Ferrino

Thanks - I ordered that light from Ebay and with the extra battery pack. I didn't appreciate that the mount was not very good though - will see when it arrives.

JimBeans83

Also bit bullet on the magic shine clone, $43.30 currently to US address, took 1 week for me to receive US:US.

https://www.dealextreme.com/p/t6-wate...-set-900182510

Have played with it several times, quality is very good but don't have runtime results. It's the brightest light I have right now - and I have many. Follows exactly the candlepower forums reference post with some minor differences. Battery pack is the 4 cell.

These guys are really making lighting affordable - materials for such a beast are $30 minimum alone in high quantities. So they're making a very modest markup. Surprised this isn't catching on. Still surprised that there are similar lights being sold for $200+ MSRP.

pityr

The 4 cell battery would be nice. The one from China on Ebay is the 2 cell and only a few bucks cheaper.


Does anyone know anything about the chargers? I was thinking about redoing the connectors to use mini-USB so I can potentially use other chargers. I could hook it up and figure it all out but would rather not if someone else already did.

dougmc

lopek77 did say that the eBay version had a newer emitter. Now, I don't know how much of an improvement that makes, but if it's more efficient that could make having a smaller power pack OK. I'd need to have both to compare to make a proper decision there, and I don't have that eBay version.

It's possible, but won't be easy.

USB (and mini-USB) is 5 volts, where the chargers for these are 8.4 volts (two Li-ion batteries in series are to be charged with a maximum of 8.4 volts.) You'd need to boost the voltage somehow.

pityr

I thought it would be 8.4 but interestingly enough the charger that I have says the output is 4.5 volts @ 200-500mA.

dougmc

Hmm. Could the battery pack on these new lights be 1s2p rather than 2s1p? That would make them more like the 18650 flashlights we're fond of. That would explain why the plugs are different -- the light head may not (or may) be compatible with the higher (double) voltage packs.

Measure the voltage on the pack when fully charged ... is it 4.2 volts or 8.4 volts?

If the pack puts out a maximum of 4.2 volts, then doing it with USB would be easier. But still, you'd need a circuit of some sort to limit the voltage to 4.2 volts. You could rely on the protective circuit in the battery to do it, but that's not really wise -- if it ever fails, it would ruin the battery and could make it catch fire or explode. Though if the charger really does put out 4.5 volts, then they must already be relying on the circuit in the battery? Perhaps to save a dollar or so in the charger?

Either way, I'd say that making your own charger is somewhat risky.

speedlever

Just out of curiosity, is anyone else besides me getting 10+ copies of email alerts on this thread?

All for dougmc's post just above.

10 Wheels

Guess he had too many volts charged in his posting.

Not the Slowest

Yup

pityr

Good point. At this price point I might just get another and leave the extra charger at work That's all I really wanted the spare for anyway.

trx1

i like the FREE sunlite headlite i got. runs on 3 aaa's. so now i have bothe front and rear lights on the black beater

Ferrino

OK, so I've now received my Ebay Magicshine clone (XML T6 emitter) and am impressed by the light but as mentioned, the mount sucks. Can anyone please recommend an alternative mount? My light is this one:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/CREE-XML-T6-...-/170691177255

Thankyou!

lopek77

--Rubber mounting O-rings (original magicshine)

https://www.ebay.com/itm/280589746972...84.m1438.l2649

--Magicshine Lighthead Basemount + Screw

https://www.geomangear.com/index.php?...roducts_id=333

2 minutes and u will be all set!

no1mad 

Regarding that XML from ebay, may have missed it, but has anyone done a run time? Like would it last at least 2 hours on the lower setting?

Also, what is the most secure mount for the light head? Is there like a more permanent way to mount it? I would like for it to basically live on the bike- even during those times when the bike is on the bus rack. Or would that be tempting fate?

lopek77

You should read previous posts...everything is there ;-) To save you some time:

- Run time on 2 cell batteries ON HIGH is anywhere between 1.5 and 2.5 hours ( from freezing temps to warm weather )
- Original mount was ok, but bulky and weird looking. It's easy to replace it with original Magicshine mount, which is very secure and much smaller than the included one.

no1mad 

I did read back through to about halfway up the previous page; the info I needed was probably just a little further up.

Saw where you did post links to the o-rings and mount w/screw from geoman. I take it that the o-rings are the original mounting system?

lopek77

O-rings ARE the original mounting system. There is two different sizes of o-rings, and they are normally sold in pairs.
This type of mounting is very secure, but it may slide little bit on the bumps. It's easy to adjust with just a push of my finger :-)

Ferrino

Thanks for the link to the O-ring based mounting system.

One other question: there were no instructions to describe how the color on the switch indicates the state of charge. When I have the battery pack connected I get an intermittently flashing blue light - what does that mean?

Thankyou!

lopek77

Flashing blue - POWER ON
Flashing blue + RED - LOW BATTERY, at this point I'm either switching my light to low or switching to second battery.
As far as I understand, you can damage this kind of batteries if you keep using it with low voltage (red blinking)

honest_engine

After too much time spent trolling through DX, I bought this setup and have used it long enough to vouch for it.
The first drop-in from SF died after about two weeks, though, so I imagine there are some QC issues. SF was very good about the replacement. They seem to be very motivated to establish themselves as an "honest" dealer. Shipping was quick from HK--less than two weeks each time.

The current drop-in has been going strong for about two months. I don't have experience with other 18650/tac flashlights to compare it to, but I am impressed with the L2's build quality and brightness. I was running a 2-watt Planet Bike Blaze alone before and this is a whole different ball game. I still use the Blaze for extra "be-seen" light because it gets such good battery life.

Battery life on the L2/XML is decent, maybe better than I expected. I have a 40 minute commute on unlit paths and roads and I usually get 3-4 rides on the high setting (though it appears to vary somewhat by the cell I'm using). I ended up buying SF's charger and four cells, which put the whole package over the $50 mark, but not by much. When the battery dies, though, it dies quickly, and I've had to replace it mid-ride a couple of times. Annoying, but maybe a small price to pay.

It advertises as 820 lumens on high. I can't speak to the accuracy, but I've felt no shortage of light at any speed. I sometimes get flashed by cars, though I've tried to mount it low and angled downwards slightly on my front rack. (I don't feel bad about spilling a little more light than I should--how many times have I been completely blinded by car headlights?). It's mounted with a simple P-clamp. I don't lock it outside a lot, but I never really worry about it getting stolen, despite the city surroundings. It's under the radar enough that I think it's not really noticeable and I don't worry about it too much because of the low price tag.

I considered the MagicShine/clones written up here but didn't care for the complexity of an additional battery pack and wiring. I also like the fact that it isn't bike specific, so that when the next latest and greatest light comes along (or I can afford a dynohub) I can either use the host again with another drop-in or retire it from bike duty and have a great flashlight for home use. All around, a good deal.

Trike

Hi,
is there a similar light that feed on AA instead of 18650?
I need to get a few for the kids so must be reliable and not too expensive.
I plan to mount them on the helmets.
Thanks alot!

Trike

Sorry , forgot to mention it must have a strobe function for daytime use.

10 Wheels

Take your pic.
Free Shippiing

https://www.dealextreme.com/c/aa-batt...sort=relevance

Trike

thanks, but i want to order something that was tried and true for bike use, taking in account: rain, rattle, beam flood and durability.
this is why i would like to know your positive experience on a specific flashlight.

lopek77

For well known, good, bike specific, waterproof and with a lot of light output with a nice beam pattern - buy MagicShine light.
Anything small, torch like with aa or aaa batteries is just not enough light to be really comfortable...
Check Amazon.com for reviews of what you like...