# Quark 123-2 R5 Shiningbeam Driver Mod



## ti-force (May 7, 2010)

Well, I've been carrying a Quark 123-2 R2 Tactical for quite a while now, and I've just fallen in love with these lights, so I decided to buy a Quark 123-2 with the newer R5 emitter. Only problem is, the one i purchased had the Regular UI which isn't really my preferred UI, so I started thinking about modifying the light somehow. You know how flashaholics start to think, it's all over then:naughty:.

Anyway, I ordered some of the Shiningbeam 1.4A drivers, and then I let the modifying commence:devil:. As usual, I thought I'd share some pictures with anyone who's interested:




* First things first, I opened the head up and removed the emitter/MCPCB combo. This is what it looks like under there:*









*This is what the driver assembly in the Regular UI Quark looks like:*
















*Driver removed. It looks like a little smiley face.:*








*I decided to use the bottom board of the Quark driver as the contact point for battery negative and battery positive, so I had to separate the two boards:*













* Then I soldered and glued the Shiningbeam board on top of the bottom Quark board. I also added an additional 7135 chip; The devil made me do it:devil: haha... :
*















* Glued the driver in:*








* Put some Arctic Silver 5 under the MCPCB for better thermal transfer and soldered everything back together:*












*The head is completely re-assembled. I even straightened out the emitter before re-assembly. It was slightly off center, now it's perfectly centered:*








*Now I have a new EDC favorite:naughty:. This light can be ran on 2xCR123 primaries or 1x17670. I'll probably run it on an AW 17670 most of the time. I measured the vf of my emitter, and it's 3.08v, so this light should run in regulation until the battery is depleted:candle:.

I wish I had another R5 head that wasn't modified so I could take some comparison beam shots, but I don't right now. Maybe I'll buy another R5 light soon, so I can take some comparison shots. Until then, I've taken comparison shots using a Quark 123-2 R2, Quark 123-2 R2 neutral white emitter and Quark 123-2 Turbo R5:thumbsup:


All pictures were taken with the same camera settings in manual mode and the Pine tree is about 23 feet from each light. I had to take the pictures with the lights in front of the camera because the camera wouldn't zoom out enough to capture all of the spill.*


*Control Shot:*








*Side by side:*





























**UPDATE* I now have another Quark 123-2 Tactical with an XP-G R5 emitter, so I decided to take comparison beam shots. Something I noticed immediately, is that my Shiningbeam Quark appears to have one of the XP-G R5's that has a wider hot spot:thinking:. This has been discussed before in another thread, but now I've witnessed it first hand. Also, I made a gif so it's easier to see the difference.*


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## think2x (May 7, 2010)

Very nice! I dare not open up my quark as it's my favorite. I did however put this driver in a kobalt light and it really woke that light up and made it enjoyable. Would you care to do another?


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## ti-force (May 7, 2010)

*edit*


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## CampingMaster (May 8, 2010)

Thank you to share with us your experiments with Quark flashlights.
 
Very nice clear pictures!
 
I received yesterday my Q 123² R5 cool white and it will be my favorite EDC for the future instead of my Fenix PD30 R4.
 
This integrated clip is absolutely fantastic!


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## ti-force (May 9, 2010)

CampingMaster said:


> Thank you to share with us your experiments with Quark flashlights.
> 
> Very nice clear pictures!
> 
> ...



Thanks for the kind words; it's nice to know that someone gets some enjoyment out of this. If not, I'd just keep this to myself. These lights are great:thumbsup:.


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## think2x (May 9, 2010)

How do you get the head apart without destroying it?
I'm thinking XP-E with this driver in a Quark Turbo.:devil:


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## foxtrot824 (May 9, 2010)

ti-force said:


> You know how flashaholics start to think, it's all over then:naughty:.



Yes I know how that goes . Nice mod :twothumbs


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## ti-force (May 9, 2010)

think2x said:


> How do you get the head apart without destroying it?
> I'm thinking XP-E with this driver in a Quark Turbo.:devil:



I beat you to it..

I just finished swapping an XP-E R2 into my Quark Turbo, but I didn't change the driver out, just the emitter for now, and considering the XP-E has a max recommended drive current of 1A, I would remove 1 of the 7135 chips, which would bring the current down to roughly 1050mA, which probably isn't much higher than the Quark driver. 

