mag mm mod question

hi all, im new here. this is my first post. i never knew there were other people like me, with such a fascination for flashlights. anyway, i am going to build a sandwich for a aa mag.

the thing is am most concerned with is brightness. i also want to be able to use non-rechargeable batteries. i will mostly use lith batts, but the option to use alkaline would be nice. i want a converter that will provide full regulation. i.e. it will draqin teh batteries and provide constant brightness over the life of the batteries. other than that, i am not worried about run time.

as of now, i am thinking a BB400/BB500 board with a TxxL lux. any suggestions?

how about fraen lp vs. ims reflector vs. modified stock reflector? i am more concerned with flood than throw, but some throw would ne nice.

any suggestions as to where to buy supplies?? the sandwich shop is the only place i can find that has leds. mabye a sticky thread with links to sites that provide supplies would be nice. (hint hint mods )

i'm new to the whole mod scene, but im learning. i have lots of plans as soon as i get the money... thanks in advance!

welcome to CPF!

All of your questions will be answered in AuroraLite's Dummy Reference Guide to minimag Modding thread. An encyclopedia of all things related to modding the minimag.

Incidentally, you might want to reconsider your nickname; unless you're a Maglite company representative, it's not advised on CPF to use brand names as nicks

Great, thanks for the link. It's quite informative.

For your emitter selection you might consider one with a much lower vf such as say TxxH. You'll do much better in the runtime department. This will really pay off when using alkalines. A good source for Luxeons is right here on CPF. Look in the BST forums for postings by Photonfanatic. I may have the spelling wrong. He often has a good selection at reasonable prices. My personl feellings on optics vs reflector debate is for an IMS20*** reflector. It will take some filing and fitting to squeeze it in however. Once in, it will work great.

Another option is to go with a pill from Lambda. He puts together a great kit with all you'll need to mod a mag. You'll need to get a lux and the host. The mini-Pro kit is a screamer. Some of the soldering in this kit is pretty small. Not for shaky hands or larger soldering irons. http://home.mchsi.com/~lambda_lights/index.htm

cheers,
zwf

My mini mag is setup with a NexGen 700 (actually 667mA) with a McR20 reflector. It performs very nicely and gives decent runtimes for such a bright light. I'd go with either an H or J Vf luxeon. Either will give you good runtimes.

Thanks for the replies everyone. For the price of a good mod, I can buy a L2P or something... Still, there is something about modding my trusty old mag that has been there for me all those times that I can't resist. I'll post pics once I get it done. I'll get a new name, don't want to make anyone mad.