Dorcy 1AAA gen4 Mods

[Doug S]

Great work vincent!! Do you think you could get some real world shots, like a tree at 20 feet maybe? I am curious as to why the cree has a noticable hot spot through the optic, its viewing angle is greater than that of the 5mm leds.

The hot spot is smaller because if you look into the end of a 5mm and a Cree XR-E, the *apparent* image size of the die in the Cree is smaller. If you look closely at the Cree beamshots you can see that the hotspot is square, a slightly out of focus image of the die.

IIRC, it was Vincent who sometimes takes those very practical ''looking up the stairs'' shots.

 

[Doug S]

Details of these modifications will be discussed in a new thread I've started over in the Electronics subforum. So far, I just have the circuit for the stock circuit posted.
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/posts/1804217#post1804217

 

[Doug S]

Here are a few misc tidbits from my testing notes.
1) The width of the ''spot'' of a light with the stock LED is 25 degrees but measured with a lux meter to the true 1/2 intensity points it is about 22.5 degrees.
2) The ratio of brightness 1 degree inside the edge of the spot to 1 degree outside the edge of the spot is 19:1 for a stock LED and 2.4:1 with the Cree XR-E.
3) The ratio of peak spot brightness to that of 45 degrees off axis is 69:1 for the stock LED and 60:1 for the Cree XR-E.
4) My general impression is that the Cree mod puts a much higher % of total output in the ''spill'' portion of the beam than the stock 5mm LED.
5) I used an L92 Eveready lithium cell with about 10% of capacity removed as a test cell for peak lux@1m measurements. The Stage 2 mod was 48 lux on High and 15 lux on low. The Cree mod was 160 lux on high and 15 lux on low.
6) The tint of the stock LED in the stage 1 and 2 mods became less blue than in their unmodified state.
7) The stage 2 mod acheived the follow gains in lm/W at the following input voltages: 90%@1.4V, 105%@1.2V, 65%@1.0V, and 267%@0.8V.

 

[UnknownVT]

Doug S wrote: "Regarding the Cree, I believe that a reflector head would fit on it fine.
I would expect it to be a broad flood with annoying reflector rings superimposed on the flood beam. Perhaps Vincent will include this in any further beamshots he my choose to do."

Dorcy 1AAA with Cree/Stage 3 Mod - gen2 reflector head fitted -

vs. gen2 Stock -
Cree on High

Cree on Low

Cree on Reflector vs Stage 2 (gen4 lensed head) -
both on High

both on Low -

Just as a testimony to how impressed I am -

The Stage 2 mod is now my EDC -

I've taken the LED/board out and transplanted it into a champagne gold (new color) Dorcy 1AAA (with rubber inserts - like the Cree mod body) -
although it will work with the regular tailcap - so I can have matching colors - I have installed the purple tail-cap with the Hi/Low switch - as I like the default turn on to be low with the ability to get a shot of brighter light using the momentary or screw down further.
I haven't had the nerve yet to disassemble the tail-switch to transplant it in the champagne gold tailcap.....

 

[bizzybody]

An increase from ~5 hours to ~40 hours is amazing!

 

[UnknownVT]

bizzybody wrote: "An increase from ~5 hours to ~40 hours is amazing!"

I agree! But please bear in mind even the very impressive stage 2 mod drops into its much dimmer "moon mode" some time between 6 and 11 hours - and continues in that dim state for the elapsed total of 40 hours - and I stopped the test prematurely - so it is more than 40 hours - but at that dim level.

DougS has been very clever in his circuit redesign to eke out the diminishing power of the AAA alkaline battery - so that whatever remains still manages to give out some usable light -

Like I said I am VERY impressed -
enough that the stage 2 mod became my instant EDC....... Thanks Doug!

