$425 conus
This light is a little different in that it combines a rather small battery and body tube with a large and deep reflector. The CR123 seemed like a good place to start for size but I prefer to use rechargeables so the AW R123A was chosen. The photo below includes an AW 18650 for scale.
The tail cap and crenelated bezel are stainless steel turned to a very fine finish. My lathe has power feed, which makes all the difference in getting a smooth surface because the tool bit can be fed across the work at a slow and even rate.
The body was powder coated with a dark gray called "Cast Iron" that nicely complements the stainless. To insure adhesion, the body was blasted with 220 grit aluminum oxide and pre-baked, with several careful cleanings along the way.
The flange on the reflector was cut down to minimize the diameter of the head. The cylindrical section at the back was also turned to a smooth finish that is a close slip fit in the body for good heat transfer.
I didn't like the aluminum pill that came with the reflector so a piece of brass was chucked up and turned into a nicer pill to host the cool white XP-G R5 emitter.
The driver is a three-level ShiningBeam #1219. The wires were replaced with Teflon. The current draws are 1.15A on High, 296mA on Medium and 50mA on Low.
The body started out as a piece of 6061 solid bar. The first step was to drill out the center.
A smooth bore was run through the body and used as the reference for concentricity. The outside diameter of the body was then turned to make a smooth blank for all that followed.
The threads for the tail cap were made to establish the point from which the length of the body could be determined to accommodate the battery and the reflector.
Threads could then be cut for the bezel...
...which, like the tail cap, was turned out of a solid bar of 416 stainless steel. Using stainless makes for a lot more work than if aluminum were used but the result is worth it. An effort was made to minimize the amount of material in the stainless parts in order to avoid unnecessary weight.
The three major pieces were trial-fit with the switch, battery, light engine and reflector before moving on to the final shaping.
All operations were done on the lathe except for the crenelations, the grip ring and the flats on the body, all of which require a mill and rotary table.
A Fenix switch was used because it allowed the shortest possible length. These have worked out well in the Fenix lights I've got and in other custom applications.
The interior of the body received the same attention to finish as the rest of the light.
Ready for final assembly, at last.
Beamshots to follow...
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What a beauty!!!! Everywhere you look there is awesomeness. Great build!
For this awesome light.
