"3W" dive light, should it be brutally Creed?

Not long ago, I got a 2x CR123A LED dive light made by OMS.

It is OK, but predictably, the LED is not up to date. I'm fairly sure it is a LuxIII:



Business end with lens/cover/reflector assembly removed



Output seems unimpressive for 2x 3V cells. Photos are after about an hour of use on primary cells (claimed runtime is about 5 hours IIRC) but it wasn't close to the L2D when fresh, either.

L2DR100 vs. OMS, Canon S1 IS, ISO 100, 1/640 @ f/5.6


same @ f/4.5


L0DQ4 vs. OMS, @ f/4.5


Would prying out the Luxeon star and putting in a Cree work and be a significant improvement in output? I'm not sure at this point if it's regulated or DD. I could meter the voltage across the LED before and after my next hour of use and see what that shows, but I'm not eager to run it down for fun when using primaries. Unfortunately, the manufacturer's terse reply to my email was that "3.0 is the correct voltage" so most RCR123s are out. I'm tempted to get into 18650 cells to see how that goes. The tube measures about 18.5 mm, and the 123s rattle around a little, so hopefully that would work.

I would try to put a SSC P4 in there. It's a better fit than a Cree ^^

Buck, you have the dubious distinction of winning the prize for the 2 largest pics I have ever seen posted on CPF.

I have removed them. You may replace them when you have resized them to no larger than 800 x 800 pixels.

DM51 said:

Buck, you have the dubious distinction of winning the prize for the 2 largest pics I have ever seen posted on CPF.

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Good news everyone! We're number two!! Oh wait, that's not good news at all...

Edited. Sorry, I forgot that when I switched out of manual mode after taking the beamshots, I was going back to full resolution of the camera. It was rather late! :duh2:

A Seoul swap would give a better beam, but yes, it should come to the current generation.

brightarc said:

I would try to put a SSC P4 in there. It's a better fit than a Cree ^^

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Do you mean that the star boards are different sized, or the beam profile is a closer match?

The boards are the same, but the emitter is of different dimensions.
The p4 emitter is lambertian, and the cree is, well a cree.
Point is, the p4 is the closest match to a luxeon of the two.
Both in dimensions and in beam profile.
If you put a cree in there you might end up with a donut shaped beam.

I like Cree emitters more, but if I replace a luxeon, I do it with a ssc p4 just because it's a better fit.

brightarc said:

The boards are the same, but the emitter is of different dimensions.
The p4 emitter is lambertian, and the cree is, well a cree.
Point is, the p4 is the closest match to a luxeon of the two.

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Thanks for clarifying. Maybe I should ask something less stupid: Is there anything I should test before proceding to predict how hard the emitter is driven and whether this is going to work well? Or is it pretty much a given that swapping a LuxIII for an SSC will work and work better?

I have only a basic multimeter, so without desoldering I can monitor the voltage across the emitter, or remove the cells and measure the resistance of the leads from the battery pickups. Would that tell if it is regulated? Would putting the multimeter voltage in its resistance mode hurt a board if it is regulated?

I've never modified a light before (though I modified a 110 V string of LED skull lights last Halloween to run on a battery pack for a costume, with much advice from this group). The big mysteries to me (that I know of, it's the unknown unknowns that really getcha, isn't it?) are how to get the old star out and how delicately the soldering must be done to avoid cooking the emitter.

Buck said:

Thanks for clarifying. Maybe I should ask something less stupid: Is there anything I should test before proceding to predict how hard the emitter is driven and whether this is going to work well? Or is it pretty much a given that swapping a LuxIII for an SSC will work and work better?

I have only a basic multimeter, so without desoldering I can monitor the voltage across the emitter, or remove the cells and measure the resistance of the leads from the battery pickups. Would that tell if it is regulated? Would putting the multimeter voltage in its resistance mode hurt a board if it is regulated?

I've never modified a light before (though I modified a 110 V string of LED skull lights last Halloween to run on a battery pack for a costume, with much advice from this group). The big mysteries to me (that I know of, it's the unknown unknowns that really getcha, isn't it?) are how to get the old star out and how delicately the soldering must be done to avoid cooking the emitter.

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The SSC and Luxeon have the same input current range, but the SSC is more efficient, so yes, it is a given that replacing a Luxeon star with an SSC will work.

Resistance won't tell you very much.

The old star will come out with pliers or with a screwdriver levered under it. Taking out those four screws will make it easier. On a star, you will not hurt the emitter by soldering.

LukeA said:

Taking out those four screws will make it easier.

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No way! Remember, this is a dive light. I have no idea what those are doing to hold the parts of the head together, and having any parts of it loosen up is not acceptable. If it can't be done be gripping the head in my hand and grabbing the star with long-nosed pliers, I don't want to do it. Of course, by then it will be too late, since I'll probably have mangled the star board and most likely the emitter.

Other than that, thanks for the advice. Sounds like all I need are:
1. SSC p4 on star board
2. Arctic Alumina epoxy
3. Better soldering skills