 

[UnknownVT]

Stairway "Practical" Beamshots (see link for details - target is about 15 feet away)

Cree Mod Spot ................................................ with reflector head

Stage 2 mod (Spot) .......................................... gen4 Stock (Spot)

on my old fashioned CRT screen I can hardly see the Stock gen4 spot in this beamshot -

The standardized exposure been optimized at a level for a typical 1 watt Lux1, and all the stairway beamshots can be compared directly with each other - see link - "Practical" Beamshots - to compare with lots of other lights .......

I enhanced the picture without any increase in brightness or contrast - which would artifically boost the apparent brightness - but by grossly over-sharpening the image to bring out the details -

So one can see easily that both the Stage 2 and Cree/stage 3 mods have sigificantly brighter outputs over the stock gen4 - which itself is brighter than any previous generation Dorcy 1AAA - yet both these mods still managed to give out some light, albeit dimly after a total of 40 hours elapsed time, when the stock gen4 faded to nothing sometime between 5-6 hours.....

I would call that impressive by any account.

 

[LEDninja]

I like Cree reflector :twothumbs

 

[Doug S]

I've taken the LED/board out and transplanted it into a champagne gold (new color) Dorcy 1AAA (with rubber inserts - like the Cree mod body) -
although it will work with the regular tailcap - so I can have matching colors - I have installed the purple tail-cap with the Hi/Low switch - as I like the default turn on to be low with the ability to get a shot of brighter light using the momentary or screw down further.
I haven't had the nerve yet to disassemble the tail-switch to transplant it in the champagne gold tailcap.....

@Vincent, you should have no problems swapping the guts of the two tailcaps. It is only the complete dissassemby of the tailcap mechanism that is potentially problematic.

 

[Doug S]

Modification details, diagrams, and discussion has been posted here:
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/posts/1806603#post1806603

 

[UnknownVT]

Doug S wrote: "@Vincent, you should have no problems swapping the guts of the two tailcaps. It is only the complete dissassemby of the tailcap mechanism that is potentially problematic."

Thank you again Doug - I swapped out the guts of the tail-switch late last night - now am back to 2 matching flashlights.

I just have to tell you how pleased I am with the stage 2 mod with Hi/low switch -
as simple testimony - it is now my EDC.
(BTW - the switch originally in the purple seems to work a LOT better than the one on your Cree/stage 3 mod - there is a lot more range/turns that the it works, whereas the gold/Cree cap seems a lot more sensitive narrower in its use)

Even when the EDC stage 2 mod (now in champagne gold body with inserts) - had the mismatched purple tailcap - it was used last night - that really impressed...... this tale might amuse you -

My friend picked up a splinter in the hand and said he was going to have to wait until he got home to use some tweezers.....

I, of course, offered him the tweezers from my EDC SAK (Swiss Army Knife) which obviously made him smile -
as he was concentrating on tweezing the splinter -
I shone the stage 2 Dorcy 1AAA to help him see better -
on low at the close distance - the light level was just right, and not only that because of the even spot - one could see more clearly.......
That really made him laugh - that I actually had a portable surgery on me.....

 

[Doug S]

(BTW - the switch originally in the purple seems to work a LOT better than the one on your Cree/stage 3 mod - there is a lot more range/turns that the it works, whereas the gold/Cree cap seems a lot more sensitive narrower in its use)

I am pleased that you like it. The differences in performance in the two tailcaps are a natural consequence of trying to build a precision object with imprecise methods. Even though that mod consists only of a spring contact, a single resistor, a bit of PCB material, and some bits of plastic for shims, it is much harder to build than the more complicated board mods by a wide margin. I had more failures than successes with these. When you finally get around to disassembling one for photos, you'll see that there is not much to it.

 

[Doug S]

I've completed the posts in the thread on the technical aspects of these mods here:
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/posts/1815020#post1815020
And I have started a thread with the ''how to do it'' here:
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/posts/1815196#post1815196

 

[UnknownVT]

I was so impressed with Doug's Stage 2 mod that not only have I made it my EDC -
I decided it deserved a fuller review compared to lots of other lights -

Dorcy 1AAA gen4 - Doug S Stage 2 Mod

 

[UnknownVT]

Doug S wrote: "When you finally get around to disassembling one for photos, you'll see that there is not much to it."

