Tutorial: Installing a 15-30A Rocker switch in a Mag D switch housing

[tx101]

Hooray, It LIVES! *insert Frankenstein smiley*

 

[swampgator]

One of the best tutorials I've seen in awhile. Thanks.

 

[ANDREAS FERRARI]

Thanks for bringing this back.I missed it the first time around.

 

[TheInvader]

Anybody have any finished pics of this? Anyone try this?
This is an uber cheap way to put a switch in, and it probably has low resistance and drives 100 watt bulbs.
I worry with my future Mag85 build that I'll melt up the plastic switch from using it too much (it sure will be a beater, that's for sure). An AW switch will cost more than the light itself! (going on the cheap, building my own battery holder etc)

 

[Dexter]

Why is this switch better than the normal one?

 

[rayman]

It can take a higher current. The stock Mag switch is good up to 4A. Will work with a higher current too but that's not very safe. With hotwire or newer LED mods you need higher currents like 10A.

rayman

 

[Dexter]

I just bought a new switch for my mag as discovered I need one for the maxFlex driver i am planning to use, its going to be hooked up to a cree mce 4s. The switch I bought is a 6A, 250v, is this going to be enough?

 

[HarryN]

Thanks for the info post.

 

[Hack On Wheels]

I just bought a new switch for my mag as discovered I need one for the maxFlex driver i am planning to use, its going to be hooked up to a cree mce 4s. The switch I bought is a 6A, 250v, is this going to be enough?

For the maxFlex you just need a momentary switch. The switch isn't inline with the power source and, as such, it is isolated from any large amount of current. It is simply for signals to the driver, not making or breaking the connection to the power source.

 

[Dexter]

Thanks Hack on Wheels, that makes sense. cheers for the reply

 

[Dave 88]

Having just put an SST-90 into my 3D mag I am thinking of putting in one of these switches. Running that DD with 3 Tenergy NiMh D cells and pulling over 5A when they are fully charged.

With this switch I just cannot figure out how I would connect the negative? Do I just clean a spot down to bare metal on the body and solder a wire to it? Obviously the old contact point gets hidden under this switch.

 

[Bimmerboy]

With this switch I just cannot figure out how I would connect the negative? Do I just clean a spot down to bare metal on the body and solder a wire to it? Obviously the old contact point gets hidden under this switch.

Funny, but not one person questioned this! That was my first thought upon seeing this mod. The OP obviously did not mention.

You won't be able to solder anything onto the inside of the body tube, but one solution is to run a negative wire directly up from the bottom batt contact. Depending on your mod, this may or may not require isolation of the batt negative from the body, but would require to use C diameter batts in a D body, allowing room to run the wire.

If you can figure a way to anchor a negative set screw to puncture the inside anodizing, a la Mag-style (scraping away a small spot of ano can make this technique easier, and more effective), then you don't need the wire alongside the batts. Keep searching around as well... there have been a few really ingenious Mag switch mods/replacements here over the years.

Good luck with whatever mod you're planning!

 

[Aircraft800]

I would try using some oven cleaner to remove the ano in the snap ring groove, then solder the wire to the snap ring, and put it back in. I had to do this with another mod, but have never tried it with a Mag body.

 

[HarryN]

A relatively easy, though not inexpensive approach is to use silver filled epoxy instead of solder to make the wire to body electrical connection. I used this on some prior projects and it seemed to work fine. The adhesion is quite good, and electrical properties are ok - so make a larger contact area.

McMaster sells it for about $20 / one use mix bag last time I looked, and that was a good deal.

 

[mrartillery]

I just stopped by radio shack a few weeks ago and bought all these switches they had , im planning on putting them in several of my lights. The idea i was going to use was sand down the ano inside the tube itself and ground the switch to the KIU. Being that the KIU fits airtight in a mag anyway this should provide consistent ground for the switch.