DEFT-High Output Got Lux?

[saabluster]

Due to overwhelming requests for an even higher output version of the current DEFT I am announcing the DEFT-HO. I am still waiting on some key parts to come in so I don't have any ready for sale just yet. Hope to have everything squared away by the end of next week.

I know some of you had asked if there was going to be a new run of HOs a while back and due to the more complicated driver arrangement I really did not want to make any more. I got so many requests though that I decided to look into working up a solution. The HO is based on the FTP and uses the shock resistant bezel but has several key parameters optimized. Here is a list of the HO upgrades from the FTP.

1.7A driver
The LED is soldered directly to solid copper.
AR coated glass pre-collimator
Leather lanyard
Higher precision main lens
Silver coated beryllium copper springs

I wanted to do more than just push additional power to the LED. More power required a better thermal path so I decided to go back to soldering to copper even though it takes quite a bit more work than just throwing an MCPCB in there. The small optic's holder also has to be modified to accept the new AR pre-collimator. I wanted to push the boundaries on this one as much as I could so I bought some new material that would allow me to make better lenses. Lux Luthor has always griped:kiss: about the cheap lanyards that come with the light so I took some time to try and find a better alternative. I found some nice leather lanyards that seemed to be very well made. They were made for motorola so have their name on them but I could not find unbranded ones that were this nice. The special springs are added to the driver to reduce circuit resistance for the higher output.

So where does all this work get us? I have to preface this with the fact that I only have one complete production HO piece. The FTP is typically around 135K lux. The new HO proto managed to reach 180K peak beam lux. The difference next to the FTP outside is very very clear. I am very happy with this result. My goal was to reach 175K typical performance so it appears I am where I want to be.

Price is TBD but expect it to be significantly more than an FTP but less than the last run of Enthusiasts. Everyone who is on the current notification list will automatically get a notification for the HO. One thing to note though. After customers have purchased I remove them from the notification list so they don't continue to get emails from me till eternity. If you have been on the list in the past and purchased you will need to email me and ask to be added back if you want the email notification. As always there will also be a notification here on CPF.

I will get some pictures up for everyone to show the difference in throw between the FTP and the HO sometime before they go up for sale.

 

[Parker VH]

Thanks much for the input Michael. So how will output compare to the R2 Enthusiast model?

 

[saabluster]

Thanks much for the input Michael. So how will output compare to the R2 Enthusiast model?

Hard to say. There was a time there where I did not test every single light that got made for it's specific output. All lights get tested now to make sure they pass "the test". There was variance, as should be expected, from light to light. I imagine the HO would be slightly more than the typical Enthusiast.

 

[Parker VH]

What is the process that you use to test peak beam lux on your lights now? Is there a specific distance etc. that you measure the lux output from? I guess I'm unfamiliar with this process.
Thanks.

 

[Dark Vapor]

Michael,

Would these new lenses fit the Enthusiast model? If yes, would you be willing to sell the lenses only? Do you think it worth it (price wize) to squeeze a few more lux out of the Enthusiast? BTW, I have one from the last batch of the Enthusiast run. Good stuff.

Oh yeah, how do you know you've got the pre-collimator adjusted correctly if it got moved? Thanks.

 

[meister]

Do we all need to follow this thread now in order to keep up with production information? I've been following the "World's Longest Throwing LED Flashlight" thread religiously since signing up for one of these lights. I don't want to miss your post for available lights by following the wrong thread.

 

[MustardMan]

Sounds awesome - I love my FTP, and if I had the spare cash I'd jump on the higher output version in a second. Looking forward to the beamshots!

 

[ricker99]

@saabluster -
I was going to send you a PM, but for some reason the board won't let me. Do you have any used or old DEFT lights for sale? An eBay search turned up nothing. I understand you are working on a new DEFT high output, but what about the old version? I tried visiting your website but the "products" button appears inactive.

@anyone -
Anyone have an old or used DEFT to sell? I'd communicate via PM but I guess I'm not allowed.

 

[jsholli]

@anyone -
Anyone have an old or used DEFT to sell? I'd communicate via PM but I guess I'm not allowed.

you've got to post a few more times before PM'ing is activated...

try watching the B/S/T forum; a DEFT turns up periodically. In my opinion, no one would risk putting their DEFT on ebay when they can name their price and conditions here for free for an indefinite time frame...

Good luck and welcome to CPF!

 

[LuxLuthor]

I wonder how this compares to those 3 DEFTs you sold me? The last one had the 2nd lens which was way brighter than first two. I hate to say this as a true-blue "Incan Jockey," but that DEFT has become my dog walking light of choice over the last year.

 

[Votekinky06]

Not sure how lux readings work, but is there a noticeable difference between the 132k and the 184k, or is it one of those things where you have to have the lights right next to each other?

 

[saabluster]

What is the process that you use to test peak beam lux on your lights now? Is there a specific distance etc. that you measure the lux output from? I guess I'm unfamiliar with this process.
Thanks.

I have a cheap DX meter so have had to improvise. When I take 5 meter measurements of my Raidfire Spear and calculate back I get a little bit more than 16K lux. From everything I have seen here that is absurdly low and there are other reports of the DX meter reading excessively low. The lux reports I have seen seem to be in agreement that it puts out around 24K lux. I even modded mine with an R2 WH so it should be ever so slightly brighter. So my rather unscientific way of getting measurements is to use my Spear as a "calibrator". I set up the meter and then backed off until I got a reading of 22lux(about 26'). I did 22 instead of 24 as I wanted a little conservative budge. So I test all my lights at the exact distance I got 22 from the Spear. The first DEFT-HO of this run gave me a reading of 180 using this method. The tint issue that can throw off some cheap meters like mine should not be an issue here since both the DEFT and the Spear use the exact same tint bin. Obviously this is not the ideal way to test but I tried to be conservative to help cover my butt. If you can think of something significant I overlooked I'm all ears.

