Hello all. My first post. I have lurked for a week or two and finally registered. I am looking into building a headlight for caving. I have been aware of the very nice stenn light for some time and followed its development. I look to replicate several of its strengths. Right now I am trying to see what I can do for a small package that is highly water resistant, a neutral to slightly cool color, Extremely tough, and high efficiency. I'd really like multiple settings of brightness. One around 40-60 lumens, 150-200 lumens and one at 400+. I would mostly be interested in a floody pattern. The ability to throw a spot is nice, but optional. For run time I want to hit 8-10 hours at the medium setting. I haven't settled on batteries, but I am seriously looking at helmet mounting the batteries so I am limiting myself to 2-3 larger cells or 4 smaller cells. After the research I have done it seems to hit really high efficiency I would do better to run a MCE, P7, or Rebel Star at well below the max rated current. It looks like the Buck converters running PWM could give very favorable efficiencies if I match the battery voltage well. Initially I was really looking at the Rebel Star, but the lack of, and difficulty with getting a reflector to work with that unit is turning me off. I only saw a couple lenses and I was worried they may generate to strong of a delineation between the flood and the spot even with a broad beam. So, any advice?
designing new headlamp. comparing LEDs
- Thread starter morow
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not much, but how about doing away ith cables? IMO, a weak point. :thumbsdow
design wise, maybe Streamlight Sidewinder could be a reference? all-in-one unit, with a relatively large & flat surface which could aid in heatsinking if the exposed side (if not entire unit) is made of metal. the low profile body may be a boon for tight quarters. maybe a replaceable metal plate either solid or with fins on the outer body that doubles as a heatsink?
design wise, maybe Streamlight Sidewinder could be a reference? all-in-one unit, with a relatively large & flat surface which could aid in heatsinking if the exposed side (if not entire unit) is made of metal. the low profile body may be a boon for tight quarters. maybe a replaceable metal plate either solid or with fins on the outer body that doubles as a heatsink?
hrm... I hadn't thought of including the batteries in the light. I don't want to much weight off balance in the front. Of course a couple Lifepo batteries are not that heavy... Any suggestions for a reflector that works with a P7 or MCE that gives a nice flood, about a 20 degree focus and is relatively small in both diameter and depth? I think I read somewhere either the P7 or MCE one worked better with small reflectors... I don't need a tight spot anyway though.
