Need a flashlight to use up my batteries! help!

[KingSmono]

Re: Need a flashlight to use up my batteries! hel

I have another question as well... Since the arc4 that I'm using is a one cell light... Whenever I take out the partially depleted cells, and put them into the X5, they won't have the same amount of "juice" left in them... What happens when one gets fully drained, does the power strictly run off of the one with some left in it? Or does the whole light shut off completely... I'm thinking maybe I should go with the Red X5, so I can be sure to drain em one at a time! But then again, all that red light doesn't seem very practical, I don't know how much I'd actually use it. Maybe I'll just get the X5T-HA...decisions decisions... And you're absolutely right Alan...this is just another excuse to buy another light!!!!!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[illumiGeek]

Re: Need a flashlight to use up my batteries! hel

Just for kicks I dropped a 5mm White LED in place of the lamp in my Legend LX and put in some "dead" batteries. The cells are reading about 2.5-2.6V each unloaded. I fired her up expecting to see an angry blue light for a few minutes, then <poof> but I'm actually getting a very bright (very VERY bright), white light that has been running for quite a while now and no smoke.

Don't know what kind of LED it is. It was one of my "rejects" from the junk box. When driven at spec it was not very bright and had a ringy beam. In the LX with the depleated cells it is impressively bright and a bit less ringy.

This could be a fun way to burn up some depleated cells, or some white LEDs...? I wonder which will give out first, the batteries or the LED?

Aloha, iG

 

[CalgaryGuy]

Re: Need a flashlight to use up my batteries! hel

I had that idea before, then I picked up the StremLight TwinTask 1L. Supposed to be good to eat up used 123 on LED mode. But found that I would never use it and have a LSH-P which can do the same thing so I ended up selling the TT 1L and use the money to buy a mod module for my LSH-P.

 

[milkyspit]

Re: Need a flashlight to use up my batteries! hel

[ QUOTE ]
KingSmono said:
I have another question as well... Since the arc4 that I'm using is a one cell light... Whenever I take out the partially depleted cells, and put them into the X5, they won't have the same amount of "juice" left in them... What happens when one gets fully drained, does the power strictly run off of the one with some left in it? Or does the whole light shut off completely... I'm thinking maybe I should go with the Red X5, so I can be sure to drain em one at a time! But then again, all that red light doesn't seem very practical, I don't know how much I'd actually use it. Maybe I'll just get the X5T-HA...decisions decisions... And you're absolutely right Alan...this is just another excuse to buy another light!!!!!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

I've got some experience with this from designing and testing the 2x123 version of my Milky Candle. Typically one of the 123 cells drops very low then shuts itself down, making the whole light go out. The other 123 cell usually has some life remaining. If you test for flash amps using a DMM, you can easily find out which cell is dead. In almost every case it's one cell or the other, not both. However, there's no guarantee as to how much longer the other cell will keep running before it goes dead too.

Incidentally, the Milky Candle was designed both as a long running emergency light and a good light for using up partially depleted cells. Please post in that thread if you have any interest, as I'll make another run of them once enough people are interested. There's a minimum number I need to make in order to place an order for more circuit boards...

 

[illumiGeek]

Re: Need a flashlight to use up my batteries! hel

I've run the Legend LX with the white LED direct drive from 2x123 depleated cells for several hours now and it's still going strong (both the "dead" cells and the LED).

I've used the light a lot in the last few days while building computers. Ran it for hours at a time and the LED didn't smoke.

 

[CalgaryGuy]

Re: Need a flashlight to use up my batteries! hel

Milkyspit, how much do you sell the Milky Candle?

 

[milkyspit]

Re: Need a flashlight to use up my batteries! hel

CalgaryGuy, I sold the ones from the pilot run for $23 each plus shipping. One of the goals of the project has been to keep the cost low, which for me means somewhere fairly close to $20. Hopefully I can keep the price at that level for the next build as well, but of course there's no way I can guarantee that. All depends on the cost of various components.

For what it's worth, I've been toying around with making the circuit board available so other modders could build it into their own projects. Not sure how much demand there would be for that. Fellow CPFer Doug Owen, who designed the circuit itself, has been playing with some interesting variations too.