FYI:
talked w/Milky again about having him build a second light (sorta' like the HoopleHead - see an earlier Post in this Thread) and have some more precise info on how some aspects of his h/w and s/w works.
0. Milky can hand pick a Cree or SSC for a light. he's hand pickin' a Cree R2 for the second light that he's buildin' for me. since this one will be optimized for 1xCR123A at a relatively LOW MAX o.p. level (~46lm minimum), a R2 makes sense to try to get the most light out at the reduced drive current.
1. more than four levels per MODE (viz. NORMAL or MISER) can be custom programmed. i think five levels in each MODE will work best for my purposes. he could do more levels per MODE if that is what someone wanted. i've been kicking around 6 lvls per MODE, but will probably go w/just 5.
2. the lowest level that can be output is 1/255th of the programmed MAX level. so, for example, if 231 lm is the MAX on a particular Creemator, then ~1 lm (more precisely, ~0.905lm if my math is correct) is the lowest level available in NORMAL ***AND*** MISER mode. if 46lm is the MAX o.p. level in NORMAL mode, then ~0.18 lm is the lowest level that can be o.p. in either NORMAL or MISER mode.
3. each MISER mode lvl. is ~18% of its corresponding NORMAL mode lvl, i.e. MAX MISER is 18% of MAX normal, subject, of course to point #2 immediately above, i.e. the lowest level in either mode can't be less than 1/255th the level of the NORMAL Mode MAX level. sounds like the Acorn driver used in the h/w might be only have an 8-bit DAC since 2^8 = 256 (i.e. 0 to 255 or 256 discrete levels).
4. for a custom lower MAX o.p. 1xCR123A optimized light, best around ~46lm (but may be higher), unregulated operation yields longer burntimes and a VERY slowly decaying light o.p. which would appear to the eye/brain as if it were regulated since it drops off so slowly (8-10 hr @ 46lm on 1xCR123A). mine will have at least 46lm on a fresh cell on MAX in normal mode for an 8-10h burntime. other levels that i'm considering are 30, 15, 5, and 1 to round out the NORMAL Mode (of course, if i wanted six modes, 'a la SF U2, that would be doable), and 8, 5, 3, 1, and 0.2 (all given in round numbers) for the MISER Mode. so, Miser Mode can be used for task/proximity lighting in camp, and Normal Mode for long burntime when on the move on the trail at night. i wanted to insist on regulated operation even for this low max o.p. level, but Milky wisely dissuaded me though he would do whatever i wanted even though it would not yield the best results given my requirements. i'm sure that i will be glad that i listened to him and took his advice. who's the expert on these matters anyways?!!! least that's the way i looked at it and so, had to defer to his wisdom, insight, and expertise in this area.
5. any and/or all gestures can be disabled, e.g. the SMART MAX gesture will be gone in mine - it just doesn't fit how i often find myself using the light, and so, too often intrudes and gets in the way - meaning, i can't TAP-TAP-Click to go from a memorized HI level to LO, for example. the SMART MAX gesture gets in the way and the light ends up in MAX instead of LO after ~0.5sec in LO mode.
6. custom UI's can be programmed, e.g. "Theater UI", going from LO to HI w/ or w/o MEMORY of the last level. i'm going for no memory so that it will always turn on the lowest. Theater UI is a name Milky gave it as i described to him how i'd like the light levels to be sequenced and why that is better for me when in the woods. clever name he came up w/wouldn't y'all say?!
7. possibly three UI's could be programmed or Theater UI substitued for the Tactical UI or General UI. so, for example, my next light will have Theater UI going fr/LO to HI always w/no memory (IMO, better for use on the trail to preserve one's acquired dark adaptation), and a pseudo-Tactical UI w/MEMORY, or, if you prefer, a Gen UI w/memory but going from HIGH to LO. i only need two UI's.
8. the number of clicks to switch b/t UI's and/or Modes can be changed to make it easier or more difficult to change UI's or Modes (not sure of the upper and lower limits though). i'm going to greatly reduce the # of clicks to, if possible 12 and 15 for the two toggles.
hope this info proves useful to someone considering a Creemator from Milky.
he did GREAT WORK on the first Creemator he built for me, and is worthy of a second order. i'd encourage anyone considering a custom light to give Milky a shot at meeting your most exacting requirements.
I'll pick up a couple of 17670's then, and keep my eye out for a single 123 body (presumeably E1B).
