Some guidence needed with building for first time

Corbz

Newly Enlightened
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Aug 12, 2017
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3
Hi,

I would like/need some guidence on a first time build. I am a knife maker and would like to start making a few flashlights.

Ive got a list of what i think i need and where to get the stuff but im clueless on what works with what.... like which led goes whith which drivers etc.

My list so far is:

Switch
Driver
Emitter
Reflector/optic
Lens
O-rings
28mm bar of Zirconium

I want it to run on a single 18650 be pretty bright and have a few different modes of brightness and parts to all fit within the 28mm diameter bar.

So is it easily explainable which parts are compatible with each other?

Thanks
Andy
 

archimedes

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Hi,

I would like/need some guidence on a first time build. I am a knife maker and would like to start making a few flashlights.

I am not a maker / modder, but since you haven't gotten any responses yet, here's a bump (and a few of my thoughts) ....

Ive got a list of what i think i need and where to get the stuff but im clueless on what works with what.... like which led goes with which drivers etc.

My list so far is:

Switch
Driver
Emitter
Reflector/optic
Lens
O-rings
28mm bar of Zirconium

I want it to run on a single 18650 be pretty bright and have a few different modes of brightness and parts to all fit within the 28mm diameter bar.

So is it easily explainable which parts are compatible with each other?
....

This is kind of a big ask, in my opinion.

Perhaps a bit of hyperbole, but your request strikes me as somewhat akin to saying "ok, I've got lumber, nails, shingles, wire, pipes, and drywall ... so how do I go about assembling a house ? "

Are you asking about machining a host ?

Selecting a driver ?

Choosing an emitter ?

Soldering the electronics ?

Optimizing the beam ?

Etc, etc, etc ?

Each of the topics above have generated many, many individual threads here.

Here is an extremely detailed and well documented "Build Log" thread ...

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?373167-Build-Log-The-1-5V-Project

I'd suggest reading through a few threads of that sort first, then maybe trying to assemble a few simple flashlights from inexpensive stock components and pre-built hosts, like this ...

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...9-Convoy-S2-Build-How-To-(First-time-builder)

... before jumping into attempts at a full custom build.

I trust that you will find this forum to be very friendly and helpful, but likely better responsive to more focused and specific questions ;)

Good luck, and cheers !

:welcome:
 

chewhanwei

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May 23, 2017
Messages
2
Just made a working light for the first build. Then you will have idea what you want for the 2nd build.
 

DrafterDan

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Jul 28, 2013
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Location
Phoenix, AZ
I can appreciate that you are a knifemaker (interested in photos!) that has some understanding of metalwork. Generally speaking, a battery tube that holds an 18650 is 32mm OD. You'd need roughly one mm battery clearance, so that's at 19mm ID as the minimum. 4.5mm tube thickness is certainly workable, but it does not leave much room for fun things like grooves/ knurling/ whatnot.

May we assume you have a lathe and are comfortable working with it? Can consistently get quality threading, both internal and external? Trying to get a feel for your experience level, because in my eyes, there's not much crossover on techniques in making torches and bladework.
 

Corbz

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Joined
Aug 12, 2017
Messages
3
Hey sorry im late getting back....

Yeah i have a lathe and im comfortable using it. Ive been doing some reading on different parts and kinda know what to get now... my main concern was the drivers and emitters.

I posted this about half hour after looking into what to get and it all seemed very confusing to start with so i thought id just pop the question to get some knowledge. Once i get all the parts ill have no problem building the body for it all :)

@archimedes ill have a look through those links in a day or two. Thanks

@drafterdan ill see if i can post a image for you... if not, you can google Corbz knives and you will see my Instagram/YouTube etc.... i only make folders :)
 

Corbz

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Joined
Aug 12, 2017
Messages
3
Here you go... my latest model 'Swarm'

1800-77a326c6-large.jpg

1801-080c2382-large.jpg

1802-8c285eb1-large.jpg
 

Ken_McE

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jun 16, 2003
Messages
1,687
>my main concern was the drivers and emitters.

So you are thinking LED? What do you want it to be good at?

Oh, magnificent knife.
 

DrafterDan

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Jul 28, 2013
Messages
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Phoenix, AZ
Stinkin' beautiful knife, even though I dislike liner-locks (puts your finger in the blade path to close). Now I'm really interested to see what you come up with!

If you just want some starting point, how about this: get an XML-hi, about 5,000 kelvin color temperature. Get a driver like the MTN-17ddm, put guppydrv or Bistro (my fav) on it so you can do programming (you'll thank us later), and control it with a McClicky. That, fed by a nice battery will produce some very nice beams. The lens can be an optic/ TIR or a reflector, and that depends on what you want the beam profile to be.

~D
 

HarryN

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Jan 22, 2004
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Pleasanton (Bay Area), CA, USA
This might sound overly simplistic, but when I started, I found it very helpful to just build up parts on a small piece of plywood to see how things worked together. This was a lot easier than cramming them all into a tiny package.

The first LED + heat spreader I used was just a Luxeon I silver epoxied to a bolt as the heat spreader.

A 5 ohm resistor can be a first trial driver / current control when combined with a CR123 battery and many 1 - 5 watt LEDs.

It is easy to get fancier after that point.

Nice craftsmanship BTW - far better than I have ever achieved.
 
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staticx57

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Dec 2, 2011
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Location
NJ
Here is what I would do if I were you. Hop over to Mountain Electronics and buy a premade host such as a convoy S2+. Add to your order a 16mm MCPCB with an XPL Hi and a 17mm MTN-DDm driver to it. While it may seem redundant to build this as you are trying to machine your own it would help to see how all of this could piece together when you machine your own parts. The rest of what you need comes with the host on the same site. You can easily reuse everything in that host aside from the shell in your own machined build.
 
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DrafterDan

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Jul 28, 2013
Messages
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Location
Phoenix, AZ
I just purchased my first Convoy S2+ from Mtn Elec, showed up today.
I've done tons of mods, even built several torches from scratch. Still, it's fun to buy a kit sometimes.
I'm upgrading it with some interesting internals, hope to make up a Convoy S2 build post, because the last one from a couple years ago was stricken by the evil Photobucket (poop-bucket) 3rd party hosting scam of 2017
 
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