Questions about a first time mod!

Hi everyone, first post here and need some info on a mod I want to do for a single purpose light. I have a 4 cell 123 power 3 led light that has a on off switch in the cap and a pressure switch as well. It is my understanding that the 4 123 batteries in series makes this a 12 volt system which brings about my first question. Can I run this light with power from a 12 volt car battery if I do not have the battery connected to the charging system of the vehicle? Next question is can I use a rotary dc dimmer to infinitely control the light output from 0% to full bright? The reason I would like to set up this way is because I have the 12 volt power to run other things and need reliable power for the duration of the night. The light itself will not be used at full power for this duration or even close for that matter.
Now for the light itself, it currently has 3 cree t6 led's (I think). I would like to know what mod I can make to improve the light output. What I am looking for is a light that will have a fairly tight beam and a useable distance of maybe 300 yards. optics are involved so I will be able to identify through them as well. In the past I have used a light force 170 with a 100 watt bulb and adjustable beam (great light but that thing is huge).

I have pictures and will post them ASAP

Thanks ws974

I think u need to know what type of driver current u have, im guessing it will be of a lower value considering the cell arrangement. Sounds like a single mode basic driver - this is what i would do- replace the driver with 12v-24v input, 12v out 3amp cc driver with low mid and high levels which can be wired directly to your car battery making around 3000 led lumens[ assuming approp heatsinking]. The leds can be updated to xml2s for about 20% output gain and finally throw is related mainly to reflector and led die size -- just some thoughts. Plenty of great examples of incredible mods to learn from here at cpf, good luck and welcome ws974.

Thanks for the reply swan, I will definitely look into driver and emitter upgrades. for now I think the reflectors will be sufficient as I will need to use it to know for sure. I bought this light for the sole purpose of modding as it is likely that the internal components are not high quality. It has been hard to find any info on using a pwm dimmer. I guess my main question would be - If I use a 12-24 volt input single mode driver and use the pwm dimmer to control the power going into the driver will I have problems, or does the pwm dimmer need to be between the driver and emitters?

Thanks again
ws974

It depends on the driver. There are definitely drivers that would be fine with PWM power, but I would guess that most buck type drivers would not behave well in that situation. Unfortunately, it's also quite possible that those same drivers would not behave well with a PWM dimmer between the driver and the LEDs. Your best bet is to find a driver with a PWM input, or one that is known to be okay with PWM.