# COAST Focusing LED Lenser.. w/pics



## Lite_me (Nov 18, 2006)

This is my first attempt at any type of review so take it easy on me. I'm sure I'll forget something. 

I'm aware that COAST lights are not held in very high regard here on CPF, but let me say this, I like this light! I had my doubts before buying it but once I got it home, got it out of the package and started looking it over, I felt better. My first thoughts when I took it outside the first evening was,, "Now this is a flashlight". It fits a niche that I have been looking for. The beam is what I would categorize as a wide spot. Very little light if any is lost to spill. And you always have the option to go to a wide beam with just a twist.

What I liked...
Relatively compact and light.
Fit & finish is up to par with the Fenix line I'd say.
The threading is good/clean.
Water resistant.
I have become a fan of this form-factor. I like the 3AAA cartridge idea.
You have standard batteries, can use common rechargeables and a simple charger.
It feeds approx 4.5v to the electronics to drive the light. 
Potentally, has more capacity than 1 or even 2 CR123a's.
My research tells me it's Type II anodizing.
Momentary On tail clicky.
The beam quality. All the light can be focused to throw, or
can adjust focus to wide. It does a pretty nice job at it too.
Super bright! (for a non cree ) A claimed 60 Lumens and Maximum of 3.44 Watts.

There's not much I didn't like...
The $49.97 (at Lowe's) may seem a bit steep but then again, maybe not. I like it, alot!
Let's see.... nope can't think of anything. 
edit: Well ok, it's not waterproof.

On to some pics...

























































I realize that this is an outdoor flashlight but it was cold and raining out. Some, well all really, are just for comparison.
All beams are aimed at the candle. Distance is 30ft. Note the spill on the door jams and ceiling....





...And the lack of it on the first pic below.





Just for comparison.







Some parting thoughts...
This is my new go-to light. It used to be my SL PP 4AA Lux, but when stepping outsde to check out the property, I've been finding out that I wanted more fill and a little less spot. I got it with this.

I won the lottery with this one cause I was able to compare the 5 or 6 lights they had on display. :laughing: There's a lever to push to test and I chose the whitest one of course. Actually, they all were pretty good. Most had a slight blue hue but this one stood out as being more neutral.

When I got it home I immediately put in the Rayovac Hybrid batteries right out of the package. I did not top them off. They registered 1.31v. I've been messing around with this light quite a bit for the last couple of days and checked the batteries again and they have only dropped .03 of a volt. Now down to 1.28v. I realize this is no true indication of current used but never the less is a good sign.

I really like this light! :thumbsup: But yes... it's not a Cree. :touche:But just as bright! 

EDIT 6/11/07: Hmmmm.... Looks like not all the beam shots are showing up anymore. :shrug:


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## lumenal (Nov 19, 2006)

Nice job on your review! And you did take some great shots!  

I've got this light and really like it as well. I run mine with NiMH also and it performs very well. I just bought some of those Rayovac Hybrids to try in it...

This light is definitely one of LED Lensers better ones. Its good to see there are other folks who appreciate a good light, regardless who manufactures it.

Again, a great first review!:rock:


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## ginaz (Nov 20, 2006)

i was looking at this at lowe's today and held off due to the 50 bucks they wanted for it. looks like i may consider it again!


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## Casual Flashlight User (Nov 20, 2006)

Nice review...I'm tempted (but I always am).

Is that model number 7438? - It's one of the few lights that I could pick up for "American prices" in the UK.


CFU


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## Paul6ppca (Nov 20, 2006)

Very nice ,I have a david15/coast AA light,very nicely made ,uses an optic for nice even flood and long runtime.


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## AlexGT (Nov 20, 2006)

Do you think it can focus a CREE led? 

AlexGT


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## AlexGT (Nov 20, 2006)

Is the aspheric lens made of glass or plastic? How big is it, dimensions? Can the head be dissasembled? Does it say it's regulated?

Thanks!
AlexGT


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## Lite_me (Nov 21, 2006)

Casual Flashlight User said:


> Nice review...I'm tempted (but I always am).
> 
> * Is that model number 7438? *- It's one of the few lights that I could pick up for "American prices" in the UK.
> 
> CFU


*Yes! The complete model No. on the package is TT7438CP

*


AlexGT said:


> Do you think it can focus a CREE led?
> 
> AlexGT


 Good question for someone more enlightened than myself. Reason being is that the collimator lens (pure speculation here) plays a big part in the beam characteristics. Hence, the name "LED Lenser". The dome in the center of the lens acts/looks like a magnifying glass. You can look at the LED through it, with the light Off of course, and get a good magnifyed look at it. In fact, it doesn't show in my beam shots but the outer corona edge is squared off matching the shape of the LED, especially when focused to the spot position. Not sure how that would equate to a Cree that emits its light in a different manner.



AlexGT said:


> Is the aspheric lens made of glass or plastic? How big is it, dimensions? Can the head be dissasembled? Does it say it's regulated?
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> AlexGT


The lens is made of plastic but appears thick and is approx. 1in. in diameter. 

I tried to separate the head with my hands but couldn't. I would think that with a little persuasion tool, it can be done. I have no need to try it at this time.

It says nothing about regulation on the package, but does say "Lifetime Guarantee: See details inside" and there was no paperwork inside. ?? So maybe I'm missing something that had more info.
In this thread, see lightinsky's post #8 where he called COAST about it and they said it goes out of regulation in 30 min. But with what type of batteries? I think that would make a difference. I have no way to run a test.

---------------------

I wanted to thank everyone with the kind words. I wasn't sure how this was going to come out but wanted to give it a shot. I've gotten so much valuable information off CPF, (Thank you all!) I took this opportunity to try and give something back. I wasn't sure how this light would be received, and with all the Cree buzz and the recent announcement of the new Fenix P1D CE, I was hesitant. But I felt compelled though, after I had a chance to play around with it awhile and compare it to some of my other lights. I think it's a keeper and will get alot of use! :thumbsup:


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## Lobo (Nov 21, 2006)

Great review Lite_me!

I was also curious about the Hokus Focus (same light). I wont buy it personally, the price is a bit steep for me right now, but I'm interested of theese superbright small 3AAA lights, so :goodjob: .


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## Blackheart (Nov 23, 2006)

I took some voltage and current measurements from my Coast focusing LED flashlight.


4.18 volts @ .54 amp is 2.2572 watts.

The 4.18 volts was measured from the battery pack with no load present.


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## ginaz (Dec 3, 2006)

well, i broke down and bought one. i had a U bin that i was planning to swap in but after using it a bit i can honestly say that there is no need. it spanks my T bin raw and is a bit brighter than another U bin mod i have. i emailed coast to try and get some tech details on it but no reply yet. great light!


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## x2x3x2 (Dec 3, 2006)

looks pretty good and versatile, where's the cheapest place to get these online?


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## Dawg (Dec 3, 2006)

Great review. I am going to have to get one and check it out. I understand your apprehension. I was a proponent of the Bushnell and it was met with mixed reviews and gained no popularity here. I have 2 of them and I use them all the time. Another great inexpensive light IMHO. 

The Cree is the flavor of the day now, and it will be knocked on its ear next year by Lumileds and then everyone will run out for even more lights.


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## ChoppedBroccoli (Dec 3, 2006)

Any runtime info? ... very curious since its using 3aaa

Also isn't the luxeon being overdriven if its at 3.44 W peak draw (is it Luxeon III)?


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## ginaz (Dec 4, 2006)

i ran it on NIMH batteries and it was good and bright for an hour and continued to put out usable light for another hour (equal to low on L2T). i would think it is being overdriven as it is outperforming many good lights that i have now (golston, raw etc.)


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## Lite_me (Dec 4, 2006)

ginaz said:


> well, i broke down and bought one. i had a U bin that i was planning to swap in but after using it a bit i can honestly say that there is no need. it spanks my T bin raw and is a bit brighter than another U bin mod i have. i emailed coast to try and get some tech details on it but no reply yet. great light!


Nice to hear someone else is impressed with it. It is_ a spanker!  
Please let us know whatever info you obtain. :thanks:


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## whc (Dec 16, 2006)

->Lite_me

Just ordered the Hokus Focus yesterday. I was just wondering, if you still like this flashlight. Is it durable/stable and have you had any problems with it so far???


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## Lite_me (Dec 16, 2006)

whc said:


> ->Lite_me
> 
> Just ordered the Hokus Focus yesterday. I was just wondering, if you still like this flashlight. Is it durable/stable and have you had any problems with it so far???


Do I still like this flashlight? No! I still_ love _this flashlight.  I haven't had any issues with it to date. It's the first light I'll grab when going outside to have a look-see. My 2 SL PP 4AA's stay on the shelf. I have the new Fenix P1D CE but that is better suited for EDC and I also prefer the colliminated beam on the Coast. 

Best I can tell, the Hocus Focus is the same light we have here in the U.S.A. but the Hocus Focus is advertised as 1 watt. The model we have here claims 3.44 watts MAX. I'm not sure what it is exactly but would believe it may be a severely overdriven 1 watter. Given how bright it is, it just may be. I'm not sorry I bought it though, for right now, it has the brightest & best beam of all the flashlights I own. It's a nice size too. Fits your hand real good. And the momentary On tail button works well.
I'd say it's a genuine sleeper. :bow: :thumbsup:

Let us know how you like yours when you get it.


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## whc (Dec 16, 2006)

Thanks for your reply, I am a little worried that maybe the flashlight has an 1watt Luxeon LED, would wary much prefer a 3watt Luxeon III LED. I have send an e-mail to the manufacture “Zweibrüder”, to get straighten out what kind of LED they uses in the Hokus Focus flashlight, strange they don’t write stuff like that on there website.

Anyway thanks again, will get back with my opinion when I get the flashlight, I think it is just what I am looking for (some thing powerful and compact, with “normal” batteries).

By the way great review, it put me over the top, has bean looking at the flashlight, but was not convinced until I read your review. Now I cant weight to get my new toy …


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## whc (Dec 18, 2006)

Just got a reply from “Zweibrüder”, about mow much watt the LED has in the Hokus Focus, and here is the reply I got:



> The Hokus Focus is so bright because of some new designed optics and a special 1.25 W highly efficient LED. We know a lot of people suppose it must be a 3 watt LED because it is so bright…. I am very sorry but we are not allowed to tell our companies secrets, so we can not tell you who produces this LED for us. I hope you understand this.



Who produces a 1.25watt LED. Is it Luxeon, Cree, or another???


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## amanichen (Dec 18, 2006)

whc said:


> Just got a reply from “Zweibrüder”, about mow much watt the LED has in the Hokus Focus, and here is the reply I got:
> 
> ...
> 
> Who produces a 1.25watt LED. Is it Luxeon, Cree, or another???


It doesn't matter who produces it =)

The packaging says "3.44 Watts" as shown in the picture in the first post. The company obviously doesn't read its own packaging.

No matter how efficient a 1.25W LED is, you don't get 3.44W out of it, unless you believe in the bullhonkey that are over unity systems, perpetual motion, and free energy.


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## BillMPL (Dec 18, 2006)

Is this the same Coast light from Lowes? If so, they also claim in the description that it's a 1.25 watt.
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=244292-13229-244292&lpage=none


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## whc (Dec 18, 2006)

BillMPL said:


> Is this the same Coast light from Lowes? If so, they also claim in the description that it's a 1.25 watt.
> http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=244292-13229-244292&lpage=none



Yes i belive it is. I think it is only in Usa it is named "COAST". It is made by the company named in previus reply in germany.


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## whc (Dec 18, 2006)

amanichen said:


> It doesn't matter who produces it =)
> 
> The packaging says "3.44 Watts" as shown in the picture in the first post. The company obviously doesn't read its own packaging.
> 
> No matter how efficient a 1.25W LED is, you don't get 3.44W out of it, unless you believe in the bullhonkey that are over unity systems, perpetual motion, and free energy.



Yes it is wary misleading. It is maximum of 3.44w, it's maybe a bit optimistic . This light like others from this company uses optics, or put in a other words "it use glases", in that way you can get wary high output from a less powerfull source. It will also be a more precise/sharp beam.


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## lumenal (Dec 18, 2006)

whc said:


> It is maximum of 3.44w, it's maybe a bit optimistic .


 
I have owned this light for 3 months and am very impressed by its perfomance.

Comparing this particular Coast light side by side with my other Lux III lights, including the Inova XO3, Pelican 2370 3 watt LED, Taskforce Super 3 watt LED and many others, I find this Coast(LED Lenser) light is as bright or brighter than all of them. And with a great beam. And it focuses surprisingly well.

Led Lenser is known to use Fraen optics, and this may be a different type on this particular light. It has what is known as a "frog-eye" type lens. It is a collimator with no artifacts. I really like these lenses. 

I use NiMH with very good results. IMHO, this is an excellent flashlight.


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## whc (Dec 20, 2006)

The online store where I ordered the light, apparently have Christmas vacation, did not see that, so I cancelled the order, and found a store near where I live to buy it. They just had one left, I bought it and went home, opened the box and pushed the tail switch, and surprising it can be turned on only by half press (like that wary much), and batteries where inserted. I pointed the flashlight to the wall, but was not impressed with what I saw, the light was wary bright, but the beam was off centre with some “errors” around the beam. Looked at the glass and saw the optics was damaged in one side, looked like it had bean taking some beatings. So I wrapped it up again, went down to the store and got a refund (since it was the last one). Now I have placed an order on another website since I could not find any other stores with this light in stock. Now I am hoping they will ship the flashlight tomorrow, then I will receive it on Friday (fingers crossed ).

I though got to play with it a bit, and was wary impressed with the overall quality. Like the on/off button, that you can also use it as a momentary on switch (unlike Fenix L1T). The design is just my taste wary classical, and reminded me about my old 7led police flashlight, that I liked wary much. Strangely enough I could not screw the head off, I don’t know if that I normal, would be nice to do so. The beam I wary bright, can’t believe that it I only a 1.25watt LED (I thought my Nuwau X-3 was bright, but compared to this it is nothing).

Can’t weight to get one again, I just hope that this time I will be I perfect condition .


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## Lite_me (Dec 20, 2006)

That's a bummer whc.  Here's hoping the next one is in perfect order for ya! 
I had forgotten to ever mention that it comes with batteries installed. And a spare set to boot. If someone was to read between the lines in my review they would have noticed that cause you can test the light while in the package. The other set is visible from the front of the package. 
Keep your eye on that mailbox!


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## lightrod (Dec 20, 2006)

ChoppedBroccoli said:


> Any runtime info? ...


 
Here's the runtime I got for the alkaline AAA's that the light came with as well as with Duracell NiMH:






The beam on this light in the flood position is pretty poor (although it certainly does remove the center hot spot), but wow does it have a nice clean spot focus with a ton of throw! Beam profiles compared to several other popular lights below, with the Coast in the focus/spot position. The first plot is taken from the NiMH results; the second plot best compares overall beam characteristics as it normalizes output to a total of 30 lumens for each light and shows where the light directs its output - spot or flood. The coast focuses more on the center spot than the others including the SF E1L.










I calculated 70 lumens (which is the advertised value) from the NiMH batteries, 44 from the alkalines (both taken at two minutes time on a fresh battery)

I like this light not as a general purpose light (due to the tight spot / little spill), but as a backup light to pull out when throw is needed.


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## lightrod (Dec 20, 2006)

double post...


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## lumenal (Dec 21, 2006)

Lightrod - great runtime plots and very interesting data. Thanks for all your hard work in displaying this useful infomation.

