100 Watt HID Mod

[jayrob]

I once modded something similar for a customer and I've since wanted to make one for myself...

The host and battery shown below are a perfect fit for each other...

Note: I have updated this post with my latest beam shots using the other bulb that came with my HID kit. This second bulb was closer to the 4300k that I wanted...





Host...

The host is very well made:

* Thick rubber ring in front
* Glass lens
* 7 1/4" Aluminum reflector (pretty deep too)
* Rubber battery door

The reflector bezel is held on with 8 screws, and there is a nice o-ring seal behind the glass.

Can't believe I got this bad boy for only $10 bucks on Ebay!

I see the new 18 million ones by the same company and they look the same except the front is longer. Maybe a deeper reflector?? Not sure if it is the same quality as this one either...





Secondary Light:

So since the host has two switches, I decided to put a wide flood table light...

* XML - 2 U4 (no reflector)
* DC DC buck converter

The Lipo pack I'm using is 16.8 volts at full charge. Using the buck converter shown, I adjusted the voltage output so that the emitter is getting 1.3 Amps.

At this current, it only draws about 350mA's from the Lipo pack...

Here's the driver





Lipo Pack and Voltage Monitor:

13 Amp hours!

After the initial start up surge, the 100 Watt HID draws a steady 4.38 Amps from the Lipo pack. (should be nearly 3 hours run time between charges)

This Lipo pack is the perfect size for this host as you can see from the build pictures to follow...

The host has charge ports that I am not using, but I did use that area for a fiber optic plug that shows my voltage monitor which is mounted inside.

Battery voltage monitor color code:

Bright blue - Full charge
Cyan - Very good
Green - Good
Yellow/Amber - Low warning
Red - Batteries low





More pics...

HID Bulb Mount/Focus:

The trickiest part of this build was making the small custom bulb mount plate shown below...

It was trial and error to machine the correct depth for best spot focus.

As you can see I'm using some heat shield in a couple places.

Probably not needed, but just an extra safety precaution since I'm using a Lipo pack...






Some Beam Shots:

This beam and spot blows away any other HID I have. Seems twice as bright as my 85W, and same for my FireFoxes FF4 at 60W...

Hope you like it!



Radiometer: (had to remove the beam from my radiometer after 5 or 6 seconds or it would have blown up) Lol...






Here's some interesting information on HID vs Halogen:

Lighting from an HID bulb is up to 10 times more durable than halogen. Vibrations can cause damage to a halogen filament, but there is nothing to break inside an HID bulb. Instead of using a filament as it's source of light output, an hid bulb generates a xenon arc that jumps between two diodes to emit its light output. This electrical arc is similar to the lighting in the sky, so in a sense, hid xenon bulbs are what you might call "lightning in a bottle!" Pretty cool huh?!! These light sources also produce a white to blue-white light in the 4300K to 6000K color range that is safer due to the fact that it is closer to the color of natural daylight.

The color temperature of daylight is close to 4300K, which is why we as human beings that see best during the daylight are able to see more vividly with a 4300K hid kit compared to 2300K from halogen bulbs.

The light output from a 35W 4300K HID Xenon lamp is about 300% more visible light than a 55W halogen bulb.

And this build is 100 Watts HID! :drool:

HID also consumes much less power, and generates much less heat during operation...










Click here to see my list of projects and tutorials!

 

[Pman]

Woohoo! Love your stuff Jay.
Out of curiosity I have one of those bazooka looking 75W HID lights. How does something like this compare. I remember you had done something with an 85W HID.

 

[jayrob]

Woohoo! Love your stuff Jay.
Out of curiosity I have one of those bazooka looking 75W HID lights. How does something like this compare. I remember you had done something with an 85W HID.

Yes I still have that and the spot on this thing seems twice as bright! But it's all about the color temp...

In general, the larger the reflector, the better the throw, so this build will out throw the other, but to me getting the 4300k is a bigger difference...

Anybody know where I can get a quality 4300k HID bulb in H3 size?

