# Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery plus internals photo update



## Alex1234 (Nov 26, 2016)

*So I want to this store called TSC farm and family in Bloomsburg Pa and found this spotlight on sale for $60 bucks. I am in shock I bought a huge HID 55w spotlight with lion battery for $60. Here is a bunch of photos *



20161126_180947 by Alex Littig, on Flickr



20161126_175309 by Alex Littig, on Flickr



20161126_175316 by Alex Littig, on Flickr



20161126_180006 by Alex Littig, on Flickr



20161126_175705 by Alex Littig, on Flickr


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## Alex1234 (Nov 26, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*

If I ever wanted to get this modded what cost am i looking at?


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## PolarLi (Nov 26, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*

Seems to be a decent light. Looks to be ok focused too. As for modding cost, depends how far you want to go? 
Btw, how does it compare to the throwers in your sig?


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## Alex1234 (Nov 26, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*



PolarLi said:


> Seems to be a decent light. Looks to be ok focused too. As for modding cost, depends how far you want to go?
> Btw, how does it compare to the throwers in your sig?



focus is great  i have not been able to compare it to them yet. I actually have to update my sig. i dont have most of them anymore but i do have a 600kcd boss1vn to compare it to but just from remembering the throw of that one and then looking at this one outside shining at trees 1500 feet away this one has a much more intense spot. as more lux i have no idea but it has to be pretty good. its an 8 inch reflector. as for modding id say 100w or 150w. once i get home to Delaware i will compare them 

just updated my sig. it got a bit less exciting


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## PolarLi (Nov 26, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*

Yeah, you could definitely put a bigger HID kit in that light. But try to do some research on the various kits out there. A lot of overrating (as in wattage) going on. Another thing, you may need to get a better battery to supply enough amp with a bigger kit.


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## Alex1234 (Nov 26, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*



PolarLi said:


> Yeah, you could definitely put a bigger HID kit in that light. But try to do some research on the various kits out there. A lot of overrating (as in wattage) going on. Another thing, you may need to get a better battery to supply enough amp with a bigger kit.



Unfortunately im not versed in modding in the slightest. I was wondering of there is anyone here that i can send it to for mods.


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## FRITZHID (Nov 27, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*

Modding is simple for that light and there are quite a few options. 
Bigger battery would be foremost, 16v has worked well in my mods. 
Bigger ballast, sure but I wouldn't go above 100w. (Make sure wiring can handle the current!)
If you wanted, you can install a hi/lo bulb which will allow for flood/spot modes.
You're really only limited by space as far as batt goes. Some ballasts can be a lil annoying to cram in. 
I assume it has a metal/glass reflector/lens setup so heat shouldn't be an issue but again, upgrade wiring to handle the wattage.


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## Mr. Tone (Nov 29, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*

What a nice find for the price. As already said, modding this should be relatively easy but fitting a larger ballast in there will likely be the biggest challenge. I modded a Titanium Innovations Mega Illuminator from the stock 35 watt HID/ballast to one that was approx. 100 watts. The 100 watt ballast was much larger than the 35 watt one and it took a little work to make it happen. I didn't make any permanent alterations and was able to return it to the factory state at a later time. Which part of the performance of your light are you wanting to improve the most? Lumens, lux, tint, beam quality, etc.?


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## Alex1234 (Nov 29, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*



Mr. Tone said:


> What a nice find for the price. As already said, modding this should be relatively easy but fitting a larger ballast in there will likely be the biggest challenge. I modded a Titanium Innovations Mega Illuminator from the stock 35 watt HID/ballast to one that was approx. 100 watts. The 100 watt ballast was much larger than the 35 watt one and it took a little work to make it happen. I didn't make any permanent alterations and was able to return it to the factory state at a later time. Which part of the performance of your light are you wanting to improve the most? Lumens, lux, tint, beam quality, etc.?


 I would love to see this make over a million lux. Its around 750,000 cd stock when i compared it to a 600,000cd led light i have. It was a tick brighter at far distances.


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## Alex1234 (Dec 3, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*

Here is an update on the internals. This might help to see how modifiable this is




20161203_181257 by Alex Littig, on Flickr


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## FRITZHID (Dec 3, 2016)

Pix are nice but nothing's confirmed until handling and seeing in person but looks like a fun mod!


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## Mr. Tone (Dec 3, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*



Alex1234 said:


> I would love to see this make over a million lux. Its around 750,000 cd stock when i compared it to a 600,000cd led light i have. It was a tick brighter at far distances.



