# Novatac 120 EDC Mod--XP-L



## Double Barrel (Sep 10, 2014)

Hello my fellow flashaholic nut jobs. I have just completed my very first emitter swap!!! Whoohooo!!! 

-Lessons Learned
1) never trust that a new led mounted to mcpcb strait from distributor is a good one. TEST it! I learned how to test them with DMM also. Somebody even warned me about this.

2) be sure to get anode/cathode orientation BEFORE removing old LED. Very important to know + from - :smile:

3) If you keep doing the same exact procedure 10-15 times and it doesn't fix the problem, you may want to try something different.

Now to the fun stuff. Although I almost pulled my hair out, it was fun and I learned a lot. It came out better than I expected honestly. I love the NT's UI and programmability, so a simple emitter upgrade seemed like the best option. 
First up was disassemble the Novatac EDC 120. The retaining ring holding the module in proved to be a pain. I used heat(hair dryer)... I froze it, I pecked it...it was tough but it finally broke free using snap ring pliers and a little torque. They kept slipping out of the notches, I need a better tool for this...taking suggestions. 














Next, desoldered the old LED(SSP4, I think). I should have found out how to determine +/- here. I didn't.










After removing old LED and cleaning things up a bit, I needed to cut down my MCPCB Noctigon. I couldn't find any small pcb's with XPL already mounted, so I went with a 16mm Noctigon w/XP-L V4 3D 4750-5000k. I used a Dremel to trim it down to size.








I should note here that I found an old post, where someone told another member how to determine polarity by the holes in the NT heatsink/module. Found out later, after desoldering and removing my MCPCB 10-15 times..he had it backwards.




I added a little liquid tape on top of my solder connections, which I later removed and replaced with a plastic ring around the LED. It was a lot easier to remove when trouble shooting.
I figured out that my LED wasn't mounted correctly as I was getting a beep with DMM instead of it lighting up. I heated the underside of mcpcb under LED and that fixed it. After I figured out I had the + & - mixed up, I was home free! 




Pretty well centered as well.
Beamshots compared to stock NT @ about 2ft from wall.




It drowns out the stock NT. These are just iphone pics, the rings are greatly exaggerated in the pics. There are some outer rings, about the same as my 219B lights. The beam is actually pretty smooth out to those outer rings.
I wanted to compare it to a brighter light. I used my Malkoff M361N. I think it's suppose to be 375 lumens. NT XP-L on right. Check this out.





All in all, I'm very happy with this mod. I can't believe the output difference and like the tint of this Neutral XP-L. I could live without the outer rings, but same can be said with some of my nichia lights. I'll get a better idea when the sun goes down. Hopefully they aren't too noticeable away from the white walls. 
Take care guys, thanks for reading my first mod thread. I gotta go. I'll probably start my own flashlight company this evening. The possibilities are endless. :grin:
DB


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## think2x (Sep 10, 2014)

Nice DB!

Tip: for removing the retaining ring on those stubborn NT lights I use my digital calipers, ones made of metal not the composite pocket ones. The side used to measure I.D. of pipe etc works great, adjust them open into 2 of the notches and lock them in place. You can really get torque on it easily and I no longer use heat to open them.

Also FWIW, the rings in the beam are because the emitter is just a little lower in the reflector than it wants for that emitter. It's a PITA to get it further in without chancing the wires shorting to the reflector so if it can be lived with then I'd call it good.


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## Double Barrel (Sep 10, 2014)

think2x said:


> Nice DB!
> 
> Tip: for removing the retaining ring on those stubborn NT lights I use my digital calipers, ones made of metal not the composite pocket ones. The side used to measure I.D. of pipe etc works great, adjust them open into 2 of the notches and lock them in place. You can really get torque on it easily and I no longer use heat to open them.
> 
> Also FWIW, the rings in the beam are because the emitter is just a little lower in the reflector than it wants for that emitter. It's a PITA to get it further in without chancing the wires shorting to the reflector so if it can be lived with then I'd call it good.



