This is just in theory since no measurement has been taken comparing side to side: Both drivers setting should draw about the same from the battery but while the W1 burns it off as heat W2 is being sent to the emitter resulting in extra lumens.
As the battery gets drained the voltage gap gets smaller and it becomes more efficient, with a high drain battery it will maintain turbo longer but overall runtime will be less. With a low drain cell it will continue to power the light much longer once it drops out of regulation when it doesn’t have to burn extra volt as heat so in the end you get a higher lumens-hour reading.
If you’re interested in highest output you should stick with high drain cells.
I would have thought that since the W1 driver is current limited to protect the White Flat then it only draws 5A from the cell, regardless of the capability of the cell. Or that’s been my experience in the last 1000 lights or so that I’ve dealt with…
The report that the extra amps will be converted to heat is not really correct but probably is referring to the fact that the higher amp cell can maintain a higher voltage at a given current (because of its lower IR) and that means extra voltage to be burned off by the driver. But the extra heat is probably not significant.
That 26650 tube looks good but not the best fitting as you said. I wonder will D4S or other 26650tube fit that intl-outdoor can just offer both? I would buy it.
Took my new K1 W1 for a 5 mile hike last night. It is really amazing to light up a house on the other side of the lake, over half a kilometer away.
Great for spotting Opossums, Nutra Rats, Herons, Ducks, etc. Really freaks them out when you hit them with that blinding beam
But, as was mentioned by others, this really is a specialized light, not at all practical for just walking around. It’s kind of an all or nothing type light.
So I just ordered another one with the XPL HI V2 5D
Not even close. My FT03 SST40 is a flood light compared to the crazy tight beam of the K1 W1. This picture shows both lights about 25 feet from the wall. Both lights are set near the low end of their intensity range. And, yes, the SST40 really is that ugly green tint :confounded: