# Three (now four!) new custom mag builds! (updated 8-30-12)



## jmpaul320 (Jul 28, 2012)

Been busy this weekend! Below are my FIRST attempts at modifying mags. After about 45 days of reading/acquiring parts, here are the results



 



 


From left to right. SST-90 mag, Mag85, 5x R2 Mag



Ok... it was supposed to be four mag builds, I have a beautiful 3D Jade mag that I put a DW 3x neutral xml setup in. The tint... gorgeous... the output... somewhere north of 2200lm... got it all soldered up and gave it to my friend to hold while I went to the restroom... When I got back it didn't turn on :thinking:... turns out he decided to unscrew the head WITH the drop-in in place. Naturally he twisted the wires enough in front of the buck driver that the whole thing shorted. After being royally annoyed for about 15 minutes, we both decided to have a beer and laugh it off. I currently have an email out to DW now. Hopefully I can have him fix the drop in. If not I will just buy another one from him. So right now those parts are going back on the shelf.

One thing I could not figure out was how to remove the small retaining ring that sits on the top of the mag switch. Beacuse of this I ended up having to solder wires to the switch, drop the switch in, then connect/solder those to the dropins etc. I'm sure everyone will laugh at this, as its probably 3x the amount of work I should have been doing. :sick2:

On to the builds!

*The 2c mag build:*
2c black Mag
DX sku 35242
24mm FM extension (for battery fitment)
UCL
2x 25500 DX sku 26799

This is no where near the claimed 1200lm, but I knew that going into it. I would say its somewhere around 750-800 just by eye.



 


 


The only real difficult thing about this build was that I had to machine the existing head to accept the drop in since it was much bigger. Not having a lathe I had to settle for using a rotary tool to do the job. I used a proxxon ib/e tool for the job and 2-3 grinding bits. On a side note, this is the best rotary tool I have ever used. It does not slow down under load like a dremel and it is very quiet and balanced well.

After an hour of grinding this is what I got.



 


 
*
The Mag85 build:*
3d purple mag
9 eneloops
9aa -> 3d Fm battery holder
FM 6.35 socket
KD MOP reflector
boro lense



 

This build was really quite easy even for a noob like me:laughing:. Honestly it took me about 45 minutes total. I really enjoy this mag. Upon initially firing it up I must say I did not know what to expect at all. I had read threads about people insta flashing the WA bulbs and also about the bulbs smoking on initial startup. My batteries were at somewhere around 11.8 volts so I was a bit nervous about being higher than the 10.6 volt target. I took the reflector and lens out when I first turned it on, just in case the bulb went. I also put on my safety glasses on and covered my... uh... important areas.... you know... just in case something went nuclear.

Fired her up and there was smoke right away. After I was sure I wasn't going to blow something up I instantly smiled from ear to ear. I'd felt as if I was working on an old 60s muscle car all day and after some convincing and TLC she turned over and was running on all 8:rock:

Not as bright as modern leds for sure, but this build will always make me smile. Its for that reason that I am naming it "The Grimace"... oh yeah and its bright purple too :naughty:

I may need to try a different reflector as the KD on leaves a large "blank" space between the bulb and socket where I am sure light can escape. Any thoughts? I know FM has a bifocal reflector, but I would prefer something with a MOP so I get a nice smooth beam.

*The SST-90 Mag:
*3d silver mag
3x 26650 king kongs in pvc tube
tail cap spring mod
dw 9a buck driver/heatsink (w/aa thermal grease)
sst90 wn bin
modified rebel reflector
UCL

bought the heatsink/led setup here http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...d-SST-90-and-9A-Maglite-D-SST-90-light-engine



 

This thing is bright! Although I would suspect no less from a sst90 wn bin driven at 9A. 9A also gets you a lot of heat and fast. Being able to feel the warmth after 30-60 seconds I would assume is a good thing - sounds like the heatsink and thermal grease is doing its job.

The only real pain about this build was modifying & widening the rebel reflector. I do not have a step drill bit so had to use my rotary tool with a plastic grinder. Needless to say, I ruined 1 rebel reflector before getting it right 

This is a very powerful setup and I am curious to see how it does with throw once it gets dark.

