4D Maglite /w P7 emitter

Hey guys, First flashlight mod, just need some advice is my shopping list is correct.

I am attempting to mod my 4d maglite to have the p7 emitter in it.
Here's the list:

p7 https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/203235[/URL]
Driver Battery convertor (2AA to D)

Id power that with 8AA batteries. The biggest problem ive had is trying to select batteries, didnt know whether to use 18650's, then i couldnt figure out how to handle the higher voltage. And im still unsure of my list :thinking:

Will this output close to max output? or is there another configuration somebody could recomend (looked at heaps of over 3D maglite threads but i have 4, so not sure how this extra voltage will work)

:welcome:
An SSC-P7 LED runs at 3.4-3.6V. 4D will give you 4.8V (NiMH) or 6V (alkaline).
4.8V NiMH will fry the LED unless you have a buck regulator circuit (8*7135 or equivalent).
You might get away with 4 alkaline as the batteries usually cannot provide enough current to fry the LED.

????
Driver Battery convertor (2AA to D)
????
A driver is a electronic circuit.
You can convert a 4D to a 3D by making yourself a battery spacer. Are you planning on using a DX 2AA to D convertor with AA spacers?
The AA spacers should handle the current. I am a a bit leery of the DX battery adapter though.
Beware battery chargers that cannot charge 3 batteries just 2 or 4. (The newer ROV PS20/PS3D cannot charge 3 but the older PS3 can. Go figure.)

The best P7 Mag DIY thread I' have seen is this. It covers the switch bit which most of the other ones don't.
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/238641
You don't absolutely need the UCL lens, it just lets about 9% more light through.
Note the DX reflector is not used. It sits on the LED directly and can crush the LED if you crank down on it while focussing. You can just cut the cam off the Mag reflector. There are instructions on how to do it somewhere on Malkoff's website.

A really simple way to do it would be to get the emitter, heatsink, Shining Beam driver, and four NiMH D cells.

get dx driver, actually get 2 cuz some come shot, they have 1 mode driver, and 5mode, i have used both, can't complain.
you could also get other drivers, just make sure they will work with voltage you'll supply. but here is a thing about drivers, led needs 3,6v, so if your batts give 14,6v 11v is what driver has to dissipate as heat, so if your batts are 4,8v driver will waste less v, to turn into heat.
choices of cells are plenty, 4d can fit 4 d cells, 12 aa cells in adapter (around $40) or 8aa in 2aa 1d adapter, (about 1-2 bucks), 5 c cells, 4 18650\26650, 5 26500,
your voltage may vary from 4,8v to almost 20.

my advice go with that will work with 4,8-6v, dx driver does that. you have option using alkaline cells (don't expect long runtime, and performance will drop after a little while), or you can use 4d ni mh cells, or you can have 8 ni mh AA in adapters,or lithium disposable cells ,which would make the light a lot lighter than with d cells.

reflector you use stock one, with cut off cam. plastic lens would work fine, glass theoretically will let more light thru but in real world i didn't notice the difference, with my eyes, but i did notice it when i dropped my light and glass broke, it never happened with plastic lens.

if you don't know dx is a site that sells all parts for lights, batteries, chargers..ect. they are in china it takes about 2-4 weeks to get stuff to me in ny.
here is the link for the driver
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.20329

PCC said:

A really simple way to do it would be to get the emitter, heatsink, Shining Beam driver, and four NiMH D cells.

Click to expand...

As this is the OP's first ever flashlight mod an even easier route would be forget the 4D format, buy the emitter & heatsink and direct drive off 3 D cells alkaline to NiMH will be fine, 3D Maglites are a better compromise between length & battery capacity IMHO but a 4D with a "dummy cell" would work too :thumbsup:

Obviously the emitter's Vf will determine it's output under DD, a bin ending in I would be the best

This is what I've got in my 4D mag.

It works well and I get a couple of hours runtime off 8 eneloops using these

You will need to modify the switch and grind off a little of the module to get it to fit, but it will give you about 500otf lumens. I'm guessing about the output because it is only a flies wisker dimmer than a TK40 on turbo which pumps out nearly 600otf. That's on a ceiling bounce test by eye only. It's still VERY bright and throws well considering how floody and smooth the beam is.

I use mine every day taking the dog for a run. There are other lights in my arsenal I could use, but none as large as the 4D mag. You WANT a big light on dark streets.

As for the weight, with the 8 eneloops it comes in at just over 790 grams. No big deal when you've got a 20kg dog pulling at the other hand.

Just a word of warning: Don't touch the reflector. I left my module alone for a few minutes only to find my 3 year old daughter playing with it. There are now a few permanent blemishes on the reflector.

Hmm.. My list was obviously a lot longer buy i guess my links got removed because the site has some tight regulations.

I like the thing of DX that Jash recomended as it all already complete. However, i really want to have a more custom light. The mag thread posted by LEDninja seems like what i want to build.

As i was browsing through more threads i also came across "Der Wichtel" kit which has 3 p7 emitters. Is this good or is it too high a price for the outcome?

Chris01 said:

As i was browsing through more threads i also came across "Der Wichtel" kit which has 3 p7 emitters. Is this good or is it too high a price for the outcome?

Click to expand...

it is actually a cheap way to make that amount of lm.
i have it in 4d mag. love it. great flood light, with still decent throw.
however single p7 with mag size reflector will throw farther.

I'm a little bit of a noob with reflectors, but is what your saying that i really should choose if i want a high brightness mag (Der Wichtel) or a mag where I'll see farther (single P7)?

Chris01 said:

I'm a little bit of a noob with reflectors, but is what your saying that i really should choose if i want a high brightness mag (Der Wichtel) or a mag where I'll see farther (single P7)?

Click to expand...

yes. either area light, or long beam light.
the kit even thou area light, has enough throw for 80% of situations. if not more,
as for reflectors, the bigger and deeper reflector is, the more throw it will produce, there are more conditions, but in general it is true, that is why all searchlights have big reflectors

Thanks alpg88. You've made things clearer for me. I ordered the "Der Wichtel" Kit. I had one more question before i get started with the build. Is the P7 emitter from dealextreme any good, or are there better (value-wise)? I've read about "c/d/j-bin" codes that somehow apply to these emitters but have no idea what it stands for, so just wanted to know if that one is suitable.

np.
any bin of p7 is suitable, the difference is some are brighter than the others, iirc color temp depends on bin as well, may be someone that knows p7 in more details will explain it better. bin is like a model number.
dx sells the same p7 you would buy anywhere else, may not be the brightest bin, but still perfectly suitable.

SSC-P7 bins are as follows C(or D)-Sxx-I(or J)

C - 700-800 lumens at 2.8A (most common)
D - 800-900 lumens at 2.8A (the few that makes it past 800 lumens)

Sxx is the colour bin. See chart.


I - forward voltage 3.25-3.50V
J - forward voltage 3.50-3.75V
If you are direct driving (you are not as you are using Der Wichtel Kit.) the lower Vf of I lets more current through making for a brighter light. But you can also burn out the LED.

DX carries whatever they can lay their hands on. Often the colour is not the best. Note they are still using the old spec of 900 lumens max for a C bin (before SSC revamped the spec to 700-800 lumens) and they are back ordered.

You can also get P7s from CPFMP. The sellers there provide the full binning info so you know what you are getting.
http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=196189
http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=183633
I find the colour bit more important than the brightness bit.
At one time DX was carrying SYP tint out and out blue.
Litemania had SXO cool white and now SVN creamy white.
PhotonFanatic is also carrying SVN.

Woah, thanks man, in the mean time, i ordered 1x p7 off DX, just to see how bright it actually is. But this clears things up well.

The single p7 i ordered will obviously not go to waste as i want to put it into a small flashlight, driven by a single 18650 battery. Is it possible to direct drive the DX p7 of a 18650 (for 3-5mins max runtime) ?

Hi,

Sorry to hijack -

Jash, that drop-in you mentioned, does it fit straight in or is there an amount of work to do to make it fit/work?

Apologies to Chris01 again for the hijack!

Cheers
Mark