Nichia 3.5w oops :( *pics*

[Flaminpyro]

I agree the black box looks like a charging jack.

I have run 6 amps through my wire with no problem what so ever

you need more current than that then run two wires

 

[IWIRE]

I didn't know that there was cheap wire and a Jack sandwiched between two boards. I think that's what it is, a port for an auxiliary power supply. I'm sure when it was designed they weren't planning on some idiot like me trying to draw that much current through it. I wouldn't have if I had known it was there.
It's really a pretty nice host. Has room for a bunch of stuff in the head. I think I still have room for a battery monitor Im going to try and put in soon as it shows up.
Thanks Flaminpyro ! Your wire is great ! That's what I did, I took seperate wires to each driver to split
the load.
Thanks again for everyone's input ! Have a great weekend ! I'll post back how it ends up, good or bad !
I bet I know what that port is ! I bet it's a headphone jack so I can listen to the photons and become one with them ! Dang, I'm more burnt up than my laser ever thought of being :crackup:

 

[DTR]

Yea that is a charging port. I have put 5A through these hosts with no issues but keep in mind a SXB draws 4-5A just to boost a 9mm diode @ 2.4A. If you are going to try for 3.5A-4.5A who knows it could be trying to draw 10A or more for all we know. When I tried building a PT-54 8A build I remember going through tons of hosts and none could handle it. A buck driver really would be a better choice for such currents. I do have one of these as a personal unit with a SXB set to 2.2A which draws 4-5A and it has been running for about a year now with no issues.

 

[IWIRE]

How does the charge port work the way it is wired ? Seems like you would have to have the tail cap switch on to complete the charge circuit. I'm going to dissect mine tonight. It's pretty funny really, when I look down the battery tube I see the battery contact. When I look at it from the end I see what appears to be the backside of the same contact. I would have bet money it was the same board. I used this same host for a 9mm build putting out 3w. A friend has been using it for about a month with no problems either. When I get it back together I'll do an amp draw at the tail cap just for grins. That will be the next weak link, the clicky switch. What the heck, it's part of the fun. :beer:

Here is the charge/auxiliary power port. I don't really think it's a charge port because they didn't use the terminal to make it a switch. They only used two terminals, which is a good thing when used as a host because current doesn't actually pass through it.


You can see there is no damage at all inside the port. The center pin is positive that the red wire terminates to. The left spring loaded terminal which has the white negative wire terminated to it, makes contact with the unused jumper terminal on the right which is not being utilized.

Here is my theory. The positive terminal of the jack has two red wires attached to it connecting the two contact boards. All the current flows through this red wire. The red wire is twisted and wrapped around the grounded white wire which normally doesn't have any current flowing through it but is grounded. My current demands were higher than the red wire could handle. It turned into a heating element. Melted the plastic insulation off, melted into the ground wire and caused a direct short to ground.


The port is not the problem. The problem was more current than the wire could handle. The flip side is if the port was not there. The build was done with quality wire at amp loads the wire could safely carry and terminated directly to the contact board. This would have been a none issue. The clicky switch would have melted which I was anticipating and still am. My biggest error was when it smoked. I immediately went to the clicky switch. Then the battery. Then I assumed since the driver smelled smoked that it was the driver. I had to know if the diode lived and took it apart to test the diode. I should have followed the chain of current flow and tested the battery contact first. But why ? There is nothing to fail there ! I can see it ! Both sides of it ! Solder connections are all good ! :crackup:
Enough CSI investigation. Time to go put my laser back together. Before long we will be building these things with welding/locomotive cable

 

[Seoul_lasers]

Yea that is a charging port. I have put 5A through these hosts with no issues but keep in mind a SXB draws 4-5A just to boost a 9mm diode @ 2.4A. If you are going to try for 3.5A-4.5A who knows it could be trying to draw 10A or more for all we know. When I tried building a PT-54 8A build I remember going through tons of hosts and none could handle it. A buck driver really would be a better choice for such currents. I do have one of these as a personal unit with a SXB set to 2.2A which draws 4-5A and it has been running for about a year now with no issues.

This is excellent information regarding powering up the higher power 9mm diodes. Definitely make sure all the components
can handle high current draw including the tail switch..

Use high temp (Silicone) wire only, preferably 20ga or better !!

 

[IWIRE]

This is excellent information regarding powering up the higher power 9mm diodes. Definitely make sure all the components
can handle high current draw including the tail switch..

Use high temp (Silicone) wire only, preferably 20ga or better !!

Isn't that the truth. I'd be happy if I just knew the stuff DTR forgot :crackup:
Never met the man but I have a lot of respect for him and his willingness to share information. If he knows, he tells you. If he doesn't know, he tells you he doesn't know. I'm always going to his diode tests when something doesn't seem right just to compare to what he got.

I got started on my battery contact. First thing I did was remove everything and clean up the old solder. Then I tinned the pad the spring sits on and tinned the bottom of the spring and remarried them together. Then I drilled a hole through the contact board where I wanted my wires. I stripped my wires back long twisted them together and soldered them. Put them through the contact board, wrapped them about a 1/3 of the way around the base of the spring and soldered them to the spring for maximum smoke generating capabilities.



Since I'm not going to be using the ground ring I epoxied the contact board into the housing

I drilled and tapped a 4-40 hole, installed a bolt and cut it off for a ground lug

I didn't have a groove for the snap ring but installed it anyway to help support the board and to keep the battery tension from moving the board. I thought about making a plastic spacer and using the stock snap ring groove but wanted the space I gained by doing it this way. I gained a 1/4 to 1/2" of room. This host has a ton of room. I soldered my 2 ground wires to my stud.

Then to make sure everything stays put I coated it with a layer of epoxy.

I tested it with an ohm meter and it tests good.

Ha ! Ol' Smokey lives ! :crackup: Almost all back together




You silly host, you can't kill the Rooster :crackup:

 

[Jmillerdoc]

I haven't read the entire thread so forgive me for asking...did you ever find a solution that worked to give your current demand for this diode. I've been delaying buying one due to the lack of a great driver solution. Once one is perfected I'll be buying one or two.
I was thinking paralleled linear drivers may work well, any thoughts? Current drain wouldn't be so high as it is with the boost. It would be more of a heat dissipation issue with the IC I think, current shouldn't be really any more than the set current output.

 

[IWIRE]

Hey Jmillerdoc ! It lives ! Until the clicky switch melts down :crackup: I honestly don't know much about this stuff. I just build by the seat of my pants with what's available to me at the time. I think the best would be a good host with a 10a switch. A buck driver capable of 5a running two 26650`s. I don't have that available to me. So I built "Dueces Wild" instead