Hi.
Has anyone modified the flashing mode to a flashlight to achieve only on/off ? Finally found on the market flashlights with USB rechargeable 18650 replaceable cells and they have the annoying switching modes; not very friendly to dismantle or replace the switching.

 

I have an annoying tactical myself. The first time I turn it on it's at full brightness. Shut it off, put it away, take it out another day, turn it on and the brightness is at medium. Shut it off, put it away, take it out another day, turn it on and the brightness is at its minimum. Shut it off, put it away, take it out another day, turn it on and it starts flashing full brightness but with a disturbing flash rate. Shut it off, put it away, take it out another day, turn it on and it begins flashing S - O - S. If I want it on at full brightness I have to go through all five steps.

I don't know this for any kind of factual information, but I believe there's a chip in the end cap that cycles through the five modes. I would have to guess - and it's ONLY a guess - your flash light may be similar. And again just guessing, I'd think you might be able to disable that chip somehow. If you don't mind the possibility of ruining it - try solder bridging a couple leads. Be careful not to bridge positive and negative.

Now that you've raised this question; and I doubt I'll ever need my tactical flashlight for self defense or for rescue I may just look into modifying mine in the afore mentioned manor. It's annoying as heck and if I waste it I suppose I could just build my own switch into the end cap.

 

Most of those "tactical" flashlights do use an IC chip bonded to the circuit board under a small blob of black epoxy.
To make that change, grind off the IC and copper traces and rewire to the switch directly. and GOOD LUCK with that.

 

If you choose a flashlight in a standard form factor you can swap out the driver, or even the emitter. There is a thriving "enthusiast" world if you want to go down that rabbit hole.

 

At least PanMan's annoyer shuts off between steps. When you have to go trough all the effects just to reach the off state, it is worse.

With the switch in the middle of the cylinder the task is not as simple as at the rear end Thanks.

 

The integrated design makes hacking these very difficult, you almost need to replace all the guts to change that button function.

(Rant mode: ON)
I also hate the way they design these things- so endlessly annoying!
Has anyone EVER used/wanted/needed that flashing SOS mode!??
It's that stupid "feature comparison" design philosophy, "if our competitor has that feature, we need it too" never mind the fact that I would pay more to NOT have that stupid crap.
(Rant mode: OFF)

 

It might be possible to remove the brain and replace it with an ATTINY programmed appropriately. Budgetlightforum has links to free flashlight firmware. Programmers for Atmel are cheap, or almost free if you still have a computer with parallel printer port and a few resistors.

 

Well, found some methods... and a chip. For whoever has that in the irritating flashlight.

----> https://www.ecosia.org/images?q=“th...”#id=ABF9958D6DC79F8EF9AC6A6DB38CF6AD31A1198B

----> https://joeraut.com/posts/cree-flashlight-mode-mod/

Some steady light at the end of the tunnel !

 

At least PanMan's annoyer shuts off between steps.

Mine (not a Tac light) has a function within the switch where if you HALF press it you can toggle from function to function. Only if you fully press the button does it shut off.

Well, found some methods... and a chip.

Guess I guessed correctly. Bypassing all those functions only to have an ON / OFF pocket light.

Has anyone EVER used/wanted/needed that flashing SOS mode!??

I bet those dumb enough to get themselves into trouble don't even know the code for SOS ( ••• --- ••• ). If they were smart enough to bring such a capable light they probably wouldn't find themselves in a "Rescue" situation. I learned that back in Boy Scouts. Learned some other things too that weren't in the manual.

 

I solved the annoying modes of my single-18650/XM-L flashlight by swapping the driver board for a NANJG 105C. That board has star-shaped jumper pads to select different groups of modes, and memory for the last mode used. It also blinks to warn you of a low battery, and uses a PWM frequency high enough to prevent visible strobing or artifacts in digital cameras. I chose the group that goes L/M/H, since most of the time I just want "enough" light, not ARRGH MY EYES This driver is based on an ATTINY, so if none of the stock modes suits your needs, you can install custom firmware.
https://budgetlightforum.com/node/38364
The 105C came with 8 AMC7135 350 mA constant current chips (2.8 amps) which would have been about double my flashlight's original current, so I removed 4 chips and got 1.4 amps. You can order the 105C with fewer chips and the jumper pre-selected from some vendors.

 

Tactical flashlight is also used for sefl defense. You can stun the attacker with this flashlight. This method involves flashing very bright light towards your attacker and therefore causing temporary blindness and disorientation. Using a strobe flashlight is highly recommended for this method since it emits high powered light in fast pulses, making for a very reliable non-confrontational self-defense mechanism.

 

Well, found some methods... and a chip. For whoever has that in the irritating flashlight.

----> https://www.ecosia.org/images?q=“th...”#id=ABF9958D6DC79F8EF9AC6A6DB38CF6AD31A1198B

----> https://joeraut.com/posts/cree-flashlight-mode-mod/

Some steady light at the end of the tunnel !

My solution is to buy a flashlight if you want a flashlight and buy a tactical flashing device if you want to pretend you're going to use it to protect yourself with a little aluminum cylinder that flashes.

 

It seems that this is a bit off-topic for this thread.
The flashing light certainly does scare away squirrels and it seems to bother stray cats as well.
My 3-cell ""Mag" flashlight might stun humans, but not with the bright beam. But perhaps that is not what is meant in the ads by "tactical".
That short and light aluminum flashlight IS fairly rugged, and it does not come apart when dropped, even repeatedly. So it is better than the cheaply made plastic lights in that aspect. And they do fit in a pocket nicely.

 

Well, in keeping with "off topic's", IF I'd had a tactical flashlight with strobe function ALL MY LIFE I would have probably used it once when I was a kid being bullied. Turns out it was probably better to punch him in the nose than to flash him.

The TFL (Tactical Flash Light) is sold with its features of self defense. Probably the biggest thing one could use as self defense is hitting him (assumed male attacker - no female discrimination intended) (( political correctness and all )) in the face with the scalloped end MIGHT stop him. MIGHT! I once saw a video of some Department of Wildlife guys releasing a grizzly bear into the wild after being trapped. The guy with the privilege of opening the cage had a pistol while his partner remained safe in the truck with a rifle ready to defend the other guy. The bear didn't run but rather turned on the lucky man who managed to grab the bear by the scruff of the neck and keep the jaws away while firing the pistol into the bear's head. Circling round and round, the bullets bounced off the bears head and just made him that much more angry. Meanwhile the guy with the rifle was laughing so hard he didn't dare squeeze off a round in the possibility he might hit his partner. Finally the bear slowed enough to present a target and the lucky man was saved with a single shot.

The moral of that story (true or not) is don't pis - - - anger an attacker if you can't cope with him successfully. TFL's would probably irritate an attacker and make him just that much more angry. Yet, I own a couple of them. They're bright, small and rugged. As long as I don't forget to shut them off when done the 18650 battery will last. I DID forget to shut one off. The 650 was dead and would not recharge.