I think I need a mentor...

[Shultze]

Well, perhaps not, but I definately could use some help.

This could be stupid, obvious and all sorts of annyoing things but I seems to have some kind of problem with learning if I don't get to try, fail and retry on my own. It turned out that flashlight modding was no exception to this.

So, this is the situation. I have a small flashlight I wish to pratice modding on. My goal with this project is not to create the optimal super light of eternal youth or to save cash or anything, my goal is to learn how to succesfully make a working custom solution. Of course it would be cool if it outperformed the original setup but I'm prepared to consider such a success a bonus (even though I could imagine that one doesn't need too much success to outperform the standard config).

The flashlight is a cheap $8 thing with head, body and clicke switch housing constructed out of alumnium. It runs on three (3) AAA batteries clicked into place into a plastic battery holder taking up virtually all space inside of the body. The light source is 14 white LED soldered onto a circuit card/board which is inserted into a plastic, cylinder shape reflector (looks like a salt shaker lid) and held together in it's space in the head by a retention ring made out of alumnium. Now, would the following plan of action work at all?

1. Construct and make a custom pill designed for snug fit above a single CR123 battery in the body? The specs of the pill would be 23 mm in diameter and a height of (maximum) about 35 mm. Is this to small? Too large? I chose the 123-solution instead of keeping the original battery holder since there is only about 3 mm of free space if I choose to do so. I guess a good emitter and smart parts in the pill could compensate alot so using just one 3V lithium cell wouldn't be a bad choice compared to 4,5 V (through 3*1.5v AAA)?

2. Construct and make some kind of skeletonized battery holder / side padding for a single CR123, this might sound like over-kill but I need to do something since a standard 123 is too small (thin) too fit well into the tube, as for now it'll just lie there, loose and shake around. Or will it? Maybe it can be held into place by the pill designs natural pressure against the battery?

3. Replace the reflector with a new one correspondent to all the measurements of the head and the pill (LED-size).

4. Replace the lens, mostly for fun I guess but the scratched up plastic original is probably not that hardcore and perhaps I need to switch to a better plastic or even glass? I don't know how much heat a good emitter could produce in a construction like this.

5. Decide wether to keep the original switch or change it, perhaps to a traditionall one instead of a reverse. Regardless of what this isn't a big part of the project and shouldn't be of any significance to the rest of the plan.

Ok. So the first thing I need is some feedback on my plan. I don't need feedback saying that it's too much, ain't worth the parts and expenses and so on cause like I wrote earlier I'm not into this to save money or find an easy sollution to make the light brighter, then I would just buy a better flashlight.
I want to construct some kind of pill and make a few other alterations with the sole intent to learn by doing. I need to know if my plan could work out, if and how I should alter it and so on. Then I can go on with the next step, scouting for info on what parts I would need to construct the pill and how to assemble them, after that I could do the rest pretty fast. Err.. this could probably be further discussed...

NOTES:

-The flashlight have no known name but it's made in Hong Kong
-The flashlight is very similar to MrBulk's GoldMine mod
-My flashlight is available from Electronic GoldMine aswell
-MrBulks GM mod is too smart for me since one of my goals is to learn how to make a custom pill, by making one.

Thank you!

 

[roadie]

u are thinking too much for yr first light

make it simple

cut down yr "wish list"

the trick is if cant make one yrself, BUY one ....

happy modding

 

[Shultze]

Hm ok. I hear you.

However most of the list is actually not that much modding. As for the outer changes with etching primers and airbrush that won't be a problem, I have experience although not with flashlight parts in particular but hey, alu as alu right?

Most of the internal changes are just me "thinking out loud" and actually it really comes down to just one major thing, perhaps I should have simplified my first post into "need help choosing parts/components for a pill". After all, replacing the reflector etc. will be critical unless I make an exact replica of the original LED-board and that I don't want. I already have some experience with "normal" LED and soldering and stuff, although not in flashlights.

None the less, as for making a cut down wish list, what mods do you suggest? My main goal is of course the modding itself but the reason for this is obviously the fact that the capacity of the original setup is bad (in an $8 way). I chose not to mimic MrBulk's way of modding a similar light, I read his description and even though my retention ring lacked the ledge he used for attaching the sink that was a minor problem and the other steps in his mod would definately transfer directly into my project. However, the only real challenge I can see is solving the problem with finding the right components for a pill and then do the assembly. But this in itself might be too much aswell? I sure would like to give it a try anyway so if anyone else have some spare time for some PM correspondance (or posting right here in the thread) so that I can purchase the right components it would make me real happy

 

[roadie]

sorrie my singlish residue in the speech and words, not the prefect english

here we help one and another in our favourite hobby, i am no teacher myself, still a learner ....

Pill ..... something i am not farmiliar with [i do searching now...]

u are using that 8 bucks led light as housing .... similar to these ?

http://www.onlineshop.com.sg/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=6&products_id=131&zenid=0c1e7d5df3c482df02e357862e414dab

3AAA housing is almost the same battery size of a C cell, u know?

and yr initial post is wanting a single CR123a as the primary battery source, hmmm u could jus use the existing housing to power 3 AAA nimh instead, resulting rechargeable and at 3.6V = no need for resistor in the "circuit", having abt 800mah to 1000mah of juice, depending on the battery u might get ...

the leds have + and -, + is wired to the top, - to the housing

siting on the heatsink(if u using lexon), then sit on a hobby PCB with the + and - connect to where they are ....

bezel : saltshaker ? plastic or glass ? i think its not really important here right now, get the light up then see how to beautify it later

:huh2: we mus be :hairpull: and and simplify is the success ok?
:whoopin:

 

[roadie]

maybe i am not the one able to give u what u really wanted here, someone please help him

cheers

 

[Shultze]

No problems with linguistics or coaching my friend. I hear you.

