Sams Club Element 2 stage/Li-Ion*Now with 18650*

ledaholic

Enlightened
Joined
Jun 26, 2002
Messages
535
Location
Central Tx
I picked up a 2 pack of these lights a while back. I liked their tint and brightness but hate the switch. I gave one to my gf for her purse, and I put one in my console. The switch doesn't have any resistance and seems like the batteries were always dead because something bumped the switch. I got to thinking how I could improve the switch a little and came up with this idea. I had a 2 stage switch left over from my Q3 modding days and thought it might fit. I removed the OEM switch assy and discarded everything but the plastic that holds the switch. Now how to fit the 2 stage switch? The new switch fit a little loose in the plastic, but with 2 pieces of thin pcb placed on either end of the switch and a little epoxy, it looks like it will work. The Element is anodized inside and out and because of the switch mod, I had to use the body of the light for the ground path. After a little sanding on the inside of the barrel and around the threaded areas, I had a good ground path. The lamp assy is isolated from the body so I soldered a piece of .002 brass shim stock to the ground ring of the assy and wedged it between the lamp assy and the body. I used a 10 ohm resistor for low which turned out about perfect. Then I thought about Li-Ion power. A 18650 was too long :( so the next best size is a 18490 or 500. I used a piece of sch 20 1/2 in PVC split down 1 side for a spacer which makes for a pretty good fit of the battery. I also had to use a couple of small magnets for the "button" at the + end of the battery due to the shorter length. The new switch has a lot better feel to it and I don't think it will get turned on as easily. This is a relatively cheap light and a really quick mod that worked out better than I thought.
*EDIT*
I really wanted this light to run from a 18650 so I bored the tailcap to 18.7mm wide and took it about 8mm deeper. Now it fits a protected 18650. :)

The Element
MVC-115F.jpg


Element disassembled
MVC-116F.jpg


LED assy with gnd path attached
MVC-118F.jpg


New switch assembly
MVC-119F.jpg


18490 with PVC spacer
MVC-120F.jpg
 
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