3-To-D Battery Holder - New Design

[ElektroLumens]

Here is a photo of the 3AA to D cell battery holder that I will be selling in a month or so.

http://elektrolumens.com/Battery_Holders/3-To-D.Battery.Holder.jpg

This will fit into any D cell flashlight, including the small I.D. of a Maglite. Two options available:

1) Parallel (1.2 or 1.5 volts)
2) Series (3.6 or 4.5 volts)

What can we do with these?

I am open to name suggetions. For now, I am calling it 3-To-D.

This will be available on my shopping cart, when they come in, for around $3.00/ea.

CPF modder dreams are coming true! images/icons/grin.gif

Wayne J.

[woodbender]

Wayne...I think you are about to sell a lot of accessories pieces(new optic and d cell holder). I look forward to my Blaster and being able to utitize your newest products being offered.

[woodbender]

What material will the holders be made of? I am guessing polycarbonate for durability.

[ElektroLumens]

Originally posted by woodbender:
Wayne...I think you are about to sell a lot of accessories pieces(new optic and d cell holder). I look forward to my Blaster and being able to utitize your newest products being offered.<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">My main interest for these battery holders is for the 'Zorch', but they will be made available to anybody who wants them, as long as I have them in stock.

images/icons/grin.gif

Wayne J.

[FalconFX]

Wayne, 2 (LithiumAAs) or 3 (NiMH/Alkas) of these in series may fully drive a 5W LS in your Blaster with 30mm optics... Quite nice...

I'll be grabbin' a quad or so of each from you when it becomes available...

[ledfanfromjuno]

This is what I've been looking for!
I will take probably 12 to 24 of your parallel 3AA to D battery holders so I can run my flashlights I have already bought with AA nimh cells instead of the D cells. I need this since the chargers for AA nimh charge 4 2000 mah nimh AA cells in about 100 minutes. The fastest normal chargers for the D or C cells however take 10 to 11 hours to charge just one battery. With your parallel adapter I'll be able to be up and running 6 times faster than with standard D NIMH batteries. That's the main advantage of the parallel holder.

There are fast D chargers made, but they require 140 watts of DC power to run them. I like to run my chargers off of solar panels I carry with me. So these chargers are out of the question for carrying in my backpack. Only the AA chargers are portable and require very little power ie 15 watts and charge all 4 batteries within 100 minutes.

I'll also take several of the series holders to replace the 6aa holder you sold me in the 5 watt garrity focusable mod you sold me which I love very much. images/icons/grin.gif

[James S]

Wayne, So now you're into plastic design? Is this yet another fruit of the work you did to build the 30mm lense?

It is REALLY neet to be able to build this stuff! I'm looking forward getting some of these myself and can't wait for what other little miracles you can bestow now!

[lambda]

Wayne, most excellent. Truely a modder's dream.

I'll take a bazillion.........

[Monsters_Inc]

Am I the only one looking at a red 'x' in that pic? images/icons/blush.gif

[RickLux]

No I am looking at a red X too. Wayne I am interested in a few of these holders too !!
Are you going to post this red X on your site so I can see it there too? images/icons/confused.gif

[woodbender]

It was working earlier, so Wayne must be tinkering with his website.

[Nerd]

Well, it's up now.... I guess 4 of this will give a new lease of life to my 4D Gag lite... I think 3 5 watts in parallel with 12 AA Sanyo 1850 batteries and a nice step down circuit would do nicely.... images/icons/tongue.gif

[Brock]

YAAAAAAAAAA.... Thank you!!!

Well if you counting I will take 16 parallel ones for sure, might be more.

[revolvergeek]

I would like 4 series and 8 parrallel ones please.

[Chris Coppens]

where can I put down my name?!?! images/icons/smile.gif

Can't wait to order a few! (I hope shipping to Holland won't be a problem...?)

Thanks!!

Chris

[bushcamp]

great, i'll be buying several of each. any chance you might start offering aa to c or aaa to c some day

[ElektroLumens]

Originally posted by Chris Coppens:
where can I put down my name?!?! images/icons/smile.gif

Can't wait to order a few! (I hope shipping to Holland won't be a problem...?)

Thanks!!

Chris<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">I will add these battery holders to my shopping cart, so you can just place an order, when I have them, that is.

I will ship to most countries. Shipping costs will be determined at time of purchase.

Wayne J.

[Monsters_Inc]

Are there any holes in that contraption to let hydrogen gasses from the batteries to escape?

[X-CalBR8]

I’m very excited about this, but am just a tad concerned about that outside diameter. If your spec calls for 33.28mm O.D., then it will have a very small tolerance for error during the manufacturing process and still fit effortlessly inside the new style Mags. The largest D cell that I could find around the house only measures a very precise 33mm O.D. and has only a very tiny amount of “play” to it in my 4D Mag.

Now, with all of the (hopefully needless) worrying out of the way, I would just like to say, thank you, thank you, thank you for manufacturing these and making them available to us on CPF. This is the most excited that I’ve been about a new flashlight related product, probably ever. The mod possibilities for this adapter are nearly endless. If you added up all of the hours that I’ve searched the internet for such an adapter (and never found one) over the years, it would probably come out to many days worth of time.

Please put me down for a bare minimum of 4 and if those work as well as I hope, and I think they will, then I will probably buy many more in time. I’m so excited that I can hardly wait! images/icons/smile.gif

[bushcamp]

Brock - aren't you glad you brought up the subject of a parallel configuration and the electrolumens was open minded to the idea.

and to think, you were starting to think you were the only one interested in those.

btw, i rcvd my new pal selector. nice, useful light. already i seem to use it more than the others.

thanks

[ElektroLumens]

Originally posted by Onyx:
Are there any holes in that contraption to let hydrogen gasses from the batteries to escape?<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Yes. images/icons/grin.gif

Wayne J.

[ElektroLumens]

Originally posted by X-CalBR8:
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Maglite has the smallest I.D. of any flashlight I have measured. This battery holder will fit just fine. No need to thin the holder walls more. Need to maintain a certain level of structural integrity. graemlins/icon14.gif

Wayne J.

[X-CalBR8]

Wayne: Thanks for the confirmation on that. Now I can sleep better at night for the month that it’s going to take before we can order these. images/icons/smile.gif

[Floating Spots]

BTT
Any more info on these?

[ElektroLumens]

Originally posted by Floating Spots:
BTT
Any more info on these?<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Due out around the end of the month. images/icons/grin.gif

Wayne j

[JollyRoger]

Awesome, Wayne! I'll be picking up a few of these for sure....
images/icons/smile.gif

[shiftd]

nice
can't wait any longer

[Darkaway]

Can these adaptors be reconfigured from parallel to series and back again by the user?

[ElektroLumens]

Originally posted by Darkaway:
Can these adaptors be reconfigured from parallel to series and back again by the user?<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">The 3-To-D battery holder will come in two different configurations: Parallel and series. You will not be able to reconfigure the holder yourself. They will be two different parts.

Wayne J.

[Hemingray]

Let's see, six of these in a 6D M@gl!te, that means 18 AAs in series, 27 VDC for alkies, or
or 22.5 Vf or NiMHs. Now to find an appropriate
xenon or krypton bulb. Or an LED array.

These would also be handy for other non-flashlite electronic projects, as well.

/ed B in the never ending search for more light and RF firepower.

[Nerd]

Try not to fry anything okay? images/icons/tongue.gif

[shiftd]

Originally posted by Hemingray:
Let's see, six of these in a 6D M@gl!te, that means 18 AAs in series, 27 VDC for alkies, or
or 22.5 Vf or NiMHs. Now to find an appropriate
xenon or krypton bulb. Or an LED array.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Wow, work horse man. images/icons/shocked.gif

[kalengkong]

im going order 2 of those for sure.

[Orion]

Wayne, if you also made them in a 2 AA configuration (and in conjunction with your 3AA holder, thus 7.5 volts), I would think that this would be great for a non-overdriven 5W flashlight. Correct?

[Kercheval]

Orion, you can just place a AA blank in the 3 cell holder to accomplish what you want.

That brings up a good question. Wayne, will you be selling appropriate blanks for this purpose?

[Quickbeam]

CCrane.com had AA dummy cells on sale - 10 for $10 in their closeouts (NO shipping charges!). I just got mine and they are very nice.

