# Home Made Bike Light Database



## Low_Rider (Jan 15, 2004)

I think there are now enough _home made and modified light builds_ out there to warrant a dedicated database! :thumbsup:

Please use the template provided below in your post as a guide, but feel free to modify it as necessary for your purpose. *Linking* in the manner demonstrated to the websites of the various components or resources that you have used as they are mentioned would be appreciated. All lights and builds are more then welcome! 

Please keep this thread as a pure database. _Start a new thread if you would like to make a comment or ask a question!_ 

Cheers, Dave.

*Light Source:*

List what type of bulbs or emitters you use, how many, and what the model number or bin code is if you know. 
Voltage or drive current as appropriate would be nice too.

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

List what you use or have tried, and what you like and dislike.

*Housing:*

List where you have purchased housings, or how you have made housings, and from what materials.

*Power Source:*

List your battery chemistry, voltage and capacity. Also provide details on your charger if you like. 
Connector choice could go here too.

*Regulator:*

If you are regulating the power to your light source, list what device you are using, and feel free to list any setup details.

*Additional comments:*

Anything goes. Construction method, mounting solutions, likes and dislikes, future upgrades. 
Perhaps you could provide a link to an existing thread discussing your light if you wish.

*Photos:*

Photos are encouraged, but please keep them to a reasonable size.


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## Stuart B (Mar 21, 2005)

Modified lighsta re allowed...cool 

This is combined for my triple and double...i will highlight any differences

I have a more detailed thread in my sig that shows the mods (I haven't added any detail about swapping out the optics yet)

*Light Source:

*3 and 2 Seoul P4 LEDs driven at 1 amp and below. Original LEDs were Luxeon 3

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

Initially I used the stock optics. Even with the orignal lux the beam is ringy with more of an emphasis on a hot spot. The triple floodyness is provided by the front plastic being frosted on the outside leds.

I am still juggling reflector choice, but Khadod and IMS 20m optics fit when the plastic LED clamp is removed. Luckily these reflectors are just the right size ot fit AND provide the clamping mechanism for the LEDs when the front of the housing is screwed on.

Triple
So far the best reflector setup seems to be have 2 Khatod narrow beans on the outside and a wide/flood in the middle. The frosting of the fron plastic softens the spots a bit to give a smoother bigger hot spot.

Double
I think throw is more important on the double for helmet use. So far I have only tried 2 Khatod narrow beams. 1 of the wides do give flood, if you want to use the double as a bar light.

I have more IMS and some McR reflectors on the way to try.

*Housing:*

Stock cateye housings.

*Power Source:*

1) stock cateye battery and integral controller
2)14.8V 2.2Ah LiIon (used with nFlax)
*
Regulator:*

See above

1) The stock controller seems happy enough. It should run at 700mA (I need ot test)

2) nFlex set to 1 amp and 2 lower levels (need to measure lower level currents). nFlex seems like agreat unit so far.

*Additional comments:*

This set up is loads brighter than stock!

I already mentioned I want to try other reflectors.

I need to wire up a remote switch for the neflex.

I need to do more testiing especially on the stock controller. I am going to to back to back run time tests on the stock bat/controller against astock triple (my mates). Run time should be improved, but the triple had a fair bit of dimming after 2 hours. I need to chase this up as it should be better than stock.

When on the lowest nflex setting (which ever one I chose hehe) it is still bright enough to easliy fix a punny....but doesn't get warm when not in moving air. The housing gets warm in both stock and modded setups when not in moving air and driven by the stock controller levels or above (to be expected).

hoping to go the whole hog and do a DIY housing before taking tha cateyes much further...they are a good test bed for my light ideas/preferences though .

I will do a new entry for project CopperHead.

*Photos:

* see my link in my siggy

Stu


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## dnlwthrn (Jan 26, 2006)

*Light Source:*
12V MR16 20W bulbs, currently using 1 30* flood, 1 9* spot. Overvolted to 14.4V, using Lightbrain controller to give 5 light levels.

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*
Nothing special, using the sealed MR16 bulb

*Housing:*

Started with the "Pond Scum" setup, then moved to custom-machined aluminum housing

*Power Source:*

Batteryspace 14.4V 5000mAh waterbottle pack, NiMH with supplied connector

*Regulator:*

As mentioned above, using the Lightbrain Twin-Plus controller, http://www.trailheadlights.com/

*Additional comments:*

Currently trying to decide if I want to keep the flood/spot combo, or go with dual spots. Also looking into ideas for fine-tuning the angle of the beams independently to better light the trail.

*Photos:*

Coming soon! (I hope)


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## STS01 (Dec 29, 2005)

My pair of dual Cree lights

*Light Source:*

4x Cree XR-E (P4 bin)

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

Ledil square optics:

Helmet mounted pair: 1x smooth spot, 1x diffuser
Bar mounted pair: 1x diffuser, 1x medium

*Housing:*

2x dual LED "achesalot" DIY alloy housings

*Power Source:*

9.6v 2500mAh NiMH- 1 for each light pair

*Regulator:*

BuckPuck at 1000mAh.

*Additional comments:*

Still finishing them... (actually I'm making 6 units as a couple of friends want them too)

*Photos:*

Photos are encouraged, but please keep them to a reasonable size.[/QUOTE]


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## Low_Rider (Jan 15, 2004)

*Housing:*

I'm using a very early *Night Lightning* Endurenz housing from Eric, which is a little longer then the current offerings and has a few extra fins for extra cooling. It has seen a few different emitters in its life! Mounting the light to the bars I have successfully used a modified version of the system that Night Lightning use which is based on a *CatEye* mount, but now I have made the switch to an oversized *Lupine* handlebar mount rather than the CatEye mounting option.

My regulator on this light is mounted separately to the light, in a Night Lightning in line housing, with a waterproof momentary switch.

*Light Source:*

Most of the time I have run my light with three high binned *Lumileds Luxeon III* emitters, running at 1000mA in series. Unfortunately I've lost track of the exact bin I have. I have also experimented with Luxeon V emitters and some Luxeon K2 emitters at various drive currents from time to time too.

All of these emitters have been mounted on Stars of various types, lapped and bolted to the housing with some *Arctic Silver 5* thermal compound.

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

The great thing about the Night Lightning housing is that you are not limited to any particular optic or reflector. As a result I have experimented quite a bit, although mainly with 20mm optics. For most of the time I ran the light with a triple Carclo P10003 optic setup. I have tried a lot of different optics from many different manufacturers, but very few provided the optical quality that I found with the *Carclo Optics*.

I often tried a single P10003/15 and double P10003 setup, and while it provided a superior beam to the triple P10003 arrangement my emitters just didn't have the lumen horsepower required to make use of them. I always ended up putting the Carclo P10003 optics back in, which gave a 9 degree beam angle with the Luxeon III emitters.

*Power Source:*

For power I have always run a 4 cell 14.8 volt, 2.2Ah Lithium Ion pack built by *Siomar*, but purchased through Night Lightning. This pack has been used quite regularly for the last three years without any issues, apart from a recent failure which was caused by my own negligence. Luckily I found that the protection circuitry in these packs is top quality!

I use *Molex* 0.062" Standard 2-pin connectors, part numbers 03-06-2023 and 03-06-1023. These have the clips removed, and are used by Night Lightning and *Stenlight* in their lights too.

*Regulator:*

I have used a few constant current regulators of my own (crude) design from time to time, and have successfully ran these poor Luxeon III emitters at around 1400mA for quite some time. For most of the time though I have used an nFlex from George at *TaskLED*, running the 1000mA drive current table.

*Additional comments:*

This is my old lighting setup, which has now been upgraded to a triple Seoul P4 emitter arrangement, running at 1000mA with some extra new goodies. I'm constantly playing with optics and reflectors in the quest for the ultimate beam.

I'll make another post with my latest setup once I'm happy with it and have cleaned things up a little! 

*Photos:*


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## itsdoable (Jan 6, 2004)

*Light Source:*
Nichia 5mm LEDs (I think the last set I had were 12000mcd)
Luxeon 1,3,5 watt LEDs various batches
Lamina 5W LEDs

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*
Carclo 20mm
NX05s 20mm
Fraen 20, 30mm + triples
Various unknown ones

*Housing:*
DIY (various)
Modded (from Vistalite & Nitrider)
Night Lighting (very nice aluminium housings available)

*Power Source:*
Anything goes here, Alkiline, NiCd, NiMH, Gel cels, Lithium, etc... in various cell sizes. I have also used a NX-30 generator hub.

*Regulator:*








As well as various others from TaskLED & Sandwich Shoppe, in addition to several DIY versions.

*Additional comments:*
I probably started building and using LEDs as a primary (and only) night riding light before most people, starting with arrays of 5mm Nichia LEDs - I did my first 24HR race with an array of 51 - 5mm LEDs (and no other light) in 2001. There must have been $100 worth of LEDs in that thing!

*Photos:*









An array of 51 Nichia 5mm LEDs, driving at 1A from a buck regulator, and any battery from 4.5V to 18V. This was my first serious LED trail light.









Four 1W Luxeons with Fraen optics, and a boost regulator running of a 6V battery.









An early 2x 5W Luxeon with 30mm Fraen optics, and TaskLED buck controllers and anything from 7.5V to 20V battery - still in use today.









2 DIY units using Night Lighting's housing, Luxeon-IIIs








left using Carclo optic, right using a modified Fraen tri-optic, both are boost regulated from a 6V battery.

PS: I'll update the pictures as I hunt them down.


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## aljsk8 (Jul 19, 2006)

*Light Source:*

3 cree P4 LEDs driven at 1 amp

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

kaidomain cree optics - no idea on specs

Housing:

we all know the one - 3 tubes of square aluminium - mines a bit different with some nice bling finishing touches (carbon, purple nuts)

Power Source:

12 x aa batteries ni-mh 2200mah

*Regulator:*

ebay buck one from germany

*Photos:*


















my bike - old kona


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## Tony_J_Ross (Dec 4, 2006)

*Light Source:*

Three Seoul P4 U bins.

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

This light uses two 8.4 degree optics and one 20 degree Carclo Lenses.

*Housing:*

Aluminium tubing epoxied together, with various aluminium bits and pieces.

*Power Source:*

Tenergy Li-ion 18650. 14.8volt 4400mAh.

*Regulator:*

Luxeon Buckpuck 3023.

Additional comments:

One switch is for on/off one is for High beam, Medium beam and low beam.

*Additional Comments:*

This is my second light after my original one which had a wider beam pattern. I'm intending to use this as a helmet mount light and the other as a bar mount.

*Photos:*






























































Tony


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## jimgskoop (Apr 13, 2006)

*My Dual Cree XR-E Bike Headlight*

*Light Source:*

Dual Cree XR-E (P4bin) driven @ 1000mA

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

Dual L2 Optics OPTX 1-006 Lenses

*Housing:*

Housing is hand made from 1-1/4-inch square tubing and 1-inch bar stock sourced from smallparts.com. Design was based on that at https://myfwyc.org/bikeled/DIY_LED_Bike_Lighting_Guide.html and modified slightly. Acrylic lens was fabricated by cutting a section of plastic out of a broken-off cassette player door found on the sidewalk. 

*Power Source:*

Battery is 8xAA NiMH 2500mAH cells for 9.6V total.

*Regulator:*

TaskLED's excellent bFlex driver in UIB mode.

*Additional comments:*

I wanted to design a compact light similar to the Dinotte but brighter. I think I've succeeded. Here's the original thread I posted after finishing the light.

*Photos:*










Additional photos at Flickr.

More info at my website.


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## zen bicycle (Mar 23, 2007)

Modified Achesalot design

*Front Mount*
4 X sscp4 with a fatman boost driver from taskled driven at 800ma
http://www.taskled.com/fatman.html
2x6degree L2 optics
2X15 degree L2 optics outside mount
bar mounted 50kohm slide potentiometer with velcro attachment for dimming
5000mah 9v NiMH battery pack

Front Shock mount
*Helmet Mount*
2 X sscp4 on helmet mount driven by 3023 DE from Luxeon driven at 1000ma
2X5 degree L2 optics

5k ohm rotary potentiometer built into housing for dimming
using AA Nimh battery pack in camel back

All optics and 3023 driver came from LED supply
http://www.ledsupply.com/index.php

LEDs came from deal extreme
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.1445

Guestimate of @ 1200 lumens and 3+ hours of burn time on full power as I never ride that long

Updated design with pics coming later


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## dsut4392 (Mar 9, 2007)

*Light Source:*

3 x Seoul P4 U-bin stars

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

One of these: http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.4630
This is a 50mm triple optic, plastic, of unspecified beam width. 3 pack of these optics was $9.95

*Housing:*

1 x 170g can of Woolworths home brand tomato paste with ring-pull lid
50mm x 3mm piece of aluminium
40 x 40 x 1mm aluminium 90 degree angle 
3mm x 40mm bolts
Aluminium rivets

*Helmet mount:*

PVC pipe
Old inner tube
19mm wide elastic
150mm x 19mm wide velcro
rivets

*Power Source:*

Lithium Ion 14.8V 2.2Ah
http://www.all-battery.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=509

*Regulator:*

TaskLED bFlex, UIB, set at 1A but not running max brightness.

*Construction:*

Open your can of tomato paste, remove paste, use it to add flavour to your dinner (try a Moroccan tagine with chicken, pumpkin, carrots, preserved lemon...)

After you have eaten, wash out the can and carefully cut it about 2/3 of the way down. I used a Dremel knockoff tool, a hacksaw also works with a gentle touch and some patience. Take the bottom part of the can and cut off another cm or so, then use your dremel/hacksaw to open it down the seam and take out a couple of mm (the lower part of the can gets pushed inside the upper half so needs to have some flexibility). Where the seam meets the bottom of the can, make the opening big enough for your power wire to get in (I used a few layers of glue lined heatsink to protect the wire from being cut, heating it also lets you bend it so the wire exits at the desired angle).

Take your 50x3mm aluminium and cut/grind an oval piece so that it is a very tight fit inside the can. This will take some time and care. Luckily it doesn't need to be perfectly oval as the can is thin enough to deform, but symmetrical and gradual curves helps. Alternately if you start with some slightly wider metal (the internal diameter of the can is around 53mm) you could cut a circle out with a drill press and hole saw etc. Your SSc/Cree stars will mount to the front of this. Drill a hole near one of the edges for your power wire to come through from the back.

Take your optic, cut the legs off it and drill 3mm holes for your bolts where the legs were. You should find that the optic rests neatly in the rim of the can, flush with the top. Work out where these holes will align on the metal plate where you are mounting your stars, drill the holes in this plate small enough so that your bolts will cut their own threads (means you won't need bolts, helps if you ever wish to disassemble the front of the light, e.g. to upgrade your LEDs). Unfortunately I drilled the holes while planning on using the bolts, and now the light is all riveted together, if I ever remove the optic...:madman:

Cut some angle aluminium to attach to the back of this plate, use an irish spanner and other suitable tools to round out part of this so it will make good contact with the inside of the can. This should help conduct the heat to the body of the can, as well as providing the support to mount your bracket. Drill appropriate mounting holes to bolt this securely to the plate the LEDs mount on

Work out all your internal wiring and solder up your stars. If you leave enough a few cm slack wire between your bFlex and the stars it gives you flexibility in positioning the optic on the stars as well as ease of replacing the stars if you want to upgrade later on. 
Solder everything up and test before you close up the can.

Mount your bFlex on the base of the can (I used some plastic and epoxy), drill a small hole for the bFlex switch to poke through.

Position your stars in the optic, and screw it down to the mounting plate (use some heatsink paste under the stars) If the plate was too far back in the can it should be pulled up as you tighten the screws, otherwise you may need to push back on the optic until it sits on the rim of the can.

Push the back half of the can iside the front half, align so it's all neat and tidy, then drill holes for your rivets though both parts of the can and the angle aluminium inside which is your bracket support. Cut another 30x40mm piece of 1mm aluminium to attach to the outside of the can underneath the angle, to which you can attach your helmet/bar mount of choice. Drill holes, align, and rivet everything together.

My helmet mount is very simple, made of a piece of PVC drainpipe which is fixed (more rivets) to the aluminium plate under the can. Heat the PVC with a butane torch (don't inhale) to shape. I have it shaped away from the hemet to provide some tension in the velcro. Cut slots in the PVC through which to slide the velcro, have it so the hook side faces away from your head when fastened though your helmet vents. I also used some doubled over 19mm wide elastic on one side to attach the velcro, after finding it difficult to get sufficient tension to stop my previous (commercial!) helmet light sliding around. A bit of old inner tube glued to the PVC protects the helmet from scratches and stops the light sliding.

*Photos:*

Coming soon


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## Narajjang (Dec 21, 2006)

*Light Source:*

2 Seoul P4 LED (bin code: USXPI)
drive current: about 830mAh

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

20mm collimator x 2
6 and 10 degree

*Housing:*

made of heatsink
20 x 45 mm sized heatsink x 6

*Power Source:*

7.4V 6600mAh lithium ion battery 
(originally, I use this battery with 6V 10W Halogen light)

*Burning time:*

about 8 hours

*Regulator:*

one 5W 1.2ohm resistor only
didn'y use regulator

*Photos:*


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## zen bicycle (Mar 23, 2007)

I couldn't edit my post so updated Link to pictures

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?p=3473018#post3473018


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## Boyonabyke (Sep 5, 2007)

aljsk8 said:


> *Light Source:*
> 
> 3 cree P4 LEDs driven at 1 amp
> 
> ...


What's the cost of your Bill of Materials? How much total did it run you to build your light?


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## aljsk8 (Jul 19, 2006)

not sure we are ment to post in here (aside from origional post) but....

aluminium tube from ebay 4 peices cut to size: 10GBP
carbon peices cnc cut (fibre-lyte): 12GBP
driver - ebay: 15GBP
L.E.Ds cree p4 from dealextreme: 9GBP
optics - dealextreme: 4GBP
wire - had already
thermal paste - had already: 1GBP WORTH
conectors and switches: 5GBP
handlebar mount: 5GBP
screws washers and nuts: 2GBP
battery holders: 2GBP

TOTAL: 65GBP ($130)

BATTERIES ARE 12AA 2000MAH NIMH there all different prices everywhere

really i could have bought a propper light for this money but this way i could get a few bits every few weeks so it was easy for my financial situation!

hope this helps


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## setzep (Sep 11, 2007)

3 seoul 
3021
15, 5, 15 deg
12AA 2600mah


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## shag555 (Aug 2, 2007)

Here's a light that I made back in 2004... I recently re-discovered it while getting back into biking, and made some changes as I now have a milling machine (the nice clamp style mount!). Obviously most don't have a milling machine, and what I used originally was a piece of stainless hose clamp that I rivetted to the housing and then bolted to the front of the stem, through one of the bolts.

The light housing was made out of Copper - PVC fittings and a compression repair fitting from Lowes / Home Depot. The lights are MR-11, 10W Spot and Flood. Originally I had a 12V gel cell battery back-up running the lights which worked great. However, this light set sat for a couple of years, so I hooked my DeWalt 14.4V cordless drill battery to it, with a little brighter light, a little less duration... The light with the DeWalt battery will last a full hour though.

The first light set I made was with MR-16's 20W. I made it the same way only out of PVC fittings... Within 20 minutes, it drooped the lights and caught fire, so, thus the reason for going to MR-11's.

None the less, it puts out pleanty of light, and of course that's not enough, so it's back to the milling machine with some aluminum blanks to make a full-on metal pod(s) for the MR-16's.

I don't know anything about LED's yet, so I'll stick to Halogens for now.

MPB


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## Hawseman (Jun 1, 2007)

Another achesalot creation - thanks, Allen.

*Light Source:*

Seoul P4 (U-bin) - 3 each

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

20mm round optics for Luxeons from ledsupply.com (2-15deg straddling 1-5deg)

*Housing:*

Same physical design as achesalot (link) with the noted exceptions:
- 1/8" thick straight stock used for led backing and for back of light (to offset stat led, pushbutton & cable connector).
- side knobs for easier adjustment (Lowes).
- Heatsink - cut and sized from stock ATI 1600 video card - low profile. Lapped surfaces for maximum heat transfer (400, 1000, 1500 grit).
- Lexan front sealed with GE Lexan silicone sealant.
- Green stat led from Radio Shack - panel mount.

*Power Source:*

Batteryspace.com 14.8V Li-ion, 5200mAh - haven't verified full runtimes yet. Should be 6+ hrs or so.
Connector and cable also from batteryspace.com. Waterproof battery cables and strain-relief connector - taped and heatshrunk.

*Regulator:*

Bflex-UIB2 v1.00 driver (nice job, George), running at stock except for 1000mA current drive level {350mA default}, Thermal protection set at 70degC {disabled default}, VStat set to 10 seconds {disabled default}.

*Additional comments:*

Wowser - some serious light from this little beast. The heatsink is attached with Arctic Silver adhesive and adds quite a bit of additional cooling. The light can sit at full draw and get pretty warm, but not as hot as reported. Of course, it is a New England fall, and the ambient is down to 60degF or so (much cooler at night). Makes a nice hand warmer.

Left to do: waterproofing - I'll seal seams with silicone and glue on a boot for the pushbutton. Maybe do some finishing - brush or polish.

Now I need to mod my Cygolite DualCross. When I got it, it was bright. Now it pales. Will replace the Luxeon stars with Cree Q5's for my next project (a much easier one).

*Photos:*


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## sxconway (Jan 29, 2004)

I pretty much copied aschelots guide with some mods
Light Source:

3 cree xr-e / 3.7v each? 15.00 deal extreme

Optics / Reflectors / Lens:

i have ledil optis, 6 degree real spot and 2 9 degree medium spots 12.00 from cutter

Housing:

aluminum home depot 1 inch square tubing. 10.00

Power Source:

12 AA NIMH 14.4 / 2500 mah. i used a size N dc power connector originally thinking I could use my night rider charger,(but I can't) so i bought a charger for 25.00 / batteries 30.00

Regulator:

buckpuck 1000 mah

Additional comments:
I tested it in back yard. it is awesome, can't wait to ride with it.
almost completed, I will come back and post a pic


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## Pitto (Sep 26, 2005)

Light Source:

2x CREE xre P4 dropin modules designed for surefire lights

Optics / Reflectors / Lens:
dropin metalic reflectors - the beam is very tight

Housing:

RTA aluminium - annodised black sourced from local hardware chain, comes with matching plastic endcaps

Power Source:
one of the following

-1 makita 9.6v 3000mah stick battery [9.6v]
-2 6x 1.5v alkaline batterys in a 6xAA holder [9v]
-3 8x 1.2v 2500mah AA rechargeables in a 8x AA holder [9.6v]

Regulator:

2x kaidomain kennan regulators - 1 per light

Additional comments:

i would not try the dropin method next time, i would use Anchelots Ledil lens method instead. it was still worth doing though. big tip, DONT wire 2x regulators in series, they go pop.

Photos:


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## Acme54321 (Oct 8, 2003)

Oops


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## dsut4392 (Mar 9, 2007)

*Tomato paste lights*

A couple of much delayed pictures of my home made lights. Housings are assembled with rivets, helmet mount is made from PVC drain pipe, bar mount is scavenged off an old cateye tail light.


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## dsut4392 (Mar 9, 2007)

By Popular demand, here are some more construction details and pictures. 

Heat sink on the inside is made from a couple of layers of 2mm aluminium (yes that is how we spell it here) fixed together with a rivet, with a very thin layer of metal glue (I'm guessing similar to JB Weld) to hopefully improve heat transfer. The aluminium was cut out roughly with a jigsaw and ground down to fit the can with a dremel-like tool.

Attached to the back of the heatsink (by the same rivet that holds it all together) is a small piece of angle aluminium, shaped to fit the inside of the can. The helmet or bar mount attaches to this through the can, also with rivets (3 or 4 depending on the iteration). The picture attached shows a light partway through construction which doesn't yet have the holes drilled in this piece to allow riveting.

The switch is the original b-flex switch, a small hole is drilled through the can which this pokes through. One of the lights has a glow-in-the-dark tailcap from dealextreme fitted over the outside, a small piece of 1mm aluminium sheet is drilled to fit around the tailcap and simply fixed down with epoxy.

The cans are steel and will probably rust - If it gets annoying I will probably spray paint them as suggested, but I find the "tomato paste" look amusing, especially when they outshine most of the expensive commercial lights out on the trail!


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## ohpossum (Dec 19, 2003)

*Light Source:*

3x Cree XR-E Q5 on pre-fab PCB for MR-11 replacement (from Cutter)

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens*:

Kahtod 35mm 3xCree "medium" optic. Honestly the optic isn't all that great. Its supposed to be an 8-degree spot, but instead is more of a 15-20 degree flood. I've read that Cutter is getting new optics made specifically for this kit that will work better.

*Housing:*

Reused a Marwi Nightpro Elite housing since it was one of the few MR11 housings made of metal. These same housings were also used for older versions of Performance "Viewpoint" lights.

*Power Source:*

6V NiMH battery packs using trail-tech connectors to a Taskled "Fatman" boost driver..

Another plus for the Marwi/Viewpoint lights is they came from the factory with trail-tech connectors. One less thing to worry about 

*Regulator:*

Fatman regulator is included in the Cutter kit.

*Additional comments:*

I toyed with the idea of making my own housing from square tubing, but the Cutter kit was such a great way to get a ton of lumens from a small space. That required a round housing which led me to the Marwi/Viewpoint lights. I purchased one Marwi kit from Bikeman.com and another Viewpoint kit off of ebay.

The Cutter PCB is 34mm diameter which is the size of the largest part of a MR11 bulb. In order to get the PCB into the housing deep enough I had to remove some material from it. I used a dremel and a sanding bit to _slowly_ grind off about 3mm from the whole PCB. That allowed it down far enough into the housing to let the optic fit correctly.

The big issue with doing a retro-fit like this is heat. With no airflow over the PCB, some sort of extra heat sinking is required. For one light I used a 1" copper pipe endcap. I cut away some of the copper to allow it to go into the housing while contacting the inside wall of the housing. The PCB is pressed tightly against the end of the copper piece. So far this is working well. The housing gets plenty warm when there isn't much airflow. This tells me the heat is getting from the PCB to the housing as it should.

*Photos:*

PCB after I ground it down:









Copper heatsink and switched resistor for dimming:









Completed Light:









op


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## achesalot (Nov 8, 2005)

*Copperhead Triple Seoul*

Light Source: 3 x Triple SSC P4 (u-bin)
Optics: 2 x 15 degree 1 x 5 degree L2 20mm
Driver: 3023 wired buckpuck @ 1A
Power: 14.8v, 4A Li-Ion battery pack

Housing: Aluminum body with 3 3/4" copper end caps, 175g










Build pics *here*.


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## achesalot (Nov 8, 2005)

Some others have posted it here, but thought I'd include my original light that people call the Achesalot (wow, really wish I'd given it a cool name instead).

LightSource: 3 x SSC P4 (u-bin)
Optics: 2x15, 1x5 degree L2 20mm lens
Driver: 3021 Buckpuck w/ dimming
Power: 14.8v, 4A Li-Ion battery pack
Housing: All aluminum, mostly 1" square tube









Here's a stack of them with a few variations on the theme!


----------



## il2mb (Jan 27, 2005)

achesalot said:


> Light Source: 3 x Triple SSC P4 (u-bin)
> Optics: 2 x 15 degree 1 x 5 degree L2 20mm
> Driver: 3023 wired buckpuck @ 1A
> Power: 14.8v, 4A Li-Ion battery pack
> ...


Really can't express how much I appreciate your work. Very innovative. The essence of good engineering - doing the most with less.

Bob


----------



## Guest (Jan 9, 2008)

Time to add mine that I made quite some time ago. I recycled a large heatsink from a dead amplifier and used :
2 Seoul P4 U bin 
3021-E buckpuck @ 1amp 
10* & 25* 0tics
Left swich is on/off
Right swich is high/low
7.4 v Lith-ion (from a camcorder)


----------



## Randy49 (Nov 1, 2007)

*Need help*

I was just reading all the messages and was hopping some one might have a link to supplyers of the LED lights needed to build a light?


----------



## Wombat (Jan 25, 2004)

*Light Source*: Three Cree XR-E R2

*Optics*: Standard Cutter 3 Cree, comes with the kit.

*Housing*: Flashlight: from widget supply: http://www.widgetsupply.com/page/WS/PROD/flashlight/SDC3-328T, and I also bought a mounting bracket: http://www.widgetsupply.com/miva/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=WS&Product_Code=BCY31, but this is flimsy and not worth it. You are better getting something like the twofish mount: http://www.fenixtactical.com/twofish-bikeblock-bike-flashlight-mount.html

*Power Source*: 14.8 volt Li-ion from Batteryspace with its standrad connectors. These are easy to reverse polarity on.

*Regulator*: buckpuck from Luxeonstar, number: 3023-D-E-1000. This versions allows you to run a potentiometer and has leads already attached to simplify assembly. The pot effectively also serves as an off switch.

*Additional comments*: For the potentiometer I just picked up a 500k log (audio) one for about $2. It currently sits outside the light (glued to the back) and is its most vulnerable part. I need to fit it inside, but will have to find one with a longer armature to clear the end of the torch.

Fitting is fairly straightforward. Discard the flashlight's 28 LED assembly and battery pack. Grind the heatsink until it, the LEDs and optics will fit in the light head and you can screw it all back together. Solder the various wires from the battery to the driver and then to the LED - all straightforward. The only thing to watch is to make sure you get the polarity right otherwise you'll fry the LEDs. Grinding/cutting the heatsink to the right size and shape takes a while. Experience suggests that drilling out the holes that align the optics with the LEDs is probably not a great idea.

Pictures and more details are here: http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=372837. It is based on the work that Stewed did here: http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=349694

Tim


----------



## pepko (Feb 1, 2008)

*Bike Cree Light*

*Light Source:*

2x Cree Q5 from KD
2x Cree Q2 from DX
2x Cree Q5 from DX

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

8 Degree CREE XR-E Collimator Lens w/ Holder
https://www.kaidomain.com/WEBUI/ProductDetail.aspx?TranID=1603

*Housing:*
6(8) tubes of square aluminium 25x25mm

*Power Source:*

6xAA and 8xAA Nimh battery pack

*Regulator:*

2xCree Q5 (middle) with 1.5ohm resistor and 8xAA

4xCree with 4x driver SKU#3256 and 6xAA
(https://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.3256)

*Additional comments:*

I'm waiting for 2 additional cree R2 ))
https://cyklo.szm.sk/bastl

https://cyklo.szm.sk/bastl/test_fenix_bastl_iso100_8s_popis.jpg

https://cyklo.szm.sk/bastl/bastl_final_test1.jpg

https://cyklo.szm.sk/bastl/bastl_final_test2.jpg

*Photos:*


----------



## joebreez (Sep 10, 2005)

Time to add my 2 cents.
I did a Mag-lite Triple Cree last month and love it.
Made a pack out of 13 AA [email protected]:15 burn time.Used an old Niterider battery bag. All cables and connectors were from Batteryspace.com. I did have to put a spot of nailpolish on the lighted switch as it was too bright while riding.
I used a Nightrider mount for the light, mated to a Nightsun handlebar mount.
Q5 Cree's with a Khatod 10 degree lens, too narrow so I added some lenses to the surface. I put a 6x15 oval lens and a 16 degree diffuser.
I found the 25 degree lens was too wide and the 10 degree was too narrow, this was my solution.
I used a heatsink made for the Mag-lite mod from Sandwich shoppe, Driver is a 3021 1000ma from LED Supply.

Eric S


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## scuba (May 14, 2008)

*mag lite*

any more info or specs on how you modded this maglite to suit your bike, model of maglite , internals etc?


----------



## SkUG (Feb 19, 2008)

I think this needs udating


----------



## NeoMoses (Sep 2, 2008)

*NeoMoses Tail Light*

This is my first attempt at a home-made tail light. I started commuting to/from work this year, 17 miles each way. Riding before/after dark most of the time, I needed something brighter than my superflash/mars 3.0 combo that I was using. The light below was my first crack at it, and it has been working very well for 6+ months now.

*Light Source:*

Yellow & Red LEDs from Deal Extreme. I ordered some of the Cree emitters and some of the no-brand emitters. Both seem pretty comparable in output.

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

The 2 yellow LEDs have a 'lighthouse' style optic placed over them. I got these from ebay a long time ago, so sorry for no direct source. Basically, these help focus the light into a narrow band that is roughly 180 degrees wide x 15 degrees tall. The center red LED is left bare with no optics to give a VERY broad light dissipation. Makes you visible from a full 180x180.

*Housing:*

The housing is a project box from radio shack. The switch is also a simple on/off switch from Radio Shack. Not the cheapest, but it is very easy to ride my bike to the local store when I get an itch.  Housing mounts to backpack/bike using 2 velcro strips. LEDs are mounted to housing using thermal epoxy. Optics are mounted using #4 nylon machine screws.

*Power Source:*

2x18650 lithium ion batteries salvaged from a laptop battery. These are in parallel, as they were in the original laptop battery pack. I believe these are 2200 mAh batteries. I left them in parallel, so they have always been charged/discharged in parallel. I use a DSD battery charger from deal extreme.

*Regulator:*
Deal extreme 5 mode, 1000 mA driver board. HI-MED-LO-SOS-Strobe All three LEDs are wired in parallel, so they are getting roughly 333 mA each (assuming equal resistances, which I'm sure is not correct.)

*Additional comments:*

This is the brightest tail light I have seen yet for a bicycle. It's just as bright as most vehicle tail lights, which was what I was going for. However, it is a little bit bright to be used if in a group ride. The Low power mode is still very bright for the guy behind me, so I still carry a superflash with me for group rides.

Future planned upgrades include:
1. Reducing battery to 1x18650. 2 was just way overkill. This thing runs for weeks of commuting without losing brightness.
2. Better housing. Planning sleeker housing, with better mounting provisions. More info TBD.
3. Better switch. The radio shack switch gets sticky sometimes. More switches purchased from DX for the next builds.
4. Remote switch with indicator light? It would be nice to have the controls for this at your fingertips, with a dim LED to verify it's working, mounted somewhere up front.

Pics below. Video might be hosted on my website sometime, www.bryanpryor.com.

*Photos:*


----------



## troutie-mtb (Sep 20, 2007)

*Trouts mag MCE/XRE bike light*

Light Source:

2 MCE m bin WG running @ 500ma in a 4s2p config
2 XRE R2 WG running @ 1000ma both in series

Optics / Reflectors / Lens:

2 ledil Boom SS reflectors for the MCE
2 ledil LC1 - rs and ss xre optics

Housing:

Modified maglite c cell

Power Source:

Lithium ion 14.8 v 4800mah
standard dc male/female 2.5 connectors

Regulator:

1 Bflex for the MCE s
and buckpuck for the XRE s

Additional comments:

Anything goes. Construction method, mounting solutions, likes and dislikes, future upgrades. 
Perhaps you could provide a link to an existing thread discussing your light if you wish.

Photos:

https://s199.photobucket.com/flash/remix/player.swf?videoURL=https://vid199.photobucket.com/albums/aa46/amticoman/dc3fb380.pbr&hostname=stream199.photobucket.com

Photos are encouraged,


----------



## Swedish (Dec 2, 2008)

Come on, More DIY-projects! Need inspiration for my own.


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## TheBigYin (Sep 29, 2008)

Okay then - nice simple one - distilled from the epic DIY Dinotte Thread

*Light Source:*
Seoul Semiconductors Z-Power LED Emitter (U-bin)

*Optics*
2 types - 

25mm 30-Degree Secondary Optics
15 Degree SSC Collimator Lens w/ Holder

One of each makes a pretty reasonable combination of coverage.

*Housing:*
Dead simple - one length of 1 1/4" Aluminium tubing, cut into 2" long lengths. Another piece of 1" solid alu. bar, interference fit into the 1 1/4" tube, cut into 3/8" slugs to soak up the heat from the emitters, and pass into the outer tube. All sourced from scrap bin at one of the sites I work at  End cap fashioned from a lump of delrin plastic and a lot of dremelling.

*Power Source:*
6v NiMh bottle battery and charger left over from a old Electron light set. Uses a 5mm 2.1 plug,

*Regulator:*
3.6V~9V 800mA Regulated IC Circuit Board for Cree and SSC LEDs Keep the input voltage below 7v and they "just work" - or at least the 15 or so i've made so far all have 

*Additional comments:*

Silicone Tailcaps

Clicky Switches

Power Socket

*Photos:*


----------



## Threespeed (Jan 5, 2009)

Light Source:

2 x Seoul P4 (U Bin)
1000ma buck puck with 5k pot to provide dimming where required

Optics / Reflectors / Lens:

2 x 5 deg 20mm optics

Housing:

Achesalot design :thumbsup: :thumbsup: (Copperhead)

All sourced from B & Q

Power Source:

9.2v ni mh rechargables @ 2000ma, mobile phone cable with connectors

Additional comments:

Small and compact (54mm x 45mm)
All bonded together with AAA and araldite, cateye slide mount so can go on helemt or bar
Photos:


----------



## odtexas (Oct 2, 2008)

1 inch square tube from Home Depot
Switch from Digikey 528PB-ND switch 532PB-ND cap

Driver  from Kaidomain
LED from Kaidomain, P7 bin C or D 
Or
MCE from Cutter
Boom SS from Digikey 711-1065-ND boomerang SS
Artic Alumina Thermal Adhesive (ordered mine on Ebay)
Heat sink grease (ebay)
Lens cover made from Polycarb sheet from Home Depot
3/8 x 1 x 36 inch Aluminum bar (Ebay again)
Tamiya connectors (ebay) 
Silicone sealant from Home Depot
J B Weld Home Depot
Velcro Home Depot
Table Saw
Drill
Clamps
Soldering iron
3 cell 11.1 volt lithium ion battery from batteryspace.com

Sorry I am going to mix measurement units.
Cut square tube to 2 inches long
Drill one 7/16's inch opening for switch. 10 mm from side and 10mm from back.
Mounted emitter to 3/8 slug cut from aluminum bar. 








Trimmed slug to fit inside square tube, 22 mm square. Trimmed corners off slug to pass wires through.








Used another slug for back of light. Did reduce thickness to around 4 mm. Drill hole to pass wires through.

Alumina Adhesive (AA) emitter or star to slug. Solder driver leads. TEST ELECTRONICS
AA driver to back of slug. 
Lightly AA reflector to emitter. 
For P7 Boom SS is sanded to 11 mm in height and opening increased to 9 mm using step drill bit. TEST ELECTRONICS.

Solder switch inline. Put heat sink grease on slug and slide assembly into housing.
Install switch and tighten down. TEST ELECTRONICS.

Slather silicone adhesive around to hold all bits in place. Slide aluminum end plate into rear of housing.

Sort your heat sinking and J B Weld to sides of light housing. I cut 3 slots with table saw to have more surface area.









Leave for 24 hours to let J B Weld set. Install the polycarb lens cover last with silicone and I put Velcro on bottom to stick to helmet or bar mount.


----------



## deesta (Sep 7, 2008)

Light Source:

3 x Cree Q5 - -WH tint running at 1000mAh

Optics / Reflectors / Lens:

Ledil LC1. 2 x Spot, 1 X Flood

Housing:

Custom made on CNC machine. Aluminium casing, heatsinking LED mounting board.

Power Source:

15v 5400mAh Li-ion battery, thanks go to smudge..
Apem m omentary switch, RS DC connector

Regulator:

bFlex driver.

Additional comments:

It's been a while in the making but finally got there. Many thanks to all the guys who've helped with this build....very much appreciated


----------



## 2calif (Dec 14, 2008)

*TIT Light*

Yo,

Housing ~~ 'Titan' scooter rescued (if you can call it that) from The Goodwill

R2 bulb 200 lumen ~~ DX

Rocker switch ~~ Ebay

1" hole plug ~~ Home de pot

JST batt. connector

7.4v 2200ma batt.

3+ hrs runtime

Dog ~~ the pound

Cheers,


----------



## b-40 (May 15, 2007)

hey 2calif how is that r2 drop-in module workin? i just bought 2 of those for my next project, seem way easier than having to buy everything separate.


----------



## 2calif (Dec 14, 2008)

b-40 said:


> hey 2calif how is that r2 drop-in module workin? i just bought 2 of those for my next project, seem way easier than having to buy everything separate.


It's working good. I got the 3 modes one, so it can be dimmed. It's definitely easier then getting separate parts and try to make them work right (unless you know they work well together) and the technicals. The down falls with using this unit are that you are stuck with a set beam shot and lumen power. However, the bulb can be taken apart and emitter + driver can be switched out for more powerful ones, but the lens stays.

It's note worthy to mention that this R2 bulb setup has a spotty beam shot. My guess is ~ 8 degrees. It's 26.5mm wide, so I used it with a 1" ID tube that has thick wall (1/8" thick) so I can do some grinding with dremel to make the bulb fit. Thicker tube is great for heat sink as well.

I know some of you may think this is too easy, but hey we all like taking vacations don't we.

Cheers,


----------



## troutie-mtb (Sep 20, 2007)

Low_Rider 
Chasing Photons
Join Date: Jan 2004
Posts: 3,792 
Home Made Bike Light Database 

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

I think there are now enough home made and modified light builds out there to warrant a dedicated database! 

Please use the template provided below in your post as a guide, but feel free to modify it as necessary for your purpose. Linking in the manner demonstrated to the websites of the various components or resources that you have used as they are mentioned would be appreciated. All lights and builds are more then welcome! 

Please keep this thread as a pure database. Start a new thread if you would like to make a comment or ask a question! 

Cheers, Dave.



Light Source:

List what type of bulbs or emitters you use, how many, and what the model number or bin code is if you know. 
Voltage or drive current as appropriate would be nice too.

Optics / Reflectors / Lens:

List what you use or have tried, and what you like and dislike.

Housing:

List where you have purchased housings, or how you have made housings, and from what materials.

Power Source:

List your battery chemistry, voltage and capacity. Also provide details on your charger if you like. 
Connector choice could go here too.

Regulator:

If you are regulating the power to your light source, list what device you are using, and feel free to list any setup details.

Additional comments:

Anything goes. Construction method, mounting solutions, likes and dislikes, future upgrades. 
Perhaps you could provide a link to an existing thread discussing your light if you wish. 

Photos:

Photos are encouraged, but please keep them to a reasonable size.
__________________
View the Home Made Bike Light Database
Welcome to the Dark Side!


----------



## roaringpanda (Jan 22, 2009)

Light Source:
Endor Star 3-LED
Rated 435lumen @ 700mA
10.2 Vf

Optics / Reflectors / Lens:
25deg lens (only one I could find). They say they're manufacturing a narrower lens for this LED star
A bit too wide of a beam pattern, but works nonetheless.

Housing:
3/4" copper pipe cap for the LED
3/4 to 1" reducer for the electronics
Soldered together using a torch and some tin/silver solder.
280 motor heatsink

Power Source:
12 volts, 2aH from 10 AA eneloop batteries
Mounted inside a Republic of Tea tin using a micromini switch and M-panel connector.
Charges using normal AA nimh chargers.

Regulator:
700mA buckpuck with dimmer

Additional comments:
Mounted on cateye H-32 mounts. A bit off balance, but doesn't really move around much. 

I'll post pictures if anyone really wants. Run of the mill DIY using instructions from instructables.com and racedaynutrition.


----------



## rize5boyuk (Feb 6, 2009)

hi all just got these http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/New-Torch-Bike-Cycle-Twin-Halogen-Rechargeable-Light_W0QQitemZ280294049332QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_SportsLeisure_Cycling_Bike_Lights?hash=item280294049332&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14
what i would like to know is how and what do i need to get led`s in it do i just get the leds and put them in or do i need regulators etc.


----------



## 2calif (Dec 14, 2008)

*Update on my TIT: helmet mount*

Just made the mount out of copper pipe and o-rings from dinotte. Test ridden earlier tonite. Worked great.

Peace,


----------



## rize5boyuk (Feb 6, 2009)

right so ive got it next is to make my own lights,going to go for the cree r2 single mode test them in the light pod i have now...as i do a quad one.


----------



## Calina (Apr 8, 2008)

2calif said:


> Just made the mount out of copper pipe and o-rings from dinotte. Test ridden earlier tonite. Worked great.
> 
> Peace,


I would try to make it out of wood. If you fall on this one, you could cut yourself pretty badly. At least, round the corners.


----------



## odtexas (Oct 2, 2008)

Switch from  Mouser  (Thank you ZenBicycle)
Rectangular Tube .75 inch x 1.5 inch x .125 wall cut to 1.875 inch long, and 1/2 by 1/2 inch square aluminum bar cut to 1.25 inch from  Speedymetals 
Light sanding of 1/2 x 1/2 bar will let it fit snugly in housing. Drill holes for wire pass through
3 XPEWHT-L1-WG0-R2-0-01 R2 Flux WG Tint from  Cutter  
3 Carlco Tight Narrow 10417 from  Cutter 
Rear plate is .5 inch x 1.25 inch x .065 cut from home depot aluminum stock
Tamiya connectors from Ebay
Driver is  Fatman Boost Driver  set to 700 mA
Emitters wired series so each seeing 700 mA
Front cover polycarbonate from Home Depot
Used a table saw to cut small grooves in top and sides for additional surface area.
Velcro on bottom to attach to helmet or battery
Spread thin layer of AAA inside front of light housing and slide slug in. Slug will need to be 10 mm deep for emitters, lens, and lens cover to be flush with front of light housing.
AAA fatman in to aid in heat sinking of driver.
Battery can be 3.7 v lithium ion or 7.4 v lithium ion from  batteryspace . 








Light with another housing outlined earlier in this thread








Original  discussion thread  of the 3 up XPE with beamshots.


----------



## darkendlight88 (Jan 20, 2009)

*Dual MC-E*

*Light Source: *
2 M bin series wired MC-E's in parallel
*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*
im using 2 LM1 optics. 1 RS and one D. seems to be a pretty good setup
*Housing:*
hammond case cut in half with fins AAA'd on
*Power Source:*
14.8v 4400mah Li Ion
*Regulator:*
3023 Buckpuck with a 1K resistor for low
*Additional comments:*
the light is defintely bright enough for the trails. i was a little worried about heat but it never gets too hot to touch sitting still and on the trail it stays cool to the touch
*Photos:*
















and some beam shots. first is control second is low and third is high


----------



## grassie (Jun 5, 2009)

Goodness gracious!! You guys have been busy!!
I'll add my attempt at an insane quad shortly.


----------



## Pitto (Sep 26, 2005)

Light Source:

2x CREE xre P4 dropin modules designed for surefire lights

Optics / Reflectors / Lens:
dropin metalic reflectors - the beam is very tight

Housing:

RTA aluminium - annodised black sourced from local hardware chain, comes with matching plastic endcaps

Power Source:
one of the following

-1 makita 9.6v 3000mah stick battery [9.6v]
-2 6x 1.5v alkaline batterys in a 6xAA holder [9v]
-3 8x 1.2v 2500mah AA rechargeables in a 8x AA holder [9.6v]

Regulator:

2x kaidomain kennan regulators - 1 per light

Additional comments:

i would not try the dropin method next time, i would use Anchelots Ledil lens method instead. it was still worth doing though. big tip, DONT wire 2x regulators in series, they go pop.

Photos:


----------



## whoz (Aug 28, 2009)

*Alien Eye DIY Mtn bike light*

The Alien Eye DIY Mtn bike lamp. 5W Edison Opton MR16 LED. 12 
V system. Easy to make. Uses standard components. 
You only need a soldering iron, small screw driver, oven and a knife. 
You can have almost any color you want.










Complete plans

Helmet lamp option


----------



## bikeny (Feb 26, 2004)

I started this project about 2 years ago, but figured I would add it here:

*Light Source:*

Currently 3 Cree XR-E R2 bin LEDs, mounted to star MCPCB. I just ordered some XP-G LEDs to upgrade!

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

I am using Carclo 20mm optics. Cuurently using 2 25 deg. and 1 10 deg.

*Housing:*

Housing is my own design that I had CNC machined. I made 10 sets, sold 7, made 2 lights for friends and one for myself.

*Power Source:*

Battery is a 14.8V 2600mah Li-ion pack from Batteryspace.
Connectors are coaxial locking also from Batteryspace.

*Regulator:*

Regulator is a Bflex from TaskLED. I also mounted a 3mm red LED for low battery warning. I am running the LEDs at 750mA.

*Additional comments:*

If I were to do it again, I would leave more room in the housing for the regulator and wiring and stuff. I am getting ready to update the LEDs to XP-Gs, which should make it brighter and more efficient. I am also going to change the mount from the bar clamp to one thet mounts to the front of my Hope stem.
Link to the original thread: http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=329036

*Photos:*


----------



## odtexas (Oct 2, 2008)

*Please feel free to copy these lights. Improve on these lights........ Whatever..*...:thumbsup: 

*For the 10x or triple MCE.*










 Body tube 

Inside width is around 57 mm so the optics need to be reduce down to 19mm to fit 3 side by side. Sand lightly preferably by hand. The same is true of the 20mm stars. They need to be reduced to 19 mm wide.

MC-E stars can be purchased from Cutter, Ledsupply, or shiningbeam.com. The 16mm stars came from shining beam.

Optics are Ledil LM1 RS and D.

The "slug" is actually 1 inch outside diameter rectangular tube

 speedymetals 

(this is the body of the dual SST light) ripped down the middle and lightly sanded to fit inside the larger rectangular stock.

When ripping the aluminum only cut through 1 side at a time. Set saw blade to its lowest height to cut the bottom of the tube. Flip the tube over and cut the other side. Cutting both top and bottom at the same time causes lots of vibrations often causes the piece to kick back from the saw blade.

 Ordered 1 inch flat stock for back plate.

Order 2 ft at least to make the pieces manageable. Less than 2 foot is hard to keep hold of when the blade grabs it.

With everything finned or ripped now use your slide to make the cross cuts. Light body is about 2 to 2.25 inch long. Measure your internal width and cut the slugs accordingly.

Usually drill some random holes in the slug so I can use it for either the MCE or the XPG.

Back plate done same way. Cut to width and sand to fit as needed.

Prefer my switches on top of the light since it is easier to press when riding and wearing gloves. Some light have 2 switches to give me multiple power settings.

These two lights both have two buckpucks wired parallel.

The MC-E uses two 1000 mA with one switch. Stars are parallel wired with 3 serial. So you can think of it as 4 strings of three with 500 mA per string.

XP-G uses one 1000 mA buckpuck and one 700 mA buckpuck in parallel. Two switches, one between each battery positive lead and buckpuck. This gives independent control of each buckpuck so the two strings of 5 XP-G's can see 350 mA, 500 mA, or 850 mA per string.

One could use the HipCC with the Triple MC-E. I went with the buckpucks since I wanted the lower 500 mA current.

I have been running a 10x XP-E with 2 strings at 500 mA for the last month and a half or so. No problems with heat at all. Tight fit with all the parts and all lights are built exclusively with Arctic Silver Adhesive to maximize heat flow/cooling potential.

*SST - 50 single*









 Body made from 

slot and cut to length as desired. This light is usually cut to about 2 inches long.

heat sink/front collar lens holder

 heat sink/front collar lens holder 

Just cut sections as needed. The front collar is only about a .25 inch long and just gives the optic a framework to be mounted to.

For the heat sink cut rip a small section to end up with a channel section, |_| of the tube and slide it into the tube body.

A back plate can be made using the same one inch stock using the back section you cut off for the slug.

 Driver 

runs at a measured 2400 mA, not the 2800 mA as advertised . Two sides of the driver will need to be lightly sanded to fit inside light body.

Optic is a Ledil CMC RS from Cutter.

 Switch 

*Dual SST- 50 or Dual MC-E*










 Body 
 Slug 

(This section can also be used/ is the body for the 3x XPG Carlco Narrow)
or
 Slug option 2 

slug tube can be cut used to fabricate back plate.
Interior height is 19 mm so the optics/holder do require light sanding to get to fit. Same hold true if using 20mm stars.

*Dual/Triple Tina RS, Dual/Quad XP-G Carlco narrow. *

This one is a PITA, but we were waiting a while for the XP-Gs so boredom was the motivator to go ahead and fabricate these light bodies.

 Tube 

Yes, one tube makes both light bodies. 








Which side of the cross brace you rip determines your rectangular tube.

This one is ripped full thickness of both sides at the same time. Expect things to vibrate and screech horribly. Hang on best you can and wear a lot of protection incase of kick back. Seems to work better to only cut about a foot at a time and then cross cut the new section off.

 Next use some 1/4 inch by 3/4 flat strip.

Rip it to the inside height of the light body to form you slug. Then cross cut to fit width.

Getting the rip right is extremely challenging. There is always a little waver in the saw blade. Dumb luck and repeated attempts will eventually get you there though. Set your fence and rip about an inch. See how tight or loose it is in relation to the light body. If it is too small then cut the end off and start over with minor adjustment to fence.

If too big then narrow fence gap and slowly remove some more material.

Good times............. Took about 10 tries to get something workable....... Hopefully you have better luck or better equipment.









On the 2x, 3x, 4x the back plates are thin plastic from milk jugs covered with 5 minute JB weld. The 5 minute can be mixed to be black and looks really good when it sets up. It really takes about 12 hours before it sets up hard enough to not get finger prints in. So let them set up over night.

But your really only have about 4 minutes while it is workable.

Found that mixing with toothpicks and cleaning edges of overflow with toothpicks works best.

The 5 minute JB weld will self level. The warmer it is the thinner it is. If it is too thick in the first minute or so grab a hair dryer or hot air gun and heat up the mix. After about 4 minutes no amount of heat is going to thin it out.

The 3x and 4x lights all use the Fatman driver from  Taskled 
The 2x uses the cheapo  driver  from Dealextreme. Have 6 of them. Two ran at 860 mA, the other four ran between 980 mA to 1030 mA. 
Specific instructions for the 3x can be found in the  DIY thread. 

Bar mounts









Handle bar mounts
 El34 Marwi bar/helmet mounts with the DX P7 adaptor bolted to bottom of light body 
Have El34's Marwi and the Electron from Chain reaction. Prefer the Marwi. YMMV
 Fatman and HippCC Driver 
 Buckpuck Drivers 

*Battery holders*
Used holders fabricated by both 
 TurboFerret 
and 
 SDnative 

 Switch from Mouser 

*Optics*
 Cutter 

*Leds*
XP-G Cutter
MC-E  Cutter ,  Shining Beam ,  LEDsupply 
 SST-50 Star 

Tamiya Connectors available widely online.

Pictures of the build process.









The silver carnage is just one reason for goggles and gloves. Aluminum kick back sucks bad. 
Here is some basic "How to" information

Get some good gloves and goggles when playing with aluminum on the table saw.

Covered aluminum tube and cutting deck of table saw in spray lubricant.

Run section of aluminum rectangular tube along tablesaw fence for entire length to cut slot. Flipped aluminum tube and cut same slot twice on top and bottom of tube. 
















Move fence about 1.5 to 2 mm by eye and cut the 8 new slots, 2 top, bottom, and both sides. 
This gives the tubing the "shoulders. 8 cuts on the first pass can actually interfere with each other so 4 initial cuts and then 8 cuts then on out until sides are fully slotted.








Just flip the work piece and keep in soaked in spray lubricant. Hot aluminum smears and deforms. Cool aluminum cuts nicely and uniformly. 
Constantly clean aluminum chips/swarf from cutting deck and your work piece. Small brush or high pressure blow gun works well for this.


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## dirtisgood (May 8, 2009)

*The Nameless DIY*

*Light Source:*

Cree XR E Q5. 3 of them at 3.7vf each

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

Carclo two medium, one plain tight

*Housing:*

View attachment Bike Light Parts list and cost.pdf
The housing had it's difficulties but the main problem with it is too much reliance on JB weld which for the most part is holding so far.

*Power Source:*

4 x 18650 3000mA.

*Regulator:*

Wired Buck Puck 1000mA


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## Jim Z in VT (Sep 9, 2007)

*Little Helmet Light*

I first built this last winter but thought it might be a good one to to post here, it's pretty beginner friendly.

*Light Source:*
2 x XR-E Q5
*
Optics:*
2 x DX 1920 spot
*
Housing:*
2" x 1.5" x 0.75" aluminum, made from 0.75" square tubing.

*Power Source:*
4 x AA NiMH in series for 4.8v nominal.

*Regulator:*
2 x DX 3256

*Additional comments:*
LEDs, optics, drivers from DX. Switches, battery holder from Radio Shack; plastic end caps from local hardware store (but all can be found on-line as well).

Runtime ~1.25+ hours on high / 2.5+ hours low (can be doubled with an 8 battery 4s2p pack).

Full build is posted here. More recent builds use a single DPDT switch rather than two SPST switches, to simplify assembly....sort of ;-)


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## [email protected] (Sep 23, 2008)

*All this... in there*

Vistalite mod;

Light source: 3 Cree q5 from KD attached with solder paste to mr11 pcb from cutter electronics and modded to run 3parallel.

Optics: Ledil cute3 narrow lens for headlamp and med for bar mount, both from cutter.

Power source: I use 2 of the original nightstick nimh batteries with a y-connector for each light. I have 8 of them and they still have plenty of run time.

Regulation: I run the leds with KD's "p-7 5.5-15v 3-mode drivers. They work perfectly with the 6v nightsticks, they're smaller and cheaper than the taskled drivers so they fit in the housing and my wallet(No offense George as I will be upgrading to either a fatman or a maxflex or both now that the concept is proven).

Housings: Vistalite VL Whatever formerly halogen housings, mounts, switches, cables, battery mounts and batteries. I already had all of this stuff and didn't want to just dump it and couldn't afford $300 for decent new gear.

Making it work: A small but important part of the equation was the switches that vistaite uses in their lights. They are an on/off latching switch but in the on position the work as a momentary switch if you press part way. This makes it very easy to operate as either the case switch or the bar mounted one can do the on/off/dimming chores. Also, I didn't need any additional wires, switches, or resistors to calculate values for. The more important part was how to divest the case of the heat generated as it is quite small and 1/3 of it is made of plastic. I solved this by creating separate sinks for the driver and led pcb inside the housing and using copper nails to pipe the heat to more copper on the outside. The various pieces were fitted, then epoxied, then drilled for the nails, then soldered and the excess nails were cutoff and smoothed over. The sink for the driver sits under the housing and is basically a cylinder made up of 1/2"copper pipe sections fitted inside on another to make a more solid cross section about 1/4" tall. Inside the housing is just enough of a copper tab to attach the driver to with some silicon heat sink paste/adhesive. The sink for the leds is the earmuff arrangement on the outside and connects to a copper disc with ears lying under the pcb. The two system are connected only by the aluminum of the housing and don't otherwise touch.

Not suprisingly: It is not possible to bench test it for run time on high or for that matter even on low as there is just not enough mass to dissapate the heat generated. However, in use I have not had either the bar mounted unit or the helmet mounted one experience the heat-related powerdown which occurs within a few minutes when not moving.

Run time: As I said above, I couldn't do a "bench" test but my longest night ride was 4 hours and by the end the bar light was self dimming from high. It is the one most used as the floodier beam is pointed at the trail close to the bike and is operated with a switch by my right thumb(mostly on low when climbing).

Upgrades: The drivers in use supply ~ 900mA to each led but only in my dreams. They probably get closer to 850mA so I would like to put in a true 1A driver like a maxflex or a fatman. The fatman should work with everything else just fine but to use the maxflex I have to wait until the new gt4xp lenses come out from ledil. Then I will have another 8-9mm behind the led for the larger pcb. What the hell, I'll more than likely get a quad xpg-r5.

I really like these lights. I ride a Titus motolite ml2, it's in the ml build forum.

The first pic is with an single lens and an mce but I didn't like the beam pattern and went for the 3 q5 instead.
Second shows the light before I added the sink between the light and the mount(visible in the last pic).
Third is a beamshot with a stock housing and 15w halogen bulb.
Fourth is a beamshot with the 3 q5 on high. Note: 15w halogen = 6V at 2.5 A, 3 q5 = 6V at ~ 2.7A.
Last shows the leds, the parallel wiring, the heatsink ears, and the sink under the driver. driver is behind the leds.


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## HuffyPuffy (Jun 9, 2008)

*V2 of the Hammond Quad Cree*

*Light Source:*

Good and cheap - 4 x Cree Q5's from DealExtreme

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*

2 each - Polymer Optics 6deg (120/147) and 25deg (124/147) purchased from cutter.

*Housing:*

Hammond case purchased at Mouser:
https://www.hammondmfg.com/pdf/1455B802.pdf

The connectors are Hirose HR30 (male panel mount and female cable type) purchased at Mouser.

The heatsink was milled, however a piece of angle aluminum cut to size works just as well.

The front and back panels were waterjet cut by bigbluesaw.com using the designs in the thread linked in my signature.

*Power Source:*

My battery solution was to use a Makita 18V battery with one of these:

https://theledguy.chainreactionweb.com/product_info.php?products_id=1115

*Regulator:*

3023-D-E-1000 - 1A Wired Buckpucks with external potentiometer, they can be purchased at ledsupply.com or cutter.

It is controlled by a PICAXE microcontroller to allow dimming, modes, temp sensing and battery voltage monitoring, plus other features not yet implemented.

*Additional comments:*

See the link in my signature for more info.

Photos:


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## trdi (Sep 13, 2009)

Do you have some pictures or movie how dose this light shine in dark?


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## jason 77 (Aug 5, 2010)

To "odtexas" 

Do you mind if I ask you what blade you are using in your table saw? Also how are you anodizing the aluminum?

Thanks


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## BrianMc (Jan 5, 2010)

*Marwi Bullet Conversions for the street*

*Headlights:*



*Light Source*:

3 XP-G R5 color WH on 10 mm round MCPCB from Cutter for each light. About 470 lumens at 0.5 A and 900 @ 1 Amp each light.

*Power:*
Usually driven at 0.5 A, 1.0 A on wet roads.

*Optics:*
Low beam has three Carclo 10417s one per LED from Cutter. Since picture above, a fresnel lens cut out of center of cheap plastic lens landscape halogen from HomeDepot. Right bulb donated lens in bezel of picture below:



High has three 10140 12.7 mm/16 mm OD aspheric lenses from surplusshed stacking three different sized die images one ahead (above) the other. Top (tightest) beam used a dedomed XP-G:



*Housing:*
Marwi/Viewpoint Halogen from EL34 and copper pipe cap firewall system for both lights from local plumbing supply and Lowes. Anodixed body was polished to the aluminum and Arctic Aluminum was used in force fit between copper heat sink/spreaders and the bare aluminum to maximixe thermal path.

Low Beam Pill System




High Beam Heat Spreader/Firewall:


Low beam's Pill system with liner is heavy, too a lot of hand sanding with a Dremel, and is overkill. Thought low beam might need to run at 1 A all the time. The inside of the body is ribbed so need to be polished to get the best thermal contact with the copper heat sink.

*Power Source:*
Batteries: 12 V nominal 4.5 Ahr Cygolite NiMH HID system battery, DIY 11.1/12.6 V 4.8 A hr Li-ion pack being built using 6 2.4 Ahr 18650s. Connectors: Trailtech from Batteryspace.com.

*Driver:*
One BFlex Driver from TaskLed for each light. Status LED with light tube to tip of housing.
Momentary switch mounted in place of stock On/Off switch.

Additional comments:

High beam on helmet is very narrow but an excellent thrower visible by motorists over 1/4 mile in bright daylight. Closer it has to be aimed at the motorist. Deters drivers entering road into path of bike quite effectively. You don't want this aimed at your side window even in daylight (used in flash mode at 1 A). Low beam needs a bill and maybe to be mounted forward freeing up handle bar room and reflecting off the fender less.

*Photos:*
Golf course beam shot:


Night movie of lights: (pedestrian view):
https://img580.imageshack.us/flvplayer.swf?f=Pradbot9

Hand held movie camera and 1.2 mile circuit using lights (some mods since): 
https://img532.imageshack.us/flvplayer.swf?f=Pcap0003

*Tailights:*



*Light Source*:

MR16 1 watt luxeon red LED, one per light body:
https://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.5325

*Power:*
Built in 12 V AC/DC driver and LED use 1.4 watts, LED driven at about 0.4 A. Output 100 lumens each.

*Optics:*
The MR16 spots optics were retained and mounted in the MR11 body. The front cover lenses were salvaged from the original 6 V halogen bulbs. A ring of copper wire spaces the reflector forward and both are held in place with non-acetic acid silicone caulk.





*Housing:*
A Siamesed twin pair of Marwis was used with single trailtech lug and two leads. The front bezels and the lenses were removed from the MR16 bulbs. The bell shape of the bulb's body was cut off with a hacksaw taking care not to cut down as far as the LED or wiring. The flat aluminum backplate was hand fitted using a Dremel to mate inside the MR11 Marwi housing. The inside of the light was not polished to the aluminum because there isn't that much heat to dissipate. Arctic alumina was used to aid thermal path and the bulb was siliconed in place with non-acetic acid silicone caulk.

The original MR11 bulb sockets were removed and discarded from the Marwi bodies and the leads soldered directly to the bulbs. Heat shrink tube isn't possible so non-acetic acid silicon caulk was used to prevent shorts.

*Power Source:*
Plugs into same battery as headlights. Second Li-ion will be taillight and backup battery.

*Driver:*
The MR16 bulbs driver is used. There are no modes.

*Photos:*
Mounting is aimed about 5 degrees lower so as not to be directly in driver's eyes.


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## jason 77 (Aug 5, 2010)

NeoMoses said:


> *Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*
> 
> The 2 yellow LEDs have a 'lighthouse' style optic placed over them. I got these from ebay a long time ago, so sorry for no direct source. Basically, these help focus the light into a narrow band that is roughly 180 degrees wide x 15 degrees tall. The center red LED is left bare with no optics to give a VERY broad light dissipation. Makes you visible from a full 180x180.


ledsupply.com has them for sale in case anyone was interested...

http://ledsupply.com/l2-op-fl.php


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## odtexas (Oct 2, 2008)

Original 35mm ID thread
"In Ano" 
Body Tube
 ~35mm inside diameter.

Slug for ~35mm inside diameter light.

Slug needs to be sanded lightly to fit inside tube.

 34.8mm glass for ~35mm inside diameter light (Thanks Hoffman Amps)
On off  Switch 
Using  Tamiya mini connectors  with heat shrink covers.




























Tube is ripped along fence to flatten one side.









Move fence and rip other side.








At this point it is best to section the tube (cross cut) into whatever length you want to final light to be.
Then carefully slot finning on each individual body. Was trying to fin whole tube, but found that even minor rotation screws up symmetry over a two foot long cut. 
Notice asymmetric finning on light bodies. 








