Mag623/Mag440 reflector selection question

[Justin Case]

Any advice on selecting between a Litho vs Modamag M2 reflector (or any other drop-in D Mag-compatible reflector) for a Mag623 or Mag440 mod? Also looking for additional advice on choosing between SMO vs MOP finishes for the reflector.

I'm interested in the usual "good balance" between throw and spill, although I concede that a Mag623 may not be the most practical light to be worrying about throw or spill. But I can pretend. I also don't want an ugly beam. Although I'm not white wall hunting, any visible shadows and the like against real backgrounds in indoor settings are distracting.

If the recommended reflector is also flexible enough to provide good throw/spill balance and beam quality for other lamps such as W-A and Hikari, that would be even better.

I found these posts that provide some useful direction:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=203556
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=241163
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=112370 (links to photos don't seem to work)

Thanks.

 

[mrartillery]

I have both reflectors, but i prefer the Litho MOP due to the fact that it has more surface area (for what its worth) beams are basically the same though, although Modamag seems to be a little more diffused. Either choice should be great.

IMO I hate smooth reflectors, way to many artifacts for my taste, ive always used MOP, except for my throwmaster and my FM3-x unit which are VLOP to smooth out artifacts. You will still get a decent amount of throw out of a MOP, although the 623 does have a ugly beam in most reflectors, its so big that you mainly get a ton of flood. If it were me, I'd get a throwmaster to handle the 623 you'll be glad you did.

As for the Hikari and WA bulbs i use Litho's in them with no problems, the Hikari will easy go out to around 200 yards while still having a nice smooth wall of flood.

 

[Justin Case]

Thanks a lot.

I appreciate the ease with which you are trying to spend my money with that Throwmaster recommendation. Definitely a nice product, but with a price to match.

What voltage are you running your Hikari (5607?)?

 

[mrartillery]

Thanks a lot.

I appreciate the ease with which you are trying to spend my money with that Throwmaster recommendation. Definitely a nice product, but with a price to match.

What voltage are you running your Hikari (5607?)?

Lol anytime!

Im running the 5607 on 3 IMR 26500's, I've put as much as 12.28 volts to this bulb on a cold startup with no It really is an amazing little bulb. Perhaps my favorite part about it is that i bought 10 of them shipped on ebay for $12.

 

[Justin Case]

What reflector are you using with the 5607?

I guess I'm a wimp. I was going to set my JimmyM regulator out to only 10V with a fast soft start. What is your assessment of the 5607's performance at 10V? Have you tried any JimmyM regulators with your 5607s? Any guesses as to a max voltage with a fast soft start, without flashing the bulb? Maybe I should reprogram the regulator for a medium soft start and go for higher voltage.

 

[Billy Ram]

I don't have any experiance with the 623 but the 440 and the 458 do better with the FM3X. I do have experiance with the FM1909 and it does best with the TM2.5 .
Billy

 

[Justin Case]

Billy, you are worse than mrartillery when it comes to spending my money! That FM3X is really nice. You guys are killing me.

What reflector(s) did you compare to the FM3X when you ran a 64440 in the FM3X?

 

[mrartillery]

What reflector are you using with the 5607?

I guess I'm a wimp. I was going to set my JimmyM regulator out to only 10V with a fast soft start. What is your assessment of the 5607's performance at 10V? Have you tried any JimmyM regulators with your 5607s? Any guesses as to a max voltage with a fast soft start, without flashing the bulb? Maybe I should reprogram the regulator for a medium soft start and go for higher voltage.

Never ran mine as low as 10 volts, but i could imagine that it would be rather yellowish , if it were me I would use no regulation, just try to keep your voltage under 12.2 around start up. I know that just nulled what i said earlier, but i was just testing to see how much the bulb could take, and it succeeded. If the bulb were more expensive and harder to find then I would probably recommend some form of soft start, but they're only $1.20 each, so my advice, throw the voltage to em and let em shine! :thumbsup:

 

[Justin Case]

I guess I'm unclear as to how the voltage ramp-up without a regulator compares to the JimmyM soft start ramp-up in Medium or Fast. I probably have to ask JimmyM. Maybe I'll try 10V first to see what the beam color looks like. If it is overly yellow, then I can try 11V or 11.5V with my Fast soft start regulator and see what happens.