*Beamshots!!*

Please forgive the noob photography skills. I have a point and shoot camera and no tripod.



 
control shot with regular room lighting



 
2c mag



 
sst90 mag



 
mag 85 (looks warmer in real life see group photo below for correct tint, this is the best I could do with my $75 camera)



 
stock mag 2d incan



 
12 oclock - sst90, 3 oclock - 2c mag, 6 oclock - mag85, 9 oclock - stock 2d mag, lower right - my dirty laundry

sorry about the thermostat by the sst90, but I live in a small apartment and I uh... ran out of wall lol

Any questions/comments are welcome as well as constructive criticism. Like I said earlier - these are my first real attempts at taking anything apart/soldering etc.


----------



## jmpaul320 (Jul 28, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

updated 8-4-12 the mag85 with a proper reflector!!





UPDATE 8-31-12

I have received my triple xml neutral back from dw... he was nice enough to repair it for me for a low cost. dropped into my nice 3d jade mag and popped in a ucl and it fired right up!

currently running on 4x 25500s with a pvc sleeve and modded tailcap

heres some photos 




 

 



Additional Beam shots of above lights & others here!


----------



## Epsilon (Jul 28, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

Good to hear you like the drop-in .

The sst90 is fixed with AS adhesive, first cleaned with acetone and then clamped down firmly. 
The light will get warm fast indeed, its a lot of heat to get rid of . 

Did you manage to focus the sst90 well? Very fun builds, al 3 .


----------



## ma_sha1 (Jul 28, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

Good job! Quite an accomplishment for starting out mag mods! My 1st mag mod was a solitaire LOL. 

Quote:

"One thing I could not figure out was how to remove the small retaining ring that sits on the top of the mag switch."

There might be more elegant ways out there, but I just push one end down with a screw driver, once one end got out the grove, the rest is easy. If you try to derail it by yanking it out of the slot, it'll turn with you, unless you hold a stick with another hand to stop the rotation.


----------



## ThirstyTurtle (Jul 28, 2012)

Any pics of how you wired the 5xR2? I just tried this build on a 2D. I don't yet have my 2D to 6AA holder so I got it wired up and tried it with just 2 D alkalines and it just flashes and then goes off. But if you quickly cycle you can see it flashes in high, Med, low, and the strobe and SOS modes. Any idea why it wouldn't be working? I planned on running it @ 7.2V but it's currently only @ 3V with the D's, would that cause it to not work? I'm currently waiting on my converters and hoping that will fix it because I've spent like 2 hours grinding to get the dropin to fit into the head just right...


----------



## ma_sha1 (Jul 28, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

These modules has low voltage protection, not suppose to work under 5.5V or so


----------



## jmpaul320 (Jul 28, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*



Epsilon said:


> Did you manage to focus the sst90 well? Very fun builds, al 3 .



its darn near perfect with my modified rebel screwed smack down onto the heat sink post with the emitter, plus i was having trouble fully tightening that set screw to keep the whole engine in place so the head screwed down onto the heatsink kind of keeps the whole thing from going anywhere... if i remove the head the heatsink stays in place but can be pushed down with a lot of force... so i highly doubt it will go anywhere



ThirstyTurtle said:


> Any pics of how you wired the 5xR2? I just tried this build on a 2D. I don't yet have my 2D to 6AA holder so I got it wired up and tried it with just 2 D alkalines and it just flashes and then goes off. But if you quickly cycle you can see it flashes in high, Med, low, and the strobe and SOS modes. Any idea why it wouldn't be working? I planned on running it @ 7.2V but it's currently only @ 3V with the D's, would that cause it to not work? I'm currently waiting on my converters and hoping that will fix it because I've spent like 2 hours grinding to get the dropin to fit into the head just right...



i didnt really take any pics of the wiring, its just positive from the switch to the center of the drop in and negative from the switch to the outside negative part of the drop in... also, i dont think the drop in will ever fit perfectly unless you use a lathe or have superhuman sight and can grind an even amount off around the whole head... it took quite a bit of convincing to get my drop in to get jammed in there... but i think thats a good thing because any heat it kicks off should sync right to the had



ma_sha1 said:


> There might be more elegant ways out there, but I just push one end down with a screw driver, once one end got out the grove, the rest is easy. If you try to derail it by yanking it out of the slot, it'll turn with you, unless you hold a stick with another hand to stop the rotation.



thanks, ill have to try that out


----------



## CMAG (Jul 29, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

:sick2: bummer hearing about the tri dw 
nice builds :thumbsup:


----------



## The_Police (Jul 29, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

Those are some really clean builds! :twothumbs Looking forward to some outdoor beamshots, BTW How's that 5x R2 runtime?


