LED fixture

[Cjtabares]

I ordered my leds today. I ordered a 36 led kit, I think I will be getting 18 xp-e royal blue and 18 xp-e cool whites. I will be running 3 Mean Well ELN-60-48D. I have not ordered a heatsink yet but I plan on drilling and taping it. I will document my progress here when I start.

 

[Cheetos]

Did you mean xpg cool whites?

 

[Cjtabares]

Did you mean xpg cool whites?

Yes.

 

[dcforester1]

I ordered mine on Monday. I am going to make my own heatsink. I am going with XPGs, there are XPEs as well, where did you order from?

 

[Cjtabares]

Rapidled. I can't wait for it to come in.

 

[dcforester1]

That's where I got mine from. I am putting 72 of them on my 75, the guy recommended 48, but since I was going with the XPGs, but I wanted to do it once. I am only using 3 drivers for my 72. I am going to hook it up to my Apex and control it with that.

 

[DoctaQ]

the xp-e cool white is a real thing and comes in up to a r2 or r3 bin i think..something like 120-130lm per watt probably

with 3 meanwells you will have somewhat limited control of your color temp

 

[Skeeter7424]

Just finished our build from Rapidled, I will post the results up tonight, but thats only for the 4 gallon can't wait to see your fixture

...Skeeter...

 

[Cjtabares]

I ordered 2 5.886"x12" Heatsinks. I will be building a canopy to match my stand, right now I am thinking walnut with a maple trim, to house the fixture.

 

[Cjtabares]

Just finished our build from Rapidled, I will post the results up tonight, but thats only for the 4 gallon can't wait to see your fixture

...Skeeter...

I would love to see some pics. And I can't wait to see this fixture either.

 

[Bobbofin]

the xp-e cool white is a real thing and comes in up to a r2 or r3 bin i think..something like 120-130lm per watt probably

with 3 meanwells you will have somewhat limited control of your color temp

Only 120-130lm? XR-E put out 107lm. I thought it would be much more and not only 10-15% differance.

 

[cps68500]

Just got 'some' of my order today. I also ordered a 36 led kit. The optics are on back order. I received 17 of the 36. I'll be getting another 36 led kit after this one is together, and money is back in account.... lol.

*3/9 - We're also out of the 55/65 degree XP-E/XP-G lenses for the next couple of weeks. If you order a kit before the XR-E's come back in stock we'll upgrade you to the XP-E's and will ship you everything except the lenses. We'll ship the lenses to you once they arrive (we'll cover the shipping cost of the second shipment as well). Thanks for understanding and for all your patience.

 

[DoctaQ]

the xp-e and xr-e are the same die..its just that the xr-e has kinda lost attention..plus the xr-e came in R2 as well towards the end of its production life 114 lm i think

 

[Cjtabares]

My order from rapid LED came in today, that is some fast shipping. Can't wait for the heatsinks to get in, I think they should be here Wed.

 

[Skeeter7424]

did you get yours already drilled and tapped? or will you just thermal adhesive the stars?

 

[Cjtabares]

I am going to drill and tap the heatsinks. Hmm that reminds me, what size should I drill and what screws do I use?

 

[Cheetos]

Use 4-32 or 6-32 screws and buy the tap to match. Most places sell the tap with the appropriate drill bit. If not it will tell you what size drill bit to use on the package. You will also need nylon washers if you go this route. I have the taps and drill bits if you want to bring the heatsink over.

 

[Cjtabares]

Use 4-32 or 6-32 screws and buy the tap to match. Most places sell the tap with the appropriate drill bit. If not it will tell you what size drill bit to use on the package. You will also need nylon washers if you go this route. I have the taps and drill bits if you want to bring the heatsink over.

Ok thanks. Do you have them for both size screws?

 

[Bobbofin]

I am going to drill and tap the heatsinks. Hmm that reminds me, what size should I drill and what screws do I use?

I am not a fan of drilling and tapping. Unless you buy a really good machine shop quality tape you risk breaking off the tap while tapping, then you're screwed. I feel the thermal adhesive works best. I have never had a problem removing a LED like when I changed out some of my whites for royal blue. I just put a sharp putty knife at the edge of the LED, tap with hammer and the LED flies across the room. The same for rectifiers attached to heatsinks at work. The key is to put a minimal amount of adhesive on the back side of the LED, you don't need a lot. Thin enough that after you spread it across the back side you can almost see through it. That's all you need, less is better. I received three sets of tube with my 36 LEDs and only used a little over one.

 

[Cheetos]

I am not a fan of drilling and tapping. Unless you buy a really good machine shop quality tape you risk breaking off the tap while tapping, then you're screwed. I feel the thermal adhesive works best. I have never had a problem removing a LED like when I changed out some of my whites for royal blue. I just put a sharp putty knife at the edge of the LED, tap with hammer and the LED flies across the room. The same for rectifiers attached to heatsinks at work. The key is to put a minimal amount of adhesive on the back side of the LED, you don't need a lot. Thin enough that after you spread it across the back side you can almost see through it. That's all you need, less is better. I received three sets of tube with my 36 LEDs and only used a little over one.

I agree that using thermal adhesive is easier and it's not a big deal to change LEDs if that need arises. Drilling and tapping is definitely better for heat dissipation from the star to the heatsink. I've drilled thousands of holes in aluminum (not just LEDs) and have never broken a drill bit or a tap. Aluminum is a very soft metal compared to steel which is relatively easy to break either.