Hi folks,
I've been hanging out in the bicycle part of the forum and have been learning loads. I've built a LED bike light using a Cateye ABS Alloy housing, a Cutter Cree Q5 kit with a maxflex driver and powers with a 7.2 volt NiMH battery. I've got a couple of upgrades to do to get the heat transfer completly sorted but thats all underway.
I'm now looking to take an old 2D maglite I've got kicking around and turn it into something useful. Problem I've got is there is so much to trawl through and with my inexperienced eye I don't think I'm getting to the good information.
I think what I'd like to do is build a 4 or 5 led light using a maxflex driver and use 6 x NiMH AA cells in series to provide 7.2 volts. Key thing I'd like to build in is being able to just plug a charger into the torch end cap rather than take the whole thing apart all the time.
So what should I be reading to do this, what threads should I be looking at to point me in the right direction. Whats the best functioning upgrade you've seen along these lines.
Questions I have at the moment:
1. I've seen an adjustable heat sink/led mount from Download (here) which looks like a good option. Looking at that info I think I have an old style D head, how do I confirm this?
2. I've once seen a link to a thread containing info on how to turn a std maglite switch into a momentary switch. Does anyone know where that is as I don't seem to be able to find it at the moment.
3. What battery holding opitions are open to me? I've seen some pictures but haven't found any yet.
4. I've seen pictures of heatsinking solutions for the maxflex in this thread. Are there any others I should know about and look at?
5. Now for the big one. Charging the batteries just by plugging a charger into the light. I've got a charger that will be perfect for the job what I have absolutely no idea about and have seen nothing about is how to wire something like this up. Does it need aditional electronics or is it dead simple, my guess is its going to one or the other?
Thanks for your help in advance
Ian
I've been hanging out in the bicycle part of the forum and have been learning loads. I've built a LED bike light using a Cateye ABS Alloy housing, a Cutter Cree Q5 kit with a maxflex driver and powers with a 7.2 volt NiMH battery. I've got a couple of upgrades to do to get the heat transfer completly sorted but thats all underway.
I'm now looking to take an old 2D maglite I've got kicking around and turn it into something useful. Problem I've got is there is so much to trawl through and with my inexperienced eye I don't think I'm getting to the good information.
I think what I'd like to do is build a 4 or 5 led light using a maxflex driver and use 6 x NiMH AA cells in series to provide 7.2 volts. Key thing I'd like to build in is being able to just plug a charger into the torch end cap rather than take the whole thing apart all the time.
So what should I be reading to do this, what threads should I be looking at to point me in the right direction. Whats the best functioning upgrade you've seen along these lines.
Questions I have at the moment:
1. I've seen an adjustable heat sink/led mount from Download (here) which looks like a good option. Looking at that info I think I have an old style D head, how do I confirm this?
2. I've once seen a link to a thread containing info on how to turn a std maglite switch into a momentary switch. Does anyone know where that is as I don't seem to be able to find it at the moment.
3. What battery holding opitions are open to me? I've seen some pictures but haven't found any yet.
4. I've seen pictures of heatsinking solutions for the maxflex in this thread. Are there any others I should know about and look at?
5. Now for the big one. Charging the batteries just by plugging a charger into the light. I've got a charger that will be perfect for the job what I have absolutely no idea about and have seen nothing about is how to wire something like this up. Does it need aditional electronics or is it dead simple, my guess is its going to one or the other?
Thanks for your help in advance
Ian
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