GC2 Megaflash

[andygg1986]

I have a batch of flashes assembled, tested, and ready to go. I have worked with Tretee on the JNPG forum on this design. He is a very skilled engineer with extensive flash design experience and test equipment. Here are the highlights of the new design.
1.) It will definitely work with serial numbers 4200 and above
- This is the point when Foresight started shipping their newest driver circuit board. The new driver can handle more current than the old one. The Foresight Superflash requires the newest driver board because it uses a larger bulb that needs more current to flash. The Megaflash uses less current than a Superflash but more than the old style, so to be safe I am saying 4200 and above.
- If you have a lower serial number and are interested in testing the Megaflash send me a PM for more info.
2.) It comes with a 1 year warranty
- If it stops working within the first year I will send you a new circuit board that goes inside the housing for free. Foresight's Superflash has a prorated 1 year warranty
- I expect it to last several years in a personal-use setting.
3.) The case has been designed to be reusable
- It is 3D printed on a $200k industrial printer for the highest quality print that I could find. It has a matte texture but no visible layers or extrusions like personal printers
- It has a glass infrared filter instead of a plastic one
- The back can be removed to put a new circuit board in
4.) It has a life expectancy on par with the Superflash.
- During longevity testing, we were able to run a bulb for over 2 million flashes which equates to 200k shots.
- Each flash is tested for brightness on a light meter that I built to be brighter than the old design for reliable readings
5.) A complete module costs $150.
- If you bought one of my other designs, I will give you $10 off a new one.
- Please add $10 for shipping to the UK and understand that it will take about 2 weeks to arrive. I can ship faster but cost will go up significantly.
6.) Additional circuit boards for inside will be $100/piece.
- I am going to hold off on selling extra boards until I can get everyone who is interested a complete module

To purchase a flash, please send Paypal to gc2flash@gmail.com. Include your shipping address and forum username in the notes please. I will post when the first batch is gone. I have parts to build more so I will be replenishing my stock as they sell. If you have any questions, please post them below since other people may have the same question.

[nickmadgolfer]

hi andy how long will it be before you have any superflashes made my serial num is A10402 hope that is new enough to use the super flash

[andygg1986]

Hi Nick,
I have flashes ready to go and can ship them out tomorrow. You should have no issues with it because you have the newest flash driver circuit board in your unit. Let me know if you have any other questions!

[nickmadgolfer]

thanks andy can you tell me how easy it is to fit and price and shipping costs
thanks
nick

[andygg1986]

You just need to unscrew the two screws on the front of your old flash and pull on them to pull out the old one. Then push the new flash in and tighten the screws on it. If you would like to buy one you can send $150 to gc2flash@gmail.com with PayPal and put your shipping address in the notes section. If you are outside of the US please add $10 to cover the extra shipping costs. I ship priority mail to the US and first class to other countries.

[nickmadgolfer]

hi andy just sent paypal for mega flash address should be there if not give me a shout
thanks
nick

[andygg1986]

Thanks Nick! It will ship out today. You should have gotten a tracking number email from PayPal

[nickmadgolfer]

yep got it thanks andy will keep an eye on it's progress

[sherrow70]

This works great. I bought a used GC2 with the original flash and was missing some shots. I bought one of these super flashes from andygg1986 and now my GC2 never misses a shot.

[andygg1986]

Thanks for the review!😃

[sherrow70]

Thank you for providing this affordable product.

[nickmadgolfer]

cant forget the free advertising from foresight without them telling use someone was making "counterfeit " ones some of us would have had to go to them for an overpriced product instead of going to andy for cheaper and I am sure superior product

[nickmadgolfer]

flash unit arrived today andy not tried it yet will do in next day or two
thanks

[Eagle1]

Hi Andy, do you have any flash modules available?

[andygg1986]

Yes I just finished building a new batch this evening so they are ready to go!

[ste1010]

Hi Andy
Payment sent. I added my address etc. Let me know if there are any issues with payment.

Thanks
steve

[Texhess2putt]

Hi Andy,
i have a gc2 serial number 3836, purchased used. Flash just went out. Hoping this megaflash is the fix needed. Thanks for your help.
Tracey

[ste1010]

Hi Andy
Just to confirm that I picked the flash up this morning. I got stung got £3 VAT and the Royal Mail add £9 for handling due to the VAT which is comical. Hit about 30 shots and all seems good. Thanks for the effort you have put in to this. Hopefully I will be in touch in a couple of years for another one :-)
Regards

Steve

[andygg1986]

Glad it made it to you! It is very odd how they decide to apply VAT. You would think the administrative costs involved would negate collecting such a small amount.

[ste1010]

Andy, you would have thought so, but the Royal Mail make money for doing very little so I can see why they do it. I believe its pretty much random how they pull certain packages. Either way the flash is working perfectly so I am well happy.

[andygg1986]

I have decided to stop selling flashes through ebay. I've had a few difficult customers on there lately. I will continue to sell them through GSF because the members on here are great, but I would like to put a few things out there.

1. If you receive a flash and it doesn't work, please contact me before sending your GC2 and megaflash in to Foresight. I guarantee that they will say that my flash broke your GC2 and that they will not return the megaflash. After all, if they returned it you would not have to buy a Superflash. Several people have posted copies of the email Foresight sent out to everyone after I started selling flashes that says aftermarket parts will damage your GC2. I had that in my ebay listing and have no intention of trying to hide that this was their stance. I trust that the testimonials on here from all the people who are using megaflashes is sufficient to show that the design works without damaging your GC2. If you chose to send it in to them, at least set the megaflash aside and put your old flash in it. Demanding a refund while saying you can't return the megaflash because Foresight won't give it back to you isn't fair to me.