I have this light and like it very much. I run it with NiMH with good results. I'm surprised yours doesn't focus well on the flood mode, mine certainly does. But you must be outside to appreciate it. And the spot mode is great.

I agree with you - this is a good backup light when throw is needed. I use it in short bursts for this reason. Although I did run it for maybe 15-20 minutes a couple times and noticed the body heated up pretty well-so it must be reasonably heat-sinked.

All in all, one of my favorite lights. :thumbsup:


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## whc (Dec 22, 2006)

Just got one again, this time it is in peak fitness condition ...

Wary impressed with the spot, nice and bright. The LED in this one does though have some purple flair to it, more than any other Luxeon LED I have seen, I think that I will exchange it after Christmas. But for now I am pleased, can't weight till it gets dark, so I can test it outside .


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## whc (Dec 22, 2006)

Now I have had a chance of trying the flashlight outside in the dark. And WOW! i am WARY! Impressed with the light, amazing how powerful and sharp the beam is. I think it is best in spot mode. I just found my new favourite light ...

Though I am not 100% happy with the "purple" flair, I don't know if it is just me that are being picky, it is really not some thing you notice unleash you are pointing the flashlight at a white wall or some thing else white, just in normal use outside, it seams wary white and bright. What do you guys thing, here is some comparison on top the Hokus Focus, and below my Nuwai X-3 (it is though wary hard to capture on camera, and the “purple” flair does not seams to stand so much out in the picture compared to real life. It is the purple surrounding the centre spot I am referring to):


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## lumenal (Dec 22, 2006)

whc-you sound exactly like me when I first clicked on this light! I also was saying WOW! I was definitely pleasantly surprised.

And I recognize that top beam profile - a nice round hotspot with a squarish corona; a product of that Fraen "frog-eye" lens. I love it!

As far as that purple "flair" you mentioned, if it bothers you, and you are able, exchange it. It doesn't look too bad to me, but the camera can be deceiving.
In fact, when I first purchased my light, it looked very white. And then when I compared it to some other Luxeons while "whitewalling" the LED Lenser looked "warmer"- sunny yellow. But I like it. It seems better for color rendition (at least to my eye.) In real world use,it just looks awesome! And boy does it crank out some light!

I really like the feel and threading, as well as the true momentary on. If Lowes( the store where I purchased this light) ever has a sale on these, I will definitely buy another. 

I run mine on Rayovac Hybrids (NiMH), and so far, so good. 

One of my favorite lights! I'm glad you like yours - Enjoy it!:rock:


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## whc (Dec 23, 2006)

Do this “Rayovac Hybrids” works just as well as normal NIMH batteries. I have bean thinking about buying some for my flashlights. Is it true that they don't discharge like normal NIMH?

I am defiantly hooked on this "colliminator lens" type flashlights, it is amazing how sharp the spot can get with this kind of lenses. Have to try a couple more with this kind of lenses, some more compact “ECD” flashlights. But I think it will be hard to top the Hokus Focus’s power beam.

Is there anyone who have bean able to get the head of this light? Would be fun to try this head on a 3watt LED ...

Anyway, have taken another picture, where the purple flair I have bean talking about stands more out. It’s the beam to the right (don’t think i can live with it in the long run):


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## Flying Turtle (Dec 23, 2006)

I think the beam looks good. Very uniform. I guess I've gotten used to seeing some purple or blue over the years, so it's not so bad. Outside the house it's probably not noticeable.

Geoff


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## lumenal (Dec 23, 2006)

Whc - the Rayovac Hybrids are supposed to work the same as regular NiMH - and the company says you can charge them in any charger. I have no complaints with these Hybrids. They have been working well in this light for me. I get a flatter discharge than with alkaline. I think Lite me is using them in his Hokus fokus, also.Check out the Rayovac website - they just updated it to include info on the Hybrids.

When I bought my light, the packaging has a little toggle switch where you can test the light. I picked what I thought was the best tint out of about 5 or 6 of them, after trying them all.

Take yours back and exchange it for another, since that purple "flair" isn't too appealing to you. I would guess you can't test the light before puchase? All the lights I tested seemed very white, no hint of purple. So there are very white ones out there, its just a matter of connecting with one...:twothumbs


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## ringzero (Dec 24, 2006)

lumenal said:


> When I bought my light, the packaging has a little toggle switch where you can test the light. I picked what I thought was the best tint out of about 5 or 6 of them, after trying them all.



I was at Lowes recently and picked up one of these lights and was looking it over. I pressed the little switch on the package without really thinking about it and WOWSER!

That thing temporarily blinded me, even though I wasn't looking directly at it when it came on, and I saw spots for a while afterward. I'm surprised the manufacturer sets up the packaging like that. Seems like they'd get complaints from customers with spots burned into their visual fields.


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## whc (Dec 25, 2006)

Just got the head of the Hokus Focus. It was hard, wary hard, several tries with all I had in me, holding on tight and tried to unscrew the top op the head. Success! It is glued and screwed on, no o-rings (though it looks like there is room for one), nor mirror of any kind, just that big aluminium heatsink, and the LED. Amazing that this kind of output is just due to the lens, wary simple.

Here are some pictures:













The plastic “screw” that are holding the lens in place, does actually have a wary thick/wide rubber o-ring, that are keeping water out from the lend and holes surrounding the head, a big plus in my book. All in all I am wary pleased with the overall quality, just don’t like not to be able to take the head off, some times when the light have bean out in the cold, and are taken inside in the warms, there can be created moisture inside the lens as well as outside. Now I can clan both the inside and outside, wary nice .


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## lumenal (Dec 25, 2006)

Great pictures whc - its good to see there is a decent heatsink. My light got reasonably warm when I ran it 15 or 20 minutes a couple times, now I see why. 

I have not taken the head off mine, however. Is it very easy to re-assemble?


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## whc (Dec 26, 2006)

lumenal said:


> Is it very easy to re-assemble?


 
No problems, just screw it on again, it is only hard the *first* time you screw the head off...


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## lightrod (Dec 26, 2006)

[I cannot for the life of me edit my post (#28) without it freezing up my system so I'll try here. Please refer to that post to make any sense of this one - I tried to get this at the end of it...]

Although I commented on the flood beam from the Coast as being not so great, I did not include the beam profile from the flood setting in the plots above. So here it is – I’m using the Amilite Neo as a “reference” plot since it’s middle of the road in terms output and beam characteristics (and also since I no longer have the particular plots above and did not want to take the time to re-create them!)







This shows what I do not like so much about the flood setting - still not very wide, and the darker center seen from the plot is very obvious in use (along with artifacts if viewing on a wall). As I stated however the spot/focus setting is pretty impressive.


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## ginaz (Dec 27, 2006)

whc, thanks for those pics! i may try to crack into mine tonite!


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## jch79 (Dec 27, 2006)

I thought MagLite had a patent on focusing beams, which is why we don't see them on other lights?? What's going on with that?


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## s13tsilvia (Dec 28, 2006)

due to running out of time before chrissy i got my old man one of these from anaconda for 90 bucks as he was constantly stealing my G&P Scorpian to harass the native wildlife with so now he has his own super bright led to play with. 
Super light in my books for the money


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## lumenal (Dec 28, 2006)

jch79 said:


> I thought MagLite had a patent on focusing beams, which is why we don't see them on other lights?? What's going on with that?


 
Doesn't the Streamlight Ultra-Stinger have a focusing beam? Besides that and this LED Lenser (Coast) it seems there may be others coming out that focus.

Maybe Mag's patent has expired?

s13tsilvia - glad you (and your father) like this light. 90 bucks from anaconda seems kinda pricey, though. Unless you're out of the States...

But regardless, it is a great light.:rock:


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## s13tsilvia (Dec 29, 2006)

lumenal said:


> Doesn't the Streamlight Ultra-Stinger have a focusing beam? Besides that and this LED Lenser (Coast) it seems there may be others coming out that focus.
> 
> Maybe Mag's patent has expired?
> 
> ...



yes im from good ol aussie land and everything is expensive here..


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## whc (Dec 29, 2006)

jch79 said:


> I thought MagLite had a patent on focusing beams, which is why we don't see them on other lights?? What's going on with that?



My Nuwai X-3 also has an adjustable focus, but does not work quite as good as the Hokus Fokus. I think that many LED flashlights in the future will have this feature, or so I hope …


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## martonic (Dec 29, 2006)

I'd like to see a throw comparison between this and the new Lumapower D-Mini which is about the same price.


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## TORCH_BOY (Dec 29, 2006)

Great photo's, These things appear to be made very well.
I have replaced my Q3 with the Hokus Focus Focusing LED Lenser


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## Fenris (Dec 31, 2006)

jch79 said:


> I thought MagLite had a patent on focusing beams, which is why we don't see them on other lights?? What's going on with that?



I think Maglite's patent only pertains to the cammed reflector they use. I think.


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## infoseeker (Jan 1, 2007)

whc said:


> Just got the head of the Hokus Focus. It was hard, wary hard, several tries with all I had in me, holding on tight and tried to unscrew the top op the head. Success! It is glued and screwed on, no o-rings (though it looks like there is room for one), nor mirror of any kind, just that big aluminium heatsink, and the LED. Amazing that this kind of output is just due to the lens, wary simple.
> 
> Here are some pictures:
> 
> ...


 
Yap... the reflector is upgraded
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=117051&highlight=lenser

and they "out" the one with "hole"


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## lumenal (Jan 2, 2007)

jhempelayo - interesting data, especially since I have both types...


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## dirt4fun (Jan 3, 2007)

I have just purchased a Coast LED Lenser TT7438CP and like it very much. I am thinking about purchasing one for each of my employees - we are on duty 24 hours and outside most of the time so we use flashlights extensively. Up against the standard light we are currently using this Coast light is amazing. 

I have one question.....is there some kind of sleeve (ie rubber, nylon etc which slips over the barrel) available for this light to enhance the grip esp in outdoor conditions? If not I will probably get them anyway, just wanted to check. 

Thanks


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## Lite_me (Jan 3, 2007)

dirt4fun said:


> I have just purchased a Coast LED Lenser TT7438CP and like it very much. I am thinking about purchasing one for each of my employees - we are on duty 24 hours and outside most of the time so we use flashlights extensively. Up against the standard light we are currently using this Coast light is amazing.
> *
> I have one question.....is there some kind of sleeve (ie rubber, nylon etc which slips over the barrel) available for this light to enhance the grip esp in outdoor conditions?* If not I will probably get them anyway, just wanted to check.
> 
> Thanks


You can cut sections of a proper sized bicycle inner tube and slide it over the barrel. Works pretty good.


----------



## tedjanxt (Jan 3, 2007)

> I have one question.....is there some kind of sleeve (ie rubber, nylon etc which slips over the barrel) available for this light to enhance the grip esp in outdoor conditions? If not I will probably get them anyway, just wanted to check.



As well as a bicycle tube, I've used heatshrink tubing on lights before and gotten greatly enhanced grip while not affecting performance...In fact it seems to work better on lights with more contours in the barrel than inner tubing.

Some people like the old paracord wrap too...


----------



## dirt4fun (Jan 4, 2007)

Great ideas...thanks


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## Lite_me (Jan 10, 2007)

whc: Or anyone else that has disassembled the head on the LED Lenser. 

My brother when out and picked up one of these after being blown away by it every time I brought it out. He dragged his feet cause he has roughly 30 flashlights ranging from an ARC-P to a 3 million candlepower monster with a shoulder strap.  He just had to have one. 

Well here's my question. After or during reassembly of the head have you noticed any difference in the beam of the light. i.e. Can you adjust the beam by loosening the head making the lens further from the LED. I'm asking because my brothers beam is different than mine. Not a great deal, not enough to look like a different flashlight, but enough. His has a more defined spot with less spill. In actual usage, it's not as impressive as mine. Mine just appears to put out much more light.

Mine just may be exceptional which helped to trigger the feeling of obligation to do a review. Whether you're a fan of Coast or not, you can not judge this model unless you try one out for yourself. It, mine anyways, is very impressive! It's my favorite flashlight.

So, can you adjust the beam characteristics with some manipulations of the head/LED? Seen any change after reassembly?
I can't get mine apart and don't want to try any harder unless needed.


----------



## whc (Jan 10, 2007)

Bought my self another one, because I liked this light wary much, but the beam was different, and the head was a bit different as well (little more space between bottom and top of the head), and the LED was not is bright, and the spot was bigger and more blurry? Got my money back...

It has a lot to do with the space between the lens and LED, the more space between the smaller spot/throw and less spill, I think there is a bit of difference between every light, my first was wary purple, got that exchanged to a wary white one (with better spot as well), then bought a new one that was less bright and with bigger spot and different in the head assembly.

Keep yours fingers crossed when buying this flashlight, and maybe try it out before, there is quite a difference between them I think. It is a great flashlight when you get the right one , I am though done with Led-Lenser, looking after another more durable flashlight now, with same throw, and one that can take some more beatings, and that is waterproof (Hokus Fokus is not weatherproof at all, and the lens in mine is beginning to break ewen though I have covered the flashlight in a rubber tube )…

See this picture of the lens in my Hokus Fokus starting to break:




It is not even caused by dropping the flashlight...


----------



## Lite_me (Jan 10, 2007)

whc: Thanks for the report. If there is more than expected differences in beam quality, light to light, there sure are a lot of buyers who like the flashlight once they get it home. They just haven't had the opportunity to compare it to another, and it's still impressive. Like I said, I may have got an exceptional one as I am pretty much blown away by it's output. 

Concerning the apparent cracking of your lens, you did take it all apart and could have damaged it in doing so or imparted some debree to the lens edge area causing it to crack after reassembly. Just a thought.


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## whc (Jan 10, 2007)

Lite_me said:


> whc: Thanks for the report. If there is more than expected differences in beam quality, light to light, there sure are a lot of buyers who like the flashlight once they get it home. They just haven't had the opportunity to compare it to another, and it's still impressive. Like I said, I may have got an exceptional one as I am pretty much blown away by it's output.
> 
> Concerning the apparent cracking of your lens, you did take it all apart and could have damaged it in doing so or imparted some debree to the lens edge area causing it to crack after reassembly. Just a thought.



[font=&quot]Yes it is a monster thrower, wary impressive, still am impressed when I change the batteries to fresh cells .

Nope, haven't taken it apart since I first unscrewed the head, that is a couple of weeks ago I think. The cracks was just there one day I looked at the lens, I think that the cold and rain may have bean to much for the lens . Works like a charm though, have no effect on the beam at all, but I will though ship it back to the store where I got it, and hopefully they will send me a (fingers crossed) new one with perfect beam and throw ...[/font]


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## lumenal (Jan 10, 2007)

Wow whc - that crack in the lens looks pretty ! Maybe when you put all that torque on the head while disassembling it, it may have been stressed enough to crack. I've used my light frequently for about 4 months and there is nary a scratch, and thats including stuffing it in my pocket without the sheath.

Liteme - I agree with you, this is my favorite flashlight. It blows away every Lux III I own. And everyone I show it to is impressed. The "power beam" of this light is like no other I have seen. I wonder if a Cree would work with this type of "frog-eye" optic. It certainly works blindingly well with a Luxeon.

And another thing; the rack at Lowes sells out of these $50 lights very quickly, while the MagLEDs just kind of sit there. That definitely says something.


