Dual stage LI/L2 tail cap...how does it work?

How does the dual stage SF L1/L2 tail cap work?

Any one have any schematics? Is it hard to build?

The L1 works by having two sets of contacts. The first contact has a 10 ohm resistor connected to it. The second has no resistor.

When you tighten the cap, the first contact makes a connection, dropping the voltage enough that the electronics fall out of regulation. It acts like th ebattery is almost dead.

Tighten the cap further and the second contact makes a connnection too, effectivly bypassing the resistor. The full battery voltage is now available to drive th electronics.

Daniel

Can you replace the resistor with say 5 ohm for a brighter low beam?

Dave,

There are two parts to this question.

1) Can the resistor be replaced
2) Can different values be used.

I think that Mc Gizmo's opened the tail cap and seen the resistor. That said, it should be replaceable.

You can check appropriate values simply by removing the tailcap, then touch one lead of a resistor to the end of the battery tube and the other to the battery.


Daniel

Are the values the same in the A2 and L2 tailcaps? I would hope so, since there's no obvious way to tell them apart.

Hi guys,

The resistors can be replaced. All of the switches (L1, L2 & A2) have a 10 ohm 1/8 or 1/10 watt resistor. These are the "typical" sausage tube resistors (do I know the proper electronic terms or what? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif ). I suggest that prior to taking the switch apart to replace the resistor that you test some resistors directly in the battery tube and see and measure what you get.

I'll type the dismantle notes once and if they get lost in ground hogs day, so be it.

I have been 100% successful in dismantle when I "cook" the tail cap at 175F. I then use some round nose pliers to remove the boot jam nut. I then pull the boot out. I then stick the round nose pliers under the plastic button and lift ( pry straight up) freeing it from the switch "stem". Once the button is removed, the switch will drop out of the tail cap. I then take a small flat blade screwdrive and work it around the two halves of the switch housing, lifting them apart. There are three male pins moulded into the bottom half of the housing that snap into mating sockets of the top half. Once the halves are seperated, you will see the resistor suspended above the PCB. Replace and then snap the parts back together in the reverse order for assembly. In all of the mods I did, I used two resistors in parallel and you need to be clever about placement to be sure that they don't interfer with the halves going back together.

I guess there is a third part to the question.
Is the mod worth it?
I've hears the L1 dim beam is dimmer than an Arc AAA, which seems to dim to me. I would want something along the lines of Opalec brightness.

Is two stage lighting worth it? I say most definitely. Now can a particular converter be resistored down to a lower level that is acceptable to the user? That is another question. From my own experience dropping bad boy converters out of regulation, I am surprised that the 10 ohms drops the L1 as low as it does! But then again, I haven't been working with BadBoys that were set at 390 mA on high. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif It may well be that putting a 5 ohm resistor in the L1's cap will give a higher and mor satisfactory level on low in which case, I believe the simple mod is worth the effort.

Not only is multi-stage lighting worth it, I'm finding it to be a requirement in my future purchases. It just adds so much versatility to the product.

Just got in my L1-Pr-T 917. Having the two stage switch makes a world of difference. Increases usibility of the light, otherwise too bright to be useful closeup.

I found my L1 was very dim in the low position. It wasn't that great on high either. I swapped out the LED for a SWOK and it's much, much brighter in both modes.

Matter of fact, I get about the same low level light with an LSHP with 10 ohms, my VIP on low, a madmax with 11 ohms with a SWOK luxIII and my L1 SWOK. The L1 has otherwise stock switch and electronics.

Daniel