# My two new LedBlasters!



## Ra (Dec 5, 2010)

Hi guyzz,



Here I'm going to show two new members of my family: The Mini LedBlaster, and the Micro LedBlaster..



Wonder what they look like?.. Well, almost the same, there is however a size (and color, weight, output, and burntime...) difference...



Here you go:











Both are based on the Cree XR-E R2 EZ 900 led, which gives a max cp output of 60,500cp for the Mini and 9,000cp for the Micro LedBlaster





The Mini Ledblaster has a (heavy..) stainless steel construction and is the result of weeks of testing with my homemade glass based 35mm TIR optic:












Oooopsss, wrong picture! That's the 67mm TIR.... I mean this one:














Performance of this TIR optic is very good: CP output is almost the same as an aspherical lens with the same diameter (95%) And many forget that with the

sensitivity of the human eye being a logarithmic curve, those 5% can be neglected, even 15% would be hardly noticable.

The great benifit of glass based TIR optics is the unmatched tochlumens efficiency, which is also approx 95%, so I can amost fully enjoy the efficiency of today's led's!

But like almost everything on this earth, TIR optics do have disadvantages: They need to be exactly focused to obtain a nice beamspot, and they are not suited for

spot to flood zoom setups. But collimated properly, they are unmatched in efficiency.












Both LedBlaster's work with the same setup I used in earlier lights: A three level (or four, if you count 'off' as a level) reedswitch controlled, resistor based setup

with the highest level direct drive (although I had to make a homemade resistor for the Mini LedBlaster to be able to use the AW IMR 18650 cells without killing the led)





















Another advantage of TIR-optics: The perfect round beamspot with nice uniform color.. Here the beamspot of Micro LedBlaster:










Ecpecially with Micro Ledblaster, being so small, the three (or four if you like) level's setup is very practical: A low level (4mA/30cp) to easily find your way in and around your house (for 50 hours..)

A nominal level (90mA/1000cp) for a very decent output during 2 hours on one charge.

And the incredible 1,3A/9,000cp, close to 300 lumens boost level that definitely turns heads (away !!!)

I also incorporated a 'boost level reminder': I have to apply more force to the switching ring to reach the boost level, the boost level is not very friendly to the tiny 10280 cell..



This boost level does not work longer than a mere 5 minutes or so, but then again, you only need a few seconds to amaze people, right?



As a result of the reedswitch setup, the Ledblaster's are as waterproof as a torch possibly can be: The only opening is the battery compartment, which is sealed by a heavy O-ring

The reeds are triggered through the Aluminum or stainless steel by a small neodymium magnet, embedded in the ring just below the head, very reliable as my MicroBlaster
and mini-HID proved for years now.










You can see the wear at MicroBlaster, a result of years as EDC. As MicroBlaster had many accidents in the past, it's glued together now in a way that makes it (nearly?) impossible for me to change the led and make it more powerfull.
Because although MicroBlaster still stands strong, he's (or she's..?) no match for the much more powerfull Micro LedBlaster!



The two new kid's on the block with my Mini HID:
















Now I want to thank a few people who made this possible:



AW: for selling these beautifull small Li-Ion cells (and those powerfull IMR cells)

FH: For doing the most acurate and beautifull machine work for me...

CPF: For giving me the oppertunity to show this to the world..



If I forgot someone, please 'led' me know..





Regards,



Ra.


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## Ra (Dec 5, 2010)

*Thread under construction: My two new LedBlasters!*

Sorry, something weird happened and caused a double post...


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## Machete God (Mar 28, 2011)

*Re: Thread under construction: My two new LedBlasters!*

Bump, for a couple of astounding lights from a legendary modder.


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## ma_sha1 (Mar 28, 2011)

*Re: Thread under construction: My two new LedBlasters!*

Wow, somehow I missed this post.

I've been waiting for the 35MM TIR to get finished, so what's the CP on the 35mm one?


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## Ra (Mar 30, 2011)

*Re: Thread under construction: My two new LedBlasters!*



ma_sha1 said:


> Wow, somehow I missed this post.
> 
> I've been waiting for the 35MM TIR to get finished, so what's the CP on the 35mm one?


 
The 35mm TIR is in my Mini LedBlaster, and gives 60,500 cp..


Regards,

Ra


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## bshanahan14rulz (Apr 3, 2013)

*Re: Thread under construction: My two new LedBlasters!*

So, is polishing glass blanks still the best/only way for hobbyist to make a DIY TIR? 

I was wondering what is involved in making a precision mold, if it would be easier or harder to make a mold for pmma or just use glass.

I've been tinkering with some different TIR designs, but obviously the main setback is that there is no financially feasible way to get these designs made as one-offs, so I'm thinking I may just scrap these, make a much simpler one, and hand-grind it.


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