----------



## jmpaul320 (Jul 30, 2012)

Not sure bout the run time. Only ran it for about 20 min. Lol I think dw is gone on vacation for the weekend or something he hasn't been around lately. Hopefully he can repair the drop in or tell me how to. If the buck driver has short protection I just have to take it apart and fix the wires that frayed. But it appears the drop in is sealed shut.

I will focus on my next two builds until I can get the drop in fixed/replaced. I am upgrading my trj12 and I just ordered some goodies from fm for a 458 build :rock:


----------



## Colonel Sanders (Jul 30, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

Yeah, use a small flathead screwdriver and pry the end of one side of the ring up and out of the groove. You might need two screwdrivers if it tries to turn on you. Get mean with it if you have to...you can't hurt anything.

You need a good quality MOP reflector with the small hole. There were recently some for sale in the B/S/T. I don't recommend the FM-bifocal. It produces a very small, but NO BRIGHTER, hot spot. You would think that it would throw farther than a MOP reflector but it doesn't (in fact, my lux testing has shown it to actually throw a little less.) A good MOP (or LOP) reflector is as good as it gets for the 1185 bulb.


----------



## Colonel Sanders (Jul 30, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

jmPaul, *Click here to buy a reflector!*


----------



## jmpaul320 (Jul 30, 2012)

Colonel thanks for the link. I grabbed a mop reflector off the marketplace with the correct bulb opening on Sunday.


----------



## ThirstyTurtle (Aug 2, 2012)

ma_sha1 said:


> These modules has low voltage protection, not suppose to work under 5.5V or so



You were right! Got it cranked up today with nearly 8 volts and this thing is CRAZY bright!


----------



## jmpaul320 (Aug 2, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

i got my new reflector today (mag85), its great and definitely puts out more light with the correct bulb opening!


----------



## jmpaul320 (Aug 31, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

see post #2 for my jade mag update!


----------



## Chicken Drumstick (Aug 31, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

Which do you like the most?


----------



## CMAG (Aug 31, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

Thats a nice clean beam for a tri:thumbsup: and a good looking [email protected]


----------



## jmpaul320 (Aug 31, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

thanks!

i would say i enjoy the sst90 the most... a pure powerhouse and very good throw


----------



## ma_sha1 (Sep 1, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

does the beamspot have soft core on white wall?


----------



## jmpaul320 (Sep 1, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*



ma_sha1 said:


> does the beamspot have soft core on white wall?



yes sir - no rings or artifacts at all that i can see... and smooth reflectors to boot 

im running this as a single mode... i did not want to bother converting a switch to momentary as it sounds like a MAJOR pain


----------



## The_Driver (Nov 10, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*



jmpaul320 said:


> i got my new reflector today (mag85), its great and definitely puts out more light with the correct bulb opening!



What kind of reflector is it? 
Who makes them?


----------



## jmpaul320 (Nov 10, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*



The_Driver said:


> What kind of reflector is it?
> Who makes them?



hi - i got my reflector for the mag85 from prooftech in the cpf marketplace, he stocks different types over time (medium op, light op smooth etc)

if you are looking for one give him a shout out theyre like ~$20-25 a piece and great quality


----------



## The_Driver (Nov 10, 2012)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*



jmpaul320 said:


> hi - i got my reflector for the mag85 from prooftech in the cpf marketplace, he stocks different types over time (medium op, light op smooth etc)
> 
> if you are looking for one give him a shout out theyre like ~$20-25 a piece and great quality



Thanks for the Info


----------



## Gtamazing (Aug 14, 2013)

*Re: Three new custom mag builds!*

A Bump for 4 nice Mags


----------



## jmpaul320 (Aug 15, 2013)

Thanks! Still have the sst90 one.. might sell soon


----------

