# Mod: River Rock + Osram Golden Dragon



## Arkayne (Dec 6, 2005)

Let me introduce myself! I'm not a Flashaholic (yet) and have never had my own light until 2 weeks ago when I bought a SureFire A2. I discovered this forum from a good friend and I've been hooked since. So here I am! 
-
I had some tinkering time the other night so I popped in a Golden Dragon for curiosity sake. I measured the River Rock feeding the Nichia Jupiter ~3.75V at, I'm assuming, 350mA. Since both leds pretty much play in the same electrical ballpark, I figured it should be a straightforward swap.

The victim




Simply unscrew the top




Remove the two nuts to access the fun bits




Behold, the Nichia Jupiter. I gave it a quick blast from an air duster turned upside down to get the thermal epoxy nice and brittle. Then, I gently twisted the led off with a crescent wrench.




Tada! Notice the raised edges used to align the led.




I used a Dremel to remove most of the epoxy and flatten the mount. 




Then lapped the surface with 600 grit  that's all I had on me!




Prepped the Golden Dragon 'odes





I used Artic Silver Thermal Epoxy to mount the GD




Soldered the leads after it cured




And the results!

BEFORE




AFTER




It is definitely brighter and whiter than before and is in dire need of some type of diffusion. I'd like to put a larger dome reflector in there so the room gets a better share of that bright halo on the floor. Although, I suppose it wouldnt be so bad if the lantern was hanging high.

What's next? I've a spare Luxeon III to try. Time pending, I may design a more robust heatsink for a Luxeon V. I'd like to chuck the stock electronics and put a BuckPuck in there. Maybe I'll stuff it with 123's . So many ideas! 

Anyway, I thought you guys might get a kick out of this so I documented it. Cheers!


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## CroMAGnet (Dec 6, 2005)

Holy CRAP!! even BRIGHTER GLARE!? :rock:


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## Flash_Gordon (Dec 6, 2005)

Hi and welcome to CPF.

Beautiful work and great pictures. Since the Osram Golden Dragon Lantern is hard to get in the US, you have come up with a nice substitute.

Check toward the end of this thread: RR Diffusion If you have access to a sandblaster you will be able to finish your lantern off and have one that is quite exceptional.

Mark


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## Haz (Dec 6, 2005)

What a great mod, i thought the RR was bright already, now even better!.


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## CLHC (Dec 6, 2005)

Welcome CPF Arkayne!

Doing modifications already proves that you are a "flashaholic"! Nice pictures and what a mod eh?


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## festiva91 (Dec 6, 2005)

Nice work, how does the battery consumption differ? Where can you purchase one at anyway? thanks


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## Arkayne (Dec 7, 2005)

Hey thanks for the welcome! I think I'm going to like it here. :rock:

I bought the GD from http://www.ledsupply.com/ledsupply/index.html They are quick to reply to emails and the shipping was fast.

As for power consumption, I've yet to run a set of batteries through it. I'll invest in some rechargeable alkalines next month for sure and report back.

I've a slew of projects in the works so look out!


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## NewBie (Dec 7, 2005)

Nice Pictures!

Welcome Aboard!


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## nemul (Dec 7, 2005)

http://www.ledsupply.com/ledsupply/lw-w5sg.html


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## Pila_Power (Dec 7, 2005)

Way to go man!!

I'm in the process of ordering two of the r/rock lanterns and will take your tips on board for sure.

Welcome to CPF, watch yer wallet!! 

Tim.


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## Tritium (Dec 8, 2005)

Pila_Power said:


> Way to go man!!
> 
> I'm in the process of ordering two of the r/rock lanterns and will take your tips on board for sure.
> 
> ...




Yea, Watch it EMPTY QUICKLY!!! 

Thurmond


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## grrickar (Dec 10, 2005)

Nice mod. I just sanded the globe on mine, now I am thinking about that mod you did. It would really kick it up a notch. Even with the sanded globe, I think I would want a dimmer added for a tent light. If someone comes up with that mod, I'll definitely swap the LED. Bright mode for area light around camp, dim mode for tent light....schweet


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## Flash_Gordon (Dec 10, 2005)

Wonder if these could be given the Golden Dragon mod. They are 4x5mm LED and I don't know about the mounting structure. This would essentially make them into the elusive Osram Golden Dragon lantern for about $30. Even smaller than the RR with two level output.

I don't have the facilities where I am to attempt this. 

Mark


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## Illuminated (Dec 10, 2005)

Welcome Arkayne,

Nice mod & pics, too! The RR lantern has been a subject of many posts...

In regards to a dimming feature, I have a few simple thoughts. Since the regulator is a downconverter, chances are that like most downconverters - it will go into direct drive (like the DBXXXX's) once the input voltage can no longer be sustained above the Vf of the LED.

So, here are two possible ways to add a dimming feature...