The other main difference between the two is the battery capacity.

I have 13 Amp hours with this one!

Drawing maybe 4.5 Amps, it can go for around 3 hrs. or so between charges...

 

[Pman]

What k is usually in those 75/85W HIDs? I never looked at my bulb. It must have some kind of code on it.
I am going to be completely honest and say I envy your ability to put together these projects. Can't imagine owning all the equipment and obviously the training to use it properly to create the pieces parts. I find ways around project issues because I have always been very good at figuring out how things work and repairing them. What do you actually do for a living? What I'm getting at is will that explain why you have the equipment you have or is it totally seperate from it. I have lots of nice Flukes, hand tools and equipment for commercial/Industrial refrigeration ( plus heating and A/C) because it was a necessity for work. Certainly didn't need anything really when I was a Nuclear Reactor Operator for the USN for 10 years before getting medically retired from it in 96'. Anyways, you get what I mean. You must have a huge amount of interesting completed projects all over the place. Care to share any cool things you've built that you haven't shared yet even if it's just some pics? Wouldn't ask if I really wasn't seriously curious.

 

[jayrob]

What k is usually in those 75/85W HIDs? I never looked at my bulb. It must have some kind of code on it.
I am going to be completely honest and say I envy your ability to put together these projects. Can't imagine owning all the equipment and obviously the training to use it properly to create the pieces parts. I find ways around project issues because I have always been very good at figuring out how things work and repairing them. What do you actually do for a living? What I'm getting at is will that explain why you have the equipment you have or is it totally seperate from it. I have lots of nice Flukes, hand tools and equipment for commercial/Industrial refrigeration ( plus heating and A/C) because it was a necessity for work. Certainly didn't need anything really when I was a Nuclear Reactor Operator for the USN for 10 years before getting medically retired from it in 96'. Anyways, you get what I mean. You must have a huge amount of interesting completed projects all over the place. Care to share any cool things you've built that you haven't shared yet even if it's just some pics? Wouldn't ask if I really wasn't seriously curious.

I think they mostly sell 8000k... Can you detect a bluish tint to the beam in the night sky?

About your question. I'm just one of those 'tinker' type of guys. I've had probably just about every hobby you can imagine.

Have you ever built an RC heli? That's probably one of the trickiest things because you not only have to build it, but you have to program your remote, balance blades, etc...

I would say that's about the most technical stuff I'm into as far a building stuff.

I built custom pools for several years and we built about 60 a year. Now I'm with the same guys, but we do Solar. PV solar is on fire these days.

I'm the design manager and take the jobs from initial site visit, design and plan set, and on through permit and then hand them over to our install department.

We install about 100 projects per month. Mostly residential but some commercial as well...

I'm working on another 100 Watt LED build at the moment. Here's a pic of how it's coming along: (this one is going to have a bigger lens and reflector than my last one)

Bigger battery too - 6S/12 Amp hour! So it will be about 3 hrs. between charges.

Have you seen my project list?

Click here to see my list of projects and tutorials!

 

[jayrob]

:bumpit:

So today I tried the second bulb that was in the kit and it was much closer to the 4300k that I was hoping for...

So I have updated the original post with these latest beam shots:

This beam and spot blows away any other HID I have. Seems twice as bright as my 85W, and same for my FireFoxes FF4 at 60W...

 

[Pman]

Yeah, that's some serious output now. Looks way brighter than the other pics showed.
I know about tinkering but never had enough time really for it as I used to over work myself and now I'm paying some of the price for it. Was into a few RC things such as cars and trucks (all battery stuff) and started to get into Helis but then I kept having more and more kidney issues and things fell to the wayside. Now I don't have the income anymore to support multiple hobbies anyways so I try and get by and be satisfied with buidling lasers for something to do although I'm slowly feeling worse and worse so it's harder and harder to want to put the energy into a build. Most days I just can't get myself to do it even though I have the pieces/parts ready to go.
I really should sell a lot of them but it's like letting your children go lol. Hard to get back the reality of how much work you put into something and I have so many that are one offs.
I've drooled over your stuff for years You really offer superior stuff compared to most people That's not a compliment, that's a fact