[ElektroLumens]

Originally posted by Quickbeam:
CCrane.com had AA dummy cells on sale - 10 for $10 in their closeouts (NO shipping charges!). I just got mine and they are very nice.<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">For an AA dummy, I use a short aluminum rod, about the same length and diameter as an AA battery. I wrap it a few times with black electricians tape. Works great, and is cheap.

A battery holder like this opens up a lot of possibilities. images/icons/grin.gif

Regarding AA dummies, I can easily cut off AA dummies from the aluminum stock I have. I even have a power chop saw now, for a nice perfectly straight cut! WHOAH! images/icons/shocked.gif

Wayne J.

[whiskypapa3]

Chop saw makes too much noise, try Dr. W's stealth dummy. Whack off a 3/8in square stick just a bit shorter than an AA, wrap lenghtwise with bare wire and decorate the middle with enough Duct Tape to keep it from rattling.

[Aeryk]

Wow, I have been looking for just this type of beast...I cant even count the possibilities.

Great idea, and a great price...Im looking forward to ordering them...heres hoping you can mass produce them to keep up with what I am sure will be a large demand.

Aeryk

[milwaukeeblues]

For the benefit of those of us who are new to this concept, could someone please post (or point us to) an introduction to replacing D cells with AA's?

I have a 3-D mag lite that has for years defied my efforts to make it produce a decent beam. Any ideas?

Thank you!

Peter

[ElektroLumens]

Originally posted by milwaukeeblues:
For the benefit of those of us who are new to this concept, could someone please post (or point us to) an introduction to replacing D cells with AA's?

I have a 3-D mag lite that has for years defied my efforts to make it produce a decent beam. Any ideas?

Thank you!

Peter<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">There are two main reasons for this 3-To-D battery holder to be produced.

1) Higher voltage using 3 AA batteries in series: A single alkaline D cell is 1.5 volts, and about 6mAh, or 6 amp hours. An AA alkaline is 1.5 volts and about 1.2 amp hours. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong on the mAh of the batteries. Rechargagles are usually 1.2 volts, and can vary somewhat in the amp hours, usually quite a bit more than alkalines.

Three alkaline AA batteries in this holder gives us 4.5 volts in a D cell size battery. Nice. images/icons/grin.gif

Why? One reason is for using the 5 watt Luxeon Star, with an odd voltage requirement of 6.8 volts. This would require 5 alkaline batteries, or 6 rechargables. Using 5 D cells makes for a very large flashlight. So with this battery holder, we can use 6AA batteries, in a typical 2 D cell flashlight, for 9 volts, or 7.2 volts. A small amount of resistance cuts the voltage down, or a dummy battery can be used.

2) Three AA batteries in parallel: This gives us the same voltage as the D cell. Why do this? The reason I heard is that rechargable AA batteries recharge much quicker. One person said they use a solar charger with their AA batteries. It would take forever to charge a D cell using solar energy. So using 3 AA rechargables in a 3-To-D battery holder works our well for this purpose.

You can also make a flashlight the size of a 1 D cell flashlight, and use a Luxeon Star, or multiple 5mm LED's. There are several multiple LED flashlights that use this concept.

[Jonathan]

Based upon datasheets, the numbers are a bit different from what Wayne reports above.

A 'D' Alkaline cell is rated at 1.5V, with a capacity rating of 18,000mAh (Yes, 18 amp-hours)

An 'AA' Alkaline cell is rated at 1.5V, with a capacity rating of about 2800mAh.

An 'AA NiMH cell is rated at 1.2V, with a capacity of 1600-2100mAh.

But these numbers only tell a part of the story. Both of the Alkaline cells are rated to an end of discharge voltage of 0.8V/cell. The reason is that the voltage is continuously dropping during discharge, and you must let it drop somewhat in order to get energy out of the cell.

Second, all of these cells have _internal resistance_, which means that the voltage drops because of the current flowing through the load. The internal resistance of the different cells is in general different, meaning that different cells will show different voltage drop under load.

You see this in high load applications like digital cameras, in which the NiMH AA cells will _significantly_ outperform the Alkaline AA cells, even though the Alkaline cells store more total energy. In use the Alkaline cells waste this additional energy to internal resistance, so the NiMH cells deliver more energy to the load.