Michael,

Would these new lenses fit the Enthusiast model? If yes, would you be willing to sell the lenses only? Do you think it worth it (price wize) to squeeze a few more lux out of the Enthusiast? BTW, I have one from the last batch of the Enthusiast run. Good stuff.

Oh yeah, how do you know you've got the pre-collimator adjusted correctly if it got moved? Thanks.

The new lenses most likely will not work in the older lights. The focal length is different. One of the last batch Enthusiasts is probably going to be on par with the HO or at least close enough that you could not tell the difference. I would not buy an HO thinking it will be brighter.

Do we all need to follow this thread now in order to keep up with production information? I've been following the "World's Longest Throwing LED Flashlight" thread religiously since signing up for one of these lights. I don't want to miss your post for available lights by following the wrong thread.

Not if you are on the email notification list. If not then yes you will have to follow this thread. Sorry if it is a pain following more than one. I felt it would be less confusing for everyone to have them in different threads so they were not confused as to what was being sold.

@saabluster -
I was going to send you a PM, but for some reason the board won't let me. Do you have any used or old DEFT lights for sale? An eBay search turned up nothing. I understand you are working on a new DEFT high output, but what about the old version? I tried visiting your website but the "products" button appears inactive.

@anyone -
Anyone have an old or used DEFT to sell? I'd communicate via PM but I guess I'm not allowed.

I do not have any old ones to sell. If I made it I sold it. The marketplace is the best place to look for one. You can post a WTB.

I wonder how this compares to those 3 DEFTs you sold me? The last one had the 2nd lens which was way brighter than first two. I hate to say this as a true-blue "Incan Jockey," but that DEFT has become my dog walking light of choice over the last year.

Lux that last one you bought from me should beat these. Remember that one had an experimental driver in it that ran the LED even harder than the HOs. That was probably the longest throwing one I have ever made. It was built to be a tester to see how well that setup worked long term. I chose you since you use your lights regularly. I assume all is going well with it?

Not sure how lux readings work, but is there a noticeable difference between the 132k and the 184k, or is it one of those things where you have to have the lights right next to each other?

I can't speak for everyone here but I can most definitely see a difference between the FTP and the HO. I don't even need to have a light side by side to notice either.

 

[ricker99]

Wow. Very responsive forum. Thanks guys!

I'll be patient and wait for my permissions to grow to allow PMs, but I don't want to post "nonsense" messages, so I'll just wait and see.

I've subscribed to this thread to keep an eye out for the HO for when it becomes available. Are there any preliminary indications as to throw and total OTF lumens? (emphasis on preliminary as I'm sure you won't know until you get your construction lines finalized)

Thanks again...

 

[Deleted member 97529]

I already have a DEFT FTP, so can I only buy the led, driver, etc to be more environmentally friendly? Thanks!

 

[Robo-Man]

that's exactly what my question was^^
is there a way to buy some of the upgrades(like the driver) separately?

i received my FTP two weeks ago and do some runtime-tests right now. maybe i can take some pictures tonight. sadly i was unable to find my IR thermometer so i can'T meassure the temps. i will post my results in your FTP thread

 

[saabluster]

Are there any preliminary indications as to throw and total OTF lumens? (emphasis on preliminary as I'm sure you won't know until you get your construction lines finalized)

Thanks again...

As mentioned in a couple posts it looks like the DEFT-HO should be able to reach 175-180Klux @1 meter calculated.

I already have a DEFT FTP, so can I only buy the led, driver, etc to be more environmentally friendly? Thanks!

The change to make it an HO is not really a drop-in kind of thing. The LED is actually soldered to the base plate and does not use an MCPCB.

that's exactly what my question was^^
is there a way to buy some of the upgrades(like the driver) separately?

i received my FTP two weeks ago and do some runtime-tests right now. maybe i can take some pictures tonight. sadly i was unable to find my IR thermometer so i can'T meassure the temps. i will post my results in your FTP thread

The old Enthusiast models were made for easier swapping of components but the new lights are not. That was part of the effort to keep the cost down. Look forward to your reports in the FTP thread.

 

[Parker VH]

Michael,
Thanks for the "low down" on how you do your lux measurements. I assume there is quite a difference between all the different light meters so it would be virtually impossible for me to take a lux reading on my Deft using my meter and be able to compare it to your results?
Keep up the great work.:twothumbs

 

[LuxLuthor]

Lux that last one you bought from me should beat these. Remember that one had an experimental driver in it that ran the LED even harder than the HOs. That was probably the longest throwing one I have ever made. It was built to be a tester to see how well that setup worked long term. I chose you since you use your lights regularly. I assume all is going well with it?

To quote Bania: "That's Gold Jerry. Gold!"

That particular DEFT is absolutely mind-blowing, and I would have been very surprised if you managed to trump it. On a clear night at Chocomount Cove, Fishers Island, I can actually see light reflecting off windows at Groton Long Point. You'll have to look at google maps to see how far that is, but around 3 miles one way.

 

[saabluster]

To quote Bania: "That's Gold Jerry. Gold!"

That particular DEFT is absolutely mind-blowing, and I would have been very surprised if you managed to trump it. On a clear night at Chocomount Cove, Fishers Island, I can actually see light reflecting off windows at Groton Long Point. You'll have to look at google maps to see how far that is, but around 3 miles one way.

 

[Cpt. Thomas]

Ok, that's it...... I want on the mailing list and I want one of these new models NOW, AS IN LAST WEEK! :naughty:

Seriously, please put me on the top of the list for this as soon as they are ready. Just tell me when and where to send the arm, the leg and both first born..

Cpt. Thomas