Originally Posted by
dminor
It might be on someone's silly list but it's not on the master Kill this Phrase Dead Today list by any means. First, because 66 said it; and secondly, because the phrase it just . . . well . . . the schizz.
Back on topic. Ed, I should probably just PM you about this but I'll hang my ignorance out there for all to snicker at:
Ran across this:
http://www.focalprice.com/LFD91S/CRE...le_Silver.html
Cree 1,300 lumen emiter-and-reflector and was wondering if I could drop something like these into my tired little CygoLite housing and amp things up a bit - - or am I going to run into heat-disappation problems? And is the claimed lm realistic? Seems like a lot of power for the price.
SST-50's and SST-90's aren't very efficient. If you run them bright enough to do any good, they're gonna gen some heat. A P60 drop in module like that needs to have good contact from the body to the walls of an aluminum host to move the heat. You could "under amp" it and make it run cooler, but it would be dimmer. SSTs are pretty old school.
I'd look more into a Cree XM-L if you're going to go with a drop in type setup. Put some thermal paste (thin) around it, smash some aluminum foil in to take up space. Spread more thermal paste on the OS of the foil where it contacts the aluminum host. El34 over at the other place has a website where he will "somewhat" tell you how to mod SSC p7 LED's into an old Marwi housing. He has hundreds of old Marwi housings and parts he's trying to sell.
His new venture is modding the Cree XM-L into them. It's a little more efficient and usable beam patter than the older P7.
Rule of thumb: Don't over amp an LED.You need a driver to regulate the amperage to the emitter from the battery.
Don't go over 3amps on the XM-L. If you're running a drop in, I'd probably go 1.5-2 to keep the heat down. Heat will destroy the LED.
My first "mod" was a single P7 pushed at a true 2.8amps. Most of these little torches from DX and Kaidomain are really only running half that b/c of cheap electronics. You can get some riding done with a single P7 properly built. I still own that one. Klunky, but still dear to my heart.
The one I'm working on right now is probably going to be either a triple XP-G setup or a high efficiency triple XP-E setup. The "E" will give me a longer throw with a tighter hot spot. The "G" will be floodier. I'm leaning toward throw for this one.
I actually just got a P60 Drop-In recently with an XM-L for my EDC flashlight body. I'm really liking it. It's amazing for such a tiny emitter. It's so freakin' efficient too for the amount of light it's putting out.