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## Lite_me (Jan 11, 2007)

lumenal said:


> Wow whc - that crack in the lens looks pretty ! Maybe when you put all that torque on the head while disassembling it, it may have been stressed enough to crack. I've used my light frequently for about 4 months and there is nary a scratch, and thats including stuffing it in my pocket without the sheath.
> 
> Liteme - I agree with you, this is my favorite flashlight. It blows away every Lux III I own. And everyone I show it to is impressed. The "power beam" of this light is like no other I have seen. I wonder if a Cree would work with this type of "frog-eye" optic. It certainly works blindingly well with a Luxeon.
> 
> * And another thing; the rack at Lowes sells out of these $50 lights very quickly, while the MagLEDs just kind of sit there. That definitely says something.*


*Amen to that! *The same thing is happening at my local Lowe's also. I think they are being snatched up by word of mouth. Not all flashaholics surf the net.  But when Joe User picks one up and shows it to his neighbor, his neighbor gets one and shows it to his brother, and so on. You're not going to find anything to outperform this light locally, unless it's a specialty store. I'll bet they're blown away by this thing. I've got some nice flashlights and I'm even impressed. :thumbsup:


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## infoseeker (Jan 21, 2007)

whc said:


> See this picture of the lens in my Hokus Fokus starting to break:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



i tired some of them to drop in a cemented ground, kick it in the ground,  punishing with metal  but i did not get any cracked like that

(tried in 7736, 7461, 7731, 7745 all led lenser)


only my experienced


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## iowatollah (Jan 21, 2007)

I am very pleased with my Coast. It is everything everyone has mentioned on this thread. It does have one issue no one has brought up though. There is no way to lock it out. I prefer to pocket carry my lights but can't with the Coast. Scott


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## TeaQue (Jan 23, 2007)

I wish FLR would do a review of this light so I could see how the measurements compare to others.


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## TORCH_BOY (Jan 25, 2007)

I love mine, its much brighter than my Terralux K-2 MAG drop in


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## Nyctophiliac (Jan 25, 2007)

Casual Flashlight User said:


> Nice review...I'm tempted (but I always am).
> 
> Is that model number 7438? - It's one of the few lights that I could pick up for "American prices" in the UK.
> 
> ...




CFU - where? 

I can't find this in even the expensive shops!!




Be lucky...


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## AlexGT (Jan 25, 2007)

Want to hear an interesting project for this light?

Led lenser light + Seoul P4 U bin + Flupic 2.2 + 18500 li-ion = One incredible focusing light.

Do you think this is possible?

AlexGT


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## Russell52 (Feb 9, 2007)

Hi all,I took my Lenser apart today and was super disapointed,Heres why....

I figured for 50$ That it would have some sort of circuit in it,When in fact this POS does not,There for,it isnt worth 50$,But there looks like there is room in the head for a circuit,and I am going to try and slam a mag circuit in there,It should work out,Looking at it,it will.. Its just sad...

Bright light,But not worth 50$..


Russ


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## Russell52 (Feb 10, 2007)

Well I was able to get a mag upgrade circuit in it,and it was pushing well over 8 watts,But,it drained the 3aaa's down to nothing in under 10 min's ,:lolsign:,And they got a little warm as well,So I am off to the led shop to get one of those little buck pucks,and try that..


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## TeaQue (Feb 11, 2007)

Interesting....let us know what you find out!


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## soffiler (Feb 12, 2007)

lightrod said:


> Here's the runtime I got for the alkaline AAA's that the light came with as well as with Duracell NiMH:


 
By any chance, have the labels on those curves been accidentally switched? The pink diamonds have initially higher output (which means higher voltage in an unregulated light) and drop more steeply... those characteristics just scream Alkaline to me. Likewise, the blue line with lower initial output (lower voltage) but longer, slower drop... exactly what you expect from NiMH.


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## Lite_me (Feb 17, 2007)

soffiler said:


> By any chance, have the labels on those curves been accidentally switched? The pink diamonds have initially higher output (which means higher voltage in an unregulated light) and drop more steeply... those characteristics just scream Alkaline to me. Likewise, the blue line with lower initial output (lower voltage) but longer, slower drop... exactly what you expect from NiMH.


I agree with you here. It just doesn't look right. Too bad lightrod hasn't replied to verify.


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## ginaz (Feb 18, 2007)

current draw might be too much for the alkalines


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## lumenal (Feb 18, 2007)

Has anybody ever found out what the current draw is in this light?

And I wonder if this is a Lux III or a screamingly over-driven Lux I. The packaging states 3.44 maximum wattage, yet there is other indications to the contrary.

Russ - I wasn't surprised by your findings, given this light uses 3 AAA's in a carrier. Thats why I run it on NiMH....


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## FlashCrazy (Feb 18, 2007)

I agree, I think the graph is correct. The NiMH's can deliver more current than the alkalines, especially in this AAA format. Even though the alkalines have a higher initial voltage, they sag under load...at which time they'll be lower voltage than the NiMH's. In any case, the more I use this light, the more I love it! It puts out such a power beam that it feels like I'm waving around a 100 foot long light sabre!


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## FlashCrazy (Feb 19, 2007)

lumenal said:


> Has anybody ever found out what the current draw is in this light?
> 
> And I wonder if this is a Lux III or a screamingly over-driven Lux I. The packaging states 3.44 maximum wattage, yet there is other indications to the contrary.
> 
> Russ - I wasn't surprised by your findings, given this light uses 3 AAA's in a carrier. Thats why I run it on NiMH....


 

I just measured mine, running on 900 mAH NiMH batts....it was pulling 1200 mA at the start, decreased to ~1150 mA after a few seconds (at the tail). I measured it a few days ago also, I think then it was pulling around 850 mA or so after a bit of run time.


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## soffiler (Feb 19, 2007)

Hi Flashcrazy:

I believe you might be correct, and I was mistaken in my earlier post.

I did some quick-and-dirty measurements over the weekend and found:

* 650mA on medium-charged NiMH (Uniross 700mA-hr)
* 450mA on new? Alkalines (out of junk drawer, measuring 1.550-1.554V open circuit)
* 1200mA on known-fresh L92 Lithium

Looks like the internal resistance of the Alkaline is limiting current to a lower value than the NiMH. Doh - I shoulda known that.


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## lumenal (Feb 20, 2007)

FlashCrazy said:


> In any case, the more I use this light, the more I love it! It puts out such a power beam that it feels like I'm waving around a 100 foot long light sabre!


 
Flash - I'm with ya. I love the power beam of this light.

I wonder, based on your and Steve's current measurements, if this light is being way over-driven, that would lead to early LED failure. I guess we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

But then again, Coast offers a "lifetime warranty" with this light. And they do answer their phone, as I called months ago about whether Ni-MH was OK for this light. ( The lady said she'd "heard" of folks using rechargeables, but that so far Coast hadn't done any tests...)


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## soffiler (Feb 21, 2007)

lumenal said:


> Flash - I'm with ya. I love the power beam of this light.
> 
> I wonder, based on your and Steve's current measurements, if this light is being way over-driven, that would lead to early LED failure. I guess we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.
> 
> But then again, Coast offers a "lifetime warranty" with this light. And they do answer their phone, as I called months ago about whether Ni-MH was OK for this light. ( The lady said she'd "heard" of folks using rechargeables, but that so far Coast hadn't done any tests...)


 
Oh yeah, it's seriously overdriven. I re-tested on freshly charged NiMH and got a full 1000mA in the first few seconds, gradually tapering down to about 900mA over the first minute, and it's all just an even more gradual downhill from there for the next roughly 1.5 hours. I didn't get a voltage reading but knowing the characteristics of NiMH I'd say they're maintaining about 1.2V while delivering that 1000mA. So that's 3.6 watts overdriving the heck out of a poor LuxI (um... I'm _pretty sure_ it's a LuxI... somebody correct me if I'm wrong please).

On the brand-new and presumably fresh set of Coast-branded replacement Alkalines provided in the package, it fires off at 1400mA and rapidly tapers down to 1100mA in the first minute. That's even _worse_, at least in the first minute. That's as far as I took this little quickie test.

When I get a Round Tuit, I hope/plan to repower my 7438 with a Sandwich Shoppe board (Nexgen I believe) and a 1xCR123. I'll have to custom-machine some kind of spacer as the 123 and board will occupy far less room than the 3xAAA triangle pack. I just have to decide how hard to drive it. I'm thinking 500mA right now but the impressive throw on the tight-focus setting might not be quite as impressive...


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## ginaz (Feb 22, 2007)

i put a cree emitter in mine. it was bright but the lens projected a perfect image of the die. may try an edison when i get those.


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## redledz (Feb 23, 2007)

Just wanted to thank everyone for all the info on this light. I was at my Lowe's the other day and it was finally in stock. After about a minute of debate with the price, I said heck with it and bought it. I am very happy I got this light. The tint is nice with just a little tad of yellow around the edges, but no purple that I can see. The beam really is aggressive compared to my Task Force 2C. I lit up some deer very well with it in the woods. Later my wife came home, and I shined it on the truck from about 50 ft. When I got in, she said, well you're new one is pretty dang bright! hehe


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## ginaz (Feb 28, 2007)

i tested the led from the lenser today against some known led's i had laying around. it gave the exact same output as a known UW0K yet both lagged behind a SV1H @ 550ma.


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## TeaQue (Mar 3, 2007)

You guys still happy with your lights?

I love mine. My only gripe to date is the lack of waterproofing


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## Lite_me (Mar 3, 2007)

Sure...I still love it! It projects the best BEAM of light of any of the flashlights I own. I know there's some MONSTER lights out there (as seen in other threads here) but for a common consumer available everyday flashlight, it's outstanding! It's the light I'll grab if I hear something go 'bump in the night'.


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## whc (Mar 3, 2007)

Ever since I got my Lumapower M1 XR-E, the Hokus Fokus has laid convertibly in my drawer. It is still the best (I think) 3xAAA flashlight, but not one I would consider "heavy duty". Too thin aluminium, not waterproof, plastic lens,. But the output is just amazing .


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## soffiler (Mar 5, 2007)

TeaQue said:


> You guys still happy with your lights?
> 
> I love mine. My only gripe to date is the lack of waterproofing


 
No serious complaints here! I've only had it for a few months, but even the lack of waterproofing hasn't been a real issue for me. (I guess the fact of the matter is that I don't need a flashlight in wet conditions very often).

This is the light I strap to the outside of my EDC bag, and it is often the first light I reach for even though I've also got the P1D-CE in pocket. Actually, the Fenix only gets precedence when I'm out of reach of the bag.

I find myself using flashlights in daytime surprisingly often. For example just a couple days ago, during a heavy rain, the ceiling of our historic (read: old) factory building sprung a leak. Even though it was broad daylight and the room was brightly lit, it was hard to see beyond the hanging fluorescents. Couple-three guys standing around and squinting upward but not getting much accomplished. About three seconds with the Hokus-Fokus and the leak source was pinpointed.

Just literally a few minutes ago, as I pulled into the parking lot, I saw a co-worker with his hood raised. A hose had let go somewhere and he was poking around under-hood in the general blackishness that is the automotive engine compartment. (That's an environment we happen to specialize in, here at Central Tools.) Hokus-Fokus to the rescue again.

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, I hope to find some spare time one of these days to repower it to 1xCR123A. Debating with myself how hard I want to overdrive it. Knowing now how it runs on fresh cells, I'm abandoning my original idea to go 500mA, and thinking 750 instead. In the meantime, I'm running 700mAh NiMH with a spare set of alkalines in the bag.


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## VidPro (Mar 6, 2007)

if you try and wedge a 18650 into a 3AAA light, you need to remove ~20mm somewhere. because of the back tail switch it might be rather difficult to aquire the xtra space there.

that leaves trying to get the extra space at the head end. which somebody said there is room for a curcuit. so if instead a person used that as room for the battery, and resistered, or used a diode or something to drop a bit of the voltage.

or
http://www.batteryspace.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1335
this battery should fit. (note you probably would have to MOD something else to get it to WORK, and it is not a protected battery) but it would have almost 2X the power of your usual AAA rechargable junk.


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## Nyctophiliac (Mar 14, 2007)

soffiler said:


> but even the lack of waterproofing hasn't been a real issue for me. (I guess the fact of the matter is that I don't need a flashlight in wet conditions very often).




That's what I thought! The key thing is you might one day...

In fact the very day I bought my Hokus/Police/Focus etc. I took it down to the dark and windy beach for a good total darkness test. I am very happy with the two focus stages. The spot throws for a good distance and pierces the night sky with satisfying power ( Cue lightsabre impressions when nobody is near!) and the flood is of the type which a projector would throw, a sort of much wider,brighter and actually useful old style INOVA X1 type of beam. Very uniform and artifact free. Good for shadow puppets I would think. Very good for night time navigation on rocky terrain.

Anyway I was a good half hour along the beach and from my warm cosy family when the rain started. Early February rain. Cold. Windy. Miserable. In. The. Dark. (I thought it was snow at times because the drops were so big and the transit was so horizontal!)

Well, the only thing going through my mind was, "this torch isn't waterproof in any way!!" And I am ashamed to admit, that rather than have an impromptu real world test of my shiny new torch. I put it away deep in my pocket and walked back home with the aid of my SF C2 KL3. Which although it was waterproof enough, the lack of spill on it's thin but powerful beam made it a tricky and claustrophobic journey home. Next time I take out the Hokus I will carry a ziplock bag with me just in case!!!


Incidentally, I was drenched to the bone when I got home, but the Hokus in my pocket was only a little damp and still works fine. The KL3 wanted to go for a swim but I declined and it sulked in the corner for an hour before joining us at the fire.

Anybody got any ideas on DIY waterproofing?




Be lucky...


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## soffiler (Mar 14, 2007)

Nyctophiliac said:


> ...Anyway I was a good half hour along the beach and from my warm cosy family when the rain started. Early February rain. Cold. Windy. Miserable. In. The. Dark. (I thought it was snow at times because the drops were so big and the transit was so horizontal!)
> 
> Well, the only thing going through my mind was, "this torch isn't waterproof in any way!!" ...
> 
> Anybody got any ideas on DIY waterproofing?


 
Well, let's start at the basics. Disclaimer - I haven't even opened mine up yet (the head, I mean) but much earlier in this thread I seem to recall someone did. The question here is: WHERE would it leak from? The tailcap has an O-ring. So I assume there's a problem in the head. Is it the lens area or the thread area? If it's threads, then the first thing I would suggest is some thick sticky grease applied liberally. This literally fills all the voids between the mating threads and makes it quite difficult for water to get past. It's not SUBMERSIBLE but aren't we simply going for rainproof/splashproof and maybe dunkable? And don't forget, there's not much inside there that really cares if it gets wet to begin with. No circuits (unless you plan to mod). If water does get in during a waterproofness test, just open it up and let it dry.


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## Nyctophiliac (Mar 14, 2007)

Yeah, Soffiler, it is the head that leaks.

I tried a suction test and a balloon test on it and it's a quick leak too.

Maybe I could fill the cracks up with silicon or thick grease and also maybe water ingress wouldn't damage too much inside ultimately (although some exposed metal will oxidize unless cleaned and dried sensitively) but...it's a real shame that for such a good torch which is far better suited to exterior pursuits (where it often can be cold and wet) than interior (mostly warm and dry apart from caves and sewers etc.) that Led Lenser didn't think to make it water resistant. Even Mags are designed with water resistance, most Led Lensers (and I've a wide selection of them myself!!) aren't. It's a bit annoying.

I like this torch very much, I'm just not blind to its flaws.


Thanks for the ideas though,





Be lucky...


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## soffiler (Mar 14, 2007)

Hey Nyctophiliac:

The head that leaks... but is it the where the lens meets the head, or where the threads meet the body???

Oh, and pardon my ignorance, but how do you conduct the suction test and balloon test?


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## Nyctophiliac (Mar 14, 2007)

Ah...

