The models C8 and S2+ are old designs.
Convoy has these in matte / flat black.
But i’ve seen the same C8 from Sofirn store without a brand on it (discontinued now).
Now we have an S2+ branded Utorch.
I guess they come from the same factory, only Convoy has “Convoy” engraved on it, and Utorch has “Utorch” engraved on it.
ThorFire has a C8 that seems to be the same as the Convoy, but with a different tailcap.
So, many brands order hosts from a factory who can probably engrave them with whatever the customer wishes.
I do not see much about the S2+ design that is very unique, even if the laws allow to patent it by using some clever language I still do not think that is what the law was intended for. The S2+ is an extremy nondescript boring design that became popular not because of its design (that was far from new btw) but because of good price, consistent quality, a wide choice of emitters and a good choice of pretty good drivers. Well done Convoy, and good luck Utorch getting the same done.
If I would be Utorch I would make a fresh and somewhat more interesting design for my tube-style 18650 light than the S2+ (and a SS bezel to start with).
Lot’s of folks on the internet that are armchair lawyer’s.
Wanna be a real lawyer, sign up for law school and have at it.
Tube lights have been around way before Convoy put some knurling on them.
How do you know this wasn’t done with Convoy’s blessing to use up some old black stock now that the colored versions are selling well?
Either way, BFD, none of our business.
You want Convoy?, buy it, you want to try Utorch, buy it.
Just thank your lucky stars Apple didn’t create the S2 because it would have proprietary battery and protected coding to prevent modding without big hassles. 
Life’s short, live happy!
Later
Keith
YouTube user Chiinnature uploaded a review of the Utorch XPL V6 and the SF01: https://youtu.be/wF3ukh92xGE
I bought like 5 of them now. Got em for $7 a piece when they first came out on the app. Put a A6 driver in one and in the process of putting some 7135X8’s in the others. Beam and tint are great, just the driver sucked. Completely worth the little extra effort.
Great YouTube review. That guy was cracking me up.
Is the original driver soldered and the pill easy to remove?
Edit: beyond the blinky modes, what makes the driver ‘bad’, compared with a 3/5 convoy driver?
Pill is super easy to remove and the driver is just held in with a retaining ring. No solder. Had to solder the new drivers in but getting the old ones out was a breeze.
Beyond the blinky modes, what makes the driver ‘bad’, compared with a 3/5 convoy driver or the typical 105C?
Oh the driver works just fine. I probably shouldn’t have called it bad, just not my liking. The blinky modes in the mode set drives me batty. Medium and high are a bit too close in output for my liking. Other than that it works just fine. Nothing wrong with it out of the box. I just wanted to get rid of the blinky’s.
For the price its not bad for giveaway for friends who wants to own a ‘decent’ light. And maybe you can put one in the garage one in bathroom on in the kitchen etc
Agreeing with above. Convoy are NOW. well made. reliable and fairlty cheap.
I bought 3 coloured S2’s for $9 something last week for kids. Boring as, but will do a good job.
Every time you press the sw. Yeay. Light… Unlike some I’ve bought.
Same with their C8’s . and the L2/L6 are as good as anything else I’ve seen on market.
I tried a coupla U-Torches but passed them on. Didn’t suit. Shape and feel mainly.
I’ve sealed/potted half a doz of my drivers on the better ones.
Used “ceramic Epoxy” white. has no Metallic anything in there. completely inert.
Just leave open O/Night to go off.
Just mix. drip on, then leave stand on bench. Simple.
Time will tell.
I have received this Utorch a week ago but had no time to look at it yet. My first impression: exactly built like the S2+, so fine for modding.
Picture of the driver, no solder pads as on the 105C’s. Which I have a few to replace this existing driver. Sorry for the crappy photo. My phone won’t focus down that close but if you need values of any components I can give ya those. The spring side of the driver has XP45E printed on it.
Another aspect of the topic.
My MonkeyECHO plugin shows me a nice historic graph about the price of the light until now. It started at $19.26 on July 21, then quickly dropped to $9.38 on July 30.
Then to $7.89 in mid August. Since then it is jumping between $6.99 and $9.38 every few days. Using a coupon it is $6.99.
I understand how this works. You buy when you are ready to spend the money. If not you may buy after the next price drop.
Like at Starbucks you pay as much as you like.
But I can’t help feeling I pay too much too often watching these games.
That is very good plugin
I wish there is one for other stores…
They’re using a UTorch Manker no, really, UTorch driver. :smiling_imp:
Silent_Star is the anodising on your Utorch a golden colour, and if so did it come that way or did you bake it?
Is the UI really High-Middle-Low-Strobe-SOS with no way to hide the blinkies?
You got it. Terrible UI out of the box. The good part is. It’s a nice white tint and nice beam. A $2 driver fixes that up. Unless of course you want a new emitter too.
I picked up a bunch of them and just changed the driver out, 2 modes, no blinkies, the emitter and beam were fine for the purpose I am using them for. If you use the Gearbest app I think you can get them for $6.99.