Best 18650 flashlight under £25 to replace a convoy S2+.

conanthewarrior

does your S2 with 6*7135 cool off when biking? I can’t believe there is no warning sign on my 8* :slight_smile: after 10 minutes feels like :smiling_imp:

RobertB

Thanks for your suggestion, Jaxman E2 and E2L look really impressive

If you mod a S2+ 7135*8 with DTP star it can get too hot to touch without damaging the LED

The thermal path is critical, the LED gets coocked on a cheap aluminum star with not enough heatpste

Hmm. What about GearBest? Maybe they have new firmware? It is only $9.99 there.

I am also planning to buy this but I am not sure what can be done after for example getting one with old firmware.

You can ask simon to flash it for a dollar do checkout but dont pay

You can ask simon to flash it for a dollar do checkout but dont pay

There are so far only stock C8 with new firmware

I’m a big fan of the Convoy S2+ and own four of them. I bought a couple of the new firmware drivers but haven’t installed them yet but they should be quite nice. You can’t go wrong with an S2+.

However…

Like you I wanted to try something different as well. I just got the Astrolux S1 last month and like it quite a bit as well. I like that it has the 18350 tube should I choose that option. It has about 7 levels of brightness with a nice moon mode. Turbo is suppose to be around 1200+ lumens. It has the strobe, battery check and bike strobe functions as well. I think they’re around $25 now with a code. Check one of the folks here with GB codes to see.

Like others I own about 4 Convoy’s but haven’t gotten around to testing one out on my road bike. I do like to have a touch of throw up the road so I’ve got the (newer, XP-L) Nitenumen NE01 - an MH20 clone. I’ve only used it for a couple of rides so far but it seems pretty good. I do like the USB recharging convenience (I’ve setup a power supply with a load of microUSB cables where I store my bikes.)

Worth thinking about. If I get the chance I’ll test out the NE01 vs. the S2+ to see if I can live without the extra throw.

If it’s worthy info, I have just bought a Convoy M1 in 7A with Biscotti from Simon, so the costliest combo for the model. It didn’t cost even 20 bucks by itself - it cost me a little more with the BLF discount because I also got two pocket clips. Everyone tells me it gets the flood/throw balance just right with an excellent form factor.

Worth a look, maybe?

Eagle Eye X2R
I own both (S2) and the EEX2R feels like the it has better quality. Doesn’t appear you desire a lot of modes so the 3 simple modes should suit you though it has no moonlight mode. Its a good walking light and I’m sure for trail/slow riding it would do well on a bike. Doesn’t have the throw for any sort of speed riding but in that arena its similar to the S2. Just a very nice flashlight for the money (under $20.00) delivered

Meant to say “under $25.00 USD”.
Not sure how that converts for the the OP in GB

1 Pound is about 1.24 Dollars so 25 would be about 31 USD

Get a CFG01 (Cheap, Fake and Good, by NikolaS). :THUMBS-UP:

Cheers ^:)

DV-S9. :smiley:

Yeah, I’m going into broken-record mode…

Diving light, thus waterproof. Magnetic slider, so infinitely adjustable from moonlight (get it on and slowly nudge it dimmer ’til it’s as dim as you want it) all the way to full-on.

Natively takes a 26650 but has a sleeve to take 18650s too. (Tried both, work great.)

~16bux at FT, - 5% with BLF discount == 15bux and change with free shipping.

https://www.fasttech.com/p/6550300

(Damn, I should get a commission…)

Nb: The S2+ is rather floody, so any non-S2+ will have a throwier beam. Make sure you’re okay with that first before committing to a non-S2+ of any flavor.

I love the 4C. Took a little while to get used to, being awash in CW emitters, but the 4C has become my favorite off-the-rack tint.

BLF A6

Did you consider a headlamp?
Skilhunt H03 in NW with coupon 29.99$

Great light 4 modes with each 2 brightness levels
3 hidden stobe modes
Can take 2 CR123 in emergency
Magnetic tail, magnet removeable

44g light and very small

The headband over the top of the head I have removed

That is quite interesting! I have some 26650 batteries too, so that is another possible light to go with the Convoy S2+.

How are the ultrafire flashlights? We are advised to stay away from their batteries on the forums I use, but I have no problem with buying a flashlight made by them :).

I note the smiley, but… I looked into Ultrafire flashlights and I’ve bought two. A C8 and a W-878.

There’s some web lore out there about genuine Ultrafire having HWA/WYS and the right pattern of flames on the logo and an R in a circle.
Both had these.

The C8 came from a UK based seller and cost £7. It had a plastic reflector, it was supposed to have a Cree XML but had a Q5, poor anodisation, it could have been paint, and a horrible five mode driver with next mode memory. Also the tail cap threads were fine and not anodised, so susceptible to wear and cross threading. I sent it back and got a refund.

Then I bought a Convoy C8 from the Convoy store on Aliexpress. It has quality anodisation, a heavy duty anodised tail cap thread, the LED they said it had, a driver with mode memory and you can program out the blinky modes, an aluminium reflector and they’ve clearly thought out the heat sinking. £14 but worth every penny and vastly better than the Ultrafire offering.

The W-878, I won’t bore you with details except to say I’ll grudgingly accept it was just about worth a fiver, although I’d really rather have the fiver than the torch. It’s really a nasty little thing.

I see Ultrafire in presentation boxes, mainly on Amazon, and there’s an Ultrafire website, which doesn’t seem up to date. I doubt that the version in a presentation box is different, and I don’t want to pay to find out.

From what I’ve seen, you can pay £5-15 for Ultrafire or about £12 to £25 for Convoy, Thorfire, Eagle Eye, Brinyte and the difference in quality and performance is staggering. I’ve got three Convoys and a Brinyte, all of them worth every penny. I have a couple of Eagle Eye X2Rs on order as gifts and I don’t suppose I’ll be disappointed.

So I may be prejudiced and working from a small sample etc., but I’m happy to give Ultrafire a miss from what I’ve seen.

As for the Ultrafire batteries, I’ve seen too many Youtube evaluations and tear downs to believe that they are worth a moment’s thought, especially when with a bit of research you can find Panasonic etc for £4 each or so.

As for your dilemma, go for another Convoy S2+, they’re cheap enough, you were happy with the last and I doubt you’ll find anything much better, especially for the money.

I can’t recall seeing an Ultrafire S2 or similar tube light but I wouldn’t waste time on anything with that brand on it.

I would stick to either Convoy or Eagle Eye because if any part should ever break or need replacing both companies will sell parts very cheaply.

My current favorite is the Eagle Eye X5R. It has a forward clicky switch which is rare and nice, plus 4 brightness levels with a hidden strobe. Has built in usb recharging and is available in cool white or neutral white with either an xml2 or xpl-hi. The reflector is close to smooth so you get a bit more distance from it compared to the S2+.

On top of all that, you can use the usb port to extend the run time using a battery bank for those really long rides. It costs about $25 usd.