is a10w bulb bright for a torch?

ok, so i'm out to modify my torch. being in a country where i can't get access to any WA products or carley, or anything else half decent, i ran to my local 'lamp specialist' to find the brightest bulb for 6volts.

so the best they had, was a 6v 10W bi-pin bulb...which was rated 150lumens.

sounded good to me.

took it home, modded it, and chucked it in a PR base.
into my Mag..... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif (dissapointment)

my halogen bulb from k-mart is brighter! and cheaper too.

did i do something wrong, or is a 10w pretty weak?

The 6V bulb is trying to pull 1.67 amps. Did you put it in a 5 cell or larger Mag? If you're running alkaline cells, the 1.67A is probably a bit much for them in any case. Even D's don't like much more than 1.5A. If you are running a 5-cell Mag, then try putting a 4-cell Krypton or Xenon bulb in there. I think you'll find the overdrive lightens things up nicely. 150 lumens is not at all shabby, although by the time losses are figured in, you're probably getting about 100 out the front.

You should keep your eyes out for the next bulb group buy. In this last one, I shipped to Hong Kong, Australia, Germany and Canada. I've also shipped to the UK.

Cheers mate,
Wilkey

10 watts is ok for really good brightness. Streamlight's UltraStinger and SL20X both use 10 watt 6 volt bulbs, actually 6.3 volts, I believe. I think that your flashlight batteries are not supplying enough amps to your bulb. The bulb you are using probably is rated at about 1.75 amps, and would need five 1.2 volt rechargeable batteries to run efficiently. Try 5 NiMH C's in your Maglite, 4D right? Or, try 5 C alkalines. (Did not see Wilkey's post.)

Bill

Bill,

You and I were thinking the same thing about the current choking the bulb. If he can go to rechargeables or lithiums, a lot of options open up.

Wilkey

I'm using 5 lithium 123s with a 12v 10w bi-pin halogen in a carley PR base, in an otherwise stock 3C M@glite. It works fine, with a loaded voltage of about 13.8v. A 6v bulb would require twice the amps at 10w, and therefore would drop the voltage more than twice (on a percent basis) as much even with lithiums. So, at 12v, I've got a little over 2 volts drop. You would have 4 volts or less from just about any 6 volt battery arrangement.

You could try 4 of the lithium AAs (what torch are you using? Can you get 5 series AAs in there?) or perhaps parallel some lithium 123s. 3 lithium 123s would give you a load voltage around 7v, which would work with a 4 cell bulb or your 10w. The lithium AAs are the best bet for a more or less conventional setup, but they may drop too much voltage @ 1.67amps. HTH, -RussH

Thanks for the responses.

I have a 4C mag.

I've currently got the xenon bulb installed and the halogen as a backup/spare.

i might get some materials and mod the torch to take 3 123's. but a 4C mag is fairly long for 3 123's. so, what if i have 3 x 123's in there, then another 3 x123 in parrallel? it's gonna need some sort of 'pack' wired in this configuration, but all in line to fit inside. anyone done anything like this?

A 4C will hold 6+ 123 cells. I made a parallel/serial battery holder for 123s as illustrated in this thread.

Wilkey

Hey Ginsing.

Yeah, that's exactly the sort of thing i had in mind.
sounds good. thanks for that

i'm gonna start designing my own batt pack.
let you know how it goes /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

i use 10w solarc hid ballast/bulbs for my torches =)

Cool, Impy. I look forward to hearing of your results.

Wilkey