One involves the addition of series resistor in parallel with a switch to reduce the input voltage below that of the VF of the LED (same concept as the McE2S). Not the best in terms of efficiency, but definitely easy enough and doable. The switch would be wired to bypass the series resistor entirely for full output.

The second involves wiring a switch and a 2nd constant-current regulator (DB100 for example) in series with the batteries. If the RR regulator does go to direct drive with a reduced input, then adding a CC regulator in series with the supply should limit the current available for reduced bightness without as much loss in efficiency as with a simple series resistor. Again, the switch in parallel would bypass the additional regulator for full output.

At any rate, the RR lantern is definitely a good one as-is for almost anyone who camps/hikes/etc. and needs a smallish portable battery-powered lantern. Modding for improvements can only make a good lantern even better!


Nice work - John


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## Arkayne (Dec 10, 2005)

grrickar said:


> Nice mod. I just sanded the globe on mine, now I am thinking about that mod you did. It would really kick it up a notch. Even with the sanded globe, I think I would want a dimmer added for a tent light. If someone comes up with that mod, I'll definitely swap the LED. Bright mode for area light around camp, dim mode for tent light....schweet



Well I don't have the know-how to modify the existing circuitry to have selectable dim settings but I can put a potentiometer in to dim the led. Tell ya what, I'll have a go at it sometime this week and will post the results.


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## Arkayne (Dec 10, 2005)

Illuminated said:


> So, here are two possible ways to add a dimming feature...
> 
> One involves the addition of series resistor in parallel with a switch to reduce the input voltage below that of the VF of the LED (same concept as the McE2S). Not the best in terms of efficiency, but definitely easy enough and doable. The switch would be wired to bypass the series resistor entirely for full output.
> 
> ...



Thanks John. Your suggestions actually make sense to me! Man, I AM learning stuff from this forum! 

I'll have to read up on these constant current regulators, especially that DB100.


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## shaman (Dec 10, 2005)

Cool, I was wondering how those golden dragons would look (I've never seen them before only read about them). Now I can't wait to try it! Good job on the mod and pictures!

Sincerely,

Shaman


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## Arkayne (Dec 11, 2005)

UPDATE: RUN-TIME PLOT COMPLETED!

The RR kicks out of regulation a tad over 7 hrs. The batteries were not even warm and there was still lots of usable light when I opened up my test rig. I should have let it run longer. I logged every minute for approximately 8 hrs.

Here is a plot of a STOCK RR by Doug P. at Flashlightreviews.com






Here is my plot




EDIT: X = Sample No. in Minutes Y = Output from Solar Cell in mV

Not bad! I lost almost an hour and half of regulated use over the stock lamp. I'll consider this mod a success!

Now I have to buy my compressor and sand blaster for some frosting.


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## grrickar (Dec 12, 2005)

So who is gonna drop in a Osram Golden Dragon in a RR 1.5W 2C flashy? I just bought one, looks to be a nice light, same Nichia Jupiter LED too. Not sure how accessable it is though. If anyone does it, let me know!


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## grrickar (Dec 12, 2005)

BTW, on my RR lantern I sanded the globe with a few strips of sandpaper. I am now looking to buy some glow powder (green or blue to put up around the led so it'll charge it up when the light is on. Someone else on the board did it, and it looks nice. Where do I get this powder, and can you buy in small quantities? I don't see me needing but enough to do two lanterns.


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## attowatt (Dec 12, 2005)

grrickar said:


> BTW, on my RR lantern I sanded the globe with a few strips of sandpaper. I am now looking to buy some glow powder (green or blue to put up around the led so it'll charge it up when the light is on. Someone else on the board did it, and it looks nice. Where do I get this powder, and can you buy in small quantities? I don't see me needing but enough to do two lanterns.




That was me Click Me!

As for the glow powder I purchased mine from united nuclear, however there are some here who have GP as well. 

On this post I used one of Bart's tritium's vials and like it better than the glow powder.

Jim:wave:


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## Pila_Power (Dec 12, 2005)

Need powder?? :naughty:

Drop me a pm and I'll sort you out if you like 

Cheers,

Tim.


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## grrickar (Dec 12, 2005)

attowatt said:


> That was me Click Me!
> 
> As for the glow powder I purchased mine from united nuclear, however there are some here who have GP as well.
> 
> ...


 
Which is brighter, the vial or the powder? The pics make the powder look brighter.


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## Russell52 (Dec 13, 2005)

If a person is not afraid to smoke the original led,they can remove R4,And replace it with a jumper,This makes it good bit brighter...

Arkayne,

Do you know how the Osram Golden dragon compares to the moon series leds,as far as light output and what not?? For now,I'll run without resistor 4..


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## Arkayne (Dec 13, 2005)

Russell52 said:


> Do you know how the Osram Golden dragon compares to the moon series leds,as far as light output and what not?? For now,I'll run without resistor 4..



It looks like the Moon comes in 2 flavors. The Lo Moon is just a Nichia Jupiter mounted on a nifty 1"x1" pcb/heat sink. The Elara Moon uses a Nichia Rigel led mounted on a .5"x.5" pcb. The Rigel's use less power than the Jupiters (about .2V less) and aren't as bright (20lm vs 42lm of the Jupiter). This is because the Jupiter is focused at 70 degress and the Rigel at 120.


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## attowatt (Dec 13, 2005)

grrickar said:


> Which is brighter, the vial or the powder? The pics make the powder look brighter.



The powder is brighter INITIALLY after the lantern has "charged" it. However, if you dont charge the powder, then the tritium vial is the choice of method to locate the lantern. I have both vial and powder in 1 lantern and like them both, but as stated above... if the lantern is never turned on (1 or 2 days or more) then the vial is a better locator.


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## IsaacHayes (Dec 13, 2005)

Very cool that the golden dragon seems to be more efficient than the Nichia!
It also is less focused, so you need larger reflector to disperse the light sideways more.


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## Pila_Power (Dec 14, 2005)

"The powder is brighter INITIALLY after the lantern has "charged" it. However, if you dont charge the powder, then the tritium vial is the choice of method to locate the lantern. I have both vial and powder in 1 lantern and like them both, but as stated above... if the lantern is never turned on (1 or 2 days or more) then the vial is a better locator."

True, if the lantern is kept in total darkness, otherwise there's a 10 to 12 hour visible glow. You can get more surface area covered than a vial though I have yet to see a tritium vial 1st hand for brightness.

I'm still gonna powder mine all up.


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## Russell52 (Dec 14, 2005)

Does anyone have any info on the chip that this board is useing,I am still looking for info on it,But couldnt find it on stmicroelectronics web site,So I turn to this forum,and google 

The numbers I have on mine are 393,st,fs11

Thanks
Russ


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## OddBall (Dec 21, 2005)

Whadya reckon about a TWOK luxIII going in one?

What would I need to alter in order for it to work?


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## N162E (Jan 11, 2006)

Arkayne said:


> Let me introduce myself! I'm not a Flashaholic (yet) and have never had my own light until 2 weeks ago when I bought a SureFire A2. I discovered this forum from a good friend and I've been hooked since. So here I am!
> -
> I had some tinkering time the other night so I popped in a Golden Dragon for curiosity sake. I measured the River Rock feeding the Nichia Jupiter ~3.75V at, I'm assuming, 350mA. Since both leds pretty much play in the same electrical ballpark, I figured it should be a straightforward swap.
> 
> Anyway, I thought you guys might get a kick out of this so I documented it. Cheers!


I have my lantern and Golden Dragon and am ready to do the mod. How do you read the polarity on the Dragon? There is a dimple next to one of the leads on the Dragon, is the dimple positive or negative? The RR lantern is plainly marked.


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## Russell52 (Jan 12, 2006)

Yes the keyed side of the circuit is the positive There is also a key way in the lens part that sits on the base,Just in case you happen to remove it.. Good luck,Please post pics when your done.


Russ


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## N162E (Jan 12, 2006)

Russell52 said:


> Yes the keyed side of the circuit is the positive There is also a key way in the lens part that sits on the base,Just in case you happen to remove it.. Good luck,Please post pics when your done.
> 
> 
> Russ


Hi Russell, Thanks for the reply but, my question concerns the LED itself. As it seems to be diode protected I decided to try a little trial and error. The dimple on the backside of the LED indicates the cathode (Negative) side. I have a couple of the lanterns. I will do one and take a picture of them side by side for comparison. Stay tuned.


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## Arkayne (Jan 12, 2006)

N162E said:


> Hi Russell, Thanks for the reply but, my question concerns the LED itself. As it seems to be diode protected I decided to try a little trial and error. The dimple on the backside of the LED indicates the cathode (Negative) side. I have a couple of the lanterns. I will do one and take a picture of them side by side for comparison. Stay tuned.



What I really like about the Golden Dragon is that it has a feature that glows red if you hook it up with the incorrect polarity.

good luck with the mod! post pics!


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## Russell52 (Jan 12, 2006)

N162E said:


> Hi Russell, Thanks for the reply but, my question concerns the LED itself. As it seems to be diode protected I decided to try a little trial and error. The dimple on the backside of the LED indicates the cathode (Negative) side. I have a couple of the lanterns. I will do one and take a picture of them side by side for comparison. Stay tuned.


 Oops,sorry,I miss read your post,was half asleep  But I will stay tuned


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## N162E (Jan 20, 2006)

I did this mod exactly as per Arkayne's example. While I like the color better I can not say it is any brighter. Visually it appears Not as bright. Anybody have notes to compare?


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