OBVIOUS THREAD WARNING: more accurate focusing on m*glite

[c3lica]

ok well this isnt tested but common sense tells me that if you take the reflector and dremel/put on grinder and reduce the angle of the cut (the end that you cant see when its assembled) it will allow you to focus more accurately(requires more rotation for same adjustment). at the same time, it will give you less range of focus.

dont know if anyone knows/cares but i thought ide post it.

should wourk just opposite if you increase the angle but seeings how the cut m*g has made already allows for full focus( and unfoucs???) i dont know if there is any point.

not really sure if there is any point anyways but if you want a cheap mod just to say its different do this. haha :twothumbs

 

[DonShock]

Or you could just remove the cam tube completely. Then use this mod to the bulb post to lock the the bulb at a fixed height and focus it by screwing the entire head up or down. This is the method used when using camless metal reflectors in Mag hotwires. It works well if your goal is to keep the light at the optimum focus point most of the time, but it takes a lot of turns to switch between spot and flood.

 

[Hallis]

Or you could just remove the cam tube completely. Then use this mod to the bulb post to lock the the bulb at a fixed height and focus it by screwing the entire head up or down. This is the method used when using camless metal reflectors in Mag hotwires. It works well if your goal is to keep the light at the optimum focus point most of the time, but it takes a lot of turns to switch between spot and flood.

Would you need to lock the bulb in place anyway if you cut the cam off? As the bulb would already be pushed all the way up by the spring.

Shane

 

[DonShock]

The problem is that with the bulb post all the way up, you need to screw the head way up to get a spot focus. Definitely past the o-ring and I'm not sure if you can get a good spot before the head is all the way off.

 

[2xTrinity]

That's actually quite a good idea. I find my ROP defocuses "too far". A shorter cam would me to limit the focusing "range" to a more useful window, and be able to adjust across a full half-turn, rather than more like 1/4turn. Cool idea.

 

[MikeSalt]

Just to add to the ROP comment, I believe it would actually be a hazard to your flashlight to have it fully defocussed. With my cammed FM reflector, at full defocus, the bulb retreats into the hole such that the filament is below the reflector. This would cause the plastic internals of the Maglite to heat very quickly and eventually cause damage.

Of course, this is not a fault with the FiveMega reflector, it is just a consequence of designing it to work with taller bulbs as well as the ROP bulbs.

 

[2xTrinity]

Just to add to the ROP comment, I believe it would actually be a hazard to your flashlight to have it fully defocussed. With my cammed FM reflector, at full defocus, the bulb retreats into the hole such that the filament is below the reflector. This would cause the plastic internals of the Maglite to heat very quickly and eventually cause damage.

Of course, this is not a fault with the FiveMega reflector, it is just a consequence of designing it to work with taller bulbs as well as the ROP bulbs.

Well, I replaced the plastic tower with the Aluminum "MagCTower" part when I built the light, so the melting isn't a problem.

Anyway, I went ahead and dremeled and sanded down the reflector cam so that the bulb is defocusable to the point before any donut holes are readily apparent. The head is much easier to focus (the shallower angle means less force is needed to turn the head, and I have more precision).