had originally started this project because I thought it would be cool to make a SureFire bike headlight. I have a Solarforce L2 tailcap that will thread directly onto the LU60 that I will be wiring up to an external battery pack. The ThruNite reflector throws a wider hotspot which is perfect for cycling. The "perfect regulation" driver should be good for about two hours on high on one 2200mAH Li-Ion battery so my 2600mAH batteries should be good for about 2 hours and 15 minutes or 4.5 hours if I run two in parallel.
E-Series
The next light started off as a SureFire KL4 bezel that was given to me because the previous owner was trying to open it up to fit a McGizmo McR20 reflector but was not making good progress. I was given the complete head minus the LED as well as the McR20. 30 minutes on the mill and the McR20 drops right in and is at the perfect height for good focus. The driver is from a Quark MiNi 123 that I purchased from someone who tried to de-anodize his MiNi. I was left with a MiNi 123 head that was silver and pitted but I got it for a good price. 5 minutes on the mill and I had extracted the pill. I then made an aluminum collar to fit this pill into the KL4 head.
I then bought a used E2DL body and obtained a new E1B tailcap. Since the MiNi is rated to 3V I can only run one CR123a battery in it but the body can accomodate two CR123a batteries so I made a spacer to make up the difference. The spacer is longer than a normal CR123a spacer because the driver board does not have an extension like the original KL4 nor does it have a spring to make up the difference. I plan on adding a spring to extend this. I'm hoping to use a 17670 battery in this configuration as well but am waiting for Redilast to start selling 17670s.
I've always wanted a clicky MiNi but 4Sevens won't oblige. If I get a E1 body I'll have my dream light.
The beam from the McR20 reflector and XP-G is really nice. The hotspot is about 2/3 the diameter of the hotspot from a MiNi 123 so it will throw a bit more. This has become my secondary EDC light, displacing a new G2X Pro that displaced a 6PL that used the same D26 module as the C-Series Frankenstein mentioned above.
