SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build *Up To 7.3A Now*

kz1000s1

Enlightened
Joined
Jun 2, 2002
Messages
693
Location
Central Arkansas, USA
My Luminous Devices SST-90 emitter arrived from Photonfanatic a
few days ago and I finally had a chance to test it out. This is an
evaluation piece with an unknown flux bin. Most people here seem
to think these are a lower bin, I'll presume it's something like a WL.

The test light is a 2D Mag with a modified Britelumens deluxe P7 heatsink
running DD. Heatsink modifications are grinding the top flat then grinding a
relief on each side so that the + and -solder pads underneath the
emitter have clearance for the wires. One end of each side relief is aligned
with an existing wire hole. I covered the side reliefs with a layer of AA
for insulation in case the wires come unsoldered. Nailbender's SST got
so hot the solder melted and the wires came loose. One observation
from when I was soldering the wires to the emitter is that I had trouble
getting the solder hot because the emitter passes the heat so quickly
to my soldering clamp.

Unlike a P7, the center solder pad is electrically isolated, so I used
a AA layer to adhere the emitter to the bare aluminum. You just
have to make sure the + pad isn't touching and grounding out.

DSCN9502.jpg


The rest of the build was the usual P7 mod procedure. A smooth
Mag reflector with a cut cam is used. The original hole size will
just clear the emitter corners. Reflector position may not be optimal
yet. It seems best when the head is in as far as it can go until the
reflector bottoms on the inside lip of the heatsink. I'm not sure if
it could focus any tighter or not. A DX flat bottomed P7 reflector
was tried for fit next. The head bottoms out before the LED is
fully seated in the hole. It might work if I pull the heatsink out slightly.

DSCN9507.jpg


DSCN9512.jpg


The light used for comparison to this build is my Mag 1C with a
CSXPI bin P7 running DD through a D2Flex board. Power is an
AW IMR18650 providing 3.4A. DX textured reflector. This a
bright C bin because I replaced it once with a DSWOI, but the
D wasn't any brighter and I liked the CSXPI tint better (whiter).
According to tests of a Nailbender built, 18650 powered, P7 Mag
by MrGman that had 703 peak lumens, my light should have an
output in that same area.

I started out with 3xC NiMh for power, just some cheapo 2500 Energizers
for now to take it easy at first. With a fresh charge the current draw
was 3.2 A. Performance is good. All comparisons are to the above P7 l
ight. A ceiling bounce test shows a noticeable improvement in output.
After dark the testing went outdoors. The beam seems smoother, though
still some colored artifacts. Although current results may change when
the reflector gets dialed in better. Hot spot is a little bigger and more pronounced.
Spill has a similar increase in size and is brighter. Throw is the same. Tint is
greenish on a white wall, though not that noticeable otherwise. This could change
as I pump up the power. Heat doesn't seem to be an issue at this level.
Barely warm at the body after a few minutes.

Next will running on an AW IMR18650. I'm trying out what I have
available to determine what the final power source will be. If this
causes any problems, some better quality C NiMhs will be procured.
If it works, the Batteryspace 26650 IMR would be my choice. AW
has his M6 running on an F cell Li-ion. Nailbender used a D Li-ion that
worked well, then tried an IMR C cell that overheated things. I have
to wonder if IMR cells don't have enough voltage drop under load to
run the SST-90 safely.

The manufacturer, Luminous Devices does not seem to bin for
forward voltage or give an actual spec for it that I've seen. Just
testing points of 3.1V, 3.6V and a chart that stops at around
3.8V.

We're still looking for the limits.
 
Last edited:

kd5ahl

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Sep 26, 2006
Messages
59
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

Just last night I direct drove my sst-90 off of one of those IMR 26660 and it was pushing 2.9A with the voltage at 3.7V.

The only thing inbetween the cell and the LED was the protection circuit you can get from batteryspace.

I had it hooked up to a 1.5 x 5.5 finned heatsink that came from a 3.5inch hard drive mounting kit, and it got wicked hot after about 5 minutes.
 

