7 replies to this topic

[BubbleBoy]

The bad news came first. While diving in the Bahamas last month the cord on my Halcyon Helios 18W HID dive light pulled out at the power head, flooding both the head and the battery canister (down through the cord). It was almost a total loss of the electronics. The battery pack naturally overheated and disintegrated. The power head was gone too. When the feed wires break at the contact terminals inside the head there is almost no way to get them soldered back in. That’s because the entire electronic ballast assembly is encased in a rubberized sealant. It takes a chisel to dig it out, which is virtually impossible without damaging other parts in the circuitry.

So what to do? Salvage and rebuild with LED tech of course. My conversion is based on a single 20W LED emitter which I got from a distributor in Shanghai. The emitter is driven by a Luxeon Power Puck that delivers a constant current of 1.0 amp for any supply voltage in the 5-32V range. This arrangement gives a nice steady light source of about 900 lumens regardless of voltage fluctuations. That’s roughly equivalent to a 100 Watt incandescent bulb. I was able to mount the emitter on a custom heat sink which I made from standard copper tubing (Home Depot Rocks). I then fixed the emitter assembly to the original light head stem so that it fit into the removable glass envelope that covered the original HID bulb. Essentially, I just replaced the power converter and HID bulb on my original light with custom parts. Pop in a new battery pack and flame on.



And now the good news. The pics below compare my new LED light to a 3W LED (OMS Vega) and a 10w HID (UK Light Cannon). I was happy to find that the Halcyon reflector and glass globe still do a decent job of focusing the LED light into a tight enough beam to deliver a motion signal. I was concerned about that. As you can see in the pics LED’s tend to emit more diffuse light for any given size. I think the total light output from this new LED setup is at least as strong as my old 18W HID, even though I’m only running the LED at about 70% of its maximum power capability. I also like the color of the light better; not as much of that eerie moonlight hue that I got from my HID bulb.









I ran the light for a couple of hours in a bucket of water (to make sure it won’t explode or something really bad). Next weekend I’m going to take it up to Dutch Springs and see how it performs in the field.

In all, the cost of the conversion was less than the cost of a new HID bulb, so I figure it was money well spent. If anyone ends up in my situation and wants more details on how to make this conversion, just email me. If you are still married to a Halcyon Helios 18W HID and want a good backup bulb, I listed my old HID bulb on eBay.

eBay Listing

Edited by BubbleBoy, 06 September 2008 - 04:22 PM.

[JimG]

I'm glad you were able to fix your light (and are satisfied with the results), but I was curious why you chose to rebuild it rather than contact Halcyon for a repair? My experience with Halcyon has been that they offer a "no BS" policy on fixing things due to failure of materials or workmanship (which this certainly sounds, based on your description of the problem). I'm guessing they would have fixed it for free. Any particular reason why you did not call them about it?

-JimG

[BubbleBoy]

I'm glad you were able to fix your light (and are satisfied with the results), but I was curious why you chose to rebuild it rather than contact Halcyon for a repair? My experience with Halcyon has been that they offer a "no BS" policy on fixing things due to failure of materials or workmanship (which this certainly sounds, based on your description of the problem). I'm guessing they would have fixed it for free. Any particular reason why you did not call them about it?

-JimG

Jim,

Maybe its just my perception, but, I've always felt the whole HID concept was just too delicate for the type of abuse diving lights take, and the relatively harsh conditions in which they are used. Basically it seems to me like a technology that was originally designed for the controlled environment of an operating room and then adapted as best as possible to diving. Ever since I got this light, I kind of felt like it was just a matter of time until something went wrong. I know other divers have gotten long lives out of these systems without difficulty, but, when I had my mishap it kind of confirmed my suspicions.

The bigger driver for the switch is that I really am a big fan of LED tech. Much of the dive light industry seems to be going this way, so, why not make the switch now as best I can. I see that Dive Rite has introduce an LED version of its popular 10W HID light, and from what I understand the LED version is flying off the shelves.

[Bubble2Bubble]

BB,
Great Report
Thanks for providing those pics to show the difference of lighting quality between the HID and the new LED.
WoW 900 lumens... I'm thinkin that New Jersey just got alittle bit brighter
Using a LED bulb do you think you will get double or triple your battery life?


Mike

Edited by Bubble2Bubble, 06 September 2008 - 08:57 PM.

[PerroneFord]

Two comments.

1. Halcyon has a fairly poor reputation on fixes for their HID lights. I know many people who've been turned down warranty repairs. I like many Halcyon products, but I won't buy the lights.

2. HID technology is fine, and not that delicate. Halcyon continues to use the Welch Allyn bulb which IS delicate. Nearly everyone else in the industry uses the brightstar bulb which is easily tough enough dive duty.

You pay your money and you take your choice.

[BubbleBoy]

BB,
Great Report

..Using a LED bulb do you think you will get double or triple your battery life?

Mike

On the 1.0 amp power puck it should get 9 hours on a 9ah rechargable battery. In practice, it will probably be more like 7-8 hours. Still, I think that's almost double what the HID bulb will get.

As I see it, one advantage of LED emitters is that they are current driven. By that I mean you can operate them over a wide range of current throughput, with the light output varying instantaneously with the current.

When I hook my custom light up to a smaller 350 milliamp power puck it works fine, and still puts out more light than my 3W Vega LED. At that power rate, my light could run for 24 hours on a 9 ah battery (uh oh, I think I need a DECO stop).

With LED tech, it would be relatively simple to design a light that continuously adjusts on the fly from low light to high light output, with every level in between. That way you would only be consuming the power you need at any moment. The level control could be built right into the hand grip so that you could move it with your thumb.

I was thinking about adding the extra electronics to my light that would allow me to switch back and forth between a high and low light levels. But, I decided that was a bit much for this home shop project. I’ll leave the more sophisticated developments to the engineers.

Edited by BubbleBoy, 07 September 2008 - 06:51 AM.

[shadragon]

I knew a fellow who converted 4 D cell Maglites (Aircraft aluminum flashlights) into dive lights. He separated the light head from the battery barrel between the head and just below where the push button is. He placed a wire between the head and the battery compartment and gunked it to make it waterproof. This left him with a tube long enough for three D cells and I believe he used HID lighting. He could do the job for under $40 and it was quite bright. If people are interested I could see if I can find his OP on how to do it.

[VADiver]

Two comments.

1. Halcyon has a fairly poor reputation on fixes for their HID lights. I know many people who've been turned down warranty repairs. I like many Halcyon products, but I won't buy the lights.

2. HID technology is fine, and not that delicate. Halcyon continues to use the Welch Allyn bulb which IS delicate. Nearly everyone else in the industry uses the brightstar bulb which is easily tough enough dive duty.

You pay your money and you take your choice.

Halcyon now offers a 21W HID with the Brightstar bulb. It looks like brightstar fixed the flicker problem they had with their older bulbs, or Halcyon ran out of their supply of W?A 18w bulbs.