There is no "must have" or "must do this" with my plan of action. I just grabbed what I knew, put together a plan and posted it here for feedback and so far I'd say it's working. Since I lack alot of the terminology using the search functions is pretty hard and I actually read threads here for days before I posted.

The CR123 for example, that's not a must I just picked something, my reason for wanting to change the power source (batteries) by then was just to make more space available inside of the body since I planned to make a pill/sandwich (uhm..?) and place it in the battery tube (since all the reflectors I found was to long for the assembly to fit inside of the head like the original one did). However I read more since then and I will not try to make something like that now, I will keep the original battery holder and just switch to better batteries just like you say.

My plan now is to just replace the PCB with 14 white LED with another one hosting a single Luxeon (or similar). I guess your suggestion with 3 x AAA NiMh would work just fine to get some juice out of the emitter. I'm also glad for the info that I don't need any resistor with this setup since my plan didn't involve anything more then just a Lux III mounted on a PCB and the wires.

However, I have a new question. When I connect the emitter to the PCB, do I have to ground it with this setup (emitter + 3 x AAA etc. as above, no other components involved)? If so, do I have to use a separate cable or can I use something like a screw? I saw that MrBulk used a screw when he attahed a LED to a metal sink in a similar construction but I don't really know if this has to do with the choice of materials or something like that.

The reflector obviously needs to be replaced since the one used now is not as much reflector as shelf / holder for the LED. Salt shaker, well, it's cylindrical and has 14 holes in it (for the 14 correspondent LED on the PCB), that's what I meant.
But your obviously right, I won't bother anyone or myself with those questions now as my focus at this moment will be getting the light and it's functions ready.

By the way, this is the exact model I'm working with.
http://www.goldmine-elec-products.com/prodinfo.asp?number=G16244

Stay safe!

 

[roadie]

if i am not wrong, since using the existing battery holder and switch .... jus remove the old pcb , no need to ground ....

infact all my small led / luxeon nvr ground, jus direct voltage or add a resistor in between .....

although some users prefer to use a led driver to be use in the mod, i find its too expensive, unless its a multiple highest end led/luxeon ones. jus my 2 cents worth

as during my readups, the usage of initial drivers are actually used in AC to DC, where the voltage is more constant than where a battery will eventually drops during runtime.

to me, no modding is too small and cant find any fourm with people understanding our favourite hobbies

nice to have small patient fingers

cheers

 

[Shultze]

Sweet, don't know if they're that small though but at least they're patient

Anyway, I keep having questions pop up in my head but I will just go on and perform this mod project I have before I try to figure something else out. Thank you, will report back in this thread later

 

[Shultze]

Ok, so the prototype is finished.

I made a simple PCB replacing the original one with 14 LED. I made a circuit for contact with the case (-) and a simple solder dome for contact with the battery tube spring. I used a single standad 5 mm LED to try it out and it works like a charm. Now I now how to fit everything inside the flashlight and how to solve the functions. I need some feedback on two things though before I continue with the Luxeon.

When using a Luxeon III 3W emitter instead of a standard LED, should I put a layer of copper or aluminium (etc.) between the LED and the PCB or will the PCB alone be enough for heatsinking? I was thinking of cutting a slim piece of copper or alu in the same dimensions as the PCB, attach the emitter to the copper/alu with thermal conductive epoxy and then glue the sink to the PCB, is this overkill? Also, I've checked up on the Sandwich Shoppe Converter Board Comparison Chart and according to that a 3W Luxeon with an input voltage of 4.5V (I will use 3xAAA, 1.5V x 3 = 4.5V) should be used together with a Wiz2 or Downboy. What would the difference be between "LuxIII 3W + 3xAAA" and "LuxIII 3W + 3xAAA + Wiz2/Downboy"?

 

[roadie]

when i was doing my 3w, one time and only, i read that = itself alone, will gerenate up to 125 degree celius, need a heatsink !

if u go see some of the early models of the pros do it without, but the finish products do come with the standard heatsink(at least) connected below.

u need to apply some this [ http://www.arcticsilver.com ] [or any similar products] to effectively transfer the thermal heat to the heatsink.

i am sitting my 3w on an alu project sheet( w/holes) .

errrrr, some people will tell u that overvoltage abit is bad, a no no.
some will say ok.

what i did on my 3 w is having 2 x 3 W on 3 AA normal alkaline with no additional resisitor or fuse .....

Luxeon under statement states that it will take current up to 4.2 volt, on short bursts only!

( use older cheaper batteries !!!!! )
( measure with multi-meter before u put in! [ in single and X 3] )
total abt 4V ( anything higher - brust some time useage only )

 

[Shultze]

Yeah, I was thinking of using thermal conductive epoxy to attach the emitter to some kind of sink and then have a PCB below that (closest to the batteries). If I was to use a resistor and/or other components I would just slap these in between the two (the sink and the PCB).

Do you have a picture on of your mounted 3W emitters? Would be intresting to see.

I don't think I fully understand the rest though. Is it recommended that you use a resistor along with a 3W Luxeon (etc.) only that you don't?

 

[Scattergun]

3xAA makes for nearly 4,5 Volts, wich is clearly over the limit for longterm-running a Luxeon. By using a resistor you can cut down on the numbers, avoiding punishing the LED.
If you use a driver with buck/boost-capability you shouldn´t need the resistor since the circuit will handle the Voltage and current.

 

[Shultze]

Scattergun: Nice, I understand the concept with that but I'll contact you in some way cause I'd really appreciate some help with translation issues. I have no problem with English or anything but some of those electronic stuff and terms really makes no sense

 

[roadie]

so any updates? Done??

pics?