Aircraft800

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Apr 24, 2007
Messages
1,487
Location
DFW Texas.
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

I'm really surprised you are only getting 2.9A draw on a IMR 26650 cell. That cell should be able to 10C discharge. Does it have to do with a low vF emitter or something? I would have expected to see a full 9A draw and some wicked heat.

Oh Yea: WE NEED PICS!
 

cmacclel

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 15, 2003
Messages
5,018
Location
Sweden
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

I tested a SST-90 and it was pullling around 7.5 amps at 3.6v if I recall correctly.

Mac
 
Last edited:

kz1000s1

Enlightened
Joined
Jun 2, 2002
Messages
693
Location
Central Arkansas, USA
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

I'm really surprised you are only getting 2.9A draw on a IMR 26650 cell. That cell should be able to 10C discharge. Does it have to do with a low vF emitter or something? I would have expected to see a full 9A draw and some wicked heat.

Oh Yea: WE NEED PICS!

I'm surprised by that also. I got 3.2A with crappy Energizers and the light barely got warm! Something isn't right. Tonight I'll see what an IMR18650 does, but my expectation is 5+ Amps.

YEA, YEA, pics are coming! :popcorn::popcorn:

A beamshot at this stage though is just going to look like a P7 + 10% brightness.
 

Aircraft800

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Apr 24, 2007
Messages
1,487
Location
DFW Texas.
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

Just last night I direct drove my sst-90 off of one of those IMR 26660 and it was pushing 2.9A with the voltage at 3.7V.

The only thing inbetween the cell and the LED was the protection circuit you can get from batteryspace.

I had it hooked up to a 1.5 x 5.5 finned heatsink that came from a 3.5inch hard drive mounting kit, and it got wicked hot after about 5 minutes.

I'll bet that protection circuit is the culprit. Even though it wasn't cutting out, I'll bet it has enough resistance to limit your current. I wonder what it would draw without it?
 

kd5ahl

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Sep 26, 2006
Messages
59
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

Could it be that I have added this PCB to the cell?

http://www.batteryspace.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1249

EDIT: That circuit is supposed to limit to 8.5A +/- 1A, but i bet it is part of the issue as well....

I've also used (approx) 24GA wire (about 8 inches worth) to hook up the LED to the cell via some anderson powerpoles.

I doubt the powerpoles are part of the problem, but is 16" of wire enough to cause that much drop?


I'll put another cell together tonight without the protection circuit from batteryspace and see what is happening.
 

lolzertank

Enlightened
Joined
Dec 29, 2008
Messages
555
Location
The Land of Silicon
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

Could it be that I have added this PCB to the cell?

http://www.batteryspace.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1249

EDIT: That circuit is supposed to limit to 8.5A +/- 1A, but i bet it is part of the issue as well....

I've also used (approx) 24GA wire (about 8 inches worth) to hook up the LED to the cell via some anderson powerpoles.

I doubt the powerpoles are part of the problem, but is 16" of wire enough to cause that much drop?




I'll put another cell together tonight without the protection circuit from batteryspace and see what is happening.

I think you should ditch the protection and get thicker wires...

16 inches of 24 gauge copper wire has about 40 mOhms of resistance. At 3A that's a 0.12 volt drop, which is pretty significant in LED-land. Then, your protection circuit is 80 mOhm which takes out another 0.24 volts.
From the SST-90 datasheet, 0.36 volts can nearly double the current. :eek:
 

kd5ahl

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Sep 26, 2006
Messages
59
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

Ack, I didn't even look at the protection circuit resistance on the spec sheet.

Sounds like a plan, although to be totally honest I am shocked at the amount of light emitted at 3A.

9A... :eek:

I really need to get my slug put together so I can put the light head in some water to cool it. That's the only way I can see to keep something like this cool. It's a retrofit for a dive light, so i might as well take it to the next level...
 

kz1000s1

Enlightened
Joined
Jun 2, 2002
Messages
693
Location
Central Arkansas, USA
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

My light has about 7" total of 22g mil-spec silvercoated wire.
That's the biggest I have right now of. I was going to use two wires per side, but it was too hard soldering that on the emitter.

