Things I have learned while modifying lights, the hard way!

Don't start on a new project if you are in a rush!
Let the annoying cat out, have the obnoxious kid gone, and if your wife wants something done, DO IT before you start!
Don't start on a new project in front of small children, religious types, etc, unless you want them to learn new and interesting words!
Heat can be your friend!
A little thermal paste goes a long way, a little more makes a mess, a lot more, well your an idiot and get what you deserve! (That would be me!)
Arctic Aluma ceramiuqe, where to even start! You better have what you want where you want it! It's great at gluing down plastic bits that you want to take off later, locking wires in tiny holes, and most excellent for making threads miserable to get apart if you get it on them! But it sure works great for potting things!
Buy strap wrenches, have plastic grips around and wood blocks can be very helpful in your vise.
Vise grips are ALWAYS your LAST resort!
Patience, patience, patience, patience, and yet more patience!
WALK AWAY! You'd be amazed sometimes how easily things work out when you've walked away and have a clear perspective on things!
Feel free to add away!

All true lol.

Don't build drivers with tiny parts with a dark color carpet underneath.

Clean your solder tip often.

Dremel sanding and cutting discs will throw things across a room.

Always wear eye protection.

Oh boy. This one could turn into valuable info as well as a couple hundred pages. I'll pass along some of mine a bit later. Ha ha.

Amen to all of that - especially the part about keeping the cat away.

Amazing how cats always want to "help" and are fascinated by all the small bits and pieces . . .

PS: Don't strobe yourself with your newly-modified light to see if it's worse than the standard strobe . . . oo:

The use of pliers could destroy lenses

In trying to free a 6PX or G2X head: if you have the patience to let it sit in the 110 degree son for 3 hours, then to sit in the freezer for an hour, don't rush the first two minutes out of the freezer to free it with your vice/strap wrenches or vice grips. After my first disaster, I learned patience. To date, I have been successful in every attempt since, and I even broke one loose that two modders in the forum whom I have tremendous respect for could not accomplish. Having the Palm Springs Sun at 110-120 degrees to make the metal expand is a definite plus. I have used boiling water too, but for some reason the sun followed by the freezer to make the metal contract seems to be consistently successful. Now if only my skill with soldering and working with tiny parts would improve...


Sent from my iPhone using Candlepowerforums

Here's an additional note on safety. Eyes pretty much everyone thinks about (or should) eyes. One thing I have seen being neglected is EARS. Hearing protection is of utmost importance to me. Too many years of listening to loud music, firearms and work in the cabinetry business has diminished my hearing and left me with a mild case of tinitus.
Hearing loss is cumulative.
Let me repeat that. Hearing loss is like a bottle of wine. You only have a finite amount to work with. Every loud event takes another drink from the bottle.
I get 23dB earplugs by the case, and often will double up with my 25dB headphones. I like the earplug store, they offer a trial kit so you can see what fits and feels good.
Oh, and learn how to install them inside your ear canals properly.