DX UV 1 Watt in a 3xAAA Dorcy 1W Luxeon?

[AJ_Dual]

I wanted a high-output UV LED light, but everything I find that uses the high output 1W+ UV LED's are very expensive like an Aleph head etc. And I'd also need a body to hold it. Waaaay out of my price range. I noticed this UV LED from DX http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.4334ED for only $7+ change. And immediately thought how easily my Dorcy comes apart, and how easy it is to access the star in it.

It was my first "high output LED" from a few years back when I learned what a Luxeon was, and where flashlights were going, and first became a CPF'er. However, it's pretty ho-hum compared to most lights, even lots of Chinese cheapies out there now for just a few bucks.

I've got a 5 LED 5mm UV eBay special, but I'm disappointed with the output, and the rubber boot covering the switch failed and ripped off. I don't mind that this LED from DX is kind of high into the visible violet end (It lists as 395 ~ 410nm), as it's just a "screwing around UV", I don't have any real specific application for it, just poking about to see what will fluoresce, and charging GITD materials etc. I'm not scorpion hunting or anything.

So here are my questions. I've tried to search and read tons of threads, so I hope none are too repetitive:

- Will there be a problem with the Dorcy's driver circuit for a 1W Luxeon running this UV?
- What are the pitfalls of trying to use the Luxeon star heatsink with this Cree? Just solder it on, nicly centered, with the right polarity?
- Is there a better, easier (yet still inexpensive) host for this Cree I should be looking at instead?

- Or should I get this kit: http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.3257 some arctic silver and stick it in some host that it would fit and would drive it at the 3-4 volts 350-500mA correctly?

If you can't tell, I'm about at the edge of my ability envelope here… If there's a decent 1W UV from some reputable vendor for under $30, I'd go buy it instead and not cannibalize anything.

 

[ManBearPig]

I stuck one of those into an Elly. Works great.

 

[nanotech17]

i use sku 4334 from DX and mount it on my terralux 1 watt drop in for MM.
nice

 

[AJ_Dual]

That Elly looks to be a nice host.

Does it require any boiling, heat guns, or strap-wrenching to get it apart like a Q-III? Ot is it all pretty easy access like my old Dorcy?

I was hoping people would come up with good hosts. It's better to have MORE flashlights. How many mA will that Elly's driver circuit push across the UV LED? I'd hope to get as much bang for the buck as possible. It's not super important, mainly I just want something a lot brighter than a multi-5mm UV LED light on the cheap, If I do just get a different host, I would like to get as close to the 500mA max as possible if I can do so inexpensively.

The Terralux idea is sweet, especialy if I could find a purple anodized Mag to put it in for instant ID of it's output and function, but that would require buying a terralux and a mag, and blow the budget on this project. :mecry:

 

[ManBearPig]

All I did was solder the UV LED to an empty star and swapped it with the stock one. No boiling required, just unscrew the head, remove two Phillips screws, unsolder star, pry it out, reverse steps with new star. Very easy. The focus wasn't perfect. I wrapped the threads on the head with some teflon tape to adjust it. If I recall from the huge Elly thread, it puts out around 500mA.

 

[IsaacHayes]

That UV led I hear is decent, I wonder how it stands up to the cree UV 1w or 3w?

What really interests me is that that LED they make in a 365nm version, if DX could get that, then that would be awesome. The only other power led in UV that deep is the nichia one and it's like $250 or something crazy and you have to buy like 5 at a time or something!!

 

[AJ_Dual]

All I did was solder the UV LED to an empty star and swapped it with the stock one. No boiling required, just unscrew the head, remove two Phillips screws, unsolder star, pry it out, reverse steps with new star. Very easy. The focus wasn't perfect. I wrapped the threads on the head with some teflon tape to adjust it. If I recall from the huge Elly thread, it puts out around 500mA.

500mA? Buying that sucker from DX today then!

Now all I need to do is avoid burning the house down with the soldering iron...

 

[dental4usa]

nanotech17:

I've never modded anything more than simply using a drop-in.