Thank You Jamie, I really appreciate all your help. You have given me a lot of good info the last few days. I actually have a metal caliper on the way from the bay. It seemed like they would work for things like that, but I wasn't sure. I tried to find a "tool" that actually works the same as they do, because I wasn't sure they would be able to take the torque. Hopefully I'll get those calipers soon. I didn't get the digital, but they look like they lock into place.
I thought the rings may be from the reflector height, but wasn't sure. I know that plastic ring I stuck on it is holding it off a smidge more. If I'd have used an 8mm mcpcb I could have bent the wires flat out of the way and eliminated the possibility of a short...I think. I may be able to cut out more of the ring and allow the reflector to drop and still keep the solder pads and wire covered. Is that where you think my problem may be?... or shorting at the LED?



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## think2x (Sep 10, 2014)

At the wires, not the emitter. I had a few give me some trouble with the solder pads of the emitter board contacting the reflector. Yours looks like a pretty clean install. The trimmed board looks good to me. Another trick I use to get the wiring as low as possible, I use the "legs" from 5mm LEDs that I have laying around to jump between the driver wires and the solder pads. I have had zero issues using them and have done many.


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## Double Barrel (Sep 10, 2014)

I like the 5mm lead idea. At one point I filed down the solder to fall beneath the shelf. I put it in and took it out so much, I gave up trying and stuck the ring on it. I even had liquid tape at one point. I don't know if I'd completely trust the liquid tape yet. I may try to cut ring around the led some to allow it to drop down. The rings aren't noticed at all outdoors though. Idk if it's worth it. They aren't as noticeable as the picture depicts. I don't know how to take good accurate beamshots. 
I can't believe how bright this thing is. It is noticeably brighter than the 361N. I don't know how to determine lumens by amps or watts, but I wouldn't think it could be possible to get higher than 375. I just checked Malkoffs site to make sure I had the 361N lumens right at 375 on high. I think I remember reading HDS all were roughly 1.0A at tail, which should make this a nice mod for HDS as well. (Thinking out loud, I know you guys already know all this stuff.) I'm assuming NT's are close to that. Is this possible going by the numbers? I really don't think my eyes are playing tricks on me.

I'm happy with it for sure, now only 5 more to go, then maybe an HDS or two.
DB 


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## think2x (Sep 11, 2014)

The numbers seem right from my experience.


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## LightJunk (Sep 11, 2014)

WOW....Another excellent mod. Great job.

I used a circlip pliers to remove the rings. It can be a PITA.


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## derfyled (Sep 11, 2014)

Great mod ! I really like the idea of re-shaping the mcpcb with a dremel. What kind of tips did you use to grind it ?

EDIT: here's trick to determine the polarity of an SSC emitter: there is 2 smaller legs (beside the one that is soldered), the one that has an hole is the negative. Use a Sharpie to identify the + and - on the pink alu.


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## Tana (Sep 11, 2014)

Great progress, DB... keep it up, dude... :thumbsup:


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## Double Barrel (Sep 11, 2014)

derfyled said:


> Great mod ! I really like the idea of re-shaping the mcpcb with a dremel. What kind of tips did you use to grind it ?



I actually only used a cutting disk to reshape the noctigon. The copper is so soft is shaped very easy with the sides of the disk. I cut out the majority of material, then for the more tedious shaping used the sides of disk to sand it to shape.

Thanks guys, I appreciate the compliments and helpful info. 
Tana many thanks to you for the hrs we have spent talking lights, advice, educating and life in general. I consider you a good friend. 
The notched out "leg" to determine - side of SSC emitter is very helpful. I have a few of these I want to mod. Makes it a little simpler. I've already got my next victim tore down. Wish me luck.
DB 




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## tobrien (Sep 13, 2014)

nice work again!


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## Double Barrel (Sep 13, 2014)

tobrien said:


> nice work again!



Thanks Tucker, I'm hooked now. It would have probably been best for my collection if this would have been a disaster. It's going to be hard to stop. Got some dr jones drivers heading my way now.


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## tobrien (Sep 14, 2014)

Double Barrel said:


> Thanks Tucker, I'm hooked now. It would have probably been best for my collection if this would have been a disaster. It's going to be hard to stop. Got some dr jones drivers heading my way now.
> 
> 
> .


that'll be great to have the new driver and no problem bud


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## Nicrod (Sep 17, 2014)

Nice Job DB! Modded NovaTacs are among my favorite EDC lights. And Jamie is the Guy to ask for advice. I send all my NovaTacs to Jamie for modding. 

For your next NT project, you should try a Triple Nichia in one of those.


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## Double Barrel (Sep 17, 2014)

Yea, I really want to try a triple. 
Jamie has really helped me out. He knows his stuff for sure. 
I need to find a pill/heat sink I guess and get started on a triple. 
What do you use to mount the PCB to?
DB 


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## m4a1usr (Sep 19, 2014)

Outstanding job DB. But you done it now. If you aint hooked now,......you will be. (evil laugh).


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## climberkid (Sep 19, 2014)

You inspire! I got rid of all my NTs years ago but now that I'm into modding I can't get my hands on a single one! The search continues. 
Your thread is as close as it gets to being a walk through, it's awesome. Thanks.


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## Double Barrel (Sep 20, 2014)

m4a1usr said:


> Outstanding job DB. But you done it now. If you aint hooked now,......you will be. (evil laugh).



Lol..I'm hooked for sure. None of my lights are safe..haha. I'm stocking up on supplies now. Hopefully whenever I get a wild hair, I'll already have what I need. If I have to wait to order and wait for delivery, I've already grown 3 more wild hairs. I'm getting hairy :grin:



climberkid said:


> You inspire! I got rid of all my NTs years ago but now that I'm into modding I can't get my hands on a single one! The search continues.
> Your thread is as close as it gets to being a walk through, it's awesome. Thanks.



Thank you, I hope it helps. I say find one and tear that sucker down. With an updated LED these NT's are nice. It definitely brings them up to speed.
Good luck, DB 


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## sween1911 (Oct 13, 2014)

Hey bud, GREAT WORK!

Hope you don't mind me piggybacking on your thread, from our PM on the marketplace, I'm inspired to swap an XP-G2 from one light into my Novatac 85T. 
Will check in and let you know how it goes.


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## Double Barrel (Oct 13, 2014)

sween1911 said:


> Hey bud, GREAT WORK!
> 
> Hope you don't mind me piggybacking on your thread, from our PM on the marketplace, I'm inspired to swap an XP-G2 from one light into my Novatac 85T.
> Will check in and let you know how it goes.



Awesome, I hope it goes well for you! Take pics and post your experience here on the mod forum. If you need anything just give me a shout. If I can't help you, I'll point you in the right direction. I had plenty of questions and problems at first. Luckily, I had a couple guys here that gave me plenty of advice and guidance for my first one.


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## KDM (Oct 13, 2014)

Congratulations, nice job! Yes your hooked now for sure. The novatac 120 was the first light I did a swap on, seems like a popular one to start with.


Got one with a dead driver I need to find some parts for.:thinking:


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## sween1911 (Oct 14, 2014)

Double Barrel said:


> Awesome, I hope it goes well for you! Take pics and post your experience here on the mod forum. If you need anything just give me a shout. If I can't help you, I'll point you in the right direction. I had plenty of questions and problems at first. Luckily, I had a couple guys here that gave me plenty of advice and guidance for my first one.



Thanks bud. Will do!


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## Skold (Oct 21, 2014)

*Novatac 120P Xm-l2 mod problems*

Hey guys I am having a few problems. I have seen all of the other threads with people modding novatac 120P's with XM-L emitters, but none with XM-L2. I was following this post: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?390099-Novatac-120-EDC-Mod-XP-L  but am having trouble. This is my first time doing this and I do not have very much knowledge in circuits and things like this. I tried soldering an XM-L2 to a PCB and then trimming it down to fit and put everything together and it would not work. Now I cannot get the light to make any of the LED's come on and when I measure the amps being put out by the flashlight it is giving me very small numbers like 46 microAmps for the stock led... but it will not light it up. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for your time and I look forward to hearing back from you!