I was afraid you'd ask that.

Suction test ( I don't know if its the same as the one at LED Museum) is unscrewing tailcap and removing batteries then sticking torch in mouth and blowing and sucking, nasty as it seems you can tell if there if air going in or out.

Balloon test. Blow up balloon. Do not tie off. Place around torch (no tailcap or batt pack as before) tie off with tape. The balloon will deflate at a rate denoted by the leak. e.g.: visibly deflate for Hokus. Not at all for SF C2 w KL3.

Not too scientific but it passes the time and gets strange looks from everybody. 

I suppose that the leak must, therefore, be in the head rather than the threads.


Be lucky...


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## soffiler (Mar 14, 2007)

OK then! Frankly, I had already figured out the suction test, and tried it myself. Gotta make sure no one is looking...

My results were better than yours. I didn't detect any leakage with the suction test. Now I gotta go find a balloon...


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## Nyctophiliac (Mar 14, 2007)

Maybe my mouth leaks! :lolsign:


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## EngrPaul (Mar 15, 2007)

I just picked up one based on this thread. Wow! I can't believe I walked by it in the store so many times. It's definitely a flashlight worth having. Thanks for the runtimes and the disassembly tips.


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## EngrPaul (Mar 15, 2007)

Even better, the head unscrews real easy for access to the emitter... a Seoul will be in there shortly... it's already very bright with a Luxeon, I can't wait! :rock: :duck:


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## FlashCrazy (Mar 15, 2007)

EngrPaul said:


> Even better, the head unscrews real easy for access to the emitter... a Seoul will be in there shortly... it's already very bright with a Luxeon, I can't wait! :rock: :duck:


 
I have Seouls on the way too....one is predestined to go into the Coast. Like you said, this is really a light worth having!

You mentioned the head unscrews easily. I tried to unscrew mine before (just by hand), but didn't want to mess up the focusing system. So I just need to try harder and it'll unscrew? I have strap wrenches, if needed.


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## EngrPaul (Mar 15, 2007)

Just keep unscrewing by hand.

In a few minutes I will have pictures and comparison beamshots. Stay tuned.


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## EngrPaul (Mar 15, 2007)

I think I have a new favorite flashlight folks  

Here's what it looks like after the mod:







Notice I added an o-ring at the base of the threads so that the head is more water resistant, and also so that the bezel fits on tight without loctite. There's a .015" copper disc under the new Seoul P4 USW0H emitter. 





Wow, this is really made high quality inside! I don't expect any flickering - ever!





Head-shot with the Seoul 





COMPARISON BEAMSHOTS

To the left is a Fenix P1D-CE on high, to the right is the Coast LED Lenser with SSC-P4-U-W0 upgrade:





Same shot, underexposed two stops:





REFERENCE PICTURE OF THE P1D-CE ON HIGH, MANUAL EXPOSURE LOCKED





Coast LED-Lenser SSC Tightest focus beam (exposure still locked manual)





Coast LED-Lenser SSC halfway focus beam (exposure still locked manual)





Coast LED-Lenser SSC Widest focus beam (exposure still locked manual)


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## EngrPaul (Mar 15, 2007)

I measured the current at the tailcap with the supplied 3xAAA Alkalines (which were in the display package where people can turn it on and off). 0.66A

Some pictures down the hallway on locked exposure (about 1+1/2 stops underexposed)

Fenix P1D-CE (High) - 3.0V Primary CR123A (BatteryStation)






Coast LED-Lenser - With supplied cheapie Alkalines (3AAA)
TIGHTEST BEAM FOCUS





Coast LED-Lenser - With supplied cheapie Alkalines (3AAA)
HALFWAY BEAM FOCUS





Coast LED-Lenser - With supplied cheapie Alkalines (3AAA)
FULL WIDE FOCUS


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## FlashCrazy (Mar 15, 2007)

WOW!! Excellent pics, EngrPaul. Thanks for taking the time to do that! Now I can't wait for my Seoul emitters to come in. Thanks for the tip on getting the head off, I'll try it in a bit. 

I do like the quality of this particular Coast, even if Coast gets belittled around here. This version is near the top of the food chain. 

I just got done shining around a Glimt K2, Cree Elly, Ultrafire 601-A (2 AA), Cree Ristoft, and MTE Seoul P4-U in the back yard. I'm sure the neighbors think I'm nuts! Just wait til I slap a Seoul in the Coast...then they'll see..LOL.


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## TeaQue (Mar 15, 2007)

Wow thats awesome!

I wish you would have taken some before and after beamshots though 

All these mods make me want to send one of you guys my light and pay you to do the same thing to mine!


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## EngrPaul (Mar 15, 2007)

TeaQue said:


> Wow thats awesome!
> 
> I wish you would have taken some before and after beamshots though
> 
> All these mods make me want to send one of you guys my light and pay you to do the same thing to mine!


 
I might swing by and pick up a couple more, then I can do side-by-side pix.

Then I'll upgrade them and sell them here. Only problem is, it cost me nearly $55 once I pay sales tax each, I'd have to sell them for upwards of $90 shipped to make it worth my while. I personally think the flashlight is worth that much but most people probably won't.


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## qip (Mar 15, 2007)

i wonder how long it will take for them to go on clearance at lowes  from $49 to $29


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## EngrPaul (Mar 16, 2007)

qip,

that would be awesome.


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## TeaQue (Mar 16, 2007)

Holy crap, after looking closely at your pics again, it looks like even on wide focus the Hokus Fokus is brighter than the P1D CE!


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## EngrPaul (Mar 16, 2007)

TeaQue said:


> Holy crap, after looking closely at your pics again, it looks like even on wide focus the Hokus Fokus is brighter than the P1D CE!


 

Uh, oh... I made another "Holy Crap" light :laughing:

Just think if new batteries or Lithium AAA's were used.


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## FlashCrazy (Mar 16, 2007)

qip said:


> i wonder how long it will take for them to go on clearance at lowes  from $49 to $29


 
That'd be great! One of the first lights that got me sucked into this expensive hobby was a Coast V2 Tac Torch. I got it at Costco for $19. I used it at work (aircraft mechanic) and many of my coworkers gave me money to get them one...everyone loved it. The fact that we got free batteries at work was a plus. Now the same light is $39-$49 wherever you can find it. I still have two of them, and they're gonna get Seouls too! That's another great Coast light though...I love the optics in the Coast lights.


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## qip (Mar 16, 2007)

actually as i googled you can use 20% off coupons from homedepot for lowes cause lowes will honor it for price match ..good info , and when i use to work as a cashier years back i know that you may not even need the coupon you just need the last 4-6 digits under the barcode and the cash register will will automatically ring it up but some barcodes you need the whole number as a just incase


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## EngrPaul (Mar 16, 2007)

...


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## soffiler (Mar 16, 2007)

Hey EngrPaul - 

Just wondering whether you've given any thought to regulation. I've been mulling over a drop-in module with 1xCR123A and something from the Shoppe, Nexgen I think. I've also been thinking SSC myself, since someone already tried a Cree with less than acceptable results. Plus we already know the Cree emission pattern doesn't match the Lux pattern which this optic was developed for, but SSC is closer. I'm also thinking about current... something in the 750mA ballpark sounds about right...

Any thoughts?


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## EngrPaul (Mar 16, 2007)

Charged up 6 NiMH batteries of the same brand and lot.

Put 3 & 3 in a stock Lenser and SSC-upgraded lenser. 

You will notice that the Seoul makes a bigger footprint, it's because it's a bigger LED die.

The current measurements at the tailcap with NiMH are 1.00A for the Luxeon, 0.81A for the Seoul. 

About 200 lumens? Pretty darn close!

"Before and after upgrade" pictures, tight focus and wide focus, full exposure and -2:


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## EngrPaul (Mar 16, 2007)

Regulation? Bah, carry extra batteries, change them when it dims...


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## TeaQue (Mar 16, 2007)

Thats just awesome!


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## EngrPaul (Mar 16, 2007)

Here's how I converted it to Seoul (PART 1).

Grab the head and tail. Turn the bezel counterclockwise relative to the body. It stops. Now turn harder. For me, the first one I could do by hand, this one required rubber strap wrenches:





Clean the locktite crap out of the threads:





Determine which lead is (+) and (-), mark them as such:





Unsolder the two little wires from the emitter:





Carefully pry the emitter from the base:





Clean the base by lightly scraping the old epoxy off (don't throw up burrs of metal which will short later) and then isopropyl alcohol on a cotton swab to get the little pieces:





Mix-up some two-part Arctic Silver epoxy, and smash flat a copper disc. I used 1/4" diameter and .015" thick disc of CU110. Important: smash the disc FLAT using smooth jawed vice or similar. Do not use a hammer.





Evenly apply a thin layer of this mixed epoxy:





Sit the copper disc on the epoxy and lightly tap it into the epoxy. Important: Do not push it the whole way down to the metal base. Try to keep it flat so the emitter isn't tilted later.





Let the epoxy cure for about 15 minutes. Check to make sure you do NOT have continuity between the copper and the base. If you do measure continuity, then remove the copper disc immediately and start over at the step where you clean the base.





Now go do something else for a while. Let the epoxy continue to cure for a couple hours at least. Then check that there is no continuity one more time.

(to be continued...)


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## EngrPaul (Mar 16, 2007)

Now that you've patiently waited for the epoxy to become very rigid, you can now install the emitter.

For this application, you'll need to trim the leads shorter like the Luxeon you took off. Note the unique terminal with the fork "U", this is the (-) terminal (cathode):





Mix up a fresh spot of epoxy, and apply a thin coat to the top of the copper disc:





Install the emitter on top of the epoxy with the correct polarity. On the P4, the side with the short "U" terminal is (-).





If you have Kapton Tape with silicone backing, you can apply it as shown (not too tight!) to help make sure the epoxy under the emitter displaces as much as possible. You WANT the emitter to have good contact with the copper this time, remember: you already took care of isolation UNDER the copper disc. This way, the heat from the emitter will readily travel into the copper disc, and then travel across the copper to be evenly distributed through the lower epoxy layer.




Wait a couple more hours. This time you want the epoxy to fully harden before turning on the emitter, creating heat and possibly making the epoxy bubble or interrupting the cure process.

After waiting, remove the tape, re-solder the wires, put the bezel back on. Turn the bezel real hard so that the head goes back into the range of focusing.

Enjoy, and DO NOT look into the lens at any time!


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## VidPro (Mar 16, 2007)

ENGRPAUL
great stuff. one question, cant we just hack the top off that heat sync , so wiring it up isnt done through the little thread a needle slits?
and/or so a cree would sit on there without hacking the square cree base to shreds?

is there any real purpose to the WELL they put on the top there, other than an easy way for some machine or human to align it? if it was just a flat top, would anything then work incorrectaly?

in fact if you hacked the top off the heat sync, couldnt you plop a STAR there even?

Question #2
you electrically isolated the emitter base, for a good reason probably, what does the emmitter base connect to? the + or the - or something in between?


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## EngrPaul (Mar 16, 2007)

VidPro, 

One question? :laughing: 

Why would you want to put a Cree in there? I bet it won't focus. Do you have any candle-mode crees to try inside the optic?

The crest of the heat sink is to align the emitter. I suppose you can hack them off. 

The emitter base connects to (+). The base potentially connects to the (-) of the battery, which can short things out!


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## VidPro (Mar 16, 2007)

EngrPaul said:


> VidPro,
> 
> One question? :laughing:
> 
> ...



because a Seul is more blue than a cree, and blue is not as usefull outdoors.

i have had good luck with OPTICS and crees, 80% of the optics work with cree, wheras only 50% of the reflectors did. they were reflectors lying about because i did NOT use them, so i cant be sure if they would work good for anything 

if i have to MOD something AGAIN, having a raw blank top on there, that takes no additional effort, is thinking ahead, that is kinda why i just wanna stuff some star on/in stuff. then you just peel it of with a screwdriver and plers and put in this week new tech junk.


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## EngrPaul (Mar 16, 2007)

Photon Fanatic is selling V0 color emitters, they shouldn't be blue. See dealer's corner


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## VidPro (Mar 16, 2007)

ahhh.
your WO in this pic
http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r299/EngrPaul2/LenserSSC/P1D_CE_Vs_LenserSSC_Throw.jpg
is yellower than the P1-CE

i am so confused. i want the most light PER WATT, with the tightest emitter size, with the most pre-focused dome on the emitter , like 50* preferable.
I thought that watt for watt , (the latest) cree was brighter than seul, not to mention cheaper.
and i though the seul was getting its extra brightness LOOK from being like a cheap china led , blasing in blue with little phosphors.


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## lumenal (Mar 16, 2007)

Wow, EngrPaul, most excellent pictures of the upgrade. You make it look so easy. 

I've had this particular Coast/Led Lenser for about 4 or 5 months and have been very impressed with it, direct drive and all. (I just run Ni-MH). In fact, I just bought a second one a couple weeks ago. I love the power beam of this particular "frog-eye" optic, (Fraen,probably.)

And I thought this light was bright. Your creation makes it look about 3 or 4 times as bright! Unbelieveable! 

I'm sure that those of us that own this light are drooling over your SSC Lenser, I know I am. 

And it would be nice to mod it like shown, but I'm way down in the minor leagues compared to this professional modification !! But those pics/details don't get any better as shown, so....

:goodjob: on the SSC Lenser!!:rock:


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## adirondackdestroyer (Mar 18, 2007)

I have to say that 3AAA lights pretty much make me sick, but for some reason I really want one of these! The output looks incredible on Engrpaul's mod! It's driving the LED at 810ma, right? Pretty impressive that it is being driven less than the luxeon version but appears at least twice as bright! 


What kind of runtime are you getting with three NIMH cells?


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## EngrPaul (Mar 18, 2007)

adirondackdestroyer said:


> I have to say that 3AAA lights pretty much make me sick, but for some reason I really want one of these! The output looks incredible on Engrpaul's mod! It's driving the LED at 810ma, right? Pretty impressive that it is being driven less than the luxeon version but appears at least twice as bright!
> 
> 
> What kind of runtime are you getting with three NIMH cells?


 
It's direct drive, so the emitter is getting all 810 mA! It's pushing around 180 something lumens, but keep in mind that's not regulated.

There is runtime charts earlier in this thread, I have not done a test. Add about 20% due to the fact the Seoul uses less current than the Luxeon.


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## ace0001a (Mar 19, 2007)

Yup, did the mod over a month ago. I didn't use the copper slug though and as it turns out, didn't need. Had the the power go out and had it running for over an hour without any heat problems. This is a fantastic flashlight!


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## whc (Mar 20, 2007)

Just got me a Lux Meter today, and thanks to Quickbeam at Flashlightreviews.com (http://www.flashlightreviews.com/fe...tbox_output.htm) I was able to make a device using a milk carton and some aluminium foil (I then reinforced it using corkboard) to measure the "Overall Output".

Here is some results of Overall Output in Lux:

_Led-Lenser Hokus Fokus:_
3xAAA Ni-Mh: *4850* Lux

Now just to compare:

_ Amilite T5:_
1xRCR123A 3.0v on high: *8340* Lux
1xRCR123A 3.7v on high: *10910* Lux
_Lumapower M1:_
1x18650 XR-E OP: *8140* Lux
2xRCR123A 3.7v XR-E OP: *8950* Lux
1x18650 SSC P4 OP: *5540* Lux
2xRCR123A 3.7v SSC P4 OP: *8230* Lux
_Lumapower LP-Mini:_
1xRCR123A 3.7v OP: *7810* Lux
_ Lumapower M3:_
1xAA on high: *3640* Lux
2xAA on high: *4300* Lux
1x14500 on high: *5880* Lux
1xRCR123A on high: *4390* Lux
_ Fenix L1D-CE:_
1xAA on high: *3990* Lux
1x14500 on high: *8240* Lux
_Ultrafire WF-500L:_
2x18650 3.7v: *4660* Lux
_Nuwai X-3:_
2xAA Ni-Mh: *3020* Lux


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## soffiler (Mar 21, 2007)

(This is actually a reply I drafted in response to EngrPaul's comments about regulation or lack thereof in post #114... been trying to post it as a response for days now, and my system locks every time. Trying this as a Quick Reply instead)

Hi EngrPaul:

Here's why I think a mod with a regulator is a good idea. The problem with alkaline AAA is that, at the relatively high drain rate the Coast imposes, the poor things have just 1/3 the energy capacity of a AA, yet they cost exactly the same. AAA cells are never a good deal financially when you look at it this way. In my humble opinion, AAA cells really belong in 1xAAA light formats where their small size is THE advantage (because operating cost never will be). 1xAAA lights aren't about the power, they're about size and weight and convenience. The problem with the Coast is that it definitely IS about the power, and AAA is simply not an economical cell.

Let's look at hard numbers (capacity numbers drawn from Energizer data sheets and cost numbers drawn from websites popular with CPF'rs).

Name-brand AA and AAA cells tend to cost around $0.40 each. Lithium AA (L91) and AAA (L92) tend to cost around $2.00 each.

The capacity of an alkaline AAA at the approximate drain rate several of us have measured on the Coast is about 0.3 W-hr, and at $0.40 each, you are paying $1.33 per W-hr.

The capacity of a lithium AAA (L92) is about 1.25 W-hr and at $2 each, you are paying even more than alkaline at $1.60 per W-hr.

Now let's assume for a moment that an appropriate adapter can be fabricated to hold a boost driver and a single CR123A. A US- or Japanese-made CR123A can be found online for around $1.75 each and driving the Coast equally as hard as the alkaline, the capacity of the CR123A will be around 3.1 W-hr less converter efficiency (assume 80%) so make that 2.5 W-hr. The cost is $0.70 per W-hr, about half the cost of alkaline AAA. And the cost is even lower still if you happen to have a favorite Chinese CR123A.

Another smart way to go, cost-wise, would be NiMH AAA. Interestingly, a rack of three good-quality NiMH AAA will have roughly 2.5 W-hr of capacity, so runtimes would be roughly comparable to the CR123A mod. (That happens to be how I am running my Coast at the moment.)

But I still like the idea of constant light output that you'll only get through regulation. At build time, you can select the relationship between light output and runtime by swapping sense resistors on the regulator board, which you can't do with direct-drive. And, you end up with the excellent shelf-life and wide temperature range performance of lithium.


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## EngrPaul (Mar 21, 2007)

I agree it would be nice if this flashlight was a different battery format. I don't like fiddling with those 3-AAA cartridges. I use NiMH AAA's, so the cost doesn't bother me. However, they are direct drive, so I get 100% of the battery power going to the emitter. 

What other flashlight is the same as the Coast but takes other cells?


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## soffiler (Mar 21, 2007)

> What other flashlight is the same as the Coast but takes other cells?


 
Not sure I understand the question, unless of course it's rhetorical. As far as I know there IS nothing else like the Coast 7438.

I've got a Nexgen coming from the Shoppe and I hope to fabricate a cartridge for it plus a 1xCR123A that will completely replace the 3xAAA cartridge. I'm going for 650mA output which I think is going to be about as hard as I can hope to pull on a 1xCR123A, and even then I might be pushing it. Looking for about 30-40 minutes in regulation and another 20-30 on top of that. Oh, of course, a SSC P4 U-bin is part of the deal. With losses accounted (elevated junction temperature, optics inefficiency) I'm projecting 130 lumens; these are real-world lumens like Surefire talks about, directly measurable in an IS. It'll be more like 155 with a fresh battery and a cold junction.


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## EngrPaul (Mar 23, 2007)

If your light won't work, double-check that you soldered the terminals you cut shorter, not the two that were already stubs. They aren't connected. In the picture above, you want to solder the terminals at 2:00 and 8:00.


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## infoseeker (Mar 25, 2007)

EngrPaul

my time is so tight in my work so i have no time to study all what you have done with "funky-lucky" hokus focus

i read a little bit here
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?p=1911862

My question is:
is it still the same LED you use or you get from other brand?
is the copper you put below the LED dont need to contact to any metal inside?


thanks in advance


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## VidPro (Apr 8, 2007)

ENgPaul, can you get the Tailcap apart?
most of the coasts that i modded, the tailcap is pure heck to remove. mabey a better way to say it is, I CANT get the dang things off without ruining stuff.

i have a 2way switch that i THINK might wedge in there.

the cree has a smaller emitter, and more importantally with aspehrical/optical mods, i find that if the led has some direction already, that can be important, you dont want the light going into side of the flashlight tube, it needs to head to the lens in this situation.
so i was thinking (again) about stuffing a cree in.

While the coast models have a normal clickee that can do momentary, they have not done much in the way of levels.

EVERY light should:
Focus (wide or spot)
have levels
Have some sorta battery juice, relative to the container.
should knock your sox off in power
yet still be able to run for an entier night. or day as needed without more stuff.

because this has the focus aspect, that leaves stuffing some way to have easy user controlled levels, and something to replace the little aaa battery.

I dont have one of these yet, mostly because i have enough dang lights, and not enough money. but if i could do EVERYTHING a light should have, i would take a crack at it. I have modded too many 3xAAAs, they all have everything BUT focus.


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## EngrPaul (Apr 8, 2007)

@jhempelayo,
I think the answer to your question is in that post. 

@VidPro,
I never tried getting into the switch area. I am curious whether or not it's waterproofed in there. If it is, then it might put an o-ring between the optic and the bezel for a fully water resistant flashlight. As for the 2 level switch, that would be a good idea. I don't know what will fit. I might try looking in the tailcap later today.


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## VidPro (Apr 8, 2007)

http://www.judcomfg.com/PButton.htm
see the ones in the center, they are PCB mount type on1-off-on2, they come in 1/2 Square sized, and are only rated for .5a but they work good for the led things.
i know of that one, and i am sure it would wedge in there, its a bit of "ART" to get things all aligned and all, take off the rounded top, align the length, add or subtract from button length. but its a pastability.

or better here, http://www.judcomfg.com/FlatPacCat.htm
is the one i have used often (scroll down to the bottom, its the second to the last item)
j-977-5
mabey there exists one that does momentary too,these do not, although most coast switches DO. one would lose one thing to gain another.


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## Pumaman (Apr 8, 2007)

Picked one up today while at Lowes(I shouldn't keep spare seoul emitters around and won't be so tempted). did the seoul mod and am VERY impressed. There are some minor flaws with this light IMO (3xAAA, single stage, direct drive, type II anodizing). but there is something to be said for focusing optics. really projects an interesting beam, and can't wait to walk around tonight seeing how it compares. will add it to the beamshot thread after dark hopefully as well.

now I imagine small high quality optics to collminate light from small new LEDs(rebel?) adding a whole new level of throw and effective illumination from tiny lights?
The future Conan?


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## Pumaman (Apr 8, 2007)

also, is there an anodized bare(silver) version of this light around?


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## chrome-addict (Apr 18, 2007)

Has there been any beamshot comparisons between this light and the D-Mini? I did some extensive searching and couldn't find anything.


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## FlashCrazy (Apr 18, 2007)

There will be as soon as I get my replacement module from Lumapower for my D-Mini! The original one worked for about a minute then died.  Hopefully it'll be here any day now.


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## soffiler (Apr 18, 2007)

Hey FlashCrazy:

Just wondering... earlier in this thread you were talking about getting a SSC P4 into your Coast. Did that ever happen? That will make a real difference when you put it up against the D-Mini.

I just recently put a Seoul in my Coast. Actually I haven't experienced the full effect yet, because my Coast is still running on NiMH at the moment and they're due for a charge (which is a hassle because my cheap charger needs pairs so I've gotta discharge a fourth AAA before I can recharge them all). I'm not too motivated to do the recharge song-and-dance because I've got a Nexgen 650mA waiting, and I am looking forward to building a 1xCR123A module with it.


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## FlashCrazy (Apr 18, 2007)

soffiler said:


> Hey FlashCrazy:
> 
> Just wondering... earlier in this thread you were talking about getting a SSC P4 into your Coast. Did that ever happen? That will make a real difference when you put it up against the D-Mini.


 
Yep, sure did! Plus I've sold quite a few with that mod. Here's the thread: https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/157634&page=1


The 123 mod should be interesting, but you're gonna get less runtime. On AAA's, the SSC modded Coast pulls 1000 mA. On a RCR123, I'd expect 35-40 min runtime. On NiMH AAA's, I'm getting right at an hour. You should get an independent channel NiMH charger. I'm using a Titanium TG-2800. You can throw anywhere from 1 to 4 batteries on it, all different states of charge if that's the case, no problem. It charges and terminates each cell independently. No more trying to match cells before putting them on the charger. It (or something like it) is the perfect match for any light using 3 cells.


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## soffiler (Apr 18, 2007)

Yeah, if I was going to stick with NiMH I would _definitely_ get an independent channel charger. But, for me personally 1) I like the CR123A format and already carry spares for EDC's P1D-CE and Pelican M1; 2) my Coast gets used a bit less freqently and I don't like dealing with the self-discharge of NiMH (but, I guess, eneloops would take care of that); and 3) I have a strong preference for a regulated light over a DD.

Not to mention that my planned mod will be a self-contained drop-in with sleeve, CR123A, and driver, so I will still have the original 3xAAA carrier that I can use whenever I want, with whatever AAA I want. BTW, ever try L92's? I did, briefly, once: 1200ma. That was the original Lux.


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## FlashCrazy (Apr 18, 2007)

Sounds neat, you'll have to keep us posted! I like regulated lights too, but from what I've observed, using NiMH batteries gives you a really flat discharge curve...semi-regulated I guess one could say. But full regulation can't be beat! I've never tried L92's...if I did, I didn't know...lol. What are L92's?


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## soffiler (Apr 18, 2007)

L92's are primary lithium AAA's which run about 1.7 volts when very fresh, but pull down pretty quick to 1.5V so they are normally considered a direct drop-in replacement for alkaline. They have a reasonably flat discharge curve, not quite like NiMH but way better than alky. They can withstand pretty large drain rates, they store substantially more energy than alky, and they have the same shelf-life and cold-temp properties that help make the 3-volt primary Li chemistry popular. Downside: AFAIK the Chinese haven't started producing them yet, Energizer brand is the only game in town, and therefore they cost about $8 for a 4-pack almost anywhere you find them. They are pretty common; I see them at Home Depot and Lowe's, and probably Wal-Mart (but I never set foot in that place), Target, etc etc.

I run my SMJLED-modded Soli on an L92, and my wife's AAA-P.


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## FlashCrazy (Apr 18, 2007)

Ahh ok, I know the AAA lithium primaries. I haven't tested the modded Coast with them, though. I'll have to pick some up and do some current testing, to see what it'll run the LED at. I was at Lighthound.com earlier today and did notice that they have Chinese lithium primaries. I think it was the AA size, not sure if they have the AAA's.


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## soffiler (Apr 19, 2007)

FlashCrazy-thanks for the tip on Lighthound. I honestly hadn't seen any Chinese 1.5V Li before now. They've got AAA:

http://www.lighthound.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=2191


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## VidPro (Apr 23, 2007)

Weird, at first i couldnt get the head off with strap wrench, then left it outside overnight, and it poped right off without a strap wrench, i think it might have had something to do with moisture in the air?

so i gotta get this thing apart further than normal, to get rid of that nasty curcuit 

so here is a continuance of the dissasembly. (captions below)






the rest of the dissasembly of the head, i pointed out which part is rubber, the insert that holds the lens in and the rubber band there is plastic.
notice how in this model there is the HOLES for light to go out, but they are BLOCKED? that is rather strange for the coasts?


also on this pic of the lens, you can see what might look like cracks or aberations in the lens, and its the clip off point from the Mold, not a crack or aberation. so it looks like it would be normal for every lens to have a small section that looks different.






i couldnt put in one LONG picture, so the long picture is done in stages, that is the head module





then these last 2 parts are the ones that do the twising of the head up and down.




see the head stationary locks down into the battery tube, then the piece above it there, is what moves down over the battery tube, changing the distance to the lens.

i think you can see where all the orings are , its just that band of rubber on the front that might have looked like plastic instead of a seal.


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## VidPro (Apr 23, 2007)

stuffing a 18650 in poses 3 visable problems



even if the curcuit was evacuated out of the head, without some tailspace, its not going to fit, must get into the tail cap.





putting a 18650 in there without altering the contact point of the battery, would short things out quickly.
at the least raising of the center contact point would be required.




and just in case there isnt ENOUGH problems with getting a real battery in the thing, you can see that the backside also would need something removed, or a insulation ring added or something, as this too would make undesirable contact. OR could be used as one of them 2 level things by unscrewing the end.
it is obvious if i am going to get anywhere, and aquire SPACE for real battery juice, i am going to have to get into the tailcap.


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## VidPro (Apr 23, 2007)

first i go back one, and show you the mold cut aberation that is on the lens, hopefully you can see it in this pic.




you find something like this on all of them plastic optics, i dont think its a big deal, just showing it , so if you wonder what that is


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## VidPro (Apr 23, 2007)

ok now the bloody tailcap, after bending 2 tools, 2 rivet nails, and 2 pannelling nails, if finally drilled the holes out further on in this brass like stuff, and shoved 2 drill bits in.
then THAT didnt work, so i heated it up with the heat gun.
the glue WAS effected by the heat gun even though the glue is rather dry.





and of course there is ample size in there




for the 18650 in the base





behind that huge lunk of a switch , there is the actual electronic switch on the right, looks like the same 12mm round one used in the other coast models.
there is 3 layers of "spring pressure" in this setup, the switches own spring, then a spring between the 2 that insures retraction of the huge metal plunger, and the Seal junk that was springy and pushes the tab back also. its no wonder why switch pressure is so high on this model.





and the massive plunger (the back button) covered with some sort of sealant with an o-ring tossed in the side?? this was strange.





and here is why that end part might not be "dunkable" this seal around the switch was already broken, and i only used it 3 times or so myself, minus how many times it was used in the store.
i MIGHT have damaged this when removing it, indeed, but i am pretty sure this was open before i got in there.


sorry about the pics, using the camera and the Hammera at the same time, not so easy.

here is a *Panorama* of the whole thing now, the curcuit is still not dissasembled , some O-rings are not shown in the panorama as they had to be removed to use the heat gun.
http://home.comcast.net/~welkm/P1040256.JPG


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## VidPro (Apr 24, 2007)

ok i hook the HEAD itself up to the power supply, and mess around with some voltages, and it shows that there aint no curcuit, the thing is about as regulated as a RAW led, which might be exactally what i want.

ok so , trying to figure out how they put the head board onto the heat sink, i did more stupid things trying to remove it, then finnaly just grabbed the green connection board with needle nose pliers and pop.




there it is, look at that amasing regulation  then realise how this thing gets SOOO bright and is soo efficient , cause there is no losses.

there is NOT enough room in the head part for the 18650 to move in that direction.


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## FlashCrazy (Apr 24, 2007)

Vidpro, good job getting it completely apart! I know that tail switch is pretty difficult. As you found out, there's no circuit at all, just direct drive. With the 18650, you'll need a resistor to keep the current in check. Good luck with the mod, and keep us posted...should give you great runtime!

Thanks for posting all the pics too! That's a lot of work...


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## VidPro (Apr 24, 2007)

well now i am about stuck.




this here on1-off-on2-off switch for 2 levels fits into





that hole, where the old switch was, with just enough room for the battery too.

but then i am stuck good, Luckily i dont have to hand this back to anybody  because its getting less pretty all the time.

first minor issue
the metal body of the light does not pass power, so my normal method of getting the power to the head through the body is messed up, all the annodising is stopping conduction. and removing the annodising will make the threads a bit more loose.

second issue
the 2 legs of the switch will go to 2 different resisters , to provide the 2 levels, but then i gotta get the power from there To the head, and everything is impossible to solder aluminum :-(

3rd issue
the switch kinda needs to be adhered to something, and there is mabey 1mm of avialable space, some of the plunger can be removed, giving me a leeway of 3mm, but no real room for a spring or anything, just a direct connect of the center wire of the switch to the bottom of the battery.

i can solution the connection of the LED to the aluminum heat sink by using a small screw into the holes on the top of the sink, thats one down.

but how to get the resisters connected to the base thing around the switch?


----------



## chiphead (Apr 24, 2007)

I'll say one thing about COAST, the make the best 3/AAA holder I've seen to date.

chiphead /w three Coast units


----------



## VidPro (Apr 24, 2007)

i think i found the right aspherical lens for it


----------



## soffiler (Apr 24, 2007)

VidPro said:


> the rest of the dissasembly of the head, i pointed out which part is rubber, the insert that holds the lens in and the rubber band there is plastic.
> notice how in this model there is the HOLES for light to go out, but they are BLOCKED? that is rather strange for the coasts?


 
My Coast Focusing LED Lenser does not have that rubber part. On mine, the threaded plastic part is all that holds the lens in. 



> then these last 2 parts are the ones that do the twising of the head up and down.









> see the head stationary locks down into the battery tube, then the piece above it there, is what moves down over the battery tube, changing the distance to the lens.


 
This is also different from mine. On mine, just the top part of the head (the part with the yellow triangle sticker on it) moves to change focus.

I wonder if the differences are older vs. newer models, or different models for different markets, or what? I got mine at Lowe's Home Improvement and the part number on the package said "TT7438CP"


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## VidPro (Apr 24, 2007)

*On mine, just the top part of the head (the part with the yellow triangle sticker on it) moves to change focus.*

right, that is what i was trying to say, the assembly that holds the lens rotates, i should have included the whole lens assmebly.

i got mine at lowes, and it shows the exact same part number.

the rubber gromet thing that seals around the optics, is common to coast lights, like the other smaller ones i have dissasembled, it is what waterproofs the face.
you MIGHT not notice it as a seperated part, as it blends in very well with the plastic part, and hides BEHIND the plastic part. you have to remove that plastic threaded thing to even see it.


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## VidPro (Apr 24, 2007)

On Cree vrses Lux or Seul for this:
well stuffing a CREE behind that optic they put in there, just doesnt work like a high-dome luxIII does, or probably like a seul led would. the Grid pattern on the cree emitter really shows up strongly.

so although the original lens offers much more focusing from the small ammount of movement change that occurs, the aspherical lens that works well with the cree, does not change focus as much , but then it doesnt get a doughnut hole as bad either. and its about 3 times smaller a spot.

its a good thing they are choosing to put in soeul leds and used lux leds, because (unlike what i would have thought) the cree does not make so good a beam pattern.

the cree doesnt seem to go up into the original lens as FAR either, the cree base and all seems to be in the way.


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## Gannz (Apr 24, 2007)

soffiler said:


>


 
Anyone else think it would look cool to brush the front seal w/ some GITD paint?... or maybe a strip of GITD tape would hold up better on the rubber and give an even tighter seal.


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## VidPro (Apr 25, 2007)

i just lined the black plastic with GITD vinyl sheet, and put gitd on the base of the head, works fine, and more light then sneaks foreward, instead of dissapearing into a black tube thing.


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## VidPro (Apr 25, 2007)

here is the almost useless pictures of the aspherical now.
its now got a cree star perched on top of the post (easy to change again)
its got a halfmoon acrylic aspherical 
its got a 18650 (wedged in)
its got duel levels on a switch, no momentary
its got the GITD
its got a real problem with being a KLUDGE and a half, it works but it aint pretty.

pics are at digital asa of 400, and the cam has no manuel setting.
captions are below pics






the GITD after being charged well from light being on high


The next set of pics is shot from 13Feet away, hitting a 30" type door.




tight focus, on high.
window on left has cloudy sun hitting thin white shade, because camera is AUTO, pics are Relative to the indoor lighting, and basically useless .





low with tight focus


now rotate to the wide focus, the Picturs show it More round than it actually looks, on wide it is a rounded square, not totally round, and there are minor artifacts.




low with Max wide focus





high with max wide focus.


as you can see in the square tight pics, the emitter grid is JUST out of being in focus, and the total focus change is not as high as it was, even though the total movement of the lens was increased.
so now its Spot , and tight square spot.


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## light_emitting_dude (Apr 27, 2007)

Got a form to fill out for a *free keychain flashlight* from Coast (and $3.00 s&h) with my new light. Sent mine in. Was just wondering if anyone else sent in for theirs and what kind of keychain light do you get? 

Picked up one of these today. I'm impressed!


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## VidPro (Apr 29, 2007)

just tested the glass aspherical from surplus shed, and the "focal length" would require the center post to be cut down as low as possilble.
it took quite a long time to grind the 30mm lens untill it fit into the head, but it did fit, it just isnt as paractical or usable as the acrylic half moon.


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## Gannz (Apr 29, 2007)

What are you guys ending up with as the distance between the top of the heatsink and the top of the emitter? I originally set my SSC to top out at 9/16" like the stock Lux3 but the beam was on the floody side. I started to experiment and found that I get a much tighter hot spot and more throw with the SSC topped out at a hair under 13/32". The actual sweet spot seems to be at 27/64" b/c you get a very round beam at this height (but it is also more floody). At 13/32" the second layer of the beam is a little more on the square side. You can see the square beam in some of VidPro's and EngrPaul's photos (I guess this is common w/ optic lenses). But, thanks to the focusing head, you can just back it off a hair to get a more rounded beam! The only drawback to this set up is slightly less flood at the widest focal setting. 

*** This setup is w/ the stock lens***


----------



## TeaQue (Apr 29, 2007)

Took my hocus focus to a bonfire over the weekend.

One of my buddies was showing off his new inova x03 when I showed up and pulled out my modded light.

Lets just say it was like comparing a match to the bonfire itself :laughing:


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## soupster (Apr 30, 2007)

Is this the same light
http://www.sportsmansguide.com/cb/cb.asp?a=340217&pn=2
If so its on sale seems like a good deal...


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## soffiler (Apr 30, 2007)

soupster said:


> Is this the same light
> http://www.sportsmansguide.com/cb/cb.asp?a=340217&pn=2
> If so its on sale seems like a good deal...


 
No, that is not the same light.

If you need to know what the Focusing LED Lenser (#7438) looks like, there are a lot of pictures in this thread. Try post #1 for instance.


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## bondr006 (May 20, 2007)

EngrPaul said:


> I think I have a new favorite flashlight folks
> 
> Here's what it looks like after the mod:



I love what you did with your Coast. How much would you charge me to do the same with mine. Or maybe you could post a step by step tutorial with the parts needed. I love this light and it is my favorite now, but with this mod





* Edit:* *Never mind. As I read further in to the post, I found the tutorial. Thanks.*


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## AFAustin (May 20, 2007)

You should check out this thread, and see if FlashCrazy will put you on his list. He does great work (I love mine):

http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=157634


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## bondr006 (May 20, 2007)

AFAustin said:


> You should check out this thread, and see if FlashCrazy will put you on his list. He does great work (I love mine):
> 
> http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=157634



Thanks...


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## light_emitting_dude (Jun 17, 2007)

I am thinking about modding my Coast focusing LL7438 with an Edison KLC8 LED. Anyone else tried it?


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## light_emitting_dude (Jul 3, 2007)

Modified mine with the KLC8 emitter. I guess I'm the only one.  Sorry no beamshots but I can say that it is a very noticable increase in output! 
WOW! 

As usual I removed the Lux 3 emitter. Applied the KLC8 with thermal epoxy (no copper disc) and soldered the extremely small, hard as hell to solder little wires. PHEW! I kinda figured this mod would be easier than the SSC due to the KLC8 being closer in size to the Lux 3. 

Beam is very well focused and has the usual KLC8 yellowish corona and blue outer ring. I can live with that tho. Much brighter! I'm very happy!


----------



## reneir0492 (Aug 8, 2007)

is it ok to put lithium batteries on thos flashlightoo: please tell me.


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## 9volt (Aug 8, 2007)

reneir0492 said:


> is it ok to put lithium batteries on thos flashlightoo: please tell me.



I think it could work if you modded the battery carrier to work off of one 10440. I've been thinking about doing a mod like that. It would be extra cool if you could run off one 10440, and then have 2 spares stored inside the light.


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## light_emitting_dude (Aug 8, 2007)

reneir0492 said:


> is it ok to put lithium batteries on thos flashlightoo: please tell me.



I would have to say no to a 10440 but I run mine with Energizer E2 lithiums!


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## bondr006 (Aug 8, 2007)

I also use Energizer E2 Lithiums in all 3 of my Coast lights with no problems.


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## soffiler (Aug 14, 2007)

9volt said:


> I think it could work if you modded the battery carrier to work off of one 10440. I've been thinking about doing a mod like that. It would be extra cool if you could run off one 10440, and then have 2 spares stored inside the light.


 
That _is_ a cool idea... but... can you safely pull 1000 mA out of a 10440?


----------



## Lite_me (Aug 14, 2007)

soffiler said:


> That _is_ a cool idea... but... can you safely pull 1000 mA out of a 10440?


Is this a rhetorical question? Anyway, the short answer is no. Emphasis on safely.


----------



## FlashCrazy (Aug 14, 2007)

Right... not safely. Quite a few are doing it with Fenix LOD-CE's (it draws about 1100 mA on high, using a 10440) with no apparent problems, but only time will tell. That's a 5C draw or so... definitely pushing it. 

The Coast on a single 10440 would have about a 10 minute runtime, so even with 2 spare batteries, you're only at half the runtime of the standard setup with NiMH's... and no brighter. Now an 18650... that's something I'd like to shoehorn in there. :naughty:


----------



## reneir0492 (Sep 1, 2007)

FlashCrazy said:


> I agree, I think the graph is correct. The NiMH's can deliver more current than the alkalines, especially in this AAA format. Even though the alkalines have a higher initial voltage, they sag under load...at which time they'll be lower voltage than the NiMH's. In any case, the more I use this light, the more I love it! It puts out such a power beam that it feels like I'm waving around a 100 foot long light sabre!


amen to that,its is like having a huge light saber,very bright


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## reneir0492 (Oct 30, 2007)

my sf e2l and the led lenser 7438,seems like the surefire e2l has less focus but very bright, the led lenser is more of a long distance.


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## srvctec (Nov 2, 2007)

I haven't bought a light for almost a year and because of all the fantastic reviews in this thread, I am now a proud owner of one of these from my local Lowe's tonight. I'm going it mod it myself.

Thanks, guys for indirectly talking me into one of these. 

Are there any pics of the Seoul mod? I don't want to attempt this without some visual guidance. It seems as if all of the pics have disappeared except the first post's. :shrug:


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## srvctec (Nov 4, 2007)

*Re: Some questions about the SSC P4 mod*

I just measured the physical height of both a Lux III and a SSC P4. The Lux measures exactly 5.80mm and the SSC measures exactly 5.00mm.

1. How important is it to have the top of the dome of the SSC at the very same height as the Lux it is replacing as it relates to focus?

2. Is it the height of the die or the dome that will cause changes in focus after the mod?

3. For those who have done the mod, either with or without the copper disc, was there any change in focus? Particularly in regards to the narrowest beam setting.

I want to make sure that I still have the ability to focus down to the smallest focused spot for the longest throw.

Thanks!


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## Gannz (Nov 4, 2007)

*Re: Some questions about the SSC P4 mod*



srvctec said:


> I just measured the physical height of both a Lux III and a SSC P4. The Lux measures exactly 5.80mm and the SSC measures exactly 5.00mm.
> 
> 1. How important is it to have the top of the dome of the SSC at the very same height as the Lux it is replacing as it relates to focus?
> 
> ...


 
I experimented and found that I get a much tighter hot spot and more throw with the SSC topped out at a hair under 13/32". The actual sweet spot seems to be at 27/64" b/c you get a very round beam at this height (but it is also more floody). At 13/32" the second layer of the beam is a little more on the square side (not unusual for optic lenses). But, thanks to the focusing head, you can just back it off a bit to get a more rounded beam!


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## srvctec (Nov 5, 2007)

*Re: Some questions about the SSC P4 mod*



Gannz said:


> I experimented and found that I get a much tighter hot spot and more throw with the SSC topped out at a hair under 13/32". The actual sweet spot seems to be at 27/64" b/c you get a very round beam at this height (but it is also more floody). At 13/32" the second layer of the beam is a little more on the square side (not unusual for optic lenses). But, thanks to the focusing head, you can just back it off a bit to get a more rounded beam!



So did you use a copper disc to get the proper height?

13/32" = .40625" just a hair under this is best height for SSC in Hokus Focus = .406"

Height of Lux in this stock light is .4115"

.2283" = Lux LED height

.19685" = SSC LED height

.2283" - .19685" = .03145" = difference between heights of Lux and SSC LEDs

.4115" - .406" = .0055" = difference in height between stock Lux and desired height of SSC in the light

.03145" - .0055" = .02595" how much higher the SSC base needs raised for optimum focusability.

Soooo, this all being said, some AA and a copper disc .015 thick should do the trick to get the SSC to the proper height.


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## Gannz (Nov 6, 2007)

*Re: Some questions about the SSC P4 mod*



srvctec said:


> So did you use a copper disc to get the proper height?
> 
> 13/32" = .40625" just a hair under this is best height for SSC in Hokus Focus = .406"
> 
> ...


 
By the time you get some epoxy on both sides of the copper you'll only be able to fit in a piece of copper foil. I just used a dab of AA epoxy and squished it down to the desired height. It's only a bit thicker than what we'd normally use to secure a shim or emitter.


----------



## soffiler (Nov 6, 2007)

*Re: Some questions about the SSC P4 mod*

When I modded mine, I didn't use any shim under the emitter, just a thick dab of Arctic Silver epoxy. This caused a major problem with the beam pattern. To compensate, I was forced to shim my optic by, I seem to recall, I ended up with .030" closer to the emitter. I have access to a lathe so making shims for the optic out of Delrin was no big deal. I believe the instructions originally posted by EngrPaul called for a .015" thick copper puck under the emitter.


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## srvctec (Nov 6, 2007)

Thanks for the replies!

Well, I totally lucked out!!! I wound up putting a piece of copper in, forgetting that mine was actually .017" thick instead of .015". When I completed the mod last night, the finished height of the top of the SSC came out to be .412"- much higher than I had anticipated or hoped for. Turns out, the beam is perfect at the narrowest setting. I could not have gotten the LED placed at a more perfect height if I had planned it. To verify the narrowest setting is the narrowest, I loosened the bezel and started to back it off (with the light on) keeping pressure on the threads to keep the lens lined up with the LED. As soon as I start to unscrew the bezel it starts to widen back out the beam. I couldn't have been more lucky on this mod! Usually, I miss the luck boat when it sails by. 

