Tale of the (Milky) Tape

[HoopleHead]

n00b question but i couldnt find anything on it, and hopefully the answer will be useful to others...

some questions on the white label/tape on Milky modded lights (usually around the bezel):

- is this tape intended to be left on, can it withstand the heat etc?
- is there anything you can do to keep it "nice" while using the light a lot, like i dunno, put clear nail polish on the edges so they dont start coming off or something?

thanks

 

[MSaxatilus]

I know Milky will kill me for saying this, but the first thing I do when I get a new Milky light is take that tape the heck off the light.



For reference purposes, I like the fact that he includes the details of his builds with the tape label... I take them off the light and stick them to my parts box for future use if I ever go to sell the light. But while I do appreciate his effort in preparing and including the tape details, I really don't like them on the lights themselves. But that's just me.

:nana:

MSax

 

[HoopleHead]

yeah, i think ill do that - remove and just keep for reference. kills the resale value, but dont care about that in this case (P7 Optimator on a Z2). just wondering if anyone had any "preservation" methods, and if the tape adhesive is gonna melt off or something. id assume not...

 

[Mercaptan]

.... in this case (P7 Optimator on a Z2).

Milky makes a P7 based P60 dropin/head accessory? Nice.

 

[HoopleHead]

Milky makes a P7 based P60 dropin/head accessory? Nice.

its the one from this thread, on the right. not a dropin i dont think.

 

[Mercaptan]

There will be beamshots when you get that magnificent piece of art, yes?

 

[Cydonia]

Milky spit white tape = Milk Moustache

Milky Spits white ring labels are like Milk Moustaches. Milk Moustaches. That's the little inside joke, get it? The flashlights he works on have sipped the Milk and have this white ring label around their bezel. Whether he intended this little joke or not I can't say... perhaps it wall all a cute coincidence.
I wonder how many have figured it out by now

 

[ttran97]

Re: Milky spit white tape = Milk Moustache

Milky Spits white ring labels are like Milk Moustaches. Milk Moustaches. That's the little inside joke, get it? The flashlights he works on have sipped the Milk and have this white ring label around their bezel. Whether he intended this little joke or not I can't say... perhaps it wall all a cute coincidence.
I wonder how many have figured it out by now

He uses clear tape too...so your theory doesn't work.

And I keep my sticker on. If I had a way to safely save the labels, I guess I would take it off. I'm not a big time user of my lights, so it doesn't matter to me if the sticker is on it. Taking it off would be like taking off the swoosh from my Nike shoes or the Sony badge from my tv. Why make it generic when you've got something spectacular?

Examples:

 

[Gunner12]

Re: Milky spit white tape = Milk Moustache

I think it might be a way to organize all his work so he doesn't send the wrong light to someone.

As for leaving it on or will it melt, I'm not sure. I also don't know how or when it started.

 

[OceanView]

...can it withstand the heat etc?

Heat? What heat?

Sorry, little joke. Although Milky seems to have shifted to more powerful mods due to customer demand, when he first started doing his Project-M lights, they all ran cool as a cucumber. My M360 in a Mag host never feels warm even after being on for an hour (<in a whisper> And I peeled off the sticker eventually. Shhh!)

Actually, I have two Milky mods and go "commando" style with both. But then again, I actually use both lights and it was weird having a light out in public with this odd white sticker around the head.

 

[HoopleHead]

Actually, I have two Milky mods and go "commando" style with both. But then again, I actually use both lights and it was weird having a light out in public with this odd white sticker around the head.

although how cool would it be for someone random to ID a milky (or even mclux) :naughty:

 

[Manzerick]

I've kept mine on a 7 SSC build without any problems with heat (then again, the torch stays kinda cool). I had a modded KL1 that I did take it off of and realized I like the spec "sheet" right there on the torch.



Just like resese peanut butter cups... it's all choice

 

[chaoss]

Oh yes, the coveted white band of modness from the Milkster. As we speak i am seeking this elusive ring for an L1 and once applied there it will stay. Great thread.

 

[Omega Man]

They sound like cigar rings, save them!

 

[Aluminous]

I don't have one of these myself, but when I have an adhesive label on something that I want to remove but might want to reapply later, what I do is stick it on an empty piece of sticker-backing paper. (Like the things that self-stick postage stamps or address labels come on.) For ones I don't need to reapply later, I stick them on sheets of regular paper to save for reference purposes.

If it is difficult to remove the label without messing it up, it usually helps the adhesive be more cooperative if you warm it up some. (A hairdryer is the typical implement for this, but in this case, you could just turn the light on for a while instead. ) Oh, and if you have short fingernails, a piece of fishing line or dental floss sometimes makes it easier to do the peeling.

In many cases when I have left various adhesive labels on things instead of removing them when first acquired, the labels gradually deteriorated (even when not exposed to tough conditions), and several years later, they might be hard/brittle, or very gummy, or the top layer comes off and leaves a fuzzy back layer still adhered. On something that you'd be using/handling a bunch, of course, labels can easily get even more messed up (bent/frayed edges, lint accumulation, etc).

 

[greenLED]

I think that tape is tacky.

:laughing: Sorry, couldn't resist.

 

[Chronos]

A little history here...

I believe I may have been the first to have a milkyspit light with a label. A couple of years ago I had milky build a custom KL3 head for me- the "Chrononster." As we talked and exchanged PMs, I strongly suggested that he sign my KL3 in some manner, like a true artist. He said he'd think about it and do something if he could work it out.

Hence, when I received my KL3 I was pleasantly surprised to find a clear label with his milkyspit logo on the end of the bezel!

Over the years, like msax, I too get in the habit of peeling off the labels, as I often like to use beamshapers. However, I keep the labels affixed to the original blister pack or its storage case.

Take a look in the modded B/S/T section. donn_ is currently selling my former KL3 "Chrononster" and the original (and likely first) milkyspit "tape" logo is still there, however a little dinged up due to beamshapers.

Scott, if I am wrong please correct me! :naughty:

...and yes, I do want to repurchase the Chrononster...

 

[OceanView]

I believe I may have been the first to have a milkyspit light with a label.

As collectibles, maybe we need to start differentiating pre/post-logo labels? :laughing: I remember the post--I think it was in the main Project-M thread--where Scott rolled out the Milky logo with the babies. So, I think you may have gotten the first light with a logo label, Chronos, but Scott was putting his plain white labels on lights before that, like my M360, which is from his Lux I building days (which really isn't that long ago...wow, from Lux I to P7's in such a short time!)

Actually, as I remember it, Scott was just putting the labels on the lights to identify the various builds he was working on at the same time. He was taking them off before shipping them out IIRC. But then someone saw a group photo of multiple lights with the stickers in a post and asked Scott if he could just keep the label on when shipping out their light. I believe that's where the tradition started.

 

[greenLED]

Hence, when I received my KL3 I was pleasantly surprised to find a clear label with his milkyspit logo on the end of the bezel!

I don't know when Milky started labeling his lights. However, I have one of Scott's PVC lights - the label on it doesn't even have the MilkyLabs logo.

 

[gottawearshades]

Re: Milky spit white tape = Milk Moustache

Taking it off would be like taking off the swoosh from my Nike shoes or the Sony badge from my tv. Why make it generic when you've got something spectacular?

Personally, I would take the swoosh off my sneakers if I could.

Milky lights are different, though. I have a few of these, and I've only removed the tape from one of them, an E2L turned into a Creemator. I took it off that one because I thought it wouldn't get along with the beam shaper I use sometimes.

Then, after I took it off, I regretted it. The light looks so ordinary now.

I still saved the label, of course, incase the light ever ends up in the Smithsonian.