Anyway, to get the head apart, it would probably be best to have a couple of rubber strap wrenches, but I haven't bought one yet, so the way I did it was took an old leather belt and cut two pieces about 3 inches long or so. Then, I used two sets of Channel lock type pliers with a piece of belt in the jaws of each set of pliers, then grip both sides of the head and turn counter clockwise. You need to be very careful though; one slip, and you've got some anodizing missing. It can be tough to get it to break loose at first. I don't know what they use, but it's some really good stuff. It looks like blue Locktite, but I doubt that's what they use because the fumes from Locktite can damage the dome of these emitters if I'm not mistaken.

The Turbo was much tougher to get open than the others. I'm not sure if it's because the head has rings and it's tapered or what, but it was definitely tougher than the others I've taken apart. Anyway, here's a pic of my Quark Turbo head apart.


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## carrot (May 9, 2010)

I am curious as to what the benefits of the Shiningbeam driver is?

Nice work btw.


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## ti-force (May 9, 2010)

foxtrot824 said:


> Yes I know how that goes . Nice mod :twothumbs



Haha.., yeah, the life of a flashaholic Thank's for the complement, I appreciate it.


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## ti-force (May 9, 2010)

carrot said:


> I am curious as to what the benefits of the Shiningbeam driver is?
> 
> Nice work btw.



Well, the main reason I did this mod is because I didn't really like the Regular UI. I prefer the Tactical UI much more, so I figured why not mod it since I probably won't use it much like it was. With the SB board alone, the light picked up roughly 60 OTF lumens over when it was un-modded. Then I took the driver back out and added another 7135 chip to the mix and that bumped the OTF lumens up to roughly 100 more than un-modded. The only problem is, it does get hot quicker than when it did un-modded, and it doesn't have much mass, so I make sure I grip it so the heat transfers to my hand.

I find the SB UI pretty useful, simple and no strobe and all of the modes that I don't really have a use for. It has mode memory, so after the light has been on for 2 seconds or longer in one mode, it's memorized. If you want to change though, you have to long press once, then short press until you get to the desired mode, then long press again to turn the switch on. As long as you short press within 2 seconds, it will change to the next mode. It sounds like a lot when you read it, but it's really simple to do. Thank's for the complement:thumbsup:.

Casey


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## Linger (May 10, 2010)

nice execution, excellent placement of the extra 7135. 
When I first started reading I began replying with dibs on the surplus quark board (I don't have any regular UI but though it'd be handy for a loaner light, simple 'press button to make it brighter')...alas it donated itself to a better cause.
Thanx for the pics,


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## toby_pra (May 10, 2010)

cool mod! :thumbsup:


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## ti-force (May 10, 2010)

Linger said:


> nice execution, excellent placement of the extra 7135.
> When I first started reading I began replying with dibs on the surplus quark board (I don't have any regular UI but though it'd be handy for a loaner light, simple 'press button to make it brighter')...alas it donated itself to a better cause.
> Thanx for the pics,



Yeah, I really didn't want to tear the driver down for that very reason; I thought someone could use it. I tried my best to find another option, but I just couldn't find anything in my spare parts bin that would work. In the future, I'll keep you in mind; I posted a WTB Quark heads in the Marketplace, so you never know, I might come across another one that the driver can be salvaged from.

If so, I'll pm you, and if you're still interested, you pay the shipping and it's yours my friend:thumbsup:. Do you know if anyone makes a board like that, that could be used as a contact board? I haven't seen anything, but you never know unless you ask right. Oh, and thanks for the complements.

@ Toby: Thanks for the kind words.


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## Black Rose (May 10, 2010)

Nice work.


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## carrot (May 10, 2010)

ti-force said:


> Well, the main reason I did this mod is because I didn't really like the Regular UI. I prefer the Tactical UI much more, so I figured why not mod it since I probably won't use it much like it was. With the SB board alone, the light picked up roughly 60 OTF lumens over when it was un-modded. Then I took the driver back out and added another 7135 chip to the mix and that bumped the OTF lumens up to roughly 100 more than un-modded. The only problem is, it does get hot quicker than when it did un-modded, and it doesn't have much mass, so I make sure I grip it so the heat transfers to my hand.
> 
> I find the SB UI pretty useful, simple and no strobe and all of the modes that I don't really have a use for. It has mode memory, so after the light has been on for 2 seconds or longer in one mode, it's memorized. If you want to change though, you have to long press once, then short press until you get to the desired mode, then long press again to turn the switch on. As long as you short press within 2 seconds, it will change to the next mode. It sounds like a lot when you read it, but it's really simple to do. Thank's for the complement:thumbsup:.
> 
> Casey


That makes sense. I don't know anything about the ShiningBeam lights. Looks like you gained a lot of output!


