What to do with my 6D Maglite?

[Mattmanic]

Hey,

I built a ROP a while back and have since blown the "high" bulb and am now getting bored of it. I've got 12 3000mah(apparently) AA batteries and plenty of 2xAA to D adapters and my Maglite has a alu reflector and a glass lense. I've been getting familiar with lithium polymer batteries and mosfets as my hobby is airsoft, I was thinking there must be a decent way of making use of the 50 or so amps you can get from a lipo battery.

Is there a bulb available that will give me significantly more power while still fitting in the Maglite "package" without too much modification?

Thanks
Matt

 

[mrartillery]

I did this with mine, might be a little more than you're after though.

 

[Mattmanic]

Well, the batteries for that wouldn't be a problem, I'd just need to buy another couple of 7.4v lipos as I already have one and connect them up in series, and I'd be happy to rewire the torch to take more current. What I can't do is spent that much on a new head for it.

What about HID bulbs? Is there a way of getting one of those into a maglite? If not, what's the most powerful bulb I can get in without needing to change the head?

 

[mrartillery]

Download makes a cool HID drop in.

 

[Mattmanic]

Still pretty expensive considering I need batteries too after that.

After researching HID a little, that's probably not what I want. Had a look at perhaps using a car HID conversion kit but the transformer thingy is too big.

EDIT: What I'm looking for is a bulb I can run off either a 7.4v, 11.1 or 14.8v lipo. Without it getting so hot that it melts the reflector. Switch modification shouldn't be necessary as I'll send all the current through a mosfet.

 

[mrartillery]

Still pretty expensive considering I need batteries too after that.

After researching HID a little, that's probably not what I want. Had a look at perhaps using a car HID conversion kit but the transformer thingy is too big.

EDIT: What I'm looking for is a bulb I can run off either a 7.4v, 11.1 or 14.8v lipo. Without it getting so hot that it melts the reflector. Switch modification shouldn't be necessary as I'll send all the current through a mosfet.

7.4v- 5761

11.1v- 1185 1909 5607

14.8- 64623

Granted, there are other options other than these, but these are the most frequently used, and they all provide great output.

 

[Mattmanic]

Alright, I'll probably go for the 64623.

Do you happen to know the ID of a maglite tube? I can't find my vernier calipers to measure it acurately and I need to know to find out what size batteries I can fit in it. The packs I'm looking at are 2800mah 7.4v and are 31.5x15x109mm.

Will any halogen light socket fit that bulb? Do I need a specific one?

Thanks

 

[alpg88]

a 6d full of lipo, sounds like a pipe bomb.
never seen anyone fit lipos in mag d , pbly it wont fit.

 

[Mattmanic]

Well people use 3.7v cells for torches is this much different? If I did it I'd stick fuses in the battery's leads incase of a short anywhere in the system.

I have a 7.4v lipo right here and it doesn't quite fit so I'm more or less inclined to agree with you on that. Although if I halfed the capacity I was after then I could easily get some that fit.

 

[alpg88]

it is different, lipo and li ion are 2 different animals, while li ion has its dangers too, it istill a lot safer, a lot of li ions have protection build in, li po afaik don't.

try 32650 protected li ion cells, i use 4 with 50w mr16, and they work great. thou they are 22 a piece from kd.
or dual bore your tube for 2 18650 side by side, you could fit 10 in 6d. i have 6 in my 4d 3s2p, you can have them 5s2p.
you could try AA in holder modcod makes one for 6d, but you'd need elite 1700, or titanium 1800 for anything higher than 3-4 amps, reliably.

edit, never mind 32650, they are not recomended for more than 5 amps. unprotected can supply more than 5 amps.

 

[Mattmanic]

Ok, new change of plan then. As this is seemingly pretty impractical/expensive/possibly dangerous. And I have a couple of 17Ah 12v lead acid batteries lying around. How easy/difficult would it be to hook up a 64656 to 2 of those batteries in series? I'd still want this though the Mag head if possible to retain the focusing ability. I've got a little over 1/2" ID to fit a bulb through my current reflector.

So basically, I'd build a box for the batteries and cut an old Maglite down so it's just the switch onwards. Then mount that onto the box so I've got the bulb in the Mag but the batteries sitting behind.

EDIT: So basically, MrArtillery's torch but square rather than Maglite shaped and with a decent runtime

 

[alpg88]

i wouldn't care about mag focusing abuility, with all my mags i ever use it, i set it to tightest beam, and leave it there.
2x12v=24v in series you will blow that bulb right away.
forget about mag, get yourself a sealed beam bulb par36 or something like that, get 24v 250w, 2 sla's will pull that much current easy. get like 12*-15* bulb, it will shoot far with planty of spill.
and upgrade a big beam lantern http://www.google.com/images?um=1&h...SGCg&ved=0CCMQBSgA&q=big+beam+lantern&spell=1



btw 17ah sla is 12-15lb, imho 25-30lb is too much for any handheald flashlight.

 

[Mattmanic]

I can't find PAR 36s with 24v 250w bulbs in. I can find 28v PAR 56s in the right but they'd obviously be under driven by 4v. Mabe I misunderstood you. What did you mean by the "12*-15* bulb"?

 

[alpg88]

oops, my bad you right, i was thinking of different bulb, no 24v par36,
get 100w 12v, 1 sla will be enough, but still 12-15lb light????

12-15 degrees beam spread