This is the L1 Lumamax - taken all the way. I call it the UL1.
In short... The emitter has been replaced with Cree XR-E P4 WD tint behind a hand-cut McR-27XR reflector, driven by a Downboy 1000, with the body bored out to allow the usage of 2xCR123, 2 RCR123, or a single 17670 cell for maximum flexibility. The emitter was hand picked for low Vf to ensure longer runtime at maximum brightness when driven by a single li-ion cell. The tailcap has also been modded with a different resistor and also to gain a couple extra millimiters that allow a 17670 cell to fit, which is a bit longer than a pair or CR123's.
Pictures of the mod:
Stock headless body, with the top of the converter module showing up.
Stock converter pryed out... note its length, comparable to that of a single CR123 cell.
The inside of the stock tube...
Say hello to Mr. Dremel! I also used a hand reamer to bore out the inside of the tube to 17.1mm, which now allows to fit protected AW cells in - either 2x RCR123 or a single 17670.
That's the AW 17670 cell in the middle - with the label removed.
The 3 parts of the L1 head - and the Downboy soldered to the contact plate, ready for installation
Another shot of the Downboy.
Slight dremeling was also required here to make the converter seat properly.
Back of the head after potting the converter.
The other side of the heatsink. The emitter glued in using Arctic Silver adhesive (none of that cheap Arctic Alumina crap
). A nod goes to Milkyspit for dremeling the poop out of the head to make room for the Cree emitter, as this was previously an ML1.
The McR-27xr - along with the hacked off piece
some dremeling and sanding was required...
...to fit it in the head properly, making sure that the emitter was in proper focus.
The Mcr-27XR has a pretty big opening, and the emitter with all the wires was showing through - not a pretty sight. I came up with a GITD piece to cover it up.
The complete bezel... The stock lens has been replaced with a 22.8mm UCL glass from flashlightlens.com. There's a flat o-ring sandwiched between the lens and the reflector to ensure waterproofness.
The complete UL1. I'd say it looks pretty badass!
The GITD ring doing its thing.
Beamshots! Note the total absense of the infamous Dark Cree Ring of Doom. Proper focusing of the emitter in the reflector is the key.
Another beamshot with F04 diffuser on.
The dim yellow light on the left is a 6PD with a P60 on fresh batteries. Note the difference in sidespill!
Same thing, slightly underexposed to show sidespill.
The UL1 is again on the right, my other custom light on the left - that's an SSC P4 @700mA behind a shaved McR-27L. Note the difference in side spill, which is not really surprising.
This is UL1 on low - using a 68 Ohm resistor in the tailcap. Same light on the left. The output is still brighter than the L1 originally used to have... I'd say 3-5 lumens.
The light now puts out what looks like at least 150-170 honest lumens in a flawless ringless beam, with a nice intense hotspot and lots of sidespill... The SSC P4 behind a full size McR27L still throws better, but the difference is not that big at all! I was surprised to see that much throw from a Cree. The beamshots don't do it justice.
I get 1 1/2 hour of what looks to be regulated runtime out of a single 17670 cell, which I think is pretty good. It gets noticeably warm during continuous use, but there is no color shift which I was afraid of when driving the emitter at its maximum rated current. Basically, it's an L2 killer in a smaller package, with better throw and better runtime, and which is able to take rechargeables... It's now back at its duty as my EDC light, replacing the Seoul'ed Fenix L1P :devil:
In short... The emitter has been replaced with Cree XR-E P4 WD tint behind a hand-cut McR-27XR reflector, driven by a Downboy 1000, with the body bored out to allow the usage of 2xCR123, 2 RCR123, or a single 17670 cell for maximum flexibility. The emitter was hand picked for low Vf to ensure longer runtime at maximum brightness when driven by a single li-ion cell. The tailcap has also been modded with a different resistor and also to gain a couple extra millimiters that allow a 17670 cell to fit, which is a bit longer than a pair or CR123's.
Pictures of the mod:
Stock headless body, with the top of the converter module showing up.
Stock converter pryed out... note its length, comparable to that of a single CR123 cell.
The inside of the stock tube...
Say hello to Mr. Dremel! I also used a hand reamer to bore out the inside of the tube to 17.1mm, which now allows to fit protected AW cells in - either 2x RCR123 or a single 17670.
That's the AW 17670 cell in the middle - with the label removed.
The 3 parts of the L1 head - and the Downboy soldered to the contact plate, ready for installation
Another shot of the Downboy.
Slight dremeling was also required here to make the converter seat properly.
Back of the head after potting the converter.
The other side of the heatsink. The emitter glued in using Arctic Silver adhesive (none of that cheap Arctic Alumina crap
). A nod goes to Milkyspit for dremeling the poop out of the head to make room for the Cree emitter, as this was previously an ML1.
The McR-27xr - along with the hacked off piece
some dremeling and sanding was required...
...to fit it in the head properly, making sure that the emitter was in proper focus.
The Mcr-27XR has a pretty big opening, and the emitter with all the wires was showing through - not a pretty sight. I came up with a GITD piece to cover it up.
The complete bezel... The stock lens has been replaced with a 22.8mm UCL glass from flashlightlens.com. There's a flat o-ring sandwiched between the lens and the reflector to ensure waterproofness.
The complete UL1. I'd say it looks pretty badass!
The GITD ring doing its thing.
Beamshots! Note the total absense of the infamous Dark Cree Ring of Doom. Proper focusing of the emitter in the reflector is the key.
Another beamshot with F04 diffuser on.
The dim yellow light on the left is a 6PD with a P60 on fresh batteries. Note the difference in sidespill!
Same thing, slightly underexposed to show sidespill.
The UL1 is again on the right, my other custom light on the left - that's an SSC P4 @700mA behind a shaved McR-27L. Note the difference in side spill, which is not really surprising.
This is UL1 on low - using a 68 Ohm resistor in the tailcap. Same light on the left. The output is still brighter than the L1 originally used to have... I'd say 3-5 lumens.
The light now puts out what looks like at least 150-170 honest lumens in a flawless ringless beam, with a nice intense hotspot and lots of sidespill... The SSC P4 behind a full size McR27L still throws better, but the difference is not that big at all! I was surprised to see that much throw from a Cree. The beamshots don't do it justice.
I get 1 1/2 hour of what looks to be regulated runtime out of a single 17670 cell, which I think is pretty good. It gets noticeably warm during continuous use, but there is no color shift which I was afraid of when driving the emitter at its maximum rated current. Basically, it's an L2 killer in a smaller package, with better throw and better runtime, and which is able to take rechargeables... It's now back at its duty as my EDC light, replacing the Seoul'ed Fenix L1P :devil:
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