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## Tixx (May 10, 2010)

Pretty cool. Always wanted to see the Quarks moded.


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## think2x (May 12, 2010)

Well Ti-force, how's the beam on the turbo head with the XP-E??


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## ti-force (May 12, 2010)

think2x said:


> Well Ti-force, how's the beam on the turbo head with the XP-E??



It has a noticeably tighter hot spot and it appears to throw further. I'm actually considering starting another thread for that mod; I plan to take some beam shots when I have time. I do have the lux measurements from before and after.

*Quark Turbo XP-G R5*

One meter: 10,750 lux
Five meters: 430 lux


*Quark Turbo XP-E R2*

One meter: 15,000 lux
Five meters: 600 lux


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## think2x (May 12, 2010)

Nice work, I will be watching for more on this. You may have talked me into trying this.


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## nanotech17 (May 14, 2010)

nice one.really clean work


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## ti-force (May 15, 2010)

nanotech17 said:


> nice one.really clean work



Thanks for the complement.





think2x said:


> Nice work, I will be watching for more on this. You may have talked me into trying this.



I started a new thread for my XP-E R2 Turbo mod. Click here to check it out.


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## jcw122 (May 18, 2010)

I don't know much about modding but that's pretty cool!

I also want to add, the Neutral White version isn't R2, it's Q3-5A.


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## ti-force (May 18, 2010)

jcw122 said:


> I don't know much about modding but that's pretty cool!
> 
> I also want to add, the Neutral White version isn't R2, it's Q3-5A.



Thanks for the complement. And thanks for pointing out the tint bin for the NW Quark. I've actually been meaning to change the text on that picture; I read about the Quark NW not being of the R2 bin the other day, and in fact, I think it was you who pointed it out to another member:thumbsup:. As soon as I read it I said . I'll correct when I find the time. Hopefully I won't mislead anyone before then.


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## ti-force (May 21, 2010)

**UPDATE* I now have another Quark 123-2 Tactical with an XP-G R5 emitter, so I decided to take comparison beam shots. Something I noticed immediately is that my Shiningbeam Quark appears to have one of the XP-G R5's that has a wider hot spot:thinking:. This has been discussed before in another thread, but now I've witnessed it first hand. Also, I made a gif so it's easier to see the difference.*


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## recDNA (Oct 10, 2010)

I would love to do this mod on my Quark Ti 123! Unfortunately, no guts, no skill, no tools.


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## recDNA (Nov 1, 2010)

recDNA said:


> I would love to do this mod on my Quark Ti 123! Unfortunately, no guts, no skill, no tools.


 
But apparently not "no friends"!

Ti-Force was kind enough to mod my Titanium Quark 123 head (with 123 X 2 body)with the Shiningbeam 1.4 amp driver and I'm here to tell you that the results were SPECTACULAR! 

___________Ti-Force/ShiningBeam 1.4A Mod, AW 17670____________

_______________1 Sec_____321.2___________
______________30 Sec_____272.7____________
______________1 Min______265.5____________
______________2 Min______259.4____________
______________3 Min______257_____________


What's that? You say you'd like to know OTF lumens of the light before it was modded? Well it just so happens I have that data too .



_________Factory Driver, AW RCR123_______________

______________1 Sec_____219.4__________
_____________30 Sec_____200____________
______________1 Min _____196.4__________
______________2 Min _____191.5__________
______________3 Min _____190.3__________


I think it's a really nice gain over the factory driver :thumbsup: 

What those figures don't show is that the nasty green tint turns totally WHITE at 1.4 amps. I can also run it with its own body and RCR123 at 1.3 amps at the tailcap and it BLOWS AWAY my Q123^2! :devil:

When I saw these pics of my beauty I felt ill....but not only did Ti-Force get it all back together beautifully there isn't a mark on it. I could never have broken that glue without destroying the titanium finish.







Thanks Again Ti! Now I've got the best Quark ever built IMO!


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## ti-force (Nov 1, 2010)

recDNA said:


> Thanks Again Ti!





Thanks for the kind words, and you're welcome . I'm glad you're happy with your light. Enjoy :thumbsup:.


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## nanotech17 (Nov 1, 2010)

ti-force care to mod mine 
just kiddin'
i love mine stock because it has that strobe which is useful to me.
anyhow,that won't stop me from contacting you in the near future


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## ti-force (Nov 2, 2010)

nanotech17 said:


> ti-force care to mod mine
> just kiddin'
> i love mine stock because it has that strobe which is useful to me.
> anyhow,that won't stop me from contacting you in the near future



Actually, I might be able to make one mode a strobe mode. I'll have to look into it and then experiment some.