There is a similar trade-off between the 'D' and the 'AA' cells. The 'D' cells are rated to 18000mAh, but at a discharge of 25mA. Put them under high load, and the voltage drops. AA cells show relatively less voltage drop under load. If you look at datasheets for Alkaline cells, and compare say 1 D cell with 1A discharge to 3 AA cells with 0.33A discharge each, you find something like: The D cell has a 7 hour service life (7 Ah) and the AA cells have about a 6 hour service life...this is roughly the break even point. If you want to draw more power out of the cells, then the three AA cells will do better than the D cell. If, on the other hand, you only need 25mA, then a single D cell will do better than 6 AA cells.

-Jon

[LEDmodMan]

Put me down for at least 3 of each configuration!!! Great idea!!!

Jonathan - Thanks for clearing up why one would want to use 3 AA's in parallel instead of a D cell. I believe you are correct. I was somewhat suprised by this, I figured a D cell would be better in all respects. Thanks.

[BentHeadTX]

3-to-D,
I like it! Hmmmm, those would work well to put 14.4VDC to my Elektrolumens 5W Cyan 5D with NiMH batteries (last D would be a dummy cell) I will be using the LED Supply 5W regulator with NiMH batteries and it should give 5 hours of regulated blinding Cyan light.
Oh yeah, it will also run Elektrolumens 30mm optic for extra punch. A big hooray for all the modders of this forum! It is great to have unique lights with unique parts offered by these hard working CPF members.
Thanks and have a great year!

[Ben H]

Wayne,

I have looked really hard for these battery holders. This is so awesome that you will be selling these! I have some 5W LS's waiting for this battery holder. I want 6 of series holders. Will you be getting in enough of these to supply the demand?

[soloco]

This is an AWESOME idea! I've been trying to make one from Radio Shack parts, but I have been failing miserably.

Here's another idea that I was messing around with, but couldn't get to work right. I wanted to make an adapter for Lithium 123 Cells to be used in a D sized Maglite type flashlights. I've done some measurements. 6 123s should fit side by side in a D barrel. I would love to have 18V in my 2D maglite. Then I can use my 18V Dewalt bulb in my 2D Mag and get 335 lumens!

Just an idea.

[ElektroLumens]

Originally posted by Ben H:
Wayne,

I have looked really hard for these battery holders. This is so awesome that you will be selling these! I have some 5W LS's waiting for this battery holder. I want 6 of series holders. Will you be getting in enough of these to supply the demand?<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">I looked for them too. I thought the 6AA MrBulk found was the best find, and it was. Until now.

I plan to have plenty of these to sell. For sure I'll use them in some of my flashlights. I mainly wanted them for a 2D size flashlight, powering the 5W.

This is basically the configuration I have wanted from the very beginning of designing flashlights, which was actually 8 AA batteries, powering three 1 watt LS's in series. That was my dream flashlight, until the 5W came out, then I decided on 6 AA batteries to power a 5W in a 2D size flashlight.

Wayne j

[Ben H]

Wayne,

Thanks so much for making these available to us flashaholics! I want them for the same reason you do: to make a 5W LS 2D flashlight.

[Hemingray]

Let's see.... Two 3AA in series units, put in 5 AAs and a dummy AA containing an appropriate resistor in the 6th slot. Nice and easy, no-pain "2D" 5W Luxeon mod...

ed B under 3+ feet of white garbage

[BuddTX]

Originally posted by ElektroLumens:

1) Parallel (1.2 or 1.5 volts)
2) Series (3.6 or 4.5 volts)
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">This is very nice!

As I know what series and parallel are in Computer terms, I get a little confused with electricity. So let me see if I have this right:

A single "D" battery is 1.5 volts, so a "SERIES" 3AA battery would give 4.5 volts, SO, I could take a 2D flashlight, and take two of these SERIES transformers, and put in a 6D rated bulb and run the bulb at spec, right? Is this correct?

So, my question is, what would the benefit of using the PARALLEL version, instead of a single, "D" battery? Would 3AA's have more power than 1D? I could see the lithium applications (Although it would be expensive). I am not against it, I just want to understand it?

OK, here is another question. What if you wanted to take a 2D light, and have 6 volts come out of it? Would you use 1Series, and 1 Parallel?

OR, could you use 1 Series, and one straight D battery?