How would you mod a Mag 3C ?

Soon I hope to receive a Black HA3 3C Mag from reefphilic.
I'd like to have it modded to something good, any suggestions?

Re: Modding a Mag 3C

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink2.gif

Modamag may have what you are looking for.
He has 3x3 watt and 4x3 watt kits for it.

B2eze is another offering similar kits.

In fact, I just built a 4x3 3c light with 4 TWOJ stars, and 4 so20's placed on a kit disk from b2eze.
At 3-4 amps from 3 titanium brand nimh c cells, it really /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/buttrock.gif
This is now the light I carry to work.
Might want to drop him a pm too, as he will reportedly soon offer improved copper discs with improved pr adaptors for this same mod.

Mine from b2eze was tedious and time consuming to get together, but was worth it imho since I had a dremel minigrinder.

Re: Modding a Mag 3C

There is also a fellow CPFer down under. He calls himself Hotbeam. He sells a heatsink called "Hotlips" Use it to mount the lux of your choice. A K binned LuxIII hooked up directly to the switch will work good off 3 cells. Or you could mount a Lux V and some sort of driver for even more light. Or as mentioned above Modamag has some pretty neat mods.

How would you mod a Mag 3C?

Thank you 3rd shift (nice new avatar), one of the mods you do yourself would probably make me happy already.
Thank you ZuluWhiskeyFox! I'm hoping to get some clarity on options:


3C or multiple AA's or CR123's?
1 x3W, multiple 3W or 5W, Direct Drive or with a converter?
OR.... incandescent/aluminum reflector, which bulb?

What would be the best way to mod a 3C Mag? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/popcorn.gif

Re: How would you mod a Mag 3C?

The Hotlips heatsink is intended to mount a single lux. A good combo for a 3C would be to use 3 alkalines, Hotlips with a T**K LuxIII, hooked up directly off the switch no converter. The cam on the reflector will need to be cut off. All else remains the same. The lux is a bit overdriven however with the tremendous heatsinking the hotlips offers the lux seems to handle it fine. With this mod the focus feature of the mag reflector remains unchanged.

If it was a 2C you were modding then the scorcher would be to again use a Hotlips with a Lux V. Powered by 3x123 inside a piece of hose or some other type of sleeve. Slide this battery combo into the battery tube. And shield your eyes. This last combo was produced by Mr. Bulk he called a Space Needle. (MR. Bulk used his own heatsink)

hope this helps a bit anyway.

cheers,

Some one else would be better to comment on the multiple lux mods.

Re: How would you mod a Mag 3C?

I have just about finished my "experimental" Mag 3C...

3 x NiMH batteries in series
VIP 1000mA constant current boost convertor board
TWOL Luxeon III emitter
Hotlips-style heat sink (rolled my own...very beefy)

Preliminary testing shows that the VIP convertor can handle the 3 x NiMH input voltage using the high Vf emitter.

I hope to finish modifying the stock Mag reflector yet this weekend.

Regarding your question, here is some basic information:

1) Direct drive (DD) mods use no electronics (except maybe a small amount of resistance to limit current if needed). This means that they are likely the easiest to build.

2) DD mods will have diminishing light output as the batteries drain. This is not necessarily bad, as the light will usually produce "useful" light for a very long time.

3) Mods using some type of regulation circuit typically produce a more constant light output until the batteries are nearly drained. How they react after that depends on the type of convertor circuit. They also are not 100 percent efficient, so some battery power is consumed for regulation in exchange for less run time.

4) Choosing between a DD mod or using regulation is mostly a matter of personal preference. I personally like regulation, but they are a bit more complicated to build than most DD mods. They do, however, allow for more different battery combinations than DD mods. Searching the forums will yield much information on this subject, but all the different possibilities might make your head spin at first (at least it did for me).

5) Alkaline cells don't do very well if you try to drain 1 Amp or more from them. NiMH or NiCAD's can deliver much more current on-demand than alky's, and also have a flatter discharge curve (think "pseudo regulation"). Lithium cells are good for say - 2 Amps an have a very flat discharge curve, but probably cost the most per unit of runtime than anything else. Rechargeable LiON batteries have become very popular these days - but I have no experience with them. Multiple Luxeon mods will definately need a battery configuration that can supply the current needed to to run them.

There are many possibilities regarding how to configure a Mag 3C Luxeon mod - all of the suggestions offered in the previous posts are excellent ones and have been done successfully by many cpf'ers.

Happy modding!

John

Re: How would you mod a Mag 3C?

I just finished a Mag 3D direct drive mod. TVIL Lux III, heatsink from Yaesumofo, AA thermal epoxy to stick the LED to the sink, a little wire, solder, and read the mod walk throughs in the Cookbook, Light Refineries, & anything else you can find. Really, quite easy, once you know how. I took the blue switch module out of the assembly to solder the wires. It slides right back in after the soldering. That works better for me than soldering down a hole. Have a short,smaller,good quality soldering iron, the leads on the LEDs are TINY /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/Christo_pull_hair.gif If you do your own, it will be rewarding. I think I may try another one day. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Re: How would you mod a Mag 3C?

I use mine with 4x123As and a 1274. Works quite well... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Mark

Re: How would you mod a Mag 3C?

Go for a triple Lux 3 DD mod. They're the new black.