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## SeanHatfield (Aug 7, 2011)

Is there any way to mod a Quark tactical driver to adjust the led current in all the brightness settings? 
I would like a Quark with tactical interface with something like those 1.4A as max mode. Maybe even 2A or more, as i already swapped the emitter for an XM-L.
Is this possible?


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## ti-force (Aug 7, 2011)

SeanHatfield said:


> Is there any way to mod a Quark tactical driver to adjust the led current in all the brightness settings?
> I would like a Quark with tactical interface with something like those 1.4A as max mode. Maybe even 2A or more, as i already swapped the emitter for an XM-L.
> Is this possible?


 
It may be possible, but I don't know of anyone who could do this with the factory driver. A lot of components would need to be swapped out because they probably aren't rated for the higher drive current.


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## SeanHatfield (Aug 7, 2011)

How did you remove the driver circuit from the quark head, and is it possible without destroying it? I would like to take a look, maybe i can find out the circuit diagram and start from there.
But i'd want to be able to still use it afterwards.


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## ti-force (Aug 7, 2011)

I've had the driver glue break loose quite a few times while I'm heating the head to get the halves apart. If that's not the case for you, you will have to keep heating and possibly use something that doesn't have a sharp end to push the driver out. Obviously you will need to open the head up and de-solder - and + wires going to emitter, and also the white wire that's soldered to the post that's screwed into the head. Be careful not to melt the plastic emitter centering ring while you're trying to open the head.


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## SeanHatfield (Aug 8, 2011)

Thanks! I already opened the head for the emitter swap, and the centering ring is useless for the larger XM-L emitter  So heat and a gentle push should do it? Cool, gonna try it!

Edit: The driver came out as soon as i desoldered the three wires. 
If anyone wants to remove the red stuff from the circuit board, it dissolves in acetone. But you will need to replace the wires as their insulation will dissolve, too.


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## ti-force (Aug 8, 2011)

Actually, whether the plastic centering ring is useless or not for the larger XM-L emitter is subjective . I made very good use of it back when I modified my Quark with an XM-L emitter and 2.1 amp driver, and couldn't see doing this swap without it, but that's personal opinion, of course:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?306273-Quark-123-2-XM-L-Mod......585-OTF-LUMENS!!!!

Not really sure if hot glue would work out or not. Seems to me it wouldn't hold up well and the glue would most likely dry before you could get the driver in place with all wires poked back up through the heat sink area. Whatever works for you, though. I always use a flexible two part epoxy that I ordered from McMastercarr. Can't remember the name of it at the moment. If the hot glue doesn't work out, try a flexible epoxy of some sort.


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## SeanHatfield (Aug 8, 2011)

Nice fitting of the centering piece, maybe i will do that, too. I just used a piece of paper around the led to insulate the contacts so i don't get a short circuit through the reflector.
Also i did not modify the reflector as the dome of the XM-L fits through it anyway.


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## Lolaralph (Aug 10, 2011)

ti-force,
excellent work, very neat and professional. I don't want to steal your thread, but, would you be willing to describe the process of adding additional chips to the driver, this is something I really want to try, but it looks difficult
thanks


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## ti-force (Aug 10, 2011)

Lolaralph said:


> ti-force,
> excellent work, very neat and professional. I don't want to steal your thread, but, would you be willing to describe the process of adding additional chips to the driver, this is something I really want to try, but it looks difficult
> thanks


 
Thanks! And no problem. I would suggest that you purchase some of the Shiningbeam 2.8A, 3 mode drivers if they're still available. I say this because that driver comes with 8- 7135 chips and it's easier to simply
remove the amount not needed vs adding them on top of one another. See the following thread for more info and pictures of this process:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?306273-Quark-123-2-XM-L-Mod......585-OTF-LUMENS 


Another reason I think this is a better idea is because the 7135's actually transfer some of the heat they create to the board through the metal base on the bottom of each chip. When you stack them on top of one another that metal base is sitting on plastic, which doesn't transfer heat well at all. It might work for a long time, or it might only work for 2 minutes. It just depends. I would suggest that you go ahead and do it the correct way, but that decision comes down to you in the end.


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## Benz99 (Aug 13, 2011)

Thank you for sharing the details of your mod. Very inspiring!!


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