Cheap  Kaidomain driver.
Operates around 2.4 Amps.









Removing the R400 sense resistor from the R1 slot reduces current to 1.88 Amps with the MC-E M-bin parallel wired star.









 6xAA battery holder  with Tamiya mini connectors.










 Original 22mm ID thread

Bits









Built Boom

















Built Ledil LM1 diffuse









Also built one with a Regina and XPG running at 1.9 Amps&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;.









 Small light with ~22mm inside diameter.

 Slug for light with ~22mm inside diameter.

 22mm flat glass
 Switch
 Driver 

 Rectangular Chassis Thread








Wide Black Body Beam Shot at ~880mA.









 Wide light body 

Cutting









Next use some 1/4 inch by 3/4 flat strip.

Rip it to the inside height of the light body to form you slug. Then cross cut to fit width.

Used bench grinder to shape reginas to fit.

On off  Switch 

Using  Tamiya mini connectors  with heat shrink covers.

 Driver for both lights

Smaller orange light is made from 
Aluminum Rectangular Tubing .75" X 1.5" X .062
Sorry no link on this extrusion. Found it on ebay about a year ago and haven't needed any since.

















Small Orange light with shortened Regina reflectors beam shot ~880 mA.











Using modified reginas.








Cut to fit internal of extrusion.
Slug done same way as above. Trial and error to get tight fit from aluminum bar stock.

Fins can be "dado" cut.









This is done with multiple soft steel saw blades spaced with grinding wheel/cut off discs.








The disks come in various widths so you can make whatever spacing you want/need. 
























Just gives a little better uniformity and is faster since 3 beds are cut at a time.


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## odtexas (Oct 2, 2008)

Aluminum Square Tubing, 1" SQ {A} x 3/4" ID {B} x .125" Wall Sq. Tube , from  Speedymetals.

Aluminum Rectangular Tubing, 1" {A} x 2" {B} x .125" Wall {C} Rect. Tube  Speedymetals.

Aluminum Square Tubing, 3/4" SQ {A} x 5/8" ID {B} x .063" Wall {C} Sq. Tube 6063-T52 Aluminum, from  Speedymetals.

Rip the ¾ inch tube length wise to give 2 halves or U channel. Then cut U channel to appropriate length to fit into light body.

In the 1 inch square tube the Regina outside edge can be sanded to remove the small lip. It will then fit into the 1 inch square tube without distorting the reflector.

The driver in both lights are the 3-mode regulated Circuit Boards from  Shiningbeam. 
In the Dual XML light I am using the Poormans 7135 Driver Setup, brought to our attention by  rlouder  via CPF. Thanks rlouder&#8230;&#8230;&#8230;.
So cut the outside corners of the tube at 45 degrees. Slots were also cut using table saw. 
Makes for a tidy 3 mode light. 


















I recut the 1 inch square to have only four slots, three fins. 
The originals were cut with five slots, four fins, each side and the fins came out a little too narrow on some of the housings.




































Update to a more step by step process.

The cut bodies will have some edge overhang so take a knife and trim/bevel the edges.









The ¾ inch slug will need to have edges rounded and some sanding to fit inside the light body. Sand and round edges enough to be able to push the slug in with a mild/moderate amount of force.









Tin the leds. Much harder to tin when star has been thermal epoxied to the slug.









Prepare driver. This is the 2800 mA, 3 mode from Shining beam. Remove spring and solder positive wire on.









Attach negative to outer gold colored ring either top or bottom. Top was done here to make attachment to switch easier.









Thermal epoxy 7135 chips to slug. Channel locks used to hold together until epoxy sets. Velcro wrapped around grips to hold driver in place.









Used dremel grinding stone to remove lip from the Regina optic.









Step drill Regina out to ¼ inch.









Use a slug to trace the front and back plate of the light on 1.2 mm polycarb and cut out with scissors.









Used 5 minute epoxy to fix Regina to led star after soldering driver wires to the star pads.









Regina, slug, and driver ready to be pushed into light body.









Light body gets thermal epoxy.









Slide slug into body.









Take front and back polycarb 1.2 mm plates. Stack both and continue pressing slug into light body. 









Wires can be threaded out through switch hole and end of light can be tapped with soft faced hammer.









Remove the polycarb plates.









Leaves about 1 mm to work 5 minute clear epoxy around to seal the polycarb in place over the reflector.









Getting ready to mix.









Mixed with one toothpick. Discard that one. Use tip of clean toothpick to work epoxy around polycarb/light body junction.









Driver and switch connected.









Negative wire connected and Marine shrink tube placed over wires. * If you plan to use a bolted/screwed on mount this area behind the driver is the area the hole will need to be drilled for installation. I use Velcro or Dual Lock on my lights. *









Polycarb plate with center drilled ready for JB Weld Kwik.









Mix a little more black than grey to get darker epoxy color. 









Epoxy worked into back of light body and feathered against internal body edges. Place light on flat surface and heat body and epoxy with heat gun so it self levels.









Used a little less epoxy than needed to completely fill back cavity to flush. Prefer a little droop so dried epoxy has slight recessed look to it.









Mini Tamiya connectors








Another section of Marine heat shrink tubing place on wiring and shrank with heat gun.








Use Velcro or 3M Dual lock on my light. *A mount could be drilled and screwed/bolted in before polycarb rear plate was installed.*

Lights done with both Rustoleum Fine Texture paint and Gunkote. 









Light bodies cleaned with Dawn dish soap to remove oils. Then dipped in rubbing alcohol and wiped dry. Next light bodies are heated to 150 degrees F and sprayed with the paint/coating product.
Let dry for 30 minutes and then bake in oven for 1 hour at 350 degrees F.
Rustoluem Left, Gun-Kote Right.









Brass brush used to test scratch resistance of both products after baking and cooling.









The Rustoleum resisted better against scratching.









I have learned alot of these tricks from fellow builders here. Came up with a few on my own. 
There are many more tricks and tips on mtbr and cpf. 
Here is one of the best threads I have ever come across.  This guy, wquiles, is meticulous and shares years worth of experience. 
It is where I decided the 5 minute clear epoxy could handle any abuse I threw at it.
Long read but worth it. 
He uses a thermal tape and so nonconductive tape on the back of an aluminum reflector. 
Not my style, but someone here could probably benefit from those tips.


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## Calina (Apr 8, 2008)

Nice work. 
Impressive results when I consider the equipment you used.:thumbsup:


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## mrradlos (Sep 3, 2010)

*cap*

This is a fine collection, I hope my light is worth adding here.

*Light Source*:
3 x XM-L T6 2B bin on 14 mm star

*Optics:*
1 x Boom-SS for MCE
1x Carclo Elliptical Orthogonal for MCE
1x Carclo Narrow 24° Frosted for MCE

Carcglo Frosted medium cut in half and glued in front

*Housing:*
Aluminum Box Enclousure Case -4.33"*2.01"*1.50"(L*W*H) from ebay

*Power Source:*
4 x 18650 Trustfire in series

*Regulator:*
H6flex from tasled

*Additional comments:*
Batteries inside, lights up around the front wheel

*Photos:*
Photos of the building process here






















more beamshots here


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## odtexas (Oct 2, 2008)

Bumpity bump


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## abvgdee (Jul 4, 2014)

*Cantor, DIY: oncomers-friendly, 1S Li-Ion, rich-control firmware, beam 3D simulations*

Cantor








*Light Source:*
2 LEDs Cree XML (on stars)

*Optics / Reflectors / Lens:*
2 lens Carclo. Far 10755 (30mm, circular beam) + holder 10962. Diffused with an elliptic diffuser. Near 10198 (20mm, oval) + universal holder 10654.

Lens are shifted relative to LEDs - to make the beam vertically asymmetric. At the top there will be sharper cutoff, at the bottom - smoother fade-off. Lens of the Far light is lifted away from the LED's star plane - to make the beam more concentrated - at the price of some power losses.







Beamshots








*Housing:*
A modified common "Magic-shine"-type headlight (Xeccon-S14T) and also the М25-housing from easy2led-com


A standard plastic mount (Magic-Shine-type) with a rubber ring is used to mount the headlights. It gives mobility and freedom: it's easy to demount it and put in a backpack, use on several bikes, or use as 2 independent (though awkward) flashlights. Housing and the mount are wired together, with a rubber pad in between. 
Lens mount. It turns out that one can first conveniently and accurately position the lens relative to the LED, getting the beam you want, and then conveniently fasten everything inside the housing. 
PCB mount. Good heat transfer from linear regulators to outside. Controller is pressed against the housing pill for LED temperature measurements. 

*Power Source:*
1S Li-Ion (2.7-4.2V)

*Regulator:*
Driver is linear, using AMC7135 and Atmel ATtiny45. The printed circuit board (PCB) can house up to 8 AMC7135 (~2.8А), they are all located on one side for efficient cooling. Micro-controller is on the other side - to measure temperature of the power LED. Board diameter is 24mm. The PCB design (gEDA) is opened. 








*Additional comments:*
The main page is on SourceForge.net:
Cantor bike light documentation

What's also there:

Simulations from ceiling beamshots, processed in octave. Angular distribution, road projection, 3D-view, all in log scale. Several types of beams. Comparison with Olaf Schultz database.















Convenient, bike-light-specific (not a tactical-light) control in the firmware


Normally brightness of both headlights (Far+Near) changes simultaneously, but it can also be changed individually. 
Monitors voltage level: there are many levels at which headlight will blink to indicate voltage drop. 
Monitors temperature. 
Levels can be set by the user without re-programming. 
Nice "police" strobe: first Far headlight strobes, then Near, and so on. 
Smooth light up/down. 
Anti-hijack mode: headlight requires a password. 

Brake light.








Once again, the full description is in cantorbl.sourceforge.net


----------

