Which flashlight? Convoy S2, S3, S5, or S6?

Why would anyone put themselves through the trauma of choosing between them?

Hey everyone!

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:

Nice choice!
If the S6 is the same length as the XIAOZHI, it should fit protected cells just fine. Mine does.

I don't know how, but the S6 might be shorter than the Xiaozhi.

EDIT: Nope it's not shorter. Turns out it's a little too narrow for some protected cells.

Here's a quote and pic from a mini-review of the Convoy S6.

https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/18936 Convoy S6 from Fasttech Mini-Review (XIAOZHI clone)

[quote=mhanlen] it still only accepts unprotected batteries.

[/quote]

Yeah, I went over and asked. It was clarified right away. Better to not play the tube diameter lottery.

I just wish that darn S3 fit the clip!

-Garry

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. :slight_smile: 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. :slight_smile:

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. :slight_smile: 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

http://flashlightwiki.com/Cree

According to the data sheet on the XM-L, 3000mA is the max current. They list 700mA as the most efficient, and use that to take color output and all their other readings. So in the charts they show, yes 700mA represents 100%, as that’s where their bragging rights are for lumens/watt. The emitter loses efficiency at higher current levels and takes higher forward voltage in order to reach those levels.

For all the data I’ve seen, 3A is listed as the max. I haven’t seen anything that references 700mA as 100% other than the comparative charts for output on their data sheet. That’s a base figure.

We’ve seen it perform well up over 5A, 6A even. And with a copper direct thermal path star under an XM-L2, Tom and others are getting close to 2000 lumens. The best I’ve seen is a little over 1700.

Got a cheap “S2” which is called “Ultrafire S5” and only cost $3.75 or something.
I put in a TIR and a XP-G2 and very very happy with it.

Care to share where you sourced your budget Ultrafire S5, @Jerommel? TIA.

@Starkm32 after five years I doubt things will be quite the same :slight_smile:

Yes, I am a bit of a Johnny come lately to the forum!
(Just came on board, out of the dark) LOL :beer: