Homemade 24" scratch built & designed reflector

[LightSward]

I've just purchased a 400 watt metal halide lamp and ballast kit. I'll be hooking it up and installing it into the 24" reflector, replacing the successful 100 watt HID lamp. I'll do this the next couple days! I'm excited to see the results! The issue is the arc area of the 400 watt HID is twice the size as the 100 watt HID arc. The 400 watt arc size is about twice the size of the carbon arc on the big 60 inch searchlights. I don't expect as focused a beam, but it should still be a respectable two mile beam. I'll let everyone know with in the week.

 

[LightSward]

Re: 24 inch homemade reflector

400 watt HID works very well.

 

[LuxLuthor]

Hey that is some really cool work. Almost no one ever thinks about trying to make their own reflector, especially not the way you went about it. As far as I can tell in your shots, there is no significant artifact issues which seems almost impossible, given the visible strips. Can you verify that result on a practical basis, or is the camera just not capturing the artifacts?

Again, big kudos for making something like this from scratch! It is what is the best about modding, and why lovecpf

 

[DM51]

I've merged your 2 threads about this and deleted the 2nd version of your opening post. As pointed out by others, cross-posting is not allowed.

Having got that advisory note out of the way - this is superb! A fascinating project, and it looks as if it works very well indeed.

You should get some excellent throw from such a big reflector - it would be very interesting to see it lighting up some distant targets, at 500 yards or more, compared to other big lights.

I completely agree with LuxLuthor - it's ideas like this that make CPF the great place it is!

 

[LightSward]

Hey that is some really cool work. Almost no one ever thinks about trying to make their own reflector, especially not the way you went about it. As far as I can tell in your shots, there is no significant artifact issues which seems almost impossible, given the visible strips. Can you verify that result on a practical basis, or is the camera just not capturing the artifacts?

Again, big kudos for making something like this from scratch! It is what is the best about modding, and why lovecpf

It was fun and I have several more, homemade reflectors, I'm working on. The artifacts actually came out to a minimum, I'm just as surprised. I really did not think the beam would be as nice as it is. :twothumbs

I am currently changing out the 100 watt HID for a 400 watt HID with a slightly larger arc area. Hopefully the beam will be somewhat as focused as it was with the 100 watt HID.

 

[LightSward]

I've merged your 2 threads about this and deleted the 2nd version of your opening post. As pointed out by others, cross-posting is not allowed.

Having got that advisory note out of the way - this is superb! A fascinating project, and it looks as if it works very well indeed.

You should get some excellent throw from such a big reflector - it would be very interesting to see it lighting up some distant targets, at 500 yards or more, compared to other big lights.

I completely agree with LuxLuthor - it's ideas like this that make CPF the great place it is!

Thank You for taking care of the threads. :thumbsup:

I will get the reflector out where I can light a row of trees that are about 500-600 yards away from my home. With all the Spring leaves coming out now, on the trees around my home, I will have to get a little creative. for portability; the 100 watt HID can work off the 12 volt system of my car or a "Cyclops" battery, but the 400 watt HID is just a tad too much for standard power converters, etc. Budget, right now, tends to drive my projects, more than I like.

My fantasy goal is to make the "LightSward" 'green friendly' such as with solar power to charge some large batteries, and/or a bicycle powered large generator to supplement the charge. I'll have to look into how to do this.lovecpf

 

[roadie]

u are the first to make yr own reflector this BIG !!!!

well done!

i wish i had thought of trying it ... :|

lovecpf

btw, the tape is rated to withstand yr new 400w hid?

 

[LightSward]

u are the first to make yr own reflector this BIG !!!!

well done!

i wish i had thought of trying it ... :|

lovecpf

btw, the tape is rated to withstand yr new 400w hid?

:naughty:I actually designed and built the 24 inch reflector due to budget concerns...I have little money right now...didn't cost very much in materials...just time.

I am about to test drive the 400 watt HID and may need a small cooling fan just for the reflector material, (the reflector material is CHROME BRITE METALLIC TAPE by: TRIMBRITE 3" x 60" cut 14 inches length then cut into two wedges: 1/2" one end 2-1/2" the other. Takes three or so rolls for the reflector). I Already have a special location to place the fan and ducting, so the fan will not blow air directly on bulb, just onto the adjacent reflector area. ....Here goes....

 

[LuxLuthor]

Again, this is one of the coolest projects I have seen here in a long time!

 

[LightSward]

Awesome! :thumbsup: The LightSward looks like a bright pro searchlight, (of course not as bright and slender as a 60 inch carbon arc searchlight but...), it has a nice bright beam...though a slightly thicker beam because of the 1-1/4" arc length of the 400 watt (Lowe's 35,000 lumen Sylvania $25.oo bulb), compared to thinner beam from the 1/2" arc length of the 100 watt bulb, (Home Depot 9,000 lumen Lithonia $28.00 bulb)

The 400 watt HID upgrade can be seen nearly two miles away. Has a nice attention getting beam. :twothumbs (Shines a nice bright, yet small spot on a tree 450 feet away.) Appears about three or four times brighter than the 100 watt HID, and about ten times brighter than the 35 watt HID Cyclops I converted last month.

If I could afford a bulb with a smaller arc length, the beam would be thinner and appear brighter. Still I am stoked! :laughing: I might make the LightSward easily switchable from 100 watt mode to 400 watt mode, with hardware that changes easily depending on power availability, etc. (by the way, the 400 watt ballast kit was $60.oo at "Portland Lighting", and the 100 watt light with ballast was $79.oo including bulb...replacement bulb is $28.oo).

