Grandmoms 2D MAGlite (An LED Drop-in Question)

Hello everyone! I am new to CPF and I have read a TON of MAGlite LED posts on here but I am hopeing for a little extra help finding my answer.

So here is the deal, I have my grandmothers 2D MAGlite (approx. 10-12 years old) and would like to add a drop-in LED. I have a bunch of awesome flashlights in my collection that I very much prefer to MAGlites but this particular light is sentimental to me and I would like to utilize it but I need to up the output/run time. HOWEVER I have a few specifications to meet:

• Meet or exceed 120 Lumens
• Run on 2D Alkaline batteries (No rechargeables what so ever, no 3C, Etc.)
• No modification to the flashlights body, head, reflector, lens, etc.
• 1 LED (I'm not looking for a quad Cree or anything like that)
• Spend less than $40

I was looking at NiteIze, TERRAlux, MAG 3W upgrade, and a few others (AKA EBAY junk). I cannot find any real lumen rating on the NiteIze or TERRAlux and have not found a comparison of the two.

Ladies and Gents, Am I looking for something that doesn't exist? I sure hope someone can help me out here. I am open to other brands but I do not know of any drop-in type models available.

Thanks in advance for any info!

~Nick

If your budget is less than $40 my bet is you are better off going to target and buying the new version of the Mag LED for about $35 I think and it should do about that output. The older Mag LED versions seem to be less than 80 lumens (the ones that use dropin modules). I have a couple of the 2 cell Mag brand LED dropins (oversized PR base) and they are about 40-60 lumens perhaps. The problem is without modding it you do not have a good heatsinking surface for a dropin to wick off the heat of an emitter putting out those type of lumens.

Don;t forget the Dorcy 41-1643 30 Lumen 3V Replacement Bulb. Dorcy Direct wants $9 but I paid $4 at Sears Canada.

There are 2 Terralux bulbs.
TerraLUX TLE-1F. 30 lumens.
TerralUX TLE-6EXB. 140 lumens.

Budget Showerhead drop-in for Mag. Fusion 36, now available in warm.. Bright but floody. You can use 2D or 6AA in a 6AA to 2D adapter for more brightness.

Thanks for the quick responses! I have the Dorcy replacement (got it for free when I ordered my 200 lumen metal gear) and I can honestly say it is worse then the oem incan. Blue beamshot with an off center yellow dot. However I LOVE the metal gear. I appreciate the shower head link but I need something that throws. I guess it comes down to the TERRALUX but other posts state that it really lacks with the 2D but works great with the 3D. Any input on the NiteIze vs the Terralux? I know I could just get a new light for the same price but I really want to use this particular light (as I said its sentimental).

Thanks again for the responses I REALLY appreciate it!

Hello,
Does your grandma really need 120 lumens?
If you want an upgrade for a fair price, try Terralux or NiteIze.
The Terralux TLE6EXB will do nearly the advertised 140 lumens on 3 cells, on 2 cells it will be somewhat less.
Also consider the NiteIze dropin for 2 to 6 cells (1 watt model) some 40 lumens. Terralux has a similar module but with somewhat less output and less optimal regulation, as once tested on this forum.
(Remember that an incan 2D will be somewhat like a 15 lumens flashlight, and with quickly diminishing output. Even the lowly "10mm" NiteIze dropin will have an output of some 20 lumens and outperforming the incan, plus it has flat regulation for a looooooooooooooooooooooong time.)

Kind regards,
Joris

Hello and thanks for your response. It is no longer my grandmothers flashlight so no she dosnt need high output. It has now been passed on to me and that is why I wish to keep it and utilize it.

Thanks again all

The best drop in is the Malkoff 2D drop in - 240 lumens in a solid heatsink to maintain output during extended runtimes. More than your $40 budget but worth it in my opinion.
Anything else is just a compromise.

Good luck,

James...

Just got done refurbishing my old 3D Maglite that my father gave me many years ago. Replaced all four O-rings, switch boot, glass window instead of the original plastic one, fresh batteries, cleaned and lubed everything. And replaced the bulb with a TerraLUX dropin. Probably spent a little more than what the light was worth but it was my pride and joy for many years. It is significantly brighter now and I am sure a lot easier on batteries. It was worth the money and effort into fixing it up but I guess I'll have to give it a new nickname - Mr. Donut.

My favorite mag dropin is the fusion36, not what your looking for but easy to do. Pop out the reflector and in it goes, 400ish lumens on 2D alkalines and I use it on dog walks because of it's great runtimes.
I'd get a nite-ize over a terralux from the reviews I've read. or Splurge for a malkoff there of awesome build quality

jimmy1970 said:

The best drop in is the Malkoff 2D drop in - 240 lumens in a solid heatsink to maintain output during extended runtimes. More than your $40 budget but worth it in my opinion.
Anything else is just a compromise.

Good luck,

James...

Click to expand...

I would second that. A little more than your $40, but well worth it.

TechNickAll said:

It has now been passed on to me and that is why I wish to keep it and utilize it.

Click to expand...

That changes everything.

For Flood:
Budget Showerhead drop-in for Mag. Fusion 36, now available in warm.
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?277748-Budget-Showerhead-Mag-Drop-in.

For throw:

jimmy1970 said:

The best drop in is the Malkoff 2D drop in - 240 lumens in a solid heatsink to maintain output during extended runtimes. More than your $40 budget but worth it in my opinion.
Anything else is just a compromise.

Good luck,

James...

Click to expand...

It is http://www.malkoffdevices.com/
malkoff.com is a consulting company. Don't go there.

The terralux etc. are just replacement bulb modules. This is highly compromised in terms of heatsinking and driver size. This tends to result in very poor efficiency.
so +1 on the Malkoff as the LED is mounted to a heatsink.
If this is out of your budget then it's not that hard to build your own for under $40.

e.g.
1) H22A heatsink for SSC P4 LED (easier to solder than cree)
2) Luxdrive micropuck boost driver (500mA)
3) SSC P4 emitter which is easy to find on ebay etc.

The drop-in I would use would be the old MagLED 2-cell drop-in (if you can find one since they've been discontinued) and have the emitter swapped for something more modern like an XP-G. I have one in my daughter's 2D that was passed on to me from my uncle and it measured 160 lumens OTF with a UCL. I'd say that it's probably around 140 lumens with the stock plastic lens. It'll probably make a few more lumens if I used an R5 instead of the R4 that's in there or if I had used an XM-L instead.

monkeyboy & PCC, any links to instructions for the mods. Our OP is a newbie.

The mod thread I've saved is How To Mod a Maglite P7 - 38 PICS
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?238641-How-To-Mod-a-Maglite-P7-38-PICS
You can use a P4 as monkeyboy suggested instead of the P7.
The micropuck goes between the switch and the LED sitting behind the heatsink. Or you can skip the micropuck and use 3 NiMH C batteries instead of 2D with a piece of plastic pipe as spacer. Some trimming of the tail spring may be required in this case.

If you can drop your lumens requirement and are willing to use the light in the house/in situations where 30 lumens will do, I recommend the Nite Ize 1 watt dropin. See BigWaffles's famous graph here. Scroll down a bit and see post 100 and 101.

Good luck in your quest!

Hi LEDninja, good to see you're still around

That's a good guide that you've linked, it pretty much covers everything. the H22A heatsink is here. and the micropuck is easy to find with google.

You'll need some thermal epoxy, I recommend Arctic silver. No need to thermal paste the heatsink for a single SSC P4

If you can solder, then you can do this. It's a lot easier than it looks