TigerLight Upgrade Offerings (summary)

[Jerimoth]

JS...Count me in for #3. Should I PayPal you? Thanks

 

[Judgedog]

Jim:

I will definitely want #3 and probably #1,too. Please let me know how much $ and when to send the Paypal.

 

[js]

Judgedog, Jerimoth, and others,

Thanks very much for your interest. I'm excited to be nearing the end of the development phase and the beginning of the build runs.

Please note, however, that the "official" sign up list will be the B/S/T thread, when I open it. Don't worry! I will not be cutting off the thread after a certain number of entries. Everyone will get in on it who wants to. I will also post an email address for those who are not registered with CPF (and who do not want to register).

This thread will contain the final prices, and beam shots, and runtimes and so on, BEFORE I open the B/S/T thread, so people can make an informed decision.

 

[js]

Note: I have edited the original post to increase the cost of the reflectors and WA lamps. The bare 1111 bi-pin costs $6, not the $3 which I remembered paying, plus the ring-potting scheme is now slightly more involved and will take me longer. I placed an order with Carley and the quantity discount on the 1940's wasn't anything to speak of, so I raised the price from $10 to $12 to take into account the time it takes me to mod one on the lathe, and also because the reflectors cost me around $8 shipped. Prices are still approximate, but this will be pretty close. Sorry to have to raise the estimate, but this is all fairly time intensive stuff.

 

[js]

I have settled on using the KAN 1800 4/5A's over the Sanyo HR-4/5AU's. See the TigerLight Upgrade Thread for details. The good news is that this means the battery packs are cheaper. I put the approximate price half-way in between the cost of a KAN pack and the cost of a Sanyo pack. I have edited the approximate cost of the 6 cell pack to reflect this, and also changed the estimate of the 9 cell pack to the same, more accurate figure, as 9 KAN 1050's cost the same as 6 KAN 1800's, and there is only a bit more time involved in building the 9 cell packs.

 

[Judgedog]

The big question is: When will your mods be available to the rest of us?

 

[js]

[ QUOTE ]
Judgedog said:
The big question is: When will your mods be available to the rest of us?

[/ QUOTE ]

7 posts up, you will find an estimate of two weeks for the opening of the B/S/T thread. That's still about right, so in less than two weeks the B/S/T thread will open and you can sign up for what you want. I will keep it open for 1 week, then close it and order all the supplies I will need. I have pre-ordered reflectors, but my estimate may be low and I may have to order some more. On the other hand, I have not yet pre-ordered any of the Welch Allyn lamps because I really don't have a good feel for how many I will need, and they have a $100 minimum order, vs. the $50 minimum for Carley. I may or may not pre-order some WA lamps, but even if I do, they could take as long as a month to fill and ship the order. So this is probably the limiting factor on how fast I can get these mods out there. The batteries will get to me fast, as well as the other supplies, most of which I have stocked up on. So, my best guess is that apart from field testers, no one will have one of these mods sooner than 6 weeks from now. That could be off, especially if I take the risk of pre-ordering WA lamps and they fill my order quickly. I am thinking seriously about doing just that, so we shall see. I just don't want to slightly underestimate the demand and then have to order another $100 worth of lamps; nor do I want to overestimate and end up sitting on $75 worth of WA lamps. Although, I guess I could sell them eventually. It just gives me pause, I guess. I will keep you all informed, as usual.

Sorry for the convoluted answer, but it's the best I can give you at the moment.

 

[js]

Good news!

I called Welch Allyn on Friday and found out that the 1111's and 1185's were both in stock, so I ordered some and they will ship out Monday, May 17th. I also ordered some 1274's, but they will need to be made first and will ship out separately at a later date. I ordered 10 1111's and 20 1185's and 10 1274's, and I have 1 1111, 4 1274's and 5 1185's on hand already. Even if only the people who have already spoken up buy mods, I will still not be left with too much inventory, and I have enough lamps to make a good number of offerings, so I feel pretty good about the situation. Besides, one can never have too many 1185's on hand. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

So, I will be opening the B/S/T thread on Friday the 21st. I will be giving priority to those who have already posted in this thread or in The TigerLight Upgrade Thread. If you PMed me wanting to get signed up but did not post anywhere I may not have a record of the PM, sorry. Again, everyone who wants to get in on this will be able to, but one group of people will get their stuff before the others, because I will have to wait on Carley and WA orders if I run out of my current stock of lamps or reflectors. However, for my part, I will do everything I can (within reason) to get these mods out to people ASAP. I know how it feels to wait and wait and wait on something. Rest assured, when I get to the point of taking payments, I will work continuously until all the orders are filled. Also, at this point, I do not have plans to close the B/S/T thread after a certain length of time, but on the other hand, I won't guarantee that it will remain open indefinitely.

Now, I will still have to order batteries and wait for them to get to me. Plus, I will wait for a week after the thread opens before ordering to make sure I get the most for my shipping dollars, so realistically that means the second week in June or later before I ship stuff out. For the most part, anyway. Please keep in mind that I've never done this before, so this is just my best guess. A lot goes into making a battery pack, not the least of which is doing the .1C charge/.5C discharge/1C charge cycling. That's a definite bottleneck, as I can only do one or two packs at a time.

OK. I hope all of this seems fair to everyone. Keep an eye out for beamshots of the various options vs. stock and vs. each other. I can't wait to put up Tiger85 beamshots. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Ross]

Excellent news Jim, thanks very much for all your hard work in creating the ultimate Tigerlight!!

 

[Monolith]

I'm in for a #3 with both smooth and orange peel RF1940's + spare bulbs.

 

[bald1]

Jim,

I'm in for #1 (with 2 bulbs & reflector) and possibly #2 /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

--Bob

 

[SilverFox]

Hello Jim,

That is good news. I just bought stock in Welch Allyn...

Tom

 

[flashworm]

Hi Jim, I'm in for 2 6 Cell KAN Packs, 4 each of 1111 and 1274 as well as 2 RF 1940.

 

[scrappy]

I'm in for a Number 3 selection. Haven't even received my TL yet (getting it tomorrow HOPEFULLY (HATE UPS)), and I'm already upgrading it...wow
Rich

 

[Psychomodo]

Scrappy, you will not be disappointed /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[js]

I hope to have beamshots up in this thread by tomorrow or Wednesday, and otherwise, as far as I know, everything is on schedule. I will check with WA to make sure my order shipped out. Carley order will ship this Wednesday.

Also, I posted a thread in the Flashlight Electronics forum detailing the construction of my battery packs. Be warned: it is long, and I still have to add a few more pictures and a bit more description.

 

[js]

Beam shots are up for the Tiger85 compared to the stock TL. Quality is terrible, but the ISO and shutter speed were the same throughout.

I will do more beamshots throughout the week as time permits.

 

[Psychomodo]

Hi Jim /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink2.gif

Hope your back is better. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/sick.gif

Where can I see the beamshots? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thinking.gif
EDIT: Found them on page one of this post /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif

Thanks /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[bwaites]

JS,

Pics in the first post aren't working for me!

Bill

 

[Psychomodo]

Thanks for the beamshots Jim /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/drool.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/clap.gif