Chinese Cree Lights **DO NOT MODIFY**

[G3CWI]

I have had one of these Eye-Burners for a while now and it's very bright. however, the battery packs don't last long and the light switches off on bumpy roads as the barrel connectors used are unsuitable for this application. Being in the electronics business I rewired my light and battery pack with thicker cable and proper connectors. This is tricky as you are working on a live circuit when rewiring the battery pack and one slip could short the pack out (extreme danger).

Shortly after doing this, one of the battery packs failed (would not charge). The battery packs have an internal protection/charging regulator and I wondered if this might have failed? I removed it and tested the cells - they were fine. I then removed the pcb and wired directly to the cells (extreme danger). This means there is no fuse and no protection (don't do this at home folks).

LiPO batteries die if over discharged and part of the purpose of the PCB is to disconnect the battery when the terminal voltage is too low. With the board removed, this protection is gone. However, all is not lost as the light has a low battery indicator. I put the light on a bench power supply and confirmed that the low battery indicator comes on at a safe voltage (it does ...just). So I need to disconnect the battery pack as soon as the low-voltage light illuminates.

With the battery pack board removed, I can now charge the battery pack using a rather more sophisticated LiPO charger that I have at my factory.

I would not recommend anyone following my course of action - all protection is gone, things could explode, burn your house down, kill all your family etc.

I will be trying my modified system out on my commute home. Wish me luck!

Posted for the information only.

 

[Hacienda71]

Just as well it is raining in Macc it will help supress the flames later.

 

[jagman.2003]

I've been lucky as my company manufactures Lithium batteries. So the electrical bods downstairs tested the battery & replaced the board for me when it failed.

 

[G3CWI]

Home safe. Even fully charged the "eye-burner" did not last the whole commute (and it was on low too).

 

[Jimmy Doug]

Thanks for the info. Could this be the real reason why some of these lights don't have European safety certificates? I'd always assumed it was about protecting other road-users; maybe it's more about protecting your home and yourself from an explosion of thermo-nuclear proportions.

 

[Bobby Mhor]

I have had one of these Eye-Burners for a while now and it's very bright. however, the battery packs don't last long and the light switches off on bumpy roads as the barrel connectors used are unsuitable for this application. Being in the electronics business I rewired my light and battery pack with thicker cable and proper connectors. This is tricky as you are working on a live circuit when rewiring the battery pack and one slip could short the pack out (extreme danger).

Shortly after doing this, one of the battery packs failed (would not charge). The battery packs have an internal protection/charging regulator and I wondered if this might have failed? I removed it and tested the cells - they were fine. I then removed the pcb and wired directly to the cells (extreme danger). This means there is no fuse and no protection (don't do this at home folks).

LiPO batteries die if over discharged and part of the purpose of the PCB is to disconnect the battery when the terminal voltage is too low. With the board removed, this protection is gone. However, all is not lost as the light has a low battery indicator. I put the light on a bench power supply and confirmed that the low battery indicator comes on at a safe voltage (it does ...just). So I need to disconnect the battery pack as soon as the low-voltage light illuminates.

With the battery pack board removed, I can now charge the battery pack using a rather more sophisticated LiPO charger that I have at my factory.

I would not recommend anyone following my course of action - all protection is gone, things could explode, burn your house down, kill all your family etc.

I will be trying my modified system out on my commute home. Wish me luck!

Posted for the information only.

You really have cheered me up not....
I on advice bought my first LiFe battery (for something we both have in common)
and now have to fit powerpole connectors....
I dallied doing this due to horror stories..
I think I'll just go back to a SLAb....

but funnily my battery pack on my Cree just cut on me tonight, just chucked it although I didn't charge it two nights ago after use..

Where can I get a dynamo

 

[400bhp]

Thanks for this. I've asked my 5 year old to have a go at re-wiring mine with a view to "Show and tell" her friends at school when she has finished.

 

[subaqua]

Where can I get a dynamo

Rose bikes http://www.rosebikes.com/products/bike-parts/lighting/dynamos/

I have a shimano Hub one and some Basta LED lights. rather bright, and the LBS liked them no great performance loss on the commute

 

[Tynan]

please not the dynamo produces energy from thin air debate again

 

[G3CWI]

please not the dynamo produces energy from thin air debate again

Everyone knows that thick air is required to turn the turbine blades in a dynamo. They can't produce electricity out of thin air and thus are useless at altitude.

 

[Andy_R]

Everyone knows that thick air is required to turn the turbine blades in a dynamo. They can't produce electricity out of thin air and thus are useless at altitude.

so all of us in County Durham are fecked then, if we want dynamos..........well thank you very much!!!

 

[the_mikey]

I had a Li-Ion battery fail spectacularly in an RSP asteri 3 light because the rubberised cables to the battery had split at a bend in the cable and subsequently shorted out. Wouldn't like to see the same thing with a Li-Po battery