GarageBoy
Flashlight Enthusiast
Just wanna see how it physically looks like and how the beam pattern is
Anyone do a KL4 with a P7 yet?
- Thread starter GarageBoy
- Start date
Help Support Candle Power Flashlight Forum
Bullzeyebill
Flashaholic
Probably going to look the same, and have a floody beam. I think that it would be an excellent hand warmer this winter, even with gloves on.
Bill
Bill
Bill's right. I might add, the beam will suck, it will run hot and you will hate it.
I'm wondering just how long it will take for people to realize that the P7 is not suitable for a small form factor lights. Its strong point is that it can be driven hard, not that it's brighter at the typical drive levels of single die LED's (it's actually less efficient than high bin Crees and Seoul). That means you need lots of current and lots of mass, and a bigger reflector due to the large emission area.
I'm wondering just how long it will take for people to realize that the P7 is not suitable for a small form factor lights. Its strong point is that it can be driven hard, not that it's brighter at the typical drive levels of single die LED's (it's actually less efficient than high bin Crees and Seoul). That means you need lots of current and lots of mass, and a bigger reflector due to the large emission area.
RyanA
Flashlight Enthusiast
Bullzeyebill
Flashaholic
RyanA
Flashlight Enthusiast
Nice though, basically like a hand held light bulb.
A 17670 will probably sag enough to keep the power down to where it doesn't generate more heat than a regular LED driven at an amp or so. But it's probably not as bright as it could be so I don't see the advantage of such a mod. The P7 really excels at high drive currents which means large mass to help dissipate the heat.
Check out darkzero's mod:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showpost.php?p=2542376&postcount=24
Note the last sentence: "Now (sic) way it's gonna stay like this..."
It's better to over drive a regular LED than underdrive a P7
Last edited:
RyanA
Flashlight Enthusiast
Meh, it's direct drive. It's not going to run long before it starts to dim anyways.
Heck, I'm planning a DD mule head with a p7 on a 18650tube, kinda just for kicks. I don't really care about burning out the LED, as it's pretty much going to do that on it's own eventually. Should be fun though.
Heck, I'm planning a DD mule head with a p7 on a 18650tube, kinda just for kicks. I don't really care about burning out the LED, as it's pretty much going to do that on it's own eventually. Should be fun though.
Yeah, that's what I was referring to. With multiple 18650's or even 17670's in parallel with a low Vf P7, now you're talking :devil: Should be good for a couple of minutes of scorching light.
I have to agree 100% with CM. I don't understand why everyone is wanting to put a P7 in all these small lights. What's the point of having a P7 if it's severly underdriven? IMO it's purely for bragging rights...ooh look I have a P7 in this...etc, etc.
Almost all of these small lights with P7s don't even have good beams. All they can be used for is close lighting. Like Milky's P7 L4, I'm sure it's a nice mod but it has diffusion film on it. What does that tell you? I'm sorry but I'm not a fan of pure flood flashlights either. Using a P7 for flood & underdriven is a waste of a $30 emitter. Small lights just don't have the mass to properly cool a P7 driven close to spec.
Like the EX-10 I had with a P7. Purely for oos & ahs. So many people asked me to make one for them, of course I would, but for what? It's not practical. I'd choose a Cree in that light over a P7 anyday which as you can see I did.
Yes I do have a small light with a P7, probably one of the smallest out there as of now. But it's driven nicely using a Triflupic & a 20mm reflector for a pretty good usable beam. However it's gets too damn hot to be used as an efficient flashlight. I can't use it for more than 3 mins on high & it takes 10 times longer to cool down. I admit, my P7 Arc LS is purely for bragging rights.
Almost all of these small lights with P7s don't even have good beams. All they can be used for is close lighting. Like Milky's P7 L4, I'm sure it's a nice mod but it has diffusion film on it. What does that tell you? I'm sorry but I'm not a fan of pure flood flashlights either. Using a P7 for flood & underdriven is a waste of a $30 emitter. Small lights just don't have the mass to properly cool a P7 driven close to spec.
Like the EX-10 I had with a P7. Purely for oos & ahs. So many people asked me to make one for them, of course I would, but for what? It's not practical. I'd choose a Cree in that light over a P7 anyday which as you can see I did.
Yes I do have a small light with a P7, probably one of the smallest out there as of now. But it's driven nicely using a Triflupic & a 20mm reflector for a pretty good usable beam. However it's gets too damn hot to be used as an efficient flashlight. I can't use it for more than 3 mins on high & it takes 10 times longer to cool down. I admit, my P7 Arc LS is purely for bragging rights.
RyanA
Flashlight Enthusiast
Meh, I actually want the p7 for flood. Kinda like a toy/experiment for now. I can understand the p7 being useless at 500ma, but dd should do a bit better. Runtime isn't a concern.
