B&Q flashlight hid conversion

[Peter mport]

I went and bought a £30 candle power flashlight from B&Q (UK Hardward store) with the intentions of converting it to HID (H4) and spend as little money as possible:sick2:

I put it next a apple and a can of beans to compair the size to but the pictures dont do it any justice.

Well i started off by taking it to pieces to see what room was inside to fit the ballast and i found that most one the inside to taken up by a plastic cage that serves no purpose

After i removed the cage i measured up and its 11cm high x 10cm wide x 6cm deep which is more that enough room could fit two in there if i wanted too :naughty: (only if i had room to fit the bulbs)

Heres a picture of the size of the front 27cm

The lamp has high and low beam due to the h4 bulb, and i want to fit a bulb a 4200k-5000k something like this http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/H4-HID-Dipped...arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM?hash=item35a7a08f8d Which is a h4 hid low beam with a piggy back halogen high beam arrangement, Im going to swap them round so the hid is the high and the halogen is the low, So i can use it as a normal (low output) torch and hopefully it will keep the hid warm for when i have the need for high light output usage.

I also want to change the battery for something better the diamentions are 15cm long x 9.5cm high x 6.5 wide.

 

[richardcpf]

First rule when buying HID kits:
Stay away from ebay, specially from the one you linked (it says used)

Ebay hid kits are mostly all made by the same manufacturer no matter the brand, they are low quality and offer no warranty. Many modders use 55W DDM hid kits, because they offer a slim ballast and their price is unbeatable, I think they will ship international as well.

I recommend them because I have 2 pairs of 55w in my car and never have had problems, I'm not promoting their products. Their tint is also accurate, if it says 6000k, it is real 6000k.

 

[nOObeR]

This build looks really interesting and affordable to boot!
I will be watching this project closely :D

 

[Peter mport]

I do want one that has a piggy back halogen (dont know the proper term) with low wattage bulb to save power and so i have instant light when turned on instead of waiting for the hid to warm up everytime, And it will also warm the hid for when i full power.

But i dont know where to get them ?????

Does everyone know of a good batterie as the standard item doesnt seem to good, Or if i can get a adapter to run different types like the one you normal see pop up on here.

 

[Essexman]

Great build thread. I keep meaning to have a go at making one of these type conversions but never get round to making it. I even have a big old torch sitting in the shed awaiting the work, but I never get any further than looking at all the HID kits and getting confused.

richardcpf - Thanks for that link, that price is really good considering it's for a pair of 55W of good qaulity.

 

[Peter mport]

Ive send away for a 55w 5000k bosch kit (never had 4200k in 55w with h4 fitment) so then a have spares for it, Thanks for all the comments about the build but i think there unnecessary as i havent done anything yet :laughing:

I have been looking at the maxablaster that RA built and my torch has the same shell, I wish it had the same innards :(

 

[SmurfTacular]

First rule when buying HID kits:
Stay away from ebay, specially from the one you linked (it says used)

Ebay hid kits are mostly all made by the same manufacturer no matter the brand, they are low quality and offer no warranty. Many modders use 55W DDM hid kits, because they offer a slim ballast and their price is unbeatable, I think they will ship international as well.

I recommend them because I have 2 pairs of 55w in my car and never have had problems, I'm not promoting their products. Their tint is also accurate, if it says 6000k, it is real 6000k.

When you say 55w, do you mean 55w on each bulb? or is it 55w total?

also, the higher the k, the more blue it has. What is the benefit of it being blue? Is it just a coolness factor?

 

[richardcpf]

When you say 55w, do you mean 55w on each bulb? or is it 55w total?

also, the higher the k, the more blue it has. What is the benefit of it being blue? Is it just a coolness factor?

55 Watts per bulb. They say 5K lumens, but I think only 3-4k OTF. You lose a lot of light with HID...

The temperature depends on each ones taste, and because 55W will wash out some of the color, the white spectrum is wider. You will hardly notice any difference from 4000k-7000k. If you want pure white get 4500k, warm white is 3000k. Blueish HID looks so cheap and you will lose lumens when using a high temperature color.

 

[SmurfTacular]

55 Watts per bulb. They say 5K lumens, but I think only 3-4k OTF. You lose a lot of light with HID...

The temperature depends on each ones taste, and because 55W will wash out some of the color, the white spectrum is wider. You will hardly notice any difference from 4000k-7000k. If you want pure white get 4500k, warm white is 3000k. Blueish HID looks so cheap and you will lose lumens when using a high temperature color.

wow, that is a bright light.

what do you mean you lose light with HID?

What cheap spotlight would I need to buy and put 2 55w HID bulbs in?

 

[ti-force]

What cheap spotlight would I need to buy and put 2 55w HID bulbs in?

If you want to build a twin HID light, check out this thread:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=204273

 

[csa]

I was hoping the can of beans from the first picture was going to make it into the mod somehow! :p

 

[richardcpf]

what do you mean you lose light with HID?

The light produced by HID are not like LED bulbs which have a angle of 180, instead the light is scattered to all directions and some of it are lose through the reflector.