2. I have now had several people who purchased a flash because they thought their old one burned out. They put a megaflash in and it doesn't work either. I test each flash before shipping it in my GC2 and measure its light output with a custom light meter. I carefully pack each one in foam and have never had one break in shipping. The likely problem is that the flash driver board wore out. If this happens, I am happy to repair your flash driver board for a nominal fee to cover parts cost and shipping. In several cases, I have done this and it the buyer has said that their original flash still works. If you ask to return the megaflash because your original one works again, I will charge for my labor for the repair.

3. If your bootup screen says HW Rev 1 or 2, it means that the transistor on your flash driver board has a lower current rating. No matter which flash you use (old style, megaflash, or superflash), a rev 1 or 2 board will wear out faster than a rev 3 board. Old flashes will wear it out more slowly than either a megaflash or superflash because the old ones draw less current but also burn out more quickly. The best analogy I can come up with is that the old flash is like a small boat and megaflash or superflash is like a large boat. Rev 1 and 2 are like a half ton pickup truck and rev 3 is like a 1 ton truck. You can tow a small or large boat with a half ton truck, but in the long run the 1 ton truck will last longer towing either one. No matter what, if you drive it long enough any truck will eventually wear out.

4. If your megaflash stops working after a while, I will send you a replacement. If it turns out that your flash driver board wore out, I will be happy to repair it for you for a nominal fee.

5. The vast majority of people have not had their flash driver board wear out. I just don't want anyone to be shocked if it happens to them.

6. I have not had any megaflashes burn out yet. I sold 6 to an indoor simulator business early in the year, and those are likely the most heavily used ones out there. The owner contacted me last month saying that all 6 were still working great and he wanted to buy another 2 to keep on hand since he is busiest during the upcoming months. I am sure that there are home users who are putting lots of milage on them as well without issue.

7. If any of this concerns you, please just buy a Superflash from Foresight for $500. I don't want to make anyone feel like they have been cheated, misled, etc. and I don't want to stress out about dealing with angry people. I feel like I am charging a fair price for a quality product and making every effort to take care of any issues that may come up. I'm not selling these to try and make a lot of money. I'm charging a price that makes it worth my time to keep an inventory, assemble, test, ship, etc. This is just a hobby that I do in my spare time. I'm trying to provide a reasonably priced alternative to a superflash while treating customers the way I would like to be treated. If you have any concerns feel free to post on the thread or send me a message.

[wbond]

Please don't stop, it's much appreciated. I would agree, ebay has a lot of turds out there. It's getting to a point where it's really not worth selling anything on there.

[andygg1986]

wbond, I agree. It's hard to justify paying eBay a 10% commission for the privilege of of selling on their platform that just causes a lot of frustration. I know that most people appreciate it and will continue to offer them to anyone who wants one. Selling through GSF has been a much more pleasant experience.

[gnomike]

Andy, I'm really sorry to read that you've been having headaches with unreasonable people. Some of us, at least, know the deal. You're putting out a great product at a fraction of the OEM price, and you're making every effort to to do it well. You're not Foresight, though. I have been using the flash you sold me for a couple of months now with nary a missed shot... I'm very pleased. I should clarify that, though... I've missed tons of shots... but none because of the AndyFlash haha.

Thanks for all your efforts!!

[andygg1986]

Thanks gnomike! The people on this forum have been great. It is always nice to hear positive feedback that a flash is working well.

[Wundej]

Andy,
You’ve been 100% open with all of the above statements throughout the time you’ve sold your flashes. It’s unfortunate that many of the online consumers are really looking to get something for nothing and can’t read simple terms and conditions that are clearly laid out.

I know a majority of us really appreciate that there is someone here who has the knowledge you do and willingness to support the GC2 users. I haven’t needed any items ( just got my GC2 a few months ago) but won’t hesitate to use your stuff in the future.

Try not to let the frustration get to you. eBay is a nightmare to deal with, as is PayPal.

[andygg1986]

Yes, most of the frustration stems from the way eBay and Paypal are geared to protect buyers at the expense of sellers. You can pretty much say whatever you want as a buyer and eBay and Paypal will take your money back from the seller. The whole review process is automated, and I doubt a real person even looks at it except in rare cases. Also, eBay's feedback system favors buyers. As a seller, you can't leave negative feedback for the buyer, but they can leave negative feedback for you. That just sets up a situation where a buyer can threaten negative feedback if you don't do exactly what they want and there is nothing you can do. A few negative feedbacks can keep you from selling anything in the future, so that's a lot of leverage. It's one thing to deal with that if it is your primary job, but another when you are making/selling something for fun. From what I've read online, there isn't a great platform for individual sellers out there.

[ste1010]

Just to concur what others say. You provide a quality alternative and have been completely helpful and honest throughout.

One question I have Andy regarding the flash board. Is it just a transistor that burns out and if so I guess its an easy fix if you have a good electronics understanding and are competent in soldering etc?

[andygg1986]

Yes, the transistor is the most likely thing to burn out. It is switching a high voltage, high current signal roughly 10x every shot that you hit. When you consider how many shots an older GC2 may have on it, it isn't too surprising that eventually it just wears out. If you hit 100 shots a day, after 5 years you are looking at nearly 200k shots, which is 2 million flashes.

If you have experience with soldering it isn't too hard to replace. It has a large tab on the back that takes quite a bit of heat to remove, but it is certainly do-able.

I have seen one where a piece of the circuitry that charges the capacitor that powers the flash went bad. Replacing the part in that case was easy, but tracking down the problem took more time. To be clear, the charging circuitry is completely separate from whatever type of flash is used. But again, it dumps a lot of current into the capacitor at a high voltage.