parts are sooooo small, how do you do it?

[waddup]

ive only tried a couple of simple mods, im 45 years old, my vision is good but i can hardly see the parts to solder, and even if i can see them my hands shake a little when trying to solder 24G teflon onto one side on an emitter!

ive worked with my hands all my life and even stripping 3mm off the teflon wire was a pain as i couldnt use my teeth

i guess one of those extra hands clamp things and a big lighted magnifying glass would help a lot.

but then id need to understand electronics more to have any fun.

so no more mods for me, yes i got it to work (kinda) twisting the head is now an unintentional secondary switch (direct drive P7 into a spear clone)

i wont be doing any more, ill buy ready made lights.

those of you that do regular modding must have a steady hand and great micro equipment?

no idea at all how you would actually get 4 or 6 wires into a single 16mm driver board????

AMAZING!

arctic epoxy works very well:twothumbs

 

[Tekno_Cowboy]

The helping hands stands help a bit, but they'd be nicer if they had flat rubber grippers instead of the toothy monstrosities they all seem to have.

Sad to hear you're giving up modding. If you need any mod work done, there are plenty of forum members that mod for a reasonable fee.

Yep, Arcitc Alumina Epoxy is some pretty usefull stuff.

 

[waddup]

The helping hands stands help a bit, but they'd be nicer if they had flat rubber grippers

thats an easy modd you can do with a file some glue and some rubber pad?

 

[Tekno_Cowboy]

I just looked around for some better clips and replaced the old ones entirely.

 

[Hallmcc]

The helping hands stands help a bit, but they'd be nicer if they had flat rubber grippers instead of the toothy monstrosities they all seem to have.

heat shrink over the jaws works wonders! I slipped one set over, shrank it, then repeated a second time.

 

[Th232]

Blu tack works wonders, much better than the helping hands for me. A stereo microscope is also useful, but I find it easier to do certain things just by eye.

 

[Databyter]

I had similar problems doing some tiny work.

What helped me immensly is;

A super bright light (don't depend on your regular room lighting get a desk light or something right over your work).

A large magnifying lense that can be adjusted to be between you and your work (they sell these on adjustable arms but you can also make them once you have a readily available lens)

Lay out your job before you start, know where you will need support and have your pre tinned wires/parts etc. ready to go.

Use the right tools. If even one of your tools is clumsy and ill suited your whole job will suffer.

Edit: I also wear reading glasses for small work and if its real small and I don't want to use a magnifier I put TWO sets of glasses on my face. It's surprisingly effective.

Cheers!

 

[Black Rose]

i guess one of those extra hands clamp things and a big lighted magnifying glass would help a lot.

I have one of those helping hand things and refer to it as the hindering hand.

I do use a magnifying glass for some of the mods I've done.

 

[georges80]

A good lighted magnifier is well worth the money. I bought a nice unit and then modified it. Removed the fluoro tubes (way too hot near the face) and replaced with 3 Cree LEDs on each side with appropriate heatsink. An nFlex driver dedicated to the 6 LEDs to provide dimming to select the amount of light I actually need.

But the best addition was a dedicated flood LED on loc-line that I can move to where ever I need extra light, very useful in conjunction with the swing down magnifier. The combo of the main lens and the magnifier gives 10x magnification, perfect for checking the small details. This LED has its own dedicated nFlex to allow for dimming as well.

I gutted the ballast and replaced it with a AC/DC switching supply to provide the DC source for the 2 nflex drivers. The result is MUCH better lighting and a lot less heat in the magnifier head.

Anyhow a few pics of the results for nearly 2 years ago. I use the magnifier just about every day.

The momentary switches are for dimming the two lights. The original 2 on/off switches turn each nflex on or off.

The installed Cree:

Closeup with just the locline LED on.

cheers,
george.

 

[Hack On Wheels]

Where's a good place to get the "helping hands" and things? I haven't noticed them in any stores (maybe I should look harder?) and I wouldn't know what places are good to order from online. Suggestions anyone? I'm in Canada if that affects things...

 

[Black Rose]

I got my helping hands at The Source.

You could also check Active Electronics on Merivale Road.

 

[waddup]

so i need $250 of additional tools to modd my $40 light?

im happy to buy your old lights guys.:candle:

 

[AvroArrow]

georges80,

Now that is a hard core illuminated magnifying rig. :thumbsup: Of course with all the tiny bits you solder onto your drivers, you probably need it.

I have one of those helping hand things and refer to it as the hindering hand.

I do use a magnifying glass for some of the mods I've done.

Are you using one of those cheap $15 helping hands? I bought one too and I'd have to agree with your assessment, it's more hindering than helping. So I ended up investing (aka spend $$$) in a quality rig.

Where's a good place to get the "helping hands" and things? I haven't noticed them in any stores (maybe I should look harder?) and I wouldn't know what places are good to order from online. Suggestions anyone? I'm in Canada if that affects things...

Depends on how serious you are. If you search on amazon.com for "helping hands with magnifier" you will see the typical cheap one that most people get, including myself in the past. It frustrated me more than it helped. It was also the only thing available at my local electronics parts store. So I started searching on this forum and found others on a similar quest in this thread.