After buying the regulator and spending the time building the Mag switch mod, I'm going to use the regulator!

 

[mrartillery]

Yeah sorry, I've never messed with any regulators or soft starts for that matter, I just have never cared for them. But if you're insistent on using it then I would consider perhaps setting it to 12v, you shouldn't have to worry about flashing it and you will be getting full potential from your bulb. That's just my personal suggestion.

 

[Hack On Wheels]

You will still get a decent amount of throw out of a MOP, although the 623 does have a ugly beam in most reflectors, its so big that you mainly get a ton of flood. If it were me, I'd get a throwmaster to handle the 623 you'll be glad you did.

Ugly in what sense? Just super floody, or odd shaped even with an MOP? Trying to finish up a Mag623, but I don't think my budget has room for a throwmaster at the moment.

Hope you don't mind my interjection, Justin.

 

[mrartillery]

Lots of flood yes, which dont get me wrong I love flood, but I like for them to throw as well. While it will still throw, but the shallow mag reflector wont give it its full potential. If you seen in person it would be a little easier to explain, but since you can't, use this as a reference, notice the difference in the hot spot when compared to the throwmaster.

 

[Hack On Wheels]

Lots of flood yes, which dont get me wrong I love flood, but I like for them to throw as well. While it will still throw, but the shallow mag reflector wont give it its full potential. If you seen in person it would be a little easier to explain, but since you can't, use this as a reference, notice the difference in the hot spot when compared to the throwmaster.

Thanks! I hadn't come across that post before, it's a great comparison; I can definitely see what you mean. I guess my 623 will just be a (freaking bright) wall of light until I can upgrade.

 

[mrartillery]

Thanks! I hadn't come across that post before, it's a great comparison; I can definitely see what you mean. I guess my 623 will just be a (freaking bright) wall of light until I can upgrade.

Lol, you will still be impressed with it I'm certain, but the throw master makes it a sight to behold!

 

[737mech]

Hey Justin Case, have you found a place to purchase the M2 reflectors? It looks like the Shoppe is out of them....

 

[Billy Ram]

Billy, you are worse than mrartillery when it comes to spending my money! That FM3X is really nice. You guys are killing me.

What reflector(s) did you compare to the FM3X when you ran a 64440 in the FM3X?

I tried the TM2.5 VLOP but the FM3X VLOP worked better with the axle filament bulbs like the 440 and 458. It gave a rounder more intense hot spot. The 458 with the FM3X will start a fire right now with Elite 1700s.
Billy

 

[Hack On Wheels]

Hey Justin Case, have you found a place to purchase the M2 reflectors? It looks like the Shoppe is out of them....

If I'm not mistaken, the Shoppe has both SMO and MOP in stock.

 

[737mech]

If I'm not mistaken, the Shoppe has both SMO and MOP in stock.

Yup, your right. I was looking at the wrong section. Thanks.

 

[Justin Case]

An Osram 623 needs at least an 0.500" opening, not 0.425" as claimed on The Shoppe's web site.

 

[LuxLuthor]

An Osram 623 needs at least an 0.500" opening, not 0.425" as claimed on The Shoppe's web site.

We actually got down to splitting hairs on this Delghi project, and decided .472" worked for '623 bulbs which I can confirm after receiving it.

If you are going to use the smaller 2" size reflector, without question the MOP (cheapest is fine) is best for the heavy artifact from the '623. It is what was used in Mac's Torch. When you go more towards LOP, the downside of weird shadows isn't worth trying to use it for more throw.

As others have said, at considerable additional expense the larger reflectors do much better...but I wouldn't spend the money if it was only for a '623. I would use the larger head/reflector with an axial bulb like 64625 or 64458 or IRC's.