 

[jayrob]

Yeah, that's some serious output now. Looks way brighter than the other pics showed.
I know about tinkering but never had enough time really for it as I used to over work myself and now I'm paying some of the price for it. Was into a few RC things such as cars and trucks (all battery stuff) and started to get into Helis but then I kept having more and more kidney issues and things fell to the wayside. Now I don't have the income anymore to support multiple hobbies anyways so I try and get by and be satisfied with buidling lasers for something to do although I'm slowly feeling worse and worse so it's harder and harder to want to put the energy into a build. Most days I just can't get myself to do it even though I have the pieces/parts ready to go.
I really should sell a lot of them but it's like letting your children go lol. Hard to get back the reality of how much work you put into something and I have so many that are one offs.
I've drooled over your stuff for years You really offer superior stuff compared to most people That's not a compliment, that's a fact

I know what you mean...

Hey check this out!

Radiometer: (had to remove the beam from my radiometer after 5 or 6 seconds or it would have blown up) Lol...

 

[Benm]

That's a seriously bright searchlight, nicely done!

What are you going to be using it for?

 

[jayrob]

That's a seriously bright searchlight, nicely done!

What are you going to be using it for?

:thanks:

Just looking forward to my camping trip next month so I got motivated on a couple of new builds...

That said, it's honestly just a show piece. (king of the shelf!)

 

[Cel]

Nice, but... can it light a match? :shhh:


Seriously, nice build, well done! :beer:

 

[jayrob]

Nice, but... can it light a match? :shhh:


Seriously, nice build, well done! :beer:

:thanks:

Yes it will light a match on the Moon! :beer:

Actually I don't know why I couldn't light a match. Could be something to do with the focus?? But if HID's can light matches, I don't see why this bad boy couldn't light a match because it can seriously beam...

 

[Benm]

I doubt it can light a match just in the beam - since the beam is very wide making the power density very low compared to even a small laser (a good 5 mW red laser outputs more candelas than this lamp).

It would probably be quite easy to light a match, some paper etc using a magnifying glass just as you would when the sun is out.

 

[jayrob]

I doubt it can light a match just in the beam - since the beam is very wide making the power density very low compared to even a small laser (a good 5 mW red laser outputs more candelas than this lamp).

It would probably be quite easy to light a match, some paper etc using a magnifying glass just as you would when the sun is out.

I'm sure it would easily light stuff on fire with a magnifying glass...

About your 5mW laser comparison. I don't know the math, but I have a radiometer, and the only thing that can make it spin the way the 100W HID does, is if I point a 5 Watt laser at it... (pretty close comparison)

 

[Benm]

The difference is in the distance.

Lumens are pretty straightforward, just the amount of light emitted in total corrected for wavelength. A lens or reflector doesn't change the amount of lumens from a source except for perhaps some losses.

Candelas are a different thing: they are the amount of light per sterradian corrected for wavelength as well. They basically tell how bright a lightsource looks at near-infinite distance.

And at great distances the differences become quite spectacular. At, say 10 kilometers, a small laser pointer aimed right appears much brighter than a kilowatt halogen worklamp pointing in the same general direction.

When it comes to setting things on fire at a distance using something like a magnifying glass, it's the candela's that count. I doubt your HID light could light a match 100 meters away using a small (say 5 or 10 cm diameter) magnifying glass, but a 100 mW laser just might. At 100 meters most of that lasers light can still be caught by the magnifying glass, wheras most of the HID light would miss it.

The sun is just SO bright that despite being an omnidirectional emitter you can still set stuff alight with a small magnifying glass 150 million kilometers away. Then again it outputs something like 4 x 10^26 watts, so give it credit

 

[Pman]

I have one of those radiometer sitting in my living room window