You could consider overdriving a lamp for maximum candlepower. I know others have done that on this forum. The best combination of lamp wattage and ballast wattage you would have to ask someone else as I don't know much about that. In general, if your lamp is properly focused then using a more powerful HID bulb/ballast will gain you more lumens but probably leave you with similar candlepower, as the intensity of the arc will not be much different. On my Mega Illuminator mod, the lumens increased noticeably but the candlepower was basically unchanged. The hotspot and corona were larger and more useful, however, which was really nice. Again, ask somebody that really knows but I think some HID lights were using 35 watt lamps with 50 or 55 watt ballasts. The original Barnburner with the Phillips lamp was overdriven, if I remember correctly.


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## Alex1234 (Dec 3, 2016)

*Re: Jobsmart 55w Hid Spotlight with 11.1v lion battery for $60 bucks*



Mr. Tone said:


> You could consider overdriving a lamp for maximum candlepower. I know others have done that on this forum. The best combination of lamp wattage and ballast wattage you would have to ask someone else as I don't know much about that. In general, if your lamp is properly focused then using a more powerful HID bulb/ballast will gain you more lumens but probably leave you with similar candlepower, as the intensity of the arc will not be much different. On my Mega Illuminator mod, the lumens increased noticeably but the candlepower was basically unchanged. The hotspot and corona were larger and more useful, however, which was really nice. Again, ask somebody that really knows but I think some HID lights were using 35 watt lamps with 50 or 55 watt ballasts. The original Barnburner with the Phillips lamp was overdriven, if I remember correctly.




So did a crude lux test which could be off 100,000cd for all i know but I was able to adjust the bulb slightly and it improved the focus quite a bit. I tested the lux at 10 meters and got 850,000cd on this and 612,000cd on my Boss1vn. Vinh measured 580,000cd or so so its not far off. this thing white washes my eyes on a white wall up to 25 feet. Iv never had a light that did that. so cool. 

honestly that is a lot of throw but the spot at a 1000 feet is tiny. so there is not a ton of light that makes the long distance so maybe if I got a more powerful hid/ballast the spot at 1000 feet would maybe double in size there for it will look more impressive and seam like it throws more even tho it does not. That route would work aswell. Even stock this thing is impressive so id even go for just a battery upgrade. my run time is 35 min off the 4000 mah lithium battery.


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## Mr. Tone (Dec 4, 2016)

I will try to find the bulb/ballast kit I used for the Mega and link it. It may take a while as it was several years ago.


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## FRITZHID (Dec 4, 2016)

Overdriving HIDs is fairly commonplace. (I.E., 55-75 watts in a 35 watt bulb) Results in a brighter, warmer colored arc but bulb lifetime is sacrificed. Hotspot size won't increase much unless you step up to a longer arc (55, 75, 100 watt bulbs, etc).
Overdriving will also decrease warm-up time.


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## Alex1234 (Dec 4, 2016)

I did a long range test last night and i was quite disappointed. with in 500 feet the hid spotlight has a more intense spot then my boss1vn that does just over 600kcd. but when i was shinning both at a building 2000 feet away the boss1vn had more light on the building and the slightest bit more intense spot. the hid spot was twice as small. Im wondering if the hids focus is not focused to infinity. The quality of the reflector is crap. it has small dents and the reflective coating is not the greatest but honestly can i really complain for $60 bucks. Maybe ill run to the store and test the 3 they still have. I tested two at another store and they were totally different. worse then the one i have.


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## Alex1234 (Dec 4, 2016)

Alex1234 said:


> I did a long range test last night and i was quite disappointed. with in 500 feet the hid spotlight has a more intense spot then my boss1vn that does just over 600kcd. but when i was shinning both at a building 2000 feet away the boss1vn had more light on the building and the slightest bit more intense spot. the hid spot was twice as small. Im wondering if the hids focus is not focused to infinity. The quality of the reflector is crap. it has small dents and the reflective coating is not the greatest but honestly can i really complain for $60 bucks. Maybe ill run to the store and test the 3 they still have. I tested two at another store and they were totally different. worse then the one i have.



Ok I bought another one today and it has the best focus your going to get with the lower quality reflector these have. It throws much better then the other one. Smaller corona and larger warmer and brighter hotspot. I did a lux test at 10 meters exactly and got an insane 11,200cd at 10 meters and 7,105 at 10 meters with the boss1vn. I did some recalabration with lights i know the lux of. Now i dont think the boss is that high but if i calibrate it with the boss and vinhs numbers my other lights measure to low. the good news is while the numbers might be off a little they are comparable with them self's and the hid is 4,000cd higher at 10 meters. At 1 meter thats 1.1 million cd for the hid and 710,000 for the boss1vn. Even if you subtract 100kcd the hid is still over a million. Tonight im going to test them at 2000 feet again and see if the hids beam has better focus at distance. at 30 feet it makes the boss look dim so im hopeful. These hid spotlights are not consistent between samples thats for sure.




