conflicting buckpuck advice?

[desert jedi]

Ok, first yes I did search the forums for the info I needed and I ended up with two opposing answers. I am building my first MHS saber and posted my parts list in the appropriate category for some of the more knowledgable people to look over and see if i missed anything. So far, other than missing a clip, and a suggestion that I step up to AA batteries (which I did), no one mentioned any problems with my wiring setup. here is what I will be using...4AA standard batteries, non-illuminated latching switch, 700 mA buckpuck, two seperate LED/heatsink assemblies with quick disconnects (so I can change colors)...the LED's are a Lux Rebel green (700 mA) and a Seoul P4 red (800 mA).

I was under the impression (based on the info I found in here), that I needed to match the puck's current output to the "target" mA of the LED, which is why I chose the 700 mA puck (besides the fact that the 1000 mA pucks were out of stock). I figured that a 700 mA puck would have no issues with driving either a 700 or 800 mA LED. I am in no way an expert on electronics (far from it), but based on dozens of posts I read on here, that seemed to be the best route to go.

However, after posting the details on the driver choice, another person on the board who has obviously been around here a while told me I made a "bad choice" with my 700 mA puck, and should have gotten the 1000 mA version instead, because the Rebel LED's run at optimum at 1000 mA, even though the specs said they are rated at 700 mA. I already ordered the parts and I just want to make sure that I have the right setup. Any thoughts would be appreciated...

[Shadar Al'Niende]

700 will run it at exactly what it needs. What you are getting info on is what is called "overdriving" your led. Most times people will give their led 25% - 50% more current than what the led is rated for in order to give it even more brightness. It is generally accepted that most LED's run best at 1 amp or 1000mA. What you have will be fine, someone was just trying to help you make it brighter

If you have more questions try searching for Overdriving or looking for Novastars' post on this somewhere...

[desert jedi]

Ok, that makes sense...I actually have read alot of posts about overdriving, just thought it would be a good idea to not go there on my first saber. I just thought it was odd that I was told that my 700 mA setup was a "bad choice". In any case, you have answered my question and it seems like my setupwill work fine. At some time in the future I'll be rewiring things to include a MR Mace Windu soundboard, so I have some more research to do

[KuroChou]

The manufacturer rates the current at what will produce the best brightness/lifetime ratio.
But the fact is, what we're using are high performance LED's that are intended for settings where they're used 20-300 hours a week.
They have lifetimes in tens of thousands of hours.
If you ran them 24/7 they would still last you nearly two years...

I know I'll never use my saber more than 10 hours a week. More realistically 10 hours a month.
120ish hours a year means that my 25,000 hour LED is going to last me over 200 years.
Even if overdriving reduced the life of my LED by half, I can count on having a better tech sometime in the next 100 years.

Just a thought.

[FenderBender]

Actually, running them at 1A is NOT overdriving them. The 700ma rating that is on the site is not the rated max for the LED. LUX III's, P4's, Rebels all are rated for 1A max. So anything OVER 1A is overdriving. So yes, you did make a "bad choice". Not that my comment was meant to hurt your feelings just give you a hand in making the best choice for the brightest saber. There was also no reason to start a whole new thread for this. The question just could have been continued in your other thread if you didn't trust my advice.

[Shadar Al'Niende]

i retract my statement, then. Thanks fender for the clarification. ( i was not aware of the 1A max rating on those LEDs)

See? We are all learning

[Sunrider]

Yes Yes to Fender you listen. Use the adjustable driver you should. Set it to 1200ma if lumens you love. Over driving this would be.

[desert jedi]

Actually, running them at 1A is NOT overdriving them. The 700ma rating that is on the site is not the rated max for the LED. LUX III's, P4's, Rebels all are rated for 1A max. So anything OVER 1A is overdriving. So yes, you did make a "bad choice". Not that my comment was meant to hurt your feelings just give you a hand in making the best choice for the brightest saber. There was also no reason to start a whole new thread for this. The question just could have been continued in your other thread if you didn't trust my advice.

Don't worry, you didn't hurt my feelings. I started a new thread over here because I figured it would get a faster response because this section is more specific to the questions I had (and I was right). Also, it was not that I didn't trust your advice, but rather that you seemed to believe that my setup I had planned wasn't any good...you know, "bad choice", "mistake", those kinds of things...which was contrary to practically everything I had read about the subject in the forums, so like any good newbie, I sought a second opinion. What I didn't need was the obvious sarcasm in your first reply. I came on here to learn how to make sabers (simple ones at first), not to get references to the tone you use with your two-year-old.