I am so torn about this FT03. It sounds great on paper, but on the other hand, I already have Convoy C8 with XPL-HI (73k cd). Is this FT03 going to be a huge improvement in real life? I mean, realistically, I can’t see much past 300 meters or so anyway. Do people mainly buy this light for show? Or does it actually offer some tangible benefits over a typical C8 light? Yeah, yeah, where is my BLF spirit, right?
I need another flashlight like I need a bullet in my head.
well it depends, this light also uses ramping mode which is nice, on paper it has almost x3 more candela so it should be alot better for throw, and lumens is like double or more what any convoy c8 has so i would say u will most like see a difference. For the price its hard to say no to this light.
I have a weird concern about this light and hope other owners could chime in. Is it normal for the tailcap to smell like paint? I actually posted this a few weeks back but deleted it because I tried to air it out disassembled(head, battery tube, and tailcap)and it disappeared(and no one has replied to it). The smell came back though after storing it assembled and found out that the tailcap was the cause. It was just in storage with no cell in it prior to noticing the smell. Is this normal? or normal for any electronics in general?
Sorry it only smells like paint. I didn’t know what else to describe it with.
Asked around on reddit as well and u/Equinoxe pointed out that it might be the flux or glue. I’ll try wiping it down with some 99% isopropyl alcohol as suggested. If not I’ll just keep it as is. I only need it to open it to change batteries anyways. I was just worried something burned as I was using it prior storage. Thanks for the replies!
My light smelled like fried electronics, this will probably be the case since i had an abnormal high parasitic current draw when off.
Yesterday i replaced the driver with the new one from mateminco, and now it works as it should, current draw just above 5 mA, and when the MCU goes to sleep only a few uA.
Now i am happy with it!
Well, I use my FT03 daily, but then again I don’t own a C8 myself. I’ve given some C8’s away as gifts and do like them, but the FT03 is my daily thrower.
I did not buy this light for any sort of “throw bragging” rights and, in fact, this is not the light for people who want to light up a water tower at a mile away. There are bigger, badder lights for that purpose. This is a practical thrower that’s somewhat more powerful than a C8, but much less pocketable. It feels very good in the hand, however, and more like a traditional flashlight than the small LED flashlights that we’re accustomed to.
I do want a holster for this light, but so far it seems that there hasn’t been enough interest to actually make one happen .
In stock form, this light has a somewhat larger hotspot than the C8’s I’ve seen; the SST40 is domed emitter, after all. My eyesight isn’t what it once was, but with glasses I can usually see further than the FT03 can viably throw on most nights in my humid climate.
With that said, I’m very happy with the light and my only “criticism” is that I got exactly what I paid for; a budget light. The light is quite lightweight for its size, which is a benefit for carrying, but a negative in terms of heat sinking. However, it heats up no faster than the C8’s I’ve used and I’ve had no problems due to heat.
I do miss the nice thick body and square-cut threads that nicer lights have, though. Sofirn sells “budget” lights that have much nicer machining. Astrolux threads feel and sound pretty cheap, though the sound and feel certainly remind me to be extra-careful with them.
Anyway, if you’re happy with your C8, then skip this light. Still, I see no reason that the FT03 would be purchased for “show”; it’s not gorgeous, is not a marvel of craftsmanship, and doesn’t shoot a pencil beam for a mile. In its stock form, it throws a well-sized beam for a good distance and has plenty of spill for walking around with.
Oh, and NarsilM (you can also flash Anduril) is nice and I was somewhat surprised how much of a difference good firmware can make when compared with most factory firmware. For example, I hated ramping on Sofirn’s C8F 21700, but love it on the FT03. To my knowledge, stock C8’s don’t have anything quite as enjoyable to use.
To Pete7874, C8’s are 18650 and tail switch. The FT03 is side switch and 26650 so you get longer run times and a totally different feel when using it. Things like battery check, fully configurable thermal stepdown, etc…
C8F used Sofirn’s ramping UI, FT03 uses tried and true NarsilM. Very different in feel and timings, etc…