This thing kicks a$$ now- not that it was half bad before the mod!


----------



## Lite_me (Nov 6, 2007)

Congrats on your mod turning out so positively. I love to hear everyones descriptions of amazement about this light. Especially the modded ones.  I still marvel at it's output. Enjoy!


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## gouki64 (Jan 12, 2008)

Does anyone know what happened to EngrPaul's pictures for this Seoul LED mod guide? It appears that photobucket has taken the pictures down, so can anyone please help by mirroring them or hosting them elsewhere? Thanks!


----------



## e2x2e (Jan 20, 2008)

light_emitting_dude said:


> Got a form to fill out for a *free keychain flashlight* from Coast (and $3.00 s&h) with my new light. Sent mine in. Was just wondering if anyone else sent in for theirs and what kind of keychain light do you get?
> 
> Picked up one of these today. I'm impressed!




I did this too, I got a V9 Micro with a white beam.


----------



## pukkapaul (Jan 23, 2008)

FlashCrazy said:


> I have Seouls on the way too....one is predestined to go into the Coast. Like you said, this is really a light worth having!
> 
> You mentioned the head unscrews easily. I tried to unscrew mine before (just by hand), but didn't want to mess up the focusing system. So I just need to try harder and it'll unscrew? I have strap wrenches, if needed.


hello eng paul do you have any lenser focus moded p4 seoul led torches for sale.kind regards p.stuart


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## soffiler (Jan 23, 2008)

pukkapaul said:


> hello eng paul do you have any lenser focus moded p4 seoul led torches for sale.kind regards p.stuart


 

PAGING FLASHCRAZY


----------



## FlashCrazy (Jan 24, 2008)

gouki64 said:


> Does anyone know what happened to EngrPaul's pictures for this Seoul LED mod guide? It appears that photobucket has taken the pictures down, so can anyone please help by mirroring them or hosting them elsewhere? Thanks!


 
EngrPaul is taking a hiatus from CPF (temporarily we hope), and I suspect he probably removed the pics from Photobucket to gain extra space.

I'll have to post some pics with a how-to sometime. The only difference in my mod is that instead of shimming the emitter, I shim the heatsink itself.


----------



## FlashCrazy (Jan 24, 2008)

soffiler said:


> PAGING FLASHCRAZY


 
I'm here, I'm here! 

pukkapaul, I should have some for sale earlier next month. You can keep an eye on the first page of my thread for updates if you'd like.  Just click on the "Must Have" link at the bottom of this post.


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## gouki64 (Jan 26, 2008)

FlashCrazy said:


> EngrPaul is taking a hiatus from CPF (temporarily we hope), and I suspect he probably removed the pics from Photobucket to gain extra space.
> 
> I'll have to post some pics with a how-to sometime. The only difference in my mod is that instead of shimming the emitter, I shim the heatsink itself.


 
Shim the heatsink?? Sounds neat, what's the benefit of shimming the heatsink rather than shimming the emitter?

I'm going to attempt this mod soon and will document the process as I go.


----------



## Brownstone (May 5, 2008)

srvctec said:


> I wound up putting a piece of copper in, forgetting that mine was actually .017" thick instead of .015".



I wonder if anyone can suggest an easily found hardware store object that would be 0.015" to 0.017" thick. I'm not sure what to make this shim out of.


----------



## Lite_me (May 5, 2008)

srvctec may chime in with what he used but I've used these for when I've needed .027-.030". One is a spade elec. connector, and the other is an auto fuse. I just snip them off with a pair of cutters. I had to take a bit off with a grinder too, before snipping them, but they've worked ok. You'd have to take off more to get to .015 though. They're not copper either but should work just fine. And just round the corners off if needed after cutting them off.


----------



## BlueBeam22 (May 5, 2008)

Lite me,

I have your exact light, the Coast 3.44 watt Professional Use LED Lenser.
It is my favorite small flashlight because its performance is simply amazing!
I also like how it looks.


----------



## Lite_me (May 5, 2008)

Yupper,,,, it's one of my favorite lights. Have you seen FlashCrazy's mod thread. I have one of his modded 7438s and it is the bomb! (Flash)Crazy bright! The thread is here....


----------



## BlueBeam22 (May 5, 2008)

Thanks for the link.

FlashCrazy's mod is awsome, it looked twice the light output of the stock LED Lenser.


----------



## Lite_me (May 5, 2008)

Be sure and check out my beamshots in this thread  here.... Post #268.


----------



## Canuke (Nov 19, 2008)

I did a quick search and didn't see this, so I thought I'd resurrect this old thread to mention that the Hokus Fokus has been updated with what I expect is a K2 TFFC emitter. 

I picked one up at Home Despot at $49.95 full freight  but curiosity got the better of me when I saw the "83 lumens" claim on the packaging. It has a new dark gray metallic finish instead of the previous matte black, and its output is slightly but visibly less than that of my Seoul-modded original; beyond that, nothing has changed (I've not yet opened it up).


----------



## soffiler (Nov 19, 2008)

Canuke said:


> I did a quick search and didn't see this, so I thought I'd resurrect this old thread to mention that the Hokus Fokus has been updated with what I expect is a K2 TFFC emitter.
> 
> I picked one up at Home Despot at $49.95 full freight  but curiosity got the better of me when I saw the "83 lumens" claim on the packaging. It has a new dark gray metallic finish instead of the previous matte black, and its output is slightly but visibly less than that of my Seoul-modded original; beyond that, nothing has changed (I've not yet opened it up).


 
Hey Canuke, thanks for the post. In fact, I noticed the exact same thing in HD less than a week ago. 83 claimed lumens where it used to be...60? and the gray finish instead of black.


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## Liberty1992 (Nov 19, 2008)

i have one of these... although its just an LED Lenser, not COAST. and good grief all mighty is thing bright, like ridiculously bright


----------



## Turbo DV8 (Dec 25, 2008)

I just was given one for Christmas. What's the scoop on these with the new 83 lumen rating? What kind of emitter does it use? Glass or plastic lens? Seems mum's the word about this light.


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## whc (Dec 26, 2008)

Think it has a LuxIII emitter, defiantly has plastic lens.

Do a Seould P4 mod, and you get allot more output .


----------



## Lite_me (Dec 26, 2008)

whc said:


> Think it has a LuxIII emitter, defiantly has plastic lens.
> 
> Do a Seould P4 mod, and you get allot more output .


Depends on how new it is. Looks like the latest ones come with a K2 emitter. See post 203 above.


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## Turbo DV8 (Dec 27, 2008)

Canuke said:


> ...the Hokus Fokus has been updated with what I expect is a K2 TFFC emitter... I saw the "83 lumens" claim on the packaging. It has a new dark gray metallic finish instead of the previous matte black, and its output is slightly but visibly less than that of my Seoul-modded original; beyond that, nothing has changed (I've not yet opened it up).


 

I saw this post but just curious, if you have not opened it yet, what leads you to believe it is a K2 TFFC? My package also says "83 Lumens" but I wouldn't even describe the light within as "dark grey metallic" but basically matte black. Haven't opened mine either yet, still wondering if it has the Lux III or the updated LED you mentioned. How can you tel if you haven't opened it, unless perhaps you have an inside scoop?


----------



## Turbo DV8 (Jan 2, 2009)

Well, for half the price of the Lenser, I thought I would try a Coleman Cree 2AA light that is all the rage in the budget section. It had a crappy switch that made the light flicker. Then I tried the River Rock Nightfire Cree 2C. Beautiful flood beam, but on three specimens I tried, when you let off the switch, the light dimmed substantially. So at that point I'd had enough cheap crap lights, the personal quota for which I had already met. So I decided to open up this new 83 lumen Focusing Lenser I got for Christmas. My other Lenser has gold plated contacts everywhere and never have given me so much as one flicker in over a year of daily use, and this has a lifetime warranty, so I gave in and opened it.

I suppose most of CPF will stone me when all I can say about this Lenser is, "WOW!" From the seat of my eyeballs, it has about twice the throw brightness as the Coleman Cree 2AA, and the Coleman is rated at 115 lumens. Some people might not care for the vaguely squarish beam profile, but it's not at all bothersome in use. If I had to complain about one thing it is the wide focus setting. The package boasts, in word and picture, that there are "no dark rings like standard LED's." The picture shows the "other" brand's beam as having a huge black hole in the middle, and the Lenser as being perfectly uniform. Well, mine is not perfectly uniform. Far from having a black hole in the middle, it does nonetheless have a center area that is perceptibly dimmer than the outer area when set to wide focus. In real world use last night walking the rail road tracks, it never entered my consciousness, but you will notice it on a flat background such as white wall.

I guess the fact that Lenser is an almost universally poo-poo'd brand here on CPF, and the fact that it's "only" rated at 83 lumens, this will be all but ignored. Too bad Lenser had to get on CPF'ers bad side by severely bloating run times, and offering lights that, at first glance, seem to be overpriced for the brightness you get. (I think Lenser may have rated the lumens of this light too conservatively.) I thought for the price of this one Lenser, I could have two brighter, cheaper lights, and found that not only were the cheaper lights flaky, they weren't even as bright as this Lenser. I already have the boat load of cheap DX and similar B&M store crap that seldom gets used because they flicker. I'm ready for a light that doesn't make me wince with irritation every time I use it. With every single contact point in the Lenser being gold plated, including the springs, and the switch is flicker-free, as my other Lenser, I expect this to become a regular go-to light.


----------



## Egsise (Jan 5, 2009)

Ummm, I compared the throw of Led Lenser Hokus Focus to Fenix LD10 and E20, distance was 20m.
The hotspots of these three were evenly bright, at least to my eyes.
Hokus Fokus had almost no spill at all, and the hotspot was bigger compared to LD10 and E20.

Cheapest prices I found in Finland are: Fenix E20 28€, LD10 46€, Hokus Focus 43€.

Was the Hokus Focus I tested faulty or something, cause E20 seems to be much better deal?


----------



## Dark Laser (Jan 6, 2009)

To be honest, I think the E20 is a much better deal compared to the Hokus Focus. Who knows how old the LED they built in really is :shrug:

The Hokus Focus should, I think, only put out some 80 Lumens. And its direct driven


----------



## soffiler (Jan 6, 2009)

Dark Laser said:


> ...The Hokus Focus should, I think, only put out some 80 Lumens. And its direct driven


 
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, of course, but I think you do the Hokus Focus a disservice when you judge it by two factors, 80 lumens and direct-drive. Try one. Those 80 lumens are roped together and corralled by the optics like almost nothing else on the market. Judge it on a dark night out in the woods, not on a white wall. And direct-drive has both pro's and con's. One pro is utter simplicity and therefore reliability. Nothing except the emitter itself (very well heatsinked), the switch, and the contacts (gold plated) to go wrong. Another pro of direct-drive is the very long "tail" you get of diminishing output on alkies. I know, the Coast marketers have used this to claim utterly ridiculous runtimes (200 hours is printed on the packaging of mine, a couple years old now, not sure if they've changed it) but don't let disingenuous marketing subhumans detract from the fact that it will run a pretty long time at diminishing levels, which some people find a useful and attractive feature. Another pro - operated on NiMH rechargeables, the output is reasonably flat because that's how NiMH works, so who needs regulation anyway?


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## Dark Laser (Jan 6, 2009)

I basically wanted to say that you get a better "bang-for-buck"-effect with the Fenix. But you somehow made a point and I agree you when you say the focusing system is not bad. My brother has a new P7 from Led Lenser and he is quite pleased with it. I have a Led Lenser, too - but it's 4 years old and it has a Luxeon I in it . I purchased it, because I wanted more light than I had with my Minimag - but you know how those things evolve 

The issue with direct-drive in my "V Square" is: the LED gets with freshly charged NiMHs WAY too much current. If you run the light like this for a longer time... Former, they didn't advise you NOT to run their lights with rechargeables.
But I plan to replace the old LED with a SSC P4 (of course neutral-white). The P4 can handle that much current a lot easier - and it will be much brighter :naughty:


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## Canuke (Jan 6, 2009)

Turbo DV8 said:


> I saw this post but just curious, if you have not opened it yet, what leads you to believe it is a K2 TFFC? My package also says "83 Lumens" but I wouldn't even describe the light within as "dark grey metallic" but basically matte black. Haven't opened mine either yet, still wondering if it has the Lux III or the updated LED you mentioned. How can you tel if you haven't opened it, unless perhaps you have an inside scoop?



It's an educated guess, based on an output comparison between the new unit and my original, matte-black Lenser which I modded with a Seoul P4. The two units are very close, with the edge still belonging to the Seoul unit. That, combined with the Luxeon-look of the emitter as seen through the lens indicated to me that these units use a Luxeon emitter with comparable efficiency to Seouls... in other words, the TFFC K2's.

I've been away from CPF most of the time over the last six months, so I might have missed some other development that would fit those facts. I've not opened this unit yet as I like its operation in stock form.

Side question: are the lenses in these lights available from any other source?


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## soffiler (Jan 7, 2009)

Canuke said:


> Side question: are the lenses in these lights available from any other source?


 
Canuke: I don't have hard facts, but I believe these are NOT off the shelf lenses. Zweibruder goes into quite a bit of detail on optics design on their website:

http://www.zweibrueder.com/ENG/technologie/technologie_index.php?id=tec_design


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## Turbo DV8 (Jan 11, 2009)

Canuke said:


> ...the Luxeon-look of the emitter as seen through the lens indicated to me that these units use a Luxeon emitter with comparable efficiency to Seouls... in other words, the TFFC K2's.


 
Now out of the package and able to zoom it to spot, the black portion of the LED body which surrounds the die has six sides. This means it is a K2, yes? And I assume as a recently new introduction, it would be the more cuurent K2, yes? How could I tell the difference from looking at the LED? I can see it perfectly through the lens when it is zoomed for spot. Set for wide, as packaged, you really can't see squat of the LED.


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## RaymondMillbrae (Jan 20, 2009)

I was at Lowes tonight, and noticed the LED LENSOR COAST light. ($44.87).

I was curious about it, so I started looking around to see any reviews.

Cool light.

But for $15.00 more ($60.00, even), you can get a Fenix TK11 shipped to your door.

In Christ: Raymond


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## Bruce B (Jan 21, 2009)

If Coast can make a Focusable LED light, then how come Surefire still can't seem to figure out the Optimus :sigh:


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## Canuke (Jan 25, 2009)

Turbo DV8 said:


> Now out of the package and able to zoom it to spot, the black portion of the LED body which surrounds the die has six sides. This means it is a K2, yes? And I assume as a recently new introduction, it would be the more cuurent K2, yes? How could I tell the difference from looking at the LED? I can see it perfectly through the lens when it is zoomed for spot. Set for wide, as packaged, you really can't see squat of the LED.



I decided to try for a closer look by using a wet finger to obtain dim illumination of the emitter (it's direct drive, so this works).

I was surprised to notice only now that the newer unit has the same tailcap/battery holder combo as the Leatherman Monarch, instead of separate parts like the old black unit, so I swapped in the parts from the old unit to do the test. 

What I saw was a four-bar parallel pattern -- not the three-and-one of Cree/Seoul dice, but also not the waffle-pattern I expected to see from a TFFC K2.

And yet its output is still very close to my Seoul-modded unit, which I know is about twice as bright as it was in stock form.

I don't have a clue what's in here, then. About the only explanation I have, is that this is a really good non-TFFC K2 emitter, and that my Seoul's slightly higher Vf (USVOI instead of USVOH) limits its brightness a bit.... Or that K2 is pulling much more current then my Seoul. When I have time, I'll try a current test.


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## Turbo DV8 (Jan 26, 2009)

Canuke said:


> About the only explanation I have, is that this is a really good non-TFFC K2 emitter...


 
That would bode well in light of the recent TFFC K2 recall.

On the assumption it was the TFFC K2, I inquired with Coast about the potential impact on this light. This was the reply:


Ron-
 
We are aware of the recall but at this point do not anticipate it will affect our products. If you have any problem with your light, please contact us about our guaranteed repair/replacement.
 
Thanks,
 
Kevin


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## Turbo DV8 (Jan 31, 2009)

Canuke said:


> I did a quick search and didn't see this, so I thought I'd resurrect this old thread to mention that the Hokus Fokus has been updated with what I expect is a K2 TFFC emitter...curiosity got the better of me when I saw the "83 lumens" claim on the packaging.


 

And I was just at Sears yesterday and now LED Lenser has these lights in packaging that claims 149 lumens! Wow, from 63 lumens to 83 to 149 lumens? And the "watts" ratings seem to change at random between the lumens ratings depending on if it's the "new" packaging or "old" packaging. I may have to pick one of these "149 lumens" up and compare it to my 83 lumens model to see if it is brighter, or if it is just Lenser playing the rating game.


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## adirondackdestroyer (Jan 31, 2009)

Turbo DV8 said:


> And I was just at Sears yesterday and now LED Lenser has these lights in packaging that claims 149 lumens! Wow, from 63 lumens to 83 to 149 lumens? And the "watts" ratings seem to change at random between the lumens ratings depending on if it's the "new" packaging or "old" packaging. I may have to pick one of these "149 lumens" up and compare it to my 83 lumens model to see if it is brighter, or if it is just Lenser playing the rating game.



Don't waste your money! I picked one of them up, and it was less than 100 lumens out the front with fresh cells. The beam was very unimpressive as well.


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## Turbo DV8 (Feb 3, 2009)

Turbo DV8 said:


> And I was just at Sears yesterday and now LED Lenser has these lights in packaging that claims 149 lumens!


 
Oops. My bad. I picked one up a few days ago but didn't open it, and only tonight was looking closer at the light when I noticed the prism lens was different than mine. Shortly after that, I noticed that the "149 lumen" version I had picked up was the non-focusing version.


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## BlueBeam22 (Mar 4, 2009)

I just bought the Coast "HD7438CP" 4 watt (not 3.4 or 3.44 watts, it is rated at exactly 4W) 83 lumen 3AAA Professional Use Focusing LED Lenser $50 from Home Depot, and I am very happy with it! I bought it to replace my original one which I seem to have lost, which is the one being reviewed in the original post of this thread. The new one seems to be identical in all ways to the one I lost except for the color (new one is silver). It does seem quite a bit brighter than my old 60 lumen one and throws about as well as my larger Task Force 150 lumen 2C CREE and Husky 150 lumen 3AAA Tactical. This will be the perfect EDC for me when I need something smaller than the Dorcy 220.

My new LED Lenser:







Flood mode:






Spot mode:


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## hatman (Mar 17, 2009)

My first post --

I was at HD buying two Husky 2Ds when I found the Coast LED Lenser "professional use...tactical focus beam," HD7438CP.

It's silver and sells for just under $50.

I checked a half dozen with the built-in tester and only one worked. I bought it along with the Huskys.

Later, I found this thread.

You guys are a tremendous source of information. Thanks!!

-- Hatman


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## hatman (Mar 17, 2009)

hatman said:


> My first post --
> 
> I was at HD buying two Husky 2Ds when I found the Coast LED Lenser "professional use...tactical focus beam," HD7438CP.
> 
> ...




Also -- this version is listed as 105 lumens/ 3.29 watts.


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## VictorKiev (Jun 30, 2009)

Toyed with Hokus Focus the other day. Would not tell the difference unless for this review. The pix in the beginning showing the spill (the lack of spill) are especially graphic. Thanks for the effort. I use Led Lenser tactial and search light (70 limens) serving me as a baton when necessary, BriteStrike (three modes), which is excessively bright, and a Leatherman S2 (EDC).


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## Turbo DV8 (Nov 21, 2009)

hatman said:


> Also -- this version is listed as 105 lumens/ 3.29 watts.


 
OK, so we pretty much know that LED Lenser tosses "specs" about randomly, packaging the same light under different power ratings and lumens. But I was in Home Depot last night and they have now begun to use Cree's in them. Very visible through the lens, as is the new white board which can be seen through the lens, with "LED LENSER" text and the red Lenser dot. Still "rated" at 3.29 watts and 105 lumens. Of course, I picked one up. Will compare the one I have which I believe was LED Lenser's second version LED (K2 TFFC?) The K2 stated "83 lumens/4 watt/100 hours." The new Cree package states, "105 lumens/3.29 watt/120 hours." Proof will be in the pudding.


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## Lite_me (Nov 21, 2009)

Kinda curious as to your findings. I had one of the original Luxeon models (on which this review was based) but have since sold it. I still have the FlashCrazy modded one w/ the SSC P4 in it. I still use it from time to time and even to this day, it still impresses me. It has a beam like no other light I have or seen. Back in early 07 when I first got it, I, and many others, were blown away by it. FlashCrazy did an excellent job on these. 

For anyone that's newer here and might be curious, here's the old sales thread. http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=157634


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## Turbo DV8 (Nov 26, 2009)

This is a preliminary review of the new Cree'd version of this flashlight. I will cut to the chase and say right up front, utilizing the Cree in this optic light turns it into a completely different animal, and not just in terms of output. If a tight hotspot and insane amount of throw out of a small package excites you, the Hokus Focus finally delivers, and in spades! :twothumbs 

Compared to my TFFC version (one generation prior), the Cree just eats it up for lunch. This light on spot has equivalent throw to my 3-Cree / 3C Life+Gear, and that's no B/S, folks! This is with the light running on Eneloops. I have no idea what the run time is, due to the inability to get any current measurement because of the proprietary cell carrier arrangement, but the package claims 120 hours compared to the previous version's 100 hours. One might be tempted to think it actually does run longer than the previous version, but given Lenser's laughable "ratings" (or 'unconscionable' depending on how you look at it) and the fact that the exploded view of the light on the package still depicts a Luxeon LED, who's to know where the truth lay?

Tint on the Cree is a bit warmer than my TFFC, although I admit I went through quite a few of the TFFC's to get one that was not quite so purple tinted. So compared to the tint on most of the earlier versions, the Cree will be markedly warmer. 

Now for the stuff I am up in the air about. Recall the earlier versions on spot have a nice smooth beam, relatively artifact-free except for the slightly squarish beam profile. About half a turn of the bezel will take you to flood which is slightly dimmer in the center area. (When the bezel is turned out to full spot, the light is nearly 8 mm longer than the prior versions.) The new Cree differs greatly in beam profile. First, the infamous Cree rings are evident to varying degrees. Second, half a turn no longer takes you to flood. The bezel now requires nearly two full turns to go to flood. The Cree flood has a wider angle but less brightness than the earlier version. I prefer the wider angle. Once in flood, the beam is quite smooth. The bad news is, during those two full turns from spot to flood, the Cree produces nothing but ugliness. As you begin turning the bezel, a seemingly pitch black hole appears in the center of the beam, expanding outward as you turn the head in, until finally at full flood you realize it wasn't a black hole, but simply the reduced brightness of the light in flood mode working it's way toward the eges. Imagine it as "wiping" the bright away from the center out and replacing it with the flood brighhtness as you turn the bezel. The previous version does not create a perfect transition, but it is much better than this. Although the prior version's flood is narrower, it produces a fairly useable beam anywhere in between spot and flood. The Cree produces nothing but ugliness when anywhere between spot and flood. Combine this with having to torque the bezel around two full turns to get through the ugliness from spot to flood, and I feel we have a big step backward from the prior versions of this light. I might be content if Lenser had kept the half-turn to flood, but I guess maybe something about the Cree LED profile requires a wider depth of adjustment. I do not know if the optic is the same, or if it was redesigned. I tend to guess they just took the old optic and put it in a head with greater range of depth to compensate for the Cree profile, thus the compromise in the beam. Too bad. 

So, is it a winner, or not? I can't argue with that insane throw, the likes of which, frankly, I've never seen from a palmable light that runs on ordinary, common sized batteries. But this light's claim to fame, and it's unique signature calling card, has _always_ been the wide range of beam pattern which it's optic allows, and I feel that has been severely compromised with the Cree. It is now basically a spot _or_ flood light, with a whole lot of twisting action to get from one to the other. I'll probably keep it for the "wow" factor in spot mode, but not much else.

The light is made in China.


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## Ice (Nov 27, 2009)

Thanks for the insight!

However, are you sure you have to rotate your bezel to change focus?!? On my light you just have to slide it forwards and backwards. (Actually I'd prefere to have to rotate the bezel...)

By the way:
I'm a physics teacher and I use this light regularly for demonstration experiemnts (especially if I need sharp edged shadows). I really wouldn't want to miss this light! 
If 1,7V lithium AAA batteries were officially allowed this would be a perfect light!!!


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## Turbo DV8 (Nov 27, 2009)

Ice said:


> However, are you sure you have to rotate your bezel to change focus?!? On my light you just have to slide it forwards and backwards. (Actually I'd prefere to have to rotate the bezel...)


 
Unlike the newer P-series, the Hokus Focus has a rotating bezel. The slider on the P-series is supposed to make it easier to focus. Compared to a half-turn of a bezel, I find the slide feature inconvenient, and easy to bump out of focus, expecially when you holster it. Compared to having to turn the bezel two turns, the slide has an advantage!


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## Linger (Nov 28, 2009)

Turbo DV8,
If insane throw in a palm package, have you considered Rominsen flood to zoom? Shiningbeam carries warm and cool 2 mode versions, while DX carries them, plus knock-offs, plus the awesome x2000 series.
The rominsen will give you a usable beam for more of the range, + better throw (it really is quite hot)


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## Turbo DV8 (Nov 28, 2009)

Linger said:


> Turbo DV8,
> If insane throw in a palm package, have you considered Rominsen flood to zoom? DX carries them, plus knock-offs...


 
Thanks for the options. I am not terribly interested in Romisen, DX flashlights, knock-offs, etc. I checked them out, though. There seemed to be a dearth of pictures, so I was not clear on whether they use reflectors or optics.


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## Turbo DV8 (Nov 29, 2009)

The more I use this, the more I'm not liking it. Although the Cree tint is slightly warmer than the K2, I noticed that this is true only in the spot mode. When panned out to flood, the Cree actually has a slightly more purple tint. I think it must be an effect of how the Cree interacts with the optic. 

I took it out to Christmas in the Park in San Jose last night, and used it both in flood to light my path, and spot to shine up at the skyscrapers. In such use, the two full turns required between spot and flood quickly became an unwelcome intrusion. It does indeed have a different optic, and the head is longer than the K2 version, so it is frustrating that Lenser, in the course of remachining the new head, couldn't think to alter the pitch of the thread to reduce the number of turns of the head required.

Also, the holster is the same length as the old version. Since the flashlight is nearly 8mm longer than the K2 when the head is unscrewed to spot mode, the holster flap barely catches the velcro. You have to screw the head back in to flood to shorten the light enough to securely fasten the holster flap. Since I feel the new Cree's only real advantage is it's increased throw, I would want to keep it in spot mode in the holster, but to keep it secure I would have to screw and unscrew the head two full turns every time I wanted to remove and reholster the light.

You know, I add it all up, and I think I just talked myself out of this light. They upgraded the emitter at the expense of downgrading what _was_ a very nice light. And that's an unwise way to update your already overpriced 3AAA flashlight.


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## Lite_me (Nov 29, 2009)

Thanks so much for your assessment of this revised edition of this light. From what you're describing, I'm sure I'd feel the same way. I feel fortunate to have scarfed up one of FlashCrazy's SSC P4 mods. I'm hangin' on to that sucka! :candle:


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## Turbo DV8 (Dec 3, 2009)

The sheath seems to be stretching to accomodate the slightly longer light after a couple dozen in-n-outs. The velcro now engages fully with the bezel screwed out to the spot position.

Last night I charged six Eneloops of measured capacities within 30 mAh of each other on the BC-900. Tonight I put them in the K2 version and the new Cree version for a run time test. Shining on a white wall, I ran them side by side until I felt the Eneloops hit their significant drop-off. I can report that the Cree light runs an even 10 degrees F cooler at the head than the K2: 86F vs. 96F. Also, the Cree gives 75% longer run time than the K2. The Eneloops dropped off in the K2 at 60 minutes, at which time they measured 1.1 volts. I ran the Cree until I felt it had also run into the Eneloop's drop-off, which was at 1 hr + 45 minutes. The cells measured around 1.12 volts. 

So, I guess in terms of sheer output and run time, the Cree is the clear winner. It runs cooler and much more efficiently than the K2 and earlier version. I'm not ready to part with my K2 due to it's smoother beam, but I am now finding it hard to return the Cree for the above reasons. Hmmm... I wonder how the Cree P7 measures up against this Cree Hokus FocusMy wife asked me what I wanted for Christmas. I think I should tell her I need blinders for when I walk past the flashlight aisles.


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## Hot Call (Dec 5, 2009)

I was at Fry's and noticed the "new" Led Lenser P5 rated at 95.5 lumens. I pulled out my LX2 and began comparing the two.

I looked at both leds and noticed they were similar, probably the same. 

I turned on the LL P5 and was shining it side by side with my LX2. The LL P5 was pretty bright had a good tint. Also, the LL P5 is packaged in flood mode and was still able to compete with the LX2 at least in the store lighting. 

I went through several of the LL P5 and picked out the one with the whitest and brightest beam.

I bought the LL P5 as a fun light (helped that it was about 15 dollars less than retail price) and now lets see how this thing runs with an eneloop.


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## Turbo DV8 (Dec 6, 2009)

Hot Call said:


> I was at Fry's and noticed the "new" Led Lenser P5 rated at 95.5 lumens.


 
First I was going to point out that this is a thread devoted to the "Hokus Focus" LED Lenser, or the 7438. But then I noticed that the title is simply "Coast Focusing LED Lenser." Back in the day, the Hokus Focus was *the *focusing Lenser, but with P/T series I guess that's all history! The closest thing in the P/T series to the Hokus Focus 7438 is the P7. The Hokus Focus uses 3AAA; the P7 uses 4AAA. The P5 uses 1AA.


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## sidster1011 (Dec 16, 2009)

Hello all,

First time poster...

I'm doing some x-mas shopping and, after seeing all the different LED lights out there, I decided to see what research resources I could find on the web for the 7438. I thought an LED was and LED. Man did I dig myself into one hell of a hole! This site is making my head hurt! :duh2: 

The more I dig, the more I find. Now I just can't figure out what I want. 

Thanks A Lot CPF!


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## Turbo DV8 (Dec 17, 2009)

sidster1011 said:


> First time poster... I thought an LED was and LED. Man did I dig myself into one hell of a hole! This site is making my head hurt! :duh2:


 
Don't walk ... run like hell. Save yourself, while you still have a chance!:duh2:


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## stallion2 (Jan 1, 2010)

sidster1011 said:


> Hello all,
> 
> First time poster...
> 
> ...


 
HAHAHA!!! like a deer frozen in the headlights, am i right? i know that feeling. you're arrival is perfectly timed. i say spend every american dollar you have while it can still buy something.


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