20161204_201911 by Alex Littig, on Flickr



20161204_201531 by Alex Littig, on Flickr


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## Alex1234 (Dec 4, 2016)

Boss1vn VS Jobsmart 55w Hid



20161204_215741 by Alex Littig, on Flickr


20161204_215814 by Alex Littig, on Flickr


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## Mr. Tone (Dec 4, 2016)

Cool, a mod with a larger arc will probably do you some good on throw since the focus is a problem.


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## FRITZHID (Dec 5, 2016)

A larger arc will lead to a larger hotspot.
Focus can be slightly adjusted IF bulb is too far INTO the reflector using shims to pull it slightly out. It's a trial and error process but often worth the effort.


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## Alex1234 (Dec 15, 2016)

Some beamshots in the snow 



20161214_234410 by Alex Littig, on Flickr


20161214_234338 by Alex Littig, on Flickr


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## Alex1234 (Dec 15, 2016)

FRITZHID said:


> A larger arc will lead to a larger hotspot.
> Focus can be slightly adjusted IF bulb is too far INTO the reflector using shims to pull it slightly out. It's a trial and error process but often worth the effort.



I used a paper clip. made it into a circle. cut the rest off. used it between the bulb and reflector. Result. PERFECTION. the corona got smaller and the hotspot got larger but much brighter. it only worked for one of them. the other one i have(i bought another one) needs to be pushed in farther which is not possible. but its good enough. still has a good beam. 

I just find it amazing i can get a 55w hid spotlight with lithium batteries that throws around a million cd for 60 bucks. There are 35w hid spotlights on amazon and ebay with sla batteries that cost 3 times the amount. This light will be my benchmark. When I get a reflector based led flashlight that out throws this you know LEDS have come a long way. TN42vn might be close pushing almost 800kcd.


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## khoff01 (Dec 16, 2016)

Hey guys, just joined up here. I've always gone here first on the forums for anything light oriented though! I actually had been wondering if anyone else's besides myself had modded one of these yet. I decided to open mine up lastnight and re-center the bulb and to see what all was inside the guts of it. While in there I had a 55w ballast, an 11.1v 3S RC Lipo battery, and a 4300K bulb I threw in it and WOW what a difference it made. Its unbelievably bright and has much better throw to it. Can post pictures if anybody is interested.


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## Alex1234 (Dec 16, 2016)

khoff01 said:


> Hey guys, just joined up here. I've always gone here first on the forums for anything light oriented though! I actually had been wondering if anyone else's besides myself had modded one of these yet. I decided to open mine up lastnight and re-center the bulb and to see what all was inside the guts of it. While in there I had a 55w ballast, an 11.1v 3S RC Lipo battery, and a 4300K bulb I threw in it and WOW what a difference it made. Its unbelievably bright and has much better throw to it. Can post pictures if anybody is interested.


 the tint on mine is close to 4300k... Its a nice warm white tint. Actually not back for a stock hid


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## khoff01 (Dec 17, 2016)

I made an error when putting up my last post, I thought this was the Jobsmart 2800 Lumen, "Pistol Grip" HID light. It originally came with a 35W ballast as I am sure most of you are aware of. I do have to say the bulb I have in it that particular light with the 55W ballast, sure did clean up great as far as the tint of blue to it vs running 35w ballast to it. Overall I am very pleased. And last but not least, I can now become part of this big boy 3500 lumen light discussion as well now... I went to my local TSC lastnight and to my awesome surprise... $43 brand new in the box and they have tons of them!! Going back next week to buy a second one to keep "factory" and going to mod this one and play around with a few different setups. Kinda pissed me off I spent $43 for this light and it puts my Streamlight Protac HL3 to shame [emoji23][emoji23]. Oh well I still love my Streamlights. Die hard fan of them and own multiple variations of their lights and never been let down yet!


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## Alex1234 (Dec 17, 2016)

khoff01 said:


> I made an error when putting up my last post, I thought this was the Jobsmart 2800 Lumen, "Pistol Grip" HID light. It originally came with a 35W ballast as I am sure most of you are aware of. I do have to say the bulb I have in it that particular light with the 55W ballast, sure did clean up great as far as the tint of blue to it vs running 35w ballast to it. Overall I am very pleased. And last but not least, I can now become part of this big boy 3500 lumen light discussion as well now... I went to my local TSC lastnight and to my awesome surprise... $43 brand new in the box and they have tons of them!! Going back next week to buy a second one to keep "factory" and going to mod this one and play around with a few different setups. Kinda pissed me off I spent $43 for this light and it puts my Streamlight Protac HL3 to shame [emoji23][emoji23]. Oh well I still love my Streamlights. Die hard fan of them and own multiple variations of their lights and never been let down yet!


