I need your help CPF! Love to get your feedback on my Titanium Carbon Fiber Light

espeery

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Jan 20, 2015
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Hi CPF! I have been feverishly working on designing an LED flashlight over the past year. I am getting ready to launch the light on Kickstarter and would love your feedback. I look to you guys as the experts on flashlights and I know if you like it others will too. This is in no way a solicitation, just looking for your unbiased opinion. Thanks for looking.

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Here are some of the specs:

Cree XP-L high output LED
50 l, 500l and 1,000 lumens
Pyrex Lens
Double O-rings
Aluminum Core
Titanium End Caps
Carbon fiber handle
18650 or 2 CR123A
Recoil and Shock damper springs
Titanium endcap button
1.18" OD X 5.25" Long
 
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Chaitanya

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Those selected output levels are good, I personally use the output levels from 50-100 lumen's which can do a runtime of 20+hrs. I would like to see one more output level added in between 50 and 500 with a runtime of around 8hrs that would be useful for a lot of people.
 

espeery

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Price is a great question, that is one area I am trying to better understand and would love to hear what you would pay for something like this. I will be including a rubber mount, a microfiber case, a holster, extra o-rings and lens etc. in the kit.
 

swan

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What type of ui is it, do you have to go thru all modes, can u access high or low in one press
Does it have a cc driver or pwm
How did you measure lumens and runtime
Is it waterproof and to what standard?

It looks nice but to give a reflection on price, more in depth info or a test from a trusted reviewer would be required.
 

JoeSW

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Nice lights!

Looking at the materials I would expect a price in excess of $250.

Does it have an anti-roll feature? It looks like it could just roll off a table.
 

snowlover91

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The mode spacing might should be 1 lumen moonlight, 50 medium, 150 medium/high, 500 high and 1,000 turbo. What does the UI look like for the light and is it current controlled or PWM?
 

CelticCross74

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need to see more pictures. XP-L V5? Thatd be awesome the V5 is a true 1000+ lumen white tint emitter I like a lot. IPX8? Pyrex lens optical quality? No AR coat? Love the carbon fiber thats pretty sweet and understand pretty pricey. Needs a good sheath. With the materials and emitter choice you have listed plus the PD35 ish size of the light, No AR pyrex lens. No hard integral sphere testing numbers to look at. Good on the springs at both ends of the tube. I cannot tell from your pics if the light has a tail switch? Dont see a side mounted mode switch is it a head twist through the modes deal or is all the control in the tail switch which I am imagining is there. The tail switch better be a good one with no or very little squish. Good durable material switch is a must. It seems like youre trying to make a $100 custom PD35 category light. Personally I wont buy a light made with such high end materials that doesnt have a high quality optical grade double AR coated lens be it borofloat, pyrex, polycarbonate etc.

Lets see some pics straight down head to the hopefully centered XP-L. No RCR123's? 6 volt max while your competition can handle 2x3.7 volt sources? What about regulation? Timed, direct drive? Thermal? Aluminum reflector? It better be IPX8 capable and have no less than 10k throw. Come back with MANY more pictures. Beam shots critical. Get it to someone with an integrating sphere and actually have it tested and get hard numbers to show us.

OP I would say you are at least off to a very good start. Now complete the package. Whoa just noticed "titanium end cap button". Hope its brushed titanium that doesnt easily show scratches etc. Thrunites sub $100 lights are the best values on the market. Hell even their $50 range performs as well or better than the competition AND they come with NICE sheaths. Id find out where TN sources their sheaths. Good luck looking forward to more
 

nbp

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Good start, Looking forward to more details also. Keep in mind you will NEVER please everyone here, no matter how hard you try, so don't even attempt it. Have a clear vision of the light you want to make and then take pointers from the people who buy that type of light. If you say you're building an 18650 clicky light you will get some clowns who say they only buy AAA twisty lights so thats what you should make and THEN they'll buy it. Well they're not your target demographic, and won't be buying anyways so don't get too wound up over their criticisms. That's not the light you want to make. There are always compromises, of course, but a well thought out design and high quality components will always sell.
 

derfyled

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The design seems very nice and original. However, the specs are interesting but not stellar for a pricey (I assume...) light.

What I would like to see:
- a clip
- a milled slot to insert tritium
- a moonlight mode (0.5 - 1 lumen)
- option for LED ( I prefer high CRI or neutral tint over brightness)
- no PWM
 

espeery

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Keep the comments/questions coming, this is great feedback. I will be posting pictures of of all the components this weekend. Here is a little more info:

- CREE LED XP-L High Intensity: http://www.cree.com/LED-Components-and-Modules/Products/XLamp/Discrete-Directional/XLamp-XPL-HI

- LED Driver is Current Controlled

- I am deciding between AR coated Pyrex or AR coated PC, preference?

- I will be doing IPX testing soon, but I am shooting for IPX8. Lubricated double nitrile o-rings throughout.

- Tail switch with 5 modes: three lumen settings, SOS and Strobe (Sounds like you all like a very small lumen mode such as 1-10 lumens or so). Half steps walk quickly through modes.

- Rear ring will have a small feature for a wrist strap, or intermediate ring for a carabiner. This will also act as an anti-roll ring

- Aluminum reflector

- Copper heat sink coupled with thermal paste

Carbon tube removed allows for 1" OD, gun mountable. I will post pics soon of this feature.

I will have 10 functional prototypes complete this weekend and would like to send one or two out to well respected individuals who can do some thorough testing and provide some feedback. Who would you recommend?
 

espeery

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Also looking at understanding finishes you would prefer.

Do you prefer natural titanium or coated? Right now I am looking at three options:
1) Grade 2 natural titanium
2) Sand blasted natural titanium
3) Chromium tungsten (CrW) coated black using Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) process
4) CrW coated gray (PVD)

For the carbon fiber:
1) natural raw carbon fiber
2) Black painted to match PVD Tungsten Chromium coating
3) Painted and UV clear coated safety orange (pantone #165)
4) Painted white UV clear coated
5) some other color you would like to see

Aluminum - Type III hard anodizing gray or black.

Love to hear your thoughts.
 

peter yetman

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I will have 10 functional prototypes complete this weekend and would like to send one or two out to well respected individuals who can do some thorough testing and provide some feedback. Who would you recommend?

I'll test drive it for you. I can declare it Yetmanproof or not. If it survives week with me and the beagles, it's a goer.
P
 

archimedes

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Keep the comments/questions coming, this is great feedback. I will be posting pictures of of all the components this weekend. Here is a little more info:

- CREE LED XP-L High Intensity: http://www.cree.com/LED-Components-...ur thoughts.[/QUOTE] Good luck, and cheers !
 

Str8stroke

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Man, you are a brave soul. I admire your courage. Open post for comments and suggestions. lol

I will add to some great suggestions you have been given already. Some I will repeat for impact.
My OPINION:

Good start
Get in touch with DrJones for a driver?
Perhaps: Fully potted electronics???
You scare me with the 5 mode part. I don't like strobes or blinkies. Again, my opinion. If I have to cycle through those modes to turn off light, I will be very unhappy (picky) fellow.
Easy to disassemble & repair. For those of us who like swapping leds and drivers as tech changes.
Clip? Need something to keep it from rolling out of reach or into trouble.
If you do a clip, make it like a knife, where it can be carried bezel up or down! No need to worry about lefties here! ha!
Finishes: Natural, and bead blasted or tumbled. I love bead blasted, some think it shows snails too bad. But not me. Also, offer a anodized option to some parts.
Carbon fiber to me should only be natural. High quality only.
Lens, AR Ultra clear
Your ring mount should be sturdy and large enough to fit a quality heavy duty stainless split ring (like those used on fishing lures). Still that may no be enough anti roll? I could be wrong? Often, when I put the light down, I want it to stay where I put it.
Please, please offer Neutral White as a Led option.

Price/Cost/ROI:
What I would pay is unknown at this time. What others would pay is even further unknown.
I would be concerned with my Return On Investment. So that would need to be forecast. Your time involved in getting all parts, assembly, testing, sale list & monitoring, sale transaction completion, updates, packaging, shipping, International shipping, returns, DOA/problem units, after sale replacement parts & servicing. Then dealing with just plain crazies emails & problems. So I guess, what is your time worth to you? What ROI is necessary?

Hope that helps. I wish you the best of luck in this endeavor.
 
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magellan

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I like it as you've set it up so far.

Would love a 18500 version though in addition to the 18650.
 
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