I soldered 2 XP-G's side by side in series config., both are in 10mm round pcb and are so close that the pcb's touch each other. When I soldered them, the smoke from the solder somehow fogged up one of the domes but was shining OK afterwards. Is there a special type of solder to use or a lower heat soldering iron to use ? I presently have a 20w thin tip unit.
Soldering question
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qwertyydude
Flashlight Enthusiast
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If you're careful you can clean the dome by dropping denatured alcohol on top of the dome and rubbing it a little with a clean fingertip, use as light a pressure as possible so you don't damage it. Then carefully wipe it clean with a lint free cloth.
+1 for cleaning it. If you are using flux when you solder sometimes that will splatter and fog up the lens. I usually clean the led with some alcohol and a cue tip any way after I am done.
You would have had to get the iron pretty close to heat damage it. Honestly I think if anything a hotter iron may be better as it will make the joints faster so the iron is near the emitter for less time. I dont know for sure how many watts mine is (40 I would guess) but its about 950 degrees, and on a tiny connection like for an XPG it only takes about 1 to 1.5 seconds to make the joint.
Good luck.
You would have had to get the iron pretty close to heat damage it. Honestly I think if anything a hotter iron may be better as it will make the joints faster so the iron is near the emitter for less time. I dont know for sure how many watts mine is (40 I would guess) but its about 950 degrees, and on a tiny connection like for an XPG it only takes about 1 to 1.5 seconds to make the joint.
Good luck.
LukeA
Flashlight Enthusiast
I would clean the dome with an alcohol-wetted q-tip.
PhotonWrangler
Flashaholic
A tip regarding q-tips (yeah, bad pun) -
Go to a home medical supply place and get the hospital grade q-tips. They're the type that come in the paper packages with the autoclaving indicator on them. They're much more tightly wound than home style q-tips and have far less tendency to leave stray fibers behind on the device that you're cleaning. They're not very expensive.
I've always used this style of q-tip for cleaning VCR heads for this reason.
Go to a home medical supply place and get the hospital grade q-tips. They're the type that come in the paper packages with the autoclaving indicator on them. They're much more tightly wound than home style q-tips and have far less tendency to leave stray fibers behind on the device that you're cleaning. They're not very expensive.
I've always used this style of q-tip for cleaning VCR heads for this reason.
Justin Case
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IMO, things like q-tips and even tissue paper are overly abrasive materials. There can also be a tendency to push too hard into the dome, dislodging it. I would use a lint free microfiber cloth that is designed for cleaning coated eyeglass lenses. Then dip a corner of the cloth in isopropyl alcohol, and gently brush the wetted cloth over the XP-G dome to clean the fog off of the dome. I use just the weight and mechanical stiffness of the cloth itself to press against the dome -- essentially, it's a glorified brush. I don't put my finger behind the cloth and press the fabric into the dome.
bshanahan14rulz
Flashlight Enthusiast
+1, good advices!
brickbat
Enlightened
I'd not use "denatured" alcohol. No telling what compound was added to the ethanol to denature it, and there's thus risk of fogging the LED. Better to use IPA, as CREE recommends.
(IPA = Isopropyl alcohol)
PhotonWrangler
Flashaholic
That would be 90% alcohol, not the less expensive 70% "rubbing alcohol." The cheaper stuff can contain fragrances or other substances that can leave an unwanted residue behind.
And though I agree that the foam microfiber sticks are a bit less abrasive, I don't use them because their higher costs causes people to be tempted to re-dip the swab in the alcohol bottle, contaminating the fluid. When a q-tip swab dries out, I snap the stick in half so I won't confuse new swabs with used ones.
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LukeA
Flashlight Enthusiast
Don't dip in the bottle. Dispense into another container, resealable if you like. Then dip swabs in that container as you please.
PhotonWrangler
Flashaholic
Good tip, LukeA.
Also, resist the temptation to store wooden-stick swabs in a bottle of alcohol. While it does provide a premoistened swab, the alcohol causes the resin in the wood to seep out into the fluid. This slowly converts the fluid to shellac! Yes, thsi happened to me once. It took quite awhile to remove the shellac from the video heads on a vcr.
