Carbine Posted January 7, 2006 Report Share Posted January 7, 2006 I got sick of the LEDs in the Mk23's LAM unit the minute I got my hands on the thing, so I went ahead and improved it. Here's how: Light: The light was quite easy to swap for a better one. I used a halogen bulb made by Energizer to fit their "twin barrel" flashlights. It's only marginally longer than the original led and can withstand upto 6V of power. The stock three AAA batteries will run it at 4,5V which is fine. The only modification needed for the bulb to fit is trim down the backside of the relfector cone and obviously take out the old LED and its resistor and replce them. The LED is replaced by the bulb and the resistor by a lenght of wire, soldered to the connectors. Be careful while soldering so you don't burn the plastic. If you don't need a laser, stop here as adding one is quite tedious in comparison to adding a light and requires quite a bit more skill. Laser: My initial plan was to use the round "ON / OFF" switch as a switch to select between the light and the laser, but upon closer examination I found it VERY hard to pull off and just wired the laser to the batteries and added a second actuator switch for it. If you're using a laser pointer, you need to start by disassembling it so that you're only left with the lens and circuit board still attached together. Once you have done this, solder a lenght of wire to the lens body and another lenght to the battery connector on the back of the circuit board. Now, clear up room inside the LAM unit behind one of the fake laser outlets to fit the laser unit you're using. I found it easier to put the laser inside the right half and not in place of the original LED. Also remove the original LED and its wiring and resistor. Once you have the inside of the LAM sorted and the wires soldered to the laser unit, solder the wire from the lens body to the wire(1) you used to replace the light resistor. You may choose to add a switch here, or on the other wire if you wish. I made my switch so that I soldered a lenght of wire to the number two connector coming from the battery compartement and then gluing the other end of the wire to the fake adjustment wheel inside the LAM unit. Now when I spin the wheel forward a bit, the end of the wire makes contact with the battery connector of the laser unit and thus turns it on. (Sorry about the Finnish caption and the wrong symbols for the resistors ( A and B ). C is the original red LED and D is the original white LED) (Diagram of the new light's wiring. A is the wire that replaces the original resistor and B is the new 4,5V halogen bulb.) (Comparison between the new 4,5V halogen and the original LED) Link to post Share on other sites
bjorn Posted January 7, 2006 Report Share Posted January 7, 2006 hmm, there has been many questions about Mk 23 LAM unit and its modifications. Mayne this could be a sticky somewhere? Link to post Share on other sites
Carbine Posted January 7, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2006 BrentN, sorry, no more pics I already sold my Mk.23 but am planning on getting another so maybe then I'll get some pics of the inside of the LAM. Link to post Share on other sites
MDK_Marshal Posted January 7, 2006 Report Share Posted January 7, 2006 Ooh.... sid's not gona be happy! He's got the monopoly on modifying Mk23 LAM's - but he does it with laser sights, etc. He may get a wee bit annoyed at you for infringing on his territory Link to post Share on other sites
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