Another vote for going without the protection circuit.
 

kd5ahl

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Sep 26, 2006
Messages
59
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

The SST-90 isn't a good idea for a dive light. It'll vaporize all the water, leaving you on the beach again. :mad:

:crackup:

That or boil all the fish in the vicinity.
 

supasizefries

Enlightened
Joined
Mar 10, 2009
Messages
498
Location
NJ
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

My light has about 7" total of 22g mil-spec silvercoated wire.
That's the biggest I have right now of. I was going to use two wires per side, but it was too hard soldering that on the emitter.

Another vote for going without the protection circuit.

Just curious, what's the wattage of your iron? I have a SST-90 as well but haven't attempted anything with it yet other than hooking up an IMR 18650 to it direct drive for about a second. This thing is bright! :D
 

kd5ahl

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Sep 26, 2006
Messages
59
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

I'm using a star.

I used a Radio shack 100w iron to solder the wires to the pads after pre-tinning them.

I tried my soldering station, and the tip did not have enough thermal mass to get the solder flowing.

High wattage and a large thermal mass on the iron tip is the way to go IMO.

Soldering to the LED itself, if you got it without the star, is another matter I imagine, although if you use the largest tip you can, it should reduce the amount of time that it takes to complete the joint which is good.
 

kz1000s1

Enlightened
Joined
Jun 2, 2002
Messages
693
Location
Central Arkansas, USA
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

Preliminary results with an IMR 18650 that wasn't fully charged = 4.3A.

Battery is fully charging now. Then I'll make a long spring with a ground wire
to run it in the 2D light for a while.
 
Last edited:

kz1000s1

Enlightened
Joined
Jun 2, 2002
Messages
693
Location
Central Arkansas, USA
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

The AW IMR18650 is fully charged. Current is now 4.6A. Both lights are using the same battery.
The body is getting warmer now, though still not hot in short runs which all I'm doing right now. Beamshot settings; 1/6 sec, F3.5, +.5 exp, ISO 1600.

Keep in mind that the SST-90 is not fully focused. The reflector is bottomed out. As soon as you turn the head out, the usual Mag dark hole appears.
I'm still working on this.

EDIT: After fixing the focus problem I found the focus was close enough that the beamshots won't look any different if I redo them, so I didn't.

DSC_8051.jpg

P7

DSC_8052.jpg

SST-90

DSC_8053.jpg

Quark AA-T/14500

DSC_8056.jpg

SST-90 I don't have a companion P7 photo for this shot, but it gives
the best representation of what this light looks like in person.

DSC_8163sst90.jpg


SST-90 at 7A
The difference between this and 4A isn't really showing up here.
 
Last edited:

BeachBoy

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Jul 13, 2009
Messages
39
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

second and last pictures mentions SST-90? they sure don'T seem to have the same output, what's the difference?
 

AlexGT

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jan 15, 2001
Messages
3,651
Location
Houston, Texas
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

Can you tell us what is the hotspot size between the P7 and the SST-90? the SST looks just a bit bigger than the P7, but cant determine for sure since the light is pointed differently at the shed.
 

kz1000s1

Enlightened
Joined
Jun 2, 2002
Messages
693
Location
Central Arkansas, USA
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

second and last pictures mentions SST-90? they sure don'T seem to have the same output, what's the difference?

It might be the different angle of the camera and light. The camera was on manual. The spill shows up better.
 

kz1000s1

Enlightened
Joined
Jun 2, 2002
Messages
693
Location
Central Arkansas, USA
Re: SST-90 (Super Sonic Transmitter) Maglite Build

Can you tell us what is the hotspot size between the P7 and the SST-90? the SST looks just a bit bigger than the P7, but cant determine for sure since the light is pointed differently at the shed.

I don't know for sure yet because the SST isn't focused yet. At this point it's slightly larger than the P7. The SST die is larger and the dome is a little smaller.
 
Top