Surefire Rechargeable Conversions, Home-made

I'm looking for responses from people who've converted SF's Lithium lights to use rechargeables. I was going to buy a 9AN but the battery crisis has scared me away. Plus, I'd like to keep the ability to run lithiums in a pinch.

I very much like my 6Z, but would like the flexibility of using it whenever I want. Right now, I burn off the fresh white beam of the 6Z and see the yellow before the last set of half-used batteries is dead in my E1/Kl1.

I've heard of someone's (LemLux?) conversion of a 9P + 2 A19's.

My plan is to test the parts on my 6Z and then buy another SF for everyday, guilt-free use, and keep the 6Z as a lithium stand-by. I'm looking for a full-power 60-120 lumen output, like a standard 6 or 9v model. Runtime is not critical, but more than a few minutes at full-white brightness is my goal.

Anyone else have experience or comments? Data, like the amps pulled by the various 6v and 9v lamps?

BlikBok:

Yes, I frequently run a 3-cell SF extended with 2 @ A19's with a P61 and loaded with 4 @ 4/5 A 2000 mAh NiMHs.

You could also use 3 @ A-19's and 4 A cells.

The P60 and P90 each draw 1.1 Amps.
The P61 and P91 each draw 2.3 Amps.

Using fresh 123 cells, a 1.1 Amp load is reported to drop voltage to 2.4 V to 2.45 V per 3.0 V 123 cell.

Using fresh 123 cells, a 2.3 Amp load is reported to drop voltage to between 1.9 V and 2.1 V per 3.0 V 123 cell.

Accordingly, a P60 seems to be slightly underdriven and a P61 seems to be slightly overdriven with NiMHs because the voltage drop under 1.1 A and 2.3 amp loads with Panasonic 2000 mAh 4/5 A NiMHs is less severe than it is with lithium 123's. I always wait at least a couple of hours after charging NiMHs before running a P61 so that I don't risk "flash-bulbing" with the high temporary "surface charge" NiMH voltage.

You could simply get a 6R or a 6P and convert it with the K231 kit, or convert your 6Z to use the b65 surefire battery and charger. That adds oh 1.5" to the length of the light and allows the p60 bulb to run for more than a few minutes (if I remember right spec was 50 minutes). The conversion kit includes a b65 battery (that had none of the B92/B90 problems) a body extender, and a charger, I think it also included a R60 lamp for recharageables but as I've used the P60 lamp with it with no problems.

They make a similar kit for the 9P series that includes a shorter probably 1/2" extension but otherwise is the same kit. So you have to use the R60/P60 in the 9P when converted.

I don't know if they are still available from surefire but they show up on ebay from time to time and I'm sure there are some dealers with them around. In fact there's 2 of them on ebay now.

Not sure how it would work with the p61 bulb but I'd guess it would be a lot of drain for the b65 to handle probably get 5-10 minutes of runtime and it could be hard on the bulb and battery.

I use a converted 6R all the time around the house, it's a little big for everyday carry but it's cheap to use and it still has the P60 beam and good runtime.

Todd

ToddM:

I can get the conversion kit, but it's a lot of wasted parts. I would really like to experiment with low-run time in the normal-size body.

Lemlux, your system looks like the P60 should last ~1.5 hr on 2000mAh, and that's the lamp I have. How did you decide on the longer body and large batteries? What charger do you use?

Blikbok:

The capacity of cells shorter than 4/5 A didn't seem appealing. That's why I went to the longer body. This longer body is only about the length of a Mag 2C -- comfortable, but not attractive as a pocket carry.

I'm following with interest the discussions about using 2 @ 68 mm long 16.5 mm diameter Lithium-ion batteries in a 3 cell SF extended with a single A19 to drive a P90 or P91.

I have no problem charging the 4/5 A NiMH cells with my Vanson 1HU as long as the positive button is long enough. (I use disassembled 7.2 V pack flat top button cells for which I've kept part of the welded connector strip bent double as a positive terminal.)

ToddM:
I've wondered about the 6R conversion. What runtime does it give you on the p60? How long does the beam stay white, and how long can you run it before the beam quality drops?

What types of batteries are we talking about ? I thought that A19 was the name for the conversion ring for the SF but is it also a name for certain batteries?

A19 is a tube made by surefire which functions as a battery extender. It's not a name for any battery.

lemlux: what lifetime on the P61 and P60 do you get at 4.8v? And what runtime do you get on the p60 with your setup?

Thanks for all your responses. I've held off on buying more SF's until I figure out how to wean them from their lithium habit.