If I get the sku 4334, what do I need to do to "mount" it? Does it involve soldering, or just that Arctic Alumina Adhesive?

Sorry guys, but like I said, I haven't done mods ... I need simple! :thinking:

It's time for a better, more powerful UV light - killed a scorpion on my bedroom ceiling this morning, and hubby is creeped out!!! Of course, tonight I have to go out in the backyard and kill the ones I've been keeping an eye on ... The one with all the babies was missing last night. I hope she was just sleeping underground ...

Thanks, everyone!

 

[Walt175]

I put one of those UV leds into the RiverRock 1w AA light from target. Works GREAT!
I am currently looking for a cheaper alternative myself. I considered the Elly, but want something a little smaller. I ordered a couple of cheap 1w lights from DX. I'll let you know how I make out when they get here.

 

[nanotech17]

Hi dental4usa
you need a copper spacer from the sandwich shoppe ( http://theledguy.chainreactionweb.com/product_info.php?&products_id=946)
and some AA Thermal epoxy.
The process :-
1.mount the copper spacer with AA thermal epoxy on the Terralux driver after you pry the stock emitter.
2.Once the AA is set you need to file the top surface of the copper spacer a bit.
3.attach the UV emitter on top of the copper spacer & solder the legs to the correct polarity.
4.before you pry the emitter off of the driver please ensure you mark the positve & negative contact.
5.If you don't have copper spacer you can use nail polish below the UV emitter.
6.or you can use kapton tape (http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.5101 )if you don't have the nail polish.
All these precautions is to ensure you don't burn the emitter because sku#4334 base is positive contacts.

Hope that helps.

 

[Walt175]

Are you sure the base is positive? I checked with my multimeter before I mounted mine, and it didn't show continuity. I just mounted it as if it was a Lux III, taking no extra precautions.

 

[nanotech17]

i don't want to take the risk as the sku#4334 is from the same manufacturer as sku#4282.

 

[dental4usa]

OK, so it looks like even I might actually be able to pull this off. :laughing:

Although, the last time I tried to solder something tiny, I melted the pewter loop off the cool dragon pendant I was trying to modify ... :sigh:

A couple of quick questions before I order from DX:

1. Is the copper spacer preferable to the nail polish? I have nail polish, though it's rare that I wear any. If the spacer is better, I will get one.
2. Would getting that Elly as mentioned from DX make for a better host rather than modifying the drop-in for the MM? That process looks pretty straightforward too, as long as I don't screw up the soldering part ...
   
3. Will I likely achieve 500 mA with either of these 2 methods? Just trying to be realistic here ...

I really appreciate your help, nanotech17 especially!!

I killed 6 of those suckers in the backyard last night! I left 2 for tonight, the mom with babies and what I assume is the dad - they are always within a few feet of each other. I'm charging my digital camera batteries so I can try for a nice closeup of the mom before I off her.

OK, now I'm scaring myself by what I am saying. Best to just do it and not talk about it ... oo:

Thanks again!! I love CPF!!!

- Marilyn / dental4usa

 

[nanotech17]

dental4usa,

1. the spacer is better.
2.as for the elly host you must attach the UV emitter on this board (http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.4512) i know these boards are for cree but i have done mounting some seouls/edison and lux emitter with no problem.
3.i'm not sure because i don't have the right tools to measure it at the LED itself but at the tailcap with 2xSanyo nimh 2700mah i get 400mah.

good luck & happy hunting

 

[dental4usa]

Cool - thanks!

So is your vote for the Elly or the MM then, for the best/strongest result?

I'm all excited now ... YAY! :twothumbs

Thanks!!

 

[katsyonak]

I modded a UV Elly and it's pretty good for the price. Have a look at it here:
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=173846

 

[dental4usa]

Very nice, katsyonak!

Maybe that's what I will do , then.

Looks like I don't need the copper spacer if I mod the Elly, since I'll use the other board that nanotech17 mentioned. Good thing, too, because they're sold out of spacers!!!

I'm off to buy a soldering iron now. I'm getting the Weller SP23L - it's 25 watts and has a few tips included. I shouldn't need anything more than that for the foreseeable future.

