I have found my old mag 5d pre 1990!

I would like to modify it. I will need a metal reflector, glass and advice on power options as my initial lookout for lithium d cells prooved fruitless.
I would be gratefull for any help/advice.

Well the possibilities are endless. If you dont want to run on D Li-Ion's than you would have to resort to something in the 6v-7.5v range. I have an inexpensive solution, for my 5D cell Maglite I used this. You get about 1200 lumens out the front, and the thing throws like a beast. But you would have to do a bit of grinding in order for it to fit correctly. And you have to cut up the Mag switch to get the + and - leads and solder them to the + and - terminals in the drop in. Also get some narrow long strips of aluminum foil and wrap in around the drop in for better thermal conductivity. Really is not that hard if you are familiar with soldering.

Really the possibilities are infinite.

Or you could go with a single P7 Maglite; 900 lumens. ONLY if you are an experienced solderer. You would need the following

driver

P7 Heatsink

P7 LED

For more info on modding a Maglite for a P7, view this thread.


As far as the reflector goes, you can take out hte existing one and cut off the "cam" and it should be a great throwing smooth reflecor.

Thank you.
I would like to go with D li-ions and get higher voltage as well as capacity. Then fit a hi incan for a massive lumen output.
The power source is the most crucial of this modification project and it must be able to cope with 9-12 amp draw.:thinking:

What is your goal? mega lumens? throw? flood? runtime? simple upgrade? complex build?

I think a couple of my maglites are that old too. My 3d, 2aa, 2aaa, solitaire have been with me for 15-25 years, and the wear/scratches/dings shows it!

My 3d and 2aaa received simple LED bulb swaps. Terralux was an easy choice!

I need to rebuild the solitaire and 2aa one day. They'll get LEDs just not sure which brand yet.

Malkoffdevices has a 5d Maglite bulb. Too bad its always out of stock.

iSHINE7909 said:

Then fit a hi incan for a massive lumen output.

Click to expand...

Agh :sick2:

Incans could have a high lumen output, but so could LED's...

I'm an LED guy, I have never played around with Incans. The hotwire Maglite mod with a pelican bulb seems to be very popular. Or the Mag85's...

Sounds like you need 5 4000mAh 26650 Li-Mn batteries and a DW triple P7 kit. :candle:

SmurfTacular said:

Agh :sick2:

Incans could have a high lumen output, but so could LED's...

I'm an LED guy, I have never played around with Incans. The hotwire Maglite mod with a pelican bulb seems to be very popular. Or the Mag85's...

Click to expand...

Incans can hit the 2000-10000 lumen range which the LEDs still can't touch, as far as I know - correct me if I'm wrong! =D (Of course... runtime is a different story...)

But yes - if you're playing around with < 2000 lumens, then both LEDs and Incans can be considered.

I'm watching this thread - there's also a Mag 5D which I may mod

Thank you all.:thumbsup:
5 4000mAh 26650 Li-Mn batteries would be great then, with max 21V attainable and a superb large capacity.
My first inkling was to go with a high incan and i want the light to have good throw/long spot with no, 'horrible black area of nothing', in the centre.
What is it with the hi drain D cells, they are not even on ebay! I found one place in the US advertising IMR 26650 that's all!

Have you tried KDs
Kaidomain.com
you should find most things there or DX
DealExtreme: Cool Gadgets at the Right Price - Site-Wide Free ...

Kaidomain & DX.

No joy. Only a 25500 listed which has an exagerated capacity and is comparable to a C cell size.


26650 3.2V 4000mAh Li-ion Rechargeable Battery SKU: S009186 has just appeared on Kaidomain but is only 3.2V not 3.7V.

Batteryspace.com have
LiFePO4 32600P (D size) Rechargeable Cell : 3.2V 3000mAh, 60A Rate, 9.6Wh (0.9).

Stereodude said:

Sounds like you need 5 4000mAh 26650 Li-Mn batteries and a DW triple P7 kit. :candle:

Click to expand...