I copied jch79's build exactly (post #22), and I even found all the parts in Canada so I didn't have to mess with all the cross border hassles. I linked to the shop where I bought the parts from in post #53. I just dug up my receipts from July 2008 when I bought it and it looks like the prices have gone up a bit since then. The GRS double third-hand soldering station (004570) is now $140 and the extra Third Hand Attachment (004546) is $48 CAD. I paid $158.90+taxes last year. I also got them to special order the Donegan Optical Flex-a-Mag 204-D 4" 4X for me, but that took longer and it was $29.95+tax. So my total cost was $188.85+tax CAD. Definitely not cheap but I've come to realize that 1 set of really good tools is better than 10 sets of crappy tools. I figure that it'd be useful for me for other things besides flashlight modding so the investment was worth it for me. YMMV. BTW, I don't know if you're back east or here out west, or somewhere in the middle, but there may be a local jewelry supply store near you that may have these also.

 

[Hack On Wheels]

Thanks for the replies!

I got my helping hands at The Source.

You could also check Active Electronics on Merivale Road.

Thanks, if I'm ever near a The Source location, I might actually wander in and take a look. Only ever been in one and wasn't that impressed, but with something specific to look for it might be better.

Depends on how serious you are. If you search on amazon.com for "helping hands with magnifier" you will see the typical cheap one that most people get, including myself in the past. It frustrated me more than it helped. It was also the only thing available at my local electronics parts store. So I started searching on this forum and found others on a similar quest in this thread.

I copied jch79's build exactly (post #22), and I even found all the parts in Canada so I didn't have to mess with all the cross border hassles. I linked to the shop where I bought the parts from in post #53. I just dug up my receipts from July 2008 when I bought it and it looks like the prices have gone up a bit since then. The GRS double third-hand soldering station (004570) is now $140 and the extra Third Hand Attachment (004546) is $48 CAD. I paid $158.90+taxes last year. I also got them to special order the Donegan Optical Flex-a-Mag 204-D 4" 4X for me, but that took longer and it was $29.95+tax. So my total cost was $188.85+tax CAD. Definitely not cheap but I've come to realize that 1 set of really good tools is better than 10 sets of crappy tools. I figure that it'd be useful for me for other things besides flashlight modding so the investment was worth it for me. YMMV. BTW, I don't know if you're back east or here out west, or somewhere in the middle, but there may be a local jewelry supply store near you that may have these also.

Wow, thanks for the detailed reply! Yeah, I'd rather get something that will be truly useful and last me a long time, even if it takes me a while to put the setup together. I'll make sure to read that thread. For all I know I could be just down the block from you! I'm another Vancouver local.

 

[JamisonM]

so i need $250 of additional tools to modd my $40 light?

im happy to buy your old lights guys.:candle:

What? Where did you hear that? I'm mostly into modding maglites, but to do basic mods, it doesn't take a whole lot. A cheap soldering iron, solder, solder pump or wick, wire strippers and wire can all be had from radio shack. You can get a cheap multimeter from walmart as well as a pair of flat end nips and a cellulose sponge. Besides all that and maybe something to hold it all, the basic knowledge and mod supplies (LED, Driver, heatsink, that sort of stuff) are all you need.

 

[waddup]

What? Where did you hear that? I'm mostly into modding maglites, but to do basic mods, it doesn't take a whole lot. A cheap soldering iron, solder, solder pump or wick, wire strippers and wire can all be had from radio shack. You can get a cheap multimeter from walmart as well as a pair of flat end nips and a cellulose sponge. Besides all that and maybe something to hold it all, the basic knowledge and mod supplies (LED, Driver, heatsink, that sort of stuff) are all you need.

lighted magnifying glass, arctic past/compound,etc etc the list really gets quite long, and from $10-$50 it adds up, have a look at your flashlight modding kit one day when its all on the table. i bet there s a few $$ in total.

i can buy a working P7/me-e and soon an sst im sure for $50-$100.

no muss o fuss,

for me, its just not worth it.

im good with a hammer or a shovel,

all this is tooooo small for me

ill choose my battles.........

 

[tx101]

LOL .... your not that much older than me

I would rather have a bright light to work under than a magnifying glass.
The "Helping hands" thingy is definitely a must. Use that to hold the wire
while you are soldering.

I bet your hand shakes when your trying to solder .... use something to rest
your hand against while your holding the solder iron. Nothing fancy, whatever
comes to hand. For me its normally a packet of cigarettes, roll of electrical
tape, cellphone, you get the idea

 

[Black Rose]

Are you using one of those cheap $15 helping hands? I bought one too and I'd have to agree with your assessment, it's more hindering than helping. So I ended up investing (aka spend $$$) in a quality rig.

Yeah, it's one of the cheaper models.

I do all my mods on a glass tray from an old microwave oven to keep the solder, etc. off of my desk.
The base of the helping hands slides all over the place and the alligator clips don't work well.

What did you get and from where?

 

[Hack On Wheels]

Yeah, it's one of the cheaper models.

I do all my mods on a glass tray from an old microwave oven to keep the solder, etc. off of my desk.
The base of the helping hands slides all over the place and the alligator clips don't work well.

What did you get and from where?

Check Avro Arrow's reply to me and the thread he links to. It's all in there.
The shop he got his third hands and magnifying glass from is in downtown Vancouver though, so depending on how shipping is, you might want to look into a jeweler's supply store that is local to you.

 

[Black Rose]

Check Avro Arrow's reply to me and the thread he links to. It's all in there.
The shop he got his third hands and magnifying glass from is in downtown Vancouver though, so depending on how shipping is, you might want to look into a jeweler's supply store that is local to you.

Thanks. Looking at the thread now.

I don't even know if there is a jewelery supply store here in Ottawa.