I took some decent photos...I'll put them up later today.:welcome:

 

[LuxLuthor]

How hot is the reflector getting? It looks like a ceramic pottery type thing that might hold onto a lot of heat.

 

[LightSward]

How hot is the reflector getting? It looks like a ceramic pottery type thing that might hold onto a lot of heat.

The reflector actually does quite well. Barely warms up. I sometimes have a small fan mounted on the back of the reflector blow air over a special ducting system which blows air onto the reflector but barely blows on the bulb itself, if the outdoor temperature is warm out. Surprisingly the entire lower portion of the 400 watt bulb stays cool to the touch for the whole session, the upper portion just gets a little hot, like a car hood on a sunny day. The reflector bounces most of the in-fared heat out in the beam itself, I like standing in the beam on a cool night, for warmth. Sometimes the reflector portion closest to the bulb and directly above, gets a little warm, maybe a hundred degrees, when the fan is turned off.

Any excess heat has to go through: the Chrome tape reflector, next a thin layer of dry wall joint compound then a layer of fiberglass, more dry wall joint compound next 2 inches of rigid foam insulation (the frame for the whole reflector), and another layer of dry wall joint compound and of course a protective paint layer on each layer of dry wall joint compound.

I need to slightly strengthen the light bulb support system to keep the bulb from vibrating and wiggling around, (I recently added an electrically insulated 'soft' bulb top support system. This seems to work well. Though not too surprisingly, the focus of this big bulb is not too precise or critical; unlike the 100 watt small arc bulb which is very precise.

I should be putting some photos up here in a few moments.

Original 100 watt beam is thinner
because of smaller arc size.

Compare 100 watt HID original 24 inch LightSward upper photo to 400 watt lower photo. The 35 watt Cyclops beam to viewer's right in both photos for rough comparison.

400 watt beam on our left, 35 watt beam to viewer's right

New 400 watt beam is thicker because of the larger arc.




On our right, bright 400 watt 24 inch LightSward on left 35 watt 7 inch Cyclops

 

[LightSward]

:twothumbsWell, the test was successful last night. I can see the beam two miles away. Here are some photos. (I still need a better night camera so I can show the beam from two miles away over Beaverton) I need a better vantage point to aim the light at some distant object 300-900 yards (meters) away. Spring has provided many leaves to obstruct views that were available just weeks ago. My budget is limiting my activities. I will do this as soon as I can.



Close up of searchlight during 400 watt HID warm-up and initial focus tests


400 watt beam on our left, 35 watt beam to viewer's right



View of 400 watt beam from neighbors driveway




Close up of reflector during 400 watt HID warm-up

Another view of start-up



On our right 400 watt HID 24 inch LightSward searchlight and on our left is the 35 watt HID Cyclops



400 watt searchlight as Viewed from a block away



400 watt searchlight as seen 1/2 mile away, (I need a better camera)




400 watt beam on tree 100 foot distance (very bright)


400 watt beam on tree 200 foot distance (still very bright...tree in foreground overexposes camera)
(Recent spring leaves have limited my distant vantage points)

A slightly better photo of 400 watt searchlight beam on our left, 35 watt beam to viewer's right compare with 100 watt beam (it is thinner because of the smaller arc size)

On left is the bluer Cyclops beam and the Bright White 400 watt HID LightSward 24 inch searchlight beam to our right



Beam ready to dazzle



400 watt 24 inch searchlight beam to our left and 35 watt Cyclops to our right. Beams are pointed away from camera towards Portland night sky.


Close up of 400 watt HID Searchlight support system



Bulb cooling down

 

[LuxLuthor]

Holy Moly!

(I reserve that expression for the rarest of times when I am truly impressed....more like astounded)

 

[LightSward]

Holy Moly!

(I reserve that expression for the rarest of times when I am truly impressed....more like astounded)

I fine tuned the focus and took a few more photos



400 Watt LightSward searchlight dances with the 35 watt Cyclops beam




Comparison 35 watt left to 400 watt searchlight our right.
Garage door is over a hundred feet from lights.


Tree is lit with the 400 watt searchlight at over 400 foot distance


400 watt beam dominates 35 watt Cyclops in evening sky


Distant tree is over 400 feet away, spot is smaller than it appears.


More to photos to follow...

 

[DM51]

This is fantastic stuff - it really lifts the spirits to see such great inventiveness, and what a tremendous result!

I think few will disagree that this project now belongs in select company among The BIG Lights, so I have added it in there.

 

[roadie]

..........

:bow::bow::bow::bow::bow::bow::bow:

 

[BlueBeam22]

LightSward, your 24'' HID light is spectacular, and one of the most powerful home made lights I have ever seen on CPF. Great work, and thank you for sharing all of the pictures!

 

[LightSward]

I am honored! This project was a lot of fun, and very educational.

I am refining the unit for production. I am building a smooth rotating system for possible promotional work, using bike parts.

The 400 watt unit still temp. on cardboard box, (doesn't weigh much, about 21 pounds with bulb and socket), with 35 watt Cyclops. I am building a better support system this week.

400 watt Ballast

 

[Kestrel]

Comparison 35 watt left to 400 watt searchlight our right.
Garage door is over a hundred feet from lights.

Wow, I love that spot size. Most garage door pics around here are from 25 feet or so, so reading your text below the photo made me do a double-take.:huh: