StarLux Seven, Flashlight with Seven Luxeon Stars

I put together a flashlight using seven Luxeon Stars. I call it 'StarLux Seven'. It uses no optics, so it is an area light only. About 140 Lumens bright!

It also glows in the dark!



Here is a link with more photos and info:
StarLux Seven

Wayne Johnson
www.elektrolumens.com

Awesome mod! Really clean and cut!

Have you thought about using 3 LSs in a tight triangle format, and using a reflector on it? You might be able to get a really good beam shape out of it, plus ample side spill for general area lighting. Would be even more amazing if those 3 were side emitting LSs... Just wondering...

Wayne,
It seems that every week you're coming out with bigger and brighter torches!
Let me guess...
Does this torch have a plug-in lead to allow it to operate from a car battery?
If not, how many minutes battery life are we to expect?
Mind you, if it is a viable torch, it's another nail in the coffin of Mr Edison's filament bulb!

Very nice Wayne, but why seven? It's an unusual odd number.

How hot does it get?

How many LEDs can you have before you have to add a fan?

I think it really depends on how much current it's drawing as opposed to how much heat it's producing.

With a fresh set of 9000mah D NiMHs, I measured 1,512ma with my resistored OctoLux (8 LSs together). So each emitter's only receiving 190ma of current; not much to generate any serious heat problems or otherwise.

Even at 2Amps resistored, the "SeptaLux" (sorry Wayne, couldn't help it) would only pull 286ma of current each emitter, well below the factory spec of 350ma for LSs...

And even at that, the heatsinks do quite well in dissipating the heat generated by the LS. Everything else is left to the aluminum body to take care of.

Now, if Wayne got a little "trigger happy" and decided to pot 24 LSs in a 6D Mag head, then it might be good to have a waterhose ready, just in case...

Originally posted by Onyx:
Very nice Wayne, but why seven? It's an unusual odd number.

Click to expand...

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">I wanted to mount the emitters on the flashlight body, on a heat sink. Eight would not fit. Why is 7 odd, but not eight. What was odd was trying to name it. Aren't there several flashlights out there that use 7 LED's ?

The heat sink is a 1/2" thick slug. It was sent to me as a sample, so I decided to use it. Worked perfectly in this mod.

Wayne J.
www.elektrolumens.com

Originally posted by EMPOWERTORCH:
Wayne,
It seems that every week you're coming out with bigger and brighter torches!
Let me guess...
Does this torch have a plug-in lead to allow it to operate from a car battery?
If not, how many minutes battery life are we to expect?
Mind you, if it is a viable torch, it's another nail in the coffin of Mr Edison's filament bulb!

Click to expand...

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">It should go several hours on a set of alkalines, and probably longer with rechargables. Using rechargables, it is much brighter.

Wayne

Originally posted by James Van Artsdalen:
How hot does it get?

How many LEDs can you have before you have to add a fan?

Click to expand...

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">On alkalines, I didn't notice any heat generated. With rechargables, it gets warm around the head.

Remember that the current is divided between the emitters when driving them parallel, and the voltage stays the same. So if the current from alkalines is 1.6, which is pretty much the limit of 3 alkaline 3D cells (depends on what type/brand), each emitter is only pulling about 228mA. So they do not get hot at all. The combined light is very bright, though. With rechargables, the amperage can get to around 2,800mA, depending on the type used. So 2,800 / 7 is 400mA each emitter.

I am using nimh rechargables in it now, and this is what I base the 140 lumens upon. Each emitter should be putting out at least 20 lumens each at 400mA each. Of course, this is a guessestimate. It could be a bit more or a bit less? At any rate, it is very bright!

Wayne J.
www.elektrolumens.com

By the way, this StarLux Seven is direct drive.

FalconFX, I almost called it SeptaLux.

Wayne J.

Originally posted by FalconFX:
Awesome mod! Really clean and cut!

Have you thought about using 3 LSs in a tight triangle format, and using a reflector on it? You might be able to get a really good beam shape out of it, plus ample side spill for general area lighting. Would be even more amazing if those 3 were side emitting LSs... Just wondering...

Click to expand...

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">The large source of emission would make it hard to focus.

I am making a 3 emitter bike light. I am using this type of flashlight head, and mounting 3 LS's in series, for 12 volts. This will have optics. It will be used with a 12 volt battery pack of the requesting customer. It will mount on the handlebars.

In series the voltage is divided, but the current remains the same, so some resistance will probably be needed. This is probably a brighter settup than the QuadLux! Of course, it will glow intensly in the dark. I really put a lot of glow into it.

Wayne J.
www.elektrolumens.com