Thanks, everyone!! :thumbsup:

 

[AJ_Dual]

I had a second thread asking about deconstruction of the host Elly and I followed up with my success there. I've been lazy and haven't posted any pics. Sorry. Mrs. Dual and I work opposite shifts, and my only time to tinker is between 8:00pm when the kids go to bed, and 10:00pm, when Mrs. Dual gets home from her job.

It was so easy that er… well, even I could do it! LOL…

1. Unscrew the Elly's bezel. Leave the existing star screwed in. The Elly's body itself gives you a better handle on everything, and there's no need to disassemble further.

2. Carefully scrape off the surface mount LED from the center of the Elly's generic 1W star using an X-acto knife. If you have the chisel type blade, it works best.

3. The positive side of the DX UV LED is the leg with the little triangle stamped out of it.

4. The Elly's Generic star has other/extra contact points and they're perfectly spaced to match the legs of the DX UV LED. They are clearly marked "+" and '-".

5. Put a dab of Arctic Silver under the DX LED in the crater where the Elly's LED sat. (I've not noticed it getting exceptionally warm, you can probably skip this step.) One of the appropriate thermal epoxies would probably do if a more robust mount is desired. Keep the working time in mind so you can finish step six and seven though.

6. Center the DX UV LED as best you can. The LED's legs should reach each of the extra contact points evenly, giving you a rough centering. Flux and solder down ONLY ONE leg of the DX LED to the appropriate contact pad on the Elly's star. (A little extra flux is better than too little.)

7. Test-fit the Elly's bezel and reflector to the new LED. Observe, and carefully bend the DX UV LED left or right to better center it in the reflector. Careful, don't break the existing single solder joint. The DX LED's package is a perfect fit for the opening in the Elly's reflector BTW.
8. Once you are happy with the centering in the reflector, solder the other contact point.

9. The DX UV LED sits much higher than he Elly's original minimalist surface-mount white LED. Put some Teflon plumber's tape or extra 20mm O-rings on the Elly's threads to provide a good friction adjustment for focusing.

Referencing the above time constraints I have, this took me all of 20 minutes, and I did it on a cluttered kitchen countertop as my basement workshop has been trashed with overflow storage for the past three years since my four daughters have been born.

 

[dental4usa]

Wow, very cool, AJ_Dual!

I think it's going to be the Elly for me!!

I bought a soldering iron today - my very first!!

It's this one - it should be OK for the minor mods I'll ever attempt, won't it? It's 25 watts

Weller 25 watt - (I didn't buy it here)

Do you guys think it will be OK?

I'm all excited now - this will be my first mod! Thanks everyone!!

 

[AJ_Dual]

Just to be clear, I used the generic 1Watt MXDL flashlight here: http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.1120

Some of the other posters are talking about swapping the stars of other MXDL models like the more expensive ones with Cree LED's.

On this one I listed above the 1watt LED is just glued right onto the center of the star, and a small dollop of clear epoxy covers it. It's not in a package or anything. You just scrape that right off with a razor. I've got a picture of it here:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=172962&highlight=Elly

That way it saved me the money and bother of buying a blank star, as the cheap 1Watt generic wasn't anything worth saving, unlike a Cree or Luxeon mounted to a star might be.

I used this Rat Shack dual wattage soldering station. http://www.radioshack.com/product/i...&cp=2032058.2032236.2032313&parentPage=family

Lower wattages are supposed to be better for fine work, sensitive electronics etc. But I find that on the lower 20W setting I was holding the tip against the work too long, which risks excessive heat conduction to the components. (In this case with the large package of the DX UV LED, and the Elly's heatsink star made it not much of an issue) And I found setting it to 40Watts and getting the work done quicker was actually better than the low setting.

Weller makes good irons, and that 25 Watter should be fine. Just clean and tin the tip well, and the heat should conduct well. I think my cheaper RatShack iorn was not working as well as it just had a chromed iron tip, and it didn't take a good coat of tinning until it heated up and oxidized a bit. Your Weller probably came with a much better quality tip than mine did.