+1:naughty:

Shine,

Have you looked in the Incan forum? Plenty of good info regarding various hotwire lights.

iSHINE7909 said:

Batteryspace.com have
LiFePO4 32600P (D size) Rechargeable Cell : 3.2V 3000mAh, 60A Rate, 9.6Wh (0.9).

Click to expand...

Unless you really need the super high current, the 26650 LiMiNi 4000mAh at batteryspace is probably a better cell. It's got more power in it and is cheaper.

Stereodude said:

Unless you really need the super high current, the 26650 LiMiNi 4000mAh at batteryspace is probably a better cell. It's got more power in it and is cheaper.

Click to expand...

Just looked at the specs, a few wories in there, (my build may pull 10-13 amps), but most of all the stated 6 month shelf life!

iSHINE7909 said:

Just looked at the specs, a few wories in there, (my build may pull 10-13 amps), but most of all the stated 6 month shelf life!

Click to expand...

The 6 month shelf live was hashed over in the battery / electronics forum. Apparently the clarification is that its some sort of self discharge rating, not the actual life of the battery.

However, with that current draw I'd probably steer clear of them as well.

You might not be able to fit 5 26650s in a 5D maglite. I know that 3 will fit in a 3D maglite with a very small spring and/or tailcap modifications, but 5 might be very close.

Also, are you planning on doing something over 180 watts? If you want a hotwire with that level of output, you will need to replace more than just the lens and reflector; the switch will have to go as well so it doesn't melt. Since your maglite is over 20 years old, the current metal maglite switch/driver assemblies night not fit properly. The Batteryspace cells are the best value in my opinion, and I would think that a 10 amp draw on 5 cells would result in a light that satisfied your needs...
However, the batteryspace cells are rated for up to 20A for short bursts, so they would probably be ok with a 13 amp load.

Mjolnir said:

You might not be able to fit 5 26650s in a 5D maglite. I know that 3 will fit in a 3D maglite with a very small spring and/or tailcap modifications, but 5 might be very close.

Also, are you planning on doing something over 180 watts? If you want a hotwire with that level of output, you will need to replace more than just the lens and reflector; the switch will have to go as well so it doesn't melt. Since your maglite is over 20 years old, the current metal maglite switch/driver assemblies night not fit properly. The Batteryspace cells are the best value in my opinion, and I would think that a 10 amp draw on 5 cells would result in a light that satisfied your needs...
However, the batteryspace cells are rated for up to 20A for short bursts, so they would probably be ok with a 13 amp load.

Click to expand...

Thanks.
What are my options switch wise? I have heard of a Judco and of the soft start ones, ( which i may have to have), The batteries will fit but with no spring in the tailcap. It looks like i will not need any regulation for the current. I wish i could i could use a d cell lithium batt 3.7v with huge capacity that could handle the current drain . I can find neither.
1 D cell i found rated at 5500mAH turns out to be more like 3500/3600mAH in reality. What else is not true in the specs for that battery?

As far as I know there are no IMR D cells in existence; you would either have to use 26650s or the LiFe PO4 D cells. LiCo cells won't be able to handle anywhere near 13 amps.

As for switches, you might want to look into something like this:
http://www.lighthound.com/AW-Mag-D-...ti-Brightness-for-D-Cell-Maglight_p_2921.html
It is fairly expensive, but should remove all of the heat sensitive components from the maglite, as well as give you a soft start, multiple levels, and a bi pin holder. Of course, I don't know if it will fit in your older maglite.

Mjolnir said:

As far as I know there are no IMR D cells in existence; you would either have to use 26650s or the LiFe PO4 D cells. LiCo cells won't be able to handle anywhere near 13 amps.

As for switches, you might want to look into something like this:
http://www.lighthound.com/AW-Mag-D-...ti-Brightness-for-D-Cell-Maglight_p_2921.html
It is fairly expensive, but should remove all of the heat sensitive components from the maglite, as well as give you a soft start, multiple levels, and a bi pin holder. Of course, I don't know if it will fit in your older maglite.

Click to expand...

Thanks.
That looks like a great all in one solution for the guts of the bulid, but it is out of stock.
I have still to find a metal reflector.

All I want to know is, how did you LOSE a 5D Maglite???