Amazing what a little reflector will do!

Recently I picked up a KL1-SG, and as you guys probably know these are the early generation KL1s with the guaranteed bad tint thanks to the Luxeon LDs. I've worked with LDs before and I'm not impressed.

So I had to do something about it...

I've been familiar with the Luxeon and reflector swap procedure for the KL1 for a while and basically I knew, even before I purchased the KL1 that eventually it might come down to this. My work with the MicroMagMadMax+ lights assured me that the NX05 and SO17XAs are one-for-one field replaceable, and that was my intention.

When I fired the KL1 up for the first time I was greeted by the horrible green corona surrounding what would otherwise be a nice HID-ish tint, although a bit more blue than Y0. Maybe YA? Not sure. Will leave out Craig's wonderful description of tints here /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

So now I know how lucky I was to bag a HD 3rd-gen KL1 as my first Surefire LED and indeed my first Luxeon LED. Before I'd even become a CPF member I was reading about the horrible tints and all that on CPF, and wondering whether I should be buying a KL1. My HD is a KL1-HA, though. That one.. perhaps I'll tackle that modification another time in the near future. We're only looking at the SG today.

I got lucky again when I tried working on the KL1-SG. I sat the bezel for five minutes in front of my super-incan, the Roar of the Pelican, in order to get it piping hot to loosen the epoxy. In the absence of a heat gun.. well, with my USL on the way, who needs a heat gun? I have a light that can double as a flamethrower at my disposal!

And the bezel opened as if by magic when I grabbed it with a towel and did some twisting. The interior of the KL1 is a very simple layout. The Pyrex in front of that KL1 is a two millmeter thick SLAB of glass, man.. I LOVE my Pyrex and lots of it /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinser2.gif

The surprising thing was when I lit it up (bare LED only), there was absolutely no hint of the corona. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/huh.gif the thing came out HID blue all over. So basically it's all the optic's fault! Immediately, I popped an SO17XA reflector into it, and it came out great, despite it being a LD. There are a couple of very faint rings in the beam, but all of a sudden, the beam looks truly beautiful instead of the puke green of the optic. It's brighter, too!


Here, I must apologize to Chop, I was toying with the idea of sending the KL1 down to you for its Extreme Makeover, but the SO17XA has done such a great job of transforming its beam from awful to fantastic, that I may not even need to do an emitter swap.. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif

Yes reflectors tend to mix up the light and then focus it so you get even color and any rings or flaws in the die get smoothed out even with non-orange peel reflectors.

An optic takes the direct image of the die and projects it forward to some extent. If you powered up the led and looked at it with not much current going to it you'd see the corona around it still.

Hey Kevin,

Boy......you are so right!!! The beam on my KL1 is Sooooooo much better now that it has a the 17mm reflector in it. I also was thinking for sometime about putting one in, and being the foolish and impatient person I am did it myself...almost broke it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif I didn't heat it up enough so when I tried to unscrew it.....well look at my avatar, you see the KL1 board....see NO wires /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif ...not good. Happy to say I got it all back together....but will never open it up for others to see. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/hahaha.gif

Other than that I really like how much of an improvement the reflector is over the optics and even the tint is better.......but I do have to say to anyone thinking about changing out the optics.......send it to CHOP /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Aloha,
Bill