Review TrustFire TR-3T6 Triple XM-L T6 5-Modes Memory LED Flashlight (3x18650)

My 2 cell version arrived today in surprisingly perfect condition considering it came all the way from China in a paper package with a little bubble wrap. Happy to say it fired right up. Can't wait till tonight to compare it with my Fenix TK35

atbglenn.. please.. post tailcap current readings!

2.2 amps with freshly charged xtar 2600mAh 18700's

thanks. so it's more or less what the users on thaicpf reported

Mine is 2.0A, same with the 4 major brands. 4.20V XTAR/Solarforce blue letterings/Panasonic 2900/TF Flames (and actually the BIO IMR 18500/18350 as well). There is going to be a degree of error from the DMM voltage drop, but then my Sky Ray SR3800 got me 2.55A with absolutely fresh 4.21V batts. I guess there is going to be this variance thing from the factory.

Anyway, do try to use some thermal compound, there are 3 places which touches, the front edge at the reflector, the threads, and the part where there is a sort of ledge which the drop in presses down on the host when screwed down. I reported that the contacts are quite good, but better be safe than sorry even though this runs at a lower current.

OF course highly accurate tail readings is one thing, OTF lumens, OTF lux (throw), light drop due to heatsinking, total runtime on various batteries is another matter. It drops 2.2% in light intensity for 3 minutes in high, from 0:05 to 3:00. Full details in another thread which i posted.

This is new : I noticed that it did not low voltage cut, just dropped out of high/regulation and let it run slightly dimmer. This plus the slightly lower 2A drive might be interesting for some. All in all, the TF, SR, DRY and TK70 all cater for various needs. Laughing

I've just did a quick comparison against my Fenix TK35 and I can say I'm quite pleased so far. The hot spot and spill is huge! The TK 35 has a little better throw with a smaller hot spot and spill. Color tint is cooler than the TK35 which I'm liking a lot.

Update: I measured the temperature with a Fluke model 62 Mini IR Thermometer after 17 minutes of operation. Both the Trustfire and Fenix were pretty hot. The Trustfire was slightly hotter at 52.4 degrees celsius measured at the head, and 50.2 measured midpoint at the battery compartment. The Fenix was 50.8 ant the head, and 48.8 midpoint at the battery compartment.

I wonder how safe those temps are for long term reliability and how much negative affect will those temps be on the batteries?

Hi guys, sorry for the semi-offtopic

Talking about multicell configurations


If you have a flashlight with 2 cells, and you measure the current at tailcap and you get 2Amp... what means? that EACH cell is giving 2Amps to the driver or that BOTH cells give 1Amps, so 1A + 1A = 2A?

Thanks

Current is like flow, same flow through everything unless you split it up (like parallel battery config). Voltage is like the height for the pipe that the current is flowing through. Each battery increase that level/height, increasing the pressure for the flow, generally speaking. Both can add up, but the way they do so is slightly nuanced. For example, if you measure 1A through each of two pipes in parallel and they flow into another pipe, you have 2A in the latter. However, not the case in series config.

i have not had a good chance to fully test it yet but just in the back yard the TR-3T6 puts out massive spill, ive tested 2 diffrent brands of batteries 4 of one kind 10 of another and i know the light is regulated but the difference in the cells and there internal resistance I'm getting from 2.6 to 2.9 amp draw over 2 x 18650,s, I'm really impressed with the trustfire flames for bang for buck.

Sorry because English is not my natal language and maybe I have not understood well.

If I have understood, for example, the TrustFire 3t6, with 2 cell in series, when measuring current at tailcap and the result is 2Amps, it means that EACH cell is giving 2Amps? Or viceversa (both cells give 1Amp and the final result is 2Amps)

Sorry...

Hi, just google series and parallel circuits in google/wikipedia. Lots of info + diagrams. Laughing

Yes, just as it doesn't matter where in the pipe you place a flowmeter, it will result in the same measurement.

OK, thank you!

my daughter was bugging me for a bush walk and wanted to see some kangaroo,s so we took the TR-3T6 and the Tr-1200 out for a walk just over 30 Min's.

we ran them both on high the whole time, the TR-3T6 is great for bush walking as the spill is decent, the TR-1200 out throws the TR-3T6 and at approx 80 meters the TR-3T6 will light up a talk bushy tree completely and the TR-1200 will light up most of the center of it and I'm talking about a decent size tree.

the TR-3T6 host got warm, a bit warmer then the TR-1200 but not hot and after being on high for a tad over 30 Min's the current draw on the TR-3T6 was 2.89 amps i could not be bothered going down to the shed and getting my temp gun out to see exactly how hot the screw in was as it would of cooled down to much.

after sitting for about 2 Min's i unscrewed it and could hold it in my hand as it was not that hot pritty much cold and had cooled off, I'm confident i could run it longer then that and when I'm not so buggered from work ill take it on some longer bush walks.

there is two models of the TR-3T6 and i got the 3 x 18650 model, there is a 2 x 18650 only, but i got the one you can run 2 or 3 18650,s on.

it seams your talking about the sky ray

any way for a tad over 30 Min's on high the current draw on the TR-3T6 was 2.89 amps on trust fire flames

so its looks like the driver is not the same as the sky ray 3800.

the TR-3T6 3 x 18650 seam,s to have a higher draw then the TR-3T6 2 x 18650,s from what ive seen on the net... and its the only one out of the two with a claimed 3 amp draw.

Doing 3 x 18650 scaled exact, ie IIRC it was 2.05A for 2-cell, and i put in the 3rd one and it would be 1.36A. Anyway, my experience with this vs the Sky Ray and 2 DRYs is that there is a lot of mass for the drop-in to soak up the heat, and it is not a lot due to the slightly lower drive levels. So i am sure this would live, but i have only done 2 x full discharges. I am happy with this, and won't be torturing the light.

the drivers have to be diffent to the light i posted, the TR-3T6 3 x 18650 is rated for 12.6v max and the sky ray 8.4v max so the driver has to de diffrent.

its a great light not a thrower but an awsome light any how and i will be torturing the light, as i like to use them for extened use, i have not added any artic silver thermal compound to it and ill see how it goes in stock forum from the factory, like my tr-1200 that draws 2,05amp that has had many use's from 30 to 50 mins and one 85 min run, i have not added any thermal paste to the screw in either.

if the current draw remains steady after 30 mins of use on high and the sky ray jumps up to 4 odd amps the TR-3T6 should out live the sky ray.

the TR-3T6 3 x 18650,s on high for a bit over 30 mins straight was not hot to me, but hot to my hands is around 70 degrees i would guess it was around 50 degrees c, maybe a bit more, it was a cold night and i find they get a bit of active cooling while bush walking as the torch is always moved around, a hot summers night would be a good test.

i should put my temp gun on it and once the rain goes away i will take it on some long bush walks and run it on high the whole time and see how it goes, i think its a great torch and in my opinion if it has a steady draw its better then the sky ray, for longevity

Just for reference I ran my 2 cell version for 25 minutes on high, then measured current and unloaded battery voltage.

Batteries used: Xtar 2600mAh 18700's

Anyone can tell me what dropin fits in this TrustFire 3t6? It can fit "not threaded" dropins like the 3xml skyray? or the modules designed for the WF500?

Thanks!

That's interesting. It's actually proper constant current on yours? Is it 2.9A w/ fresh cells?