 If you find a good mod for the 3500 lumen version let me know. If i can bump this up to 75w or so that would be cool


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## khoff01 (Dec 18, 2016)

that's is exactly what I am going to shoot for on ballast size/wattage. I dunno how well the bulb will take to being overdriven that much though. I thought about trying a 100 watt ballast but figured i'd better go with a 75 to start with... that's if i can find a TRUE 75/100 watt ballast that actually puts that power current reliably to the bulb. however most of them out there that claim that high of wattage do not[emoji35]


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## FRITZHID (Dec 21, 2016)

Overdriving HID.....
1st, will cause the tint to lower... I.E., if it's a 5000k 35w bulb, overdriven at 55 watts, the tint will drop to closer to 4000k.
2nd, bulb life will drop, however... Being that most of us will NEVER burn out one of these, this loss is not significant.
3rd, the arc will become slightly larger in dia. And higher surface brightness leading to many more photons being projected down range with a very very slight increase in hotspot size with it being "brighter".

There is a limit, however....
I wouldn't suggest more than 75w thru a 35w bulb, or 100w thru a 55w, etc. Going higher than that can easily overstress the bulbs thermal limits causing catastrophic failure.... And lens, reflector, & electronics replacements.


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## TheDark (Dec 21, 2016)

I had one of these years ago... worked pretty good for what it was. It was to heavy for me, for a flashlight I would carry hog hunting.


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## hahoo (Dec 29, 2016)

how do you know its 55 watt instead of 35 watt ?
should 55 watt not be well over 3000 lumens ?
i know a stanley 35 watt hid i used to have was 3000 lumens and 35 watt
i just got in from tsc, and they have 6 of these on the shelve, at 42 bucks a piece !:huh:
almost bought one from reading this post last night
think ill pick one up tomm just for kicks, to see how it stacks up to my tk61nv
sure cant beat it for 40 bucks:thumbsup:


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## Alex1234 (Dec 29, 2016)

hahoo said:


> how do you know its 55 watt instead of 35 watt ?
> should 55 watt not be well over 3000 lumens ?
> i know a stanley 35 watt hid i used to have was 3000 lumens and 35 watt
> i just got in from tsc, and they have 6 of these on the shelve, at 42 bucks a piece !:huh:
> ...



make sure you check the beam quality before you buy it, some didn't work and some had off center beams. my bossvn with uclp lens does 650kcd around the same as the tk61vn and it out throws it by a noticeable amount. As long as you get one with properly focused beam it will easy beat the tk61vn. the focus is very important for hid because i had to add a spacer between the reflector and bulb to get the corona smaller and the hotspot brighter. it was not focused to infinity but more at like 40 feet then it lost the intense spot at like 500 yards. my fix made it go from 600-800kcd to 1.1 million kcd so just keep that in mind.


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## hahoo (Dec 30, 2016)

just picked one up tonight.....wow is all i can say for 43 bucks,....pics to follow


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## hahoo (Dec 31, 2016)

wow, i must of got a perfect one out of the box....i thought it looked good on the beamshots....i did 14,000 lux at 10 meters
is that a true 1.4 million cp ?
hate to say it , but it makes my tk61vn seem dim
it noticeably out throws it for sure
i dont know whether to be happy or sad about that !
hate to say it, but it will be a few years at best before an led can touch this


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## scout24 (Apr 5, 2017)

So, I picked one of these up today for $31.99 at my local Tractor Supply. There were 4 or 5 left, if anyone is interested... Let me know.  I searched here first, rather than start a new thread. Good to see there are some possible upgrades to be done. I charged it up, and am getting ready to take it out to stretch it's legs.

Edit- This thing easily reaches the 800 yards across the field behind my house, to the woodline. Picking out individual trees was no problem. At anything past 100 yards or so, it's all spot. The corona, useful up close while walking, disappears pretty quickly as distance increases. Not a bad beam at all for the not-so-wonderful reflector finish and a lens that I'm sure is not the best...


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## FRITZHID (Apr 5, 2017)

scout24 said:


> So, I picked one of these up today for $31.99 at my local Tractor Supply. There were 4 or 5 left, if anyone is interested... Let me know.  I searched here first, rather than start a new thread. Good to see there are some possible upgrades to be done. I charged it up, and am getting ready to take it out to stretch it's legs.


Mod those bitches up! Cram a 75 watt HID and rock them!


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## scout24 (Apr 5, 2017)

I may go back tomorrow for one strictly to take apart...  I take it from reading you're advocating a 75w ballast and the stock bulb? And a new battery pack...


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## FRITZHID (Apr 5, 2017)

That's what I'd do. Warmer tint with higher wattage on stock bulb. Longer runtime with batt upgrade.


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## scout24 (Apr 5, 2017)

Thanks for the tips! Off to the 'Bay to do a little research, unless you have a suggestion as to where to look for ballasts...


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## hahoo (Apr 6, 2017)

sleeper lights of the year...mine puts visible light on stuff at a mile
the batteries alone are worth what u pay for this light


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