High/Low tail-switch on the Stage 2 and the Cree/Stage 3 Mods -

looks like the regular tail-switch at this point.

But taking the tail-cap apart -
components in order -

Another view of the same components -

In his detailed instructions for disassembly Doug S said there were supposed to be 5 shim discs - I ws very careful to make sure things did not go flying, and they did not - I could only locate 4 discs (honest).

I was able to reassemble the tail-switch fine and it worked for High/Low.

However not learning to leave well alone...
I attempted to adjust the "finger" contact on the extra mod board to try to make the tail-switch more tolerant/less touchy -
and of course broke the finger contact off. End of my experiment/adjustment - sorry Doug....

 

[Doug S]

No sweat. That was actually the expected result. I was pretty sure that I put five discs in both of them but maybe not. Perhaps *I* lost one on the final assembly. BTW, the resistor is that little dark spot at 7 o'clock on the circuit board, second picture in your post. That is what is called a 0603 size component, size is 0.06''x0.03''. This is generally the smallest I normally try to work with though I have done some 0402 size which is 0.04''x0.02''. One of the problems with size 0402, if I drop it I can never find it again.

 

[UnknownVT]

Doug S wrote: "BTW, the resistor is that little dark spot at 7 o'clock on the circuit board, second picture in your post. That is what is called a 0603 size component, size is 0.06''x0.03''. This is generally the smallest I normally try to work with though I have done some 0402 size which is 0.04''x0.02''. One of the problems with size 0402, if I drop it I can never find it again."

It is?

It is!

...if you dropped it you could not find it again?

I couldn't even see it until you pointed it out!

 

[Doug S]

In an earlier post I had written:
Change of subject: Robocop asked about the reflector versions. With the stock LED, the result would be that it looks as you would expect a Dorcy reflector version to look. The only difference being the difference in circuit and LED efficiency. BTW, I was very impressed by the apparent efficiencies of the LEDs that come in the currently available Dorcies. Regarding the Cree, I believe that a reflector head would fit on it fine. I meant to try this but I don't remember doing it. I think I was in a hurry to get these in the mail to Vincent and forgot to do it. I would expect it to be a broad flood with annoying reflector rings superimposed on the flood beam. Perhaps Vincent will include this in any further beamshots he may choose to do.
Vincent showed in post #24 that the Cree actually looks pretty good in the reflector. I received my Stage 3 Cree mod back yesterday and tried it with a reflector myself. I can confirm it looks pretty good with the reflector. For some applications where the longer reach of the optic is not required the reflector may actually be preferred by some. It is nice to know that there is another potential Cree host around. Here is one measurement tidbit. With the same light and battery the Cree with optic has 3X the peak lux as the Cree with reflector. While the reflector spot lux is only one third the lux of the optic, the reflector flood portion of the beam is at least 2X brighter.

 

[UnknownVT]

Doug S wrote: "Here is one measurement tidbit. With the same light and battery the Cree with optic has 3X the peak lux as the Cree with reflector. While the reflector spot lux is only one third the lux of the optic, the reflector flood portion of the beam is at least 2X brighter."

I agree the reflector head is a much better application for the Cree mod - as the stairway shot amply shows
(see comparison stairway beamshots in Post #27
or look at the thread "Practical" Beamshots? to directly compare with lots of other lights.....)

BUT with the stock (newer brighter) 5mm LED - the lens/Spot I feel has a lot of desirable assets.

The spot is extraordinarily even lighting - making the view almost "high-definition" - it has to be seen to be believed - the lens also seems to integrate the light to a nice even tint in the spot - and for me it limits the light scatter which is better/more considerate in dark environments to attract less attention or less disturb others .......

Overall because of those assets, I have made Doug's stage 2 mod my EDC - and it has remained so.

I cannot described how pleased I am with this little light - the only way I can show my appreciation for Doug's work is to point to my separate full review -

Dorcy 1AAA gen4 - Doug S Stage 2 Mod