Tumbleweed48 as the owner of those flashlights maybe you can help me with some questions I’ve been having:
1. Would you please compare the flood and throw of the S2 and S3. I have read that S3 is almost a pure flooder. Is the S2 the same or does it have more throw?
2. Your description of the M2 as having a smooth spot transition, and offering flood AND throw makes me think it would be a good bicycle light. I have only seen a few beamshots but it seems like the S2/S3 don’t throw far enough for cycling. Would you agree?
3. And do you have any opinion on how the M2 beam compares to the M1?
I find that the S2 does throw somewhat farther, but not a whole lot. Perhaps the best way to describe it is that there’s a distinct brightness to the center of the pattern…to my eye, just enough to be distracting. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with the S2, but out for a walk, or to fill a room with light, I prefer the smooth distribution pattern of the S3.
I’m not sure about use as a bike light…I have enough trouble keeping a bike on the straight and narrow in broad daylight! I suppose the S2/S3 would be fine if one rode at modest speeds, but it would probably be easy to over-run them going flat out. I’m an old guy - I top out at modest! I doubt I’d over-run a birthday candle.
I don’t have an M1 to compare to the M2, but I do find the M2 very pleasing to the eye. There is no harsh, hard-edged center ‘hot spot’ (though there is a good, soft edged hot ‘area’) that demands your eyes attention. Others have stated that the M1 throws farther. I’d say (without first hand experience) that the M2 might make a better bike light than either the S2 or S3. A well adjusted pair of them would probably be outstanding.
I always sense that my eyes adjust to the ‘hottest’ spot, and somehow start to ignore the spill, resulting in a sort of tunnel vision. That could just be my eyes however…still, I prefer an even transition across the lighted area, and tend to prefer flood to throw for simple eye comfort. Besides, I rarely feel the need to see what’s beyond 100 m. - if I do, I’ll probably have a thrower somewhere near at hand anyway.
In addition, it’s my impression that the M2 dissipates heat a lot better than the batons, especially if it’s run at high settings.
I have to warn you though - these Convoy lights do put a smile on your face. They’re kind of like peanuts, you might start with one, but you end up with a handful!
I ordered a Convoy S3 about a week ago... and it arrived today. So far I like it. :)
I read that the S6 does not fit protected 18650s, so I had to choose between the S2 and S3. I chose the S3 because it's a little bit smaller and a whole lot prettier.
My S3 fits all of my protected cells. I can't speak about the other flashlights first-hand.
I'm telling you, this FastTech company has a bright future. I have a Convoy M1, and now an S3, and I like 'em. That's right. raccoon is a FastTech shill! :evil:
The more I think about it… maybe it’s not different tube diameters… but battery diameters? I’m thinking of picking up some 3400mah panasonics for my asgard (if I can ever get it to work) and I’ll report back…
Out of curiosity, does anyone have the 1.04 A version of the S2? I recently ordered that one since I’ve got plenty of “wow” lights to play with for now. I just wanted one with a nice long run time. I’m curious to see anyone’s thoughts on this version of the light if they bought it.
I have the S2 and S2+ in the 1,050ma version. My S2 started out as a 1,400ma flashlight, but I removed one 7135 chip to bring the heat down. I get a between 2 and 3 hours on high, though I haven’t timed it to an exact amount. Runtime seems significantly longer on medium, with almost the same visible brightness. The heat only feels warm after running on high for over 30 minutes, which is good when a spouse will be using one of the lights.
The brightness of both lights is about the same or a little brighter than my Fenix PD32 G2 running on turbo (340 lumen). The S2 has an XP-G2, and the S2+ has an XM-L2, both neutral to slightly warm tint.
That’s great to hear that it can still dish out about 340 lumens. The Cree XM-L chart says 413-440 at 1000mA, but I’m fine with 340 if that’s what it actually does. That’s plenty of light for every day use. Where did you get your XP-G S2? I only really looked at Fasttech and Illumination Supply and they all used XM-L or XM-L2.
I have the S2 and S5, both have 2800mA drivers flashed with the new STAR V1.1 firmware, this way for 2 minutes they run wide open the auto throttle back to a lower heat setting (from 255[100% output] to 120 [approx 50% output]) and won’t overheat or burn out the emitter. I initially got the S5 with with a 2100 mA Nanjg 105C because I had the tendency to run the light wide open, 2100mA it gets warm, but at 2800 it got HOT…now, I don’t worry about letting the kids use em or forgetting to turn down the power, it auto steps back and all is good
I also got the Ultrafire 602C host so I can make the Convoy S5 big daddy and 602C pocket carry version since they look almost identical just one is bigger.
I don’t have a light meter, so I am only using a visual ceiling bounce comparison to determine how bright each light is. Since both of the Convoys are perhaps slightly brighter than the PD32 G2, it wouldn’t surprise me if they are around 400 lumens.
I got the XP-G2 as a custom build from RMM at Mountain Electronics. I had him build it so I could use it as an example for my new flashlight building hobby. It cost me less than $30 shipped. You can get the S2+ with an XP-G2 from Banggood. The tint of Banggood’s XP-G2 is not indicated. Here is a link:
It took 13 days for the shipped flashlight to arrive from China.
I like the tint of the XP-G2 R4 5A1 in my original S2 better than the XM-L2 T6 4C in the S2. The S2 has a creamy, slightly yellow tint. The XP-G2 is closer to neutral, though slightly warm. I like its color rendition enough that I purchased an extra LED to upgrade another light.
I also like the build quality of RMM’s custom built S2 better than the factory built S2+.
Well, now you’re in a good position to get Comfy to mod a Convoy for you and find out what they can REALLY do! My little S6 SSSP is a workhorse! An easy carry with it’s smooth profile, it puts out massive lumens and handles it quite well, distributing heat all the way through the tail cap if necessary.
Not at my desk at the moment, but I think 5.34A was in the 1400 OTF lumens range…my memory sucks though so I’ll need to confirm that. Ran it for 5 straight minutes on Turbo. It got pretty dang warm! Nice to know you’ve got a pocket sized coffee warmer on hand at all times.
Enjoy!
(I’ve got the M1 on the way, anything I should know?) <—will be my 6th Convoy.
Edit: Confirmation…1476 OTF lumens at 30 seconds, 1400 OTF at one minute. Serious little pocket rocket.
Cree says 700mA for an XM-L is 100. So is it safe to say that most XM-Ls on flashlights are overdriven? Or maybe I’m not understanding what the percentage actually represents. Also… if it can go as high as 3000mA, why wouldn’t that be the 100 line? Again… I’m possibly misunderstanding the percentage.
Yep, 3A is 300% of rated current, pushes more light but also a TON more heat, people have pushed XM-L’s even further but usually have them bolted to MASSIVE copper heatsinks due to the heat output
