FW3A, a TLF/BLF EDC flashlight - SST-20 available, coupon codes public

They all come with different firmware, but I’m hoping to flash them all with Andúril eventually.

Not sure how I missed this beautiful light, but I did, wow what a beauty … !
I hope it’s not to late to get on the list for this GB…?
I read $30 each plus shipping, if that’s correct and if the buy is still open I’d like to purchase 2 please.
Nice to see that Lumintop will be doing the manufacturing after having just gone through the BLF GT GB, Lumintop did a spectacular job on that light and I’m positive they will do the same for this beauty.

Thank you and it’s great to see a collaboration between TLF & BLF,

It sounds like I was wrong about a lot of people’s preferences. Maybe they already own Emisars for brightness. I don’t yet. I guess we’ll see what is decided, but I didn’t imagine people wanting a less bright triple.

Yep, that is what the D4 did to this project. I have no opinion on if this is the best direction but it makes sense that it should distuingish itself from the brilliant D4, perhaps also in a slightly more manageable performance and even better user interface.

personally, I put off buying the D4 because of the FW3A project, I suspect a lot of people did. Now the D4 has been around long enough that many have bought it anyway, or are no longer as enthusiastic about the FW3A as a pure performer, since it won’t really be anything new in that regard.

I would like to see the FW3A become the EDC of choice for the enthusiast, in the size category of single 18650 of course.

In order to attain that I imagine it would have to:-

Look classy
Be unique
Have a good CRI
Have a neutral tint
Have a powerful turbo (well above 1500 Lumens)
Have a ramping UI and a choice of other group modes
Be able to sustain a good high mode (over 500 Lumens) as long as battery life permits
Have no significant parasitic drain (months to drop to 80% battery life if unused)
Have a proper moonlight (around 1 lumen or less, preferably adjustable to user preference)
Have a beam profile that has both wide spill and useable throw

Now I am committed to the FW3A, but will probably buy a D4 as well anyway, because - well if you are on this form you probably understand…….
I want it to be my main EDC light, but have lost track of how many of the above boxes it ticks, I count at least 5 definites , though some appear not to be decided yet.

interest

Please put me down for one.

I’m on the list (#552), please put me down for 3 more.

Thx, Neale

Please add me to the list.
I posted earlier in the thread but don’t see my name on it. Thanks.

D4 is absolutely worth it. You should definitely get one. The output on turbo is phenominal!

That said, more recently I find myself carrying a Zebralight SC600 IV plus. It’s slightly bigger than a D4 and initially much dimmer at around 2300 lumens. But it does one thing that the D4 doesn’t do: the Zebralight easily sustains 1500+ lumen output. The thermal management is excellent and it doesn’t need to ramp down fast like the D4 does. This means that after about 30-40 seconds of turbo it’s much much brighter than all of my D4s.

Your #990.

I also agree with others : better quality of light vs Max output. I don’t care about max output.

I can’t see my name on the list, could you please put me down for 1 more

Can we make this light with supper moon mode 0.01 lumen so it can run for months? :slight_smile:

I’m not on the list as the light is too close to D4 and the light I own is always cheaper than the one I don’t.

Actually it would be nice to experience a tail e-switch, but for me $30 is too much just to get that experience.
What can FW3A improve over D4?

  • efficiency. Frankly, the improvement is marginal
  • regulated output. Some care, some don’t
  • UI
    • Tail click is easier to find so it’s already a step ahead
    • Software might be improved too
  • weight. D4 is a quite chunky
  • Size. Less to gain here. Especially that 18350 is not intended initially. So it’s more like FW3A can improve size/capacity but not size alone.
  • price

What it can’t improve (without redesign or cost hike):

  • output
  • heat shedding
  • overall quality. There’s little space for improvement really, especially on a budget
  • availability. D4 is here already

So it’s advantages really boil down to 3 things:

  • UI
  • price
  • taste. Styling, the custom feeling, you name it

I would be interested if:

  • it challenged Zebras on efficiency, or
  • it was available as 18350

Neither of these require a major redesign. But the former does require some size increase as well as a major price hike while the latter is simply a smaller niche.

It’s considerably slimmer than the D4 and designed with a pocket clip from the start, which is more securely attached than most of the D4 options.

But yes, it does overlap a lot with the D4 and someone who doesn’t like to have overlapping lights won’t get a lot out of having both.

Like Zulumoose, I didn’t get the Emisar (yet) because I was planning on getting several of these, likely more. The new UI, and features thereof, are definitely an upgrade. I’m getting one, maybe two no matter what, but maybe a D4 will take the place of at least one, if the output difference is significant.

If it’s not too late to be added to this list. I would like one of these lights, they look wonderful.

When I see someone list a compilation of negatives regarding why they don’t want to purchase a light, I wonder why they go to the trouble to post the argument… who are they trying to convince? Themselves? There is nothing to gain in talking someone else out of making a purchase, so it must be that the light in question is making an impression and the person really wants someone else to verify the reasons not to, so they can walk away. Good luck with that endeavor…

Pepinfaxera has only updated since 2-26. He updates the list maybe once a week. So give it a few more days. His list is on page 72.

He will put you down for 2 lights total.