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## Double Barrel (Oct 21, 2014)

Skold said:


> Hey guys I am having a few problems. I have seen all of the other threads with people modding novatac 120P's with XM-L emitters, but none with XM-L2. I was following this post: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?390099-Novatac-120-EDC-Mod-XP-L  but am having trouble. This is my first time doing this and I do not have very much knowledge in circuits and things like this. I tried soldering an XM-L2 to a PCB and then trimming it down to fit and put everything together and it would not work. Now I cannot get the light to make any of the LED's come on and when I measure the amps being put out by the flashlight it is giving me very small numbers like 46 microAmps for the stock led... but it will not light it up. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for your time and I look forward to hearing back from you!



I tried to pm you earlier. I see this is your first post, so you'll need a couple more to pm. 
I'm not sure what's going on. Probably going to need more info. You mentioned you tried soldering an XML2 to PCB. Have you checked the LED/PCB for continuity with the DMM? It will light up when you attach the leads if it's ok. Hopefully you didn't get into the trace of the PCB when trimming. If something's wrong you should get a beep. The XP Noctigon I used was laid out perfect to trim up for this mod without getting into them. I don't know what you used or how the traces run on yours.
I destroyed my stock PCB when removing it. It was glued in pretty good. I don't know about your measurements or why your stock LED isn't working. If your light was working before you started, I don't think it will be anything major if you left the driver in place and only removed the LED. 
Check to be sure you have + & - orientation correct as well. That gave me some trouble, along with a bad reflowed LED. 



Edit: The LED/PCB will need to be out of the flashlight (desoldered) to correctly test it for continuity.


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## Skold (Oct 21, 2014)

Double Barrel said:


> I tried to pm you earlier. I see this is your first post, so you'll need a couple more to pm.
> I'm not sure what's going on. Probably going to need more info. You mentioned you tried soldering an XML2 to PCB. Have you checked the LED/PCB for continuity with the DMM? It will light up when you attach the leads if it's ok. Hopefully you didn't get into the trace of the PCB when trimming. If something's wrong you should get a beep. The XP Noctigon I used was laid out perfect to trim up for this mod without getting into them. I don't know what you used or how the traces run on yours.
> I destroyed my stock PCB when removing it. It was glued in pretty good. I don't know about your measurements or why your stock LED isn't working. If your light was working before you started, I don't think it will be anything major if you left the driver in place and only removed the LED.
> Check to be sure you have + & - orientation correct as well. That gave me some trouble, along with a bad reflowed LED.
> ...




Hey! yes it does light up when I check the PCB with the emitter soldered to it. So that would mean that I soldered the LED to the PCB correctly. The problem is when i solder the leads of the driver to the PCB and turn on the light... nothing happens.... so I'm not sure where to go from here.


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## Skold (Oct 23, 2014)

Can anyone tell me how to test the driver with my DMM on the novatac 120P to make sure it is working properly? Thanks for your help!


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## m4a1usr (Oct 23, 2014)

That light should come with a 3 level driver so testing should be straight forward. Measure the voltage across the LED on one or all settings. You should get something like 3.2 volts on high, 2.6 on the next level and on low it's probably down to something close to 2.3 volts. I'm guessing at the last one but it will be pretty low. But if your getting over 3 volts on high than the driver is probably working fine. You can solder a couple stiff wires on an old CR123 cell (make sure its under 2.9 volts) and put them directly across your LED to see if its good or not. It's always good to have one of these on hand if your a modder.


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## Skold (Oct 23, 2014)

m4a1usr said:


> That light should come with a 3 level driver so testing should be straight forward. Measure the voltage across the LED on one or all settings. You should get something like 3.2 volts on high, 2.6 on the next level and on low it's probably down to something close to 2.3 volts. I'm guessing at the last one but it will be pretty low. But if your getting over 3 volts on high than the driver is probably working fine. You can solder a couple stiff wires on an old CR123 cell (make sure its under 2.9 volts) and put them directly across your LED to see if its good or not. It's always good to have one of these on hand if your a modder.



Hi m4a1usr when I measure the volts on the LED from the flashlight it says 134 mV. I can only get the meter to read anything while the button is pressed down, but can not get it to stay on. Thanks so much!


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## Lithium466 (Oct 24, 2014)

Sounds like a short circuit somewhere. Could you post pics of your led swap? Maybe you made a tiny scratch on the ano of the radiator ?
Are you using a CR123A or a 16340/RCR123 to test? (or a lab power supply)


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## m4a1usr (Oct 24, 2014)

Do a resistance check of the tailcap switch. Your 134mv reading can be due to galvanic action or dissimilar metals reaction in the tailcap/body construction. That measurement should be ignored. Set your DMM to the lowest resistance setting, 200 ohms or lower, and take a measurement between the center spring to the tailcap body. When pressed it should be less than 1 ohm. Since I don't know the Novatac 120P I'm making some assumptions here. It's most likely just a on/off TC. Most are. If you are seeing a very low reading your driver or the electrical path is the issue. Could be on the input side (battery) or on the LED side. Check the wires going to the LED. See if they are seeing continuity to the light body. Neither the Pos or Neg wires should measure any resistance to the pill or the light body. Driver output (+ or -) should be isolated from the body. Any chance you have the ability/ tools to test the driver out of the light?


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## Skold (Oct 24, 2014)

Lithium466 said:


> Sounds like a short circuit somewhere. Could you post pics of your led swap? Maybe you made a tiny scratch on the ano of the radiator ?
> Are you using a CR123A or a 16340/RCR123 to test? (or a lab power supply)


 
Hi, Lithium466 I am currently at school so I cannot post pictures of the swap at the moment. I can describe the setup to help you understand what I am working with. I have taken the stock light apart and removed the stock LED and soldered an approximately 10 inch wire to each lead of the driver and then routed them out the front of the light with the reflector and glass removed. The ends of those wires are then soldered to the positive and negative leads of a PCB with an XM-L2 Led emitter installed. I have already checked that the LED is correctly soldered to the PCB with the DMM and it does light up when checking it with the DMM. When I check the voltage on the PCB leads the only time I can get any voltage is when the button on the end cap is pressed and I am only getting readings of around 140 mV and the LED will not even light up at all from the power of the flashlight. I would like to note that the reason I am using the wires is so that I can put the flashlight together with the battery in it to ensure contact and to get power to the driver. Also the long wires allow me to do all of this checking of the circuit with the DMM while the light is screwed together. I would also like to note I have ground down a PCB with an LED correctly installed and working, placed it inside the light, soldered the leads of the driver to the PCB, and put the light all back together like it should be and got the same result that is why I am now using the current long wire setup for testing purposes. I am using Rechargeable cr123's, also I am not sure what the radiator is to check for scratches, I am relatively new to some of this so I am not on the up and up on all of the terms.



m4a1usr said:


> Do a resistance check of the tailcap switch. Your 134mv reading can be due to galvanic action or dissimilar metals reaction in the tailcap/body construction. That measurement should be ignored. Set your DMM to the lowest resistance setting, 200 ohms or lower, and take a measurement between the center spring to the tailcap body. When pressed it should be less than 1 ohm. Since I don't know the Novatac 120P I'm making some assumptions here. It's most likely just a on/off TC. Most are. If you are seeing a very low reading your driver or the electrical path is the issue. Could be on the input side (battery) or on the LED side. Check the wires going to the LED. See if they are seeing continuity to the light body. Neither the Pos or Neg wires should measure any resistance to the pill or the light body. Driver output (+ or -) should be isolated from the body. Any chance you have the ability/ tools to test the driver out of the light?



Hi m4a1usr I will try to check the resistance of the tailcap switch tonight. I do have access to an old HP dual channel controllable power supply that I can get this weekend maybe, would that allow me to test the driver outside of the flashlight?? I have almost zero knowledge of circuits so I am slightly confused on the second part of your post about isolating and continuity. Sorry I'm a noob .

Thanks for both of your help and any advise to check or change anything is greatly appreciated and I will try to get some pictures posted tonight of the setup.


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## Skold (Oct 24, 2014)

Here is a picture of the whole setup with the wires coming out of the front:





Here are the two pictures of the wires soldered to the driver leads:









Let me know what you guys think! also I checked the resistance of the tail cap and was getting a reading of 1.1 on the 200 ohms setting with my DMM.


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## Skold (Oct 27, 2014)

Anyone have any ideas on this????


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## kosPap (Nov 15, 2014)

yuo powered the ELD thsi way?
with no heatsinking its probably burned.
even burned it might light just a bit.

put it ona heatsink and the mementarily power it straight from a battery


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