रॅकून शहर ;)
Please enjoy your time here, Carlagamer!
(Also, nice avatar!)
The S2+ is not 1200 lumens. That’s a whole ’nother thing.
As others have mentioned, the BLF specials might fulfill your need for mega-photons.
Banggood.com has ’em. Just type “BLF” in the search box.
Those lights you linked and mentioned are way below the lumens you want and way over the cost you want (not sure why anyone would buy them anyways unless they like the name maybe). Flooders like the A6 are better for running since you dont have an intense spot of light to focus and most of the trail is illuminated.
For your purposes, just get the new X6 and be done with it 
Also for your purpose list:
X6 > C8 > A6 > S2 > …… the lights you list > ……then wayyyy at the bottom those “brightest ever” facebook advertised lights.
Carlagamer:
Most of the flashlights being discussed are powered by li-ion batteries.
Are you familiar with the hazards posed by them? (Fire, explosion, fumes, eco-waste, single cell vs. multi-cell applications.)
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?280909-Ultrafire-18650-3000mA-exploded http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?340028-Flashlight-Explosion
18650, how dangerous is it for a newbie like me?
My 14500 battery explosion, with pictures
Light catches fire burns house down
Are you aware of safe practices for using them? (Charging, discharging, storage, general care.)
A Litany for Beginners:
1. Buy quality batteries and chargers. How do you know what is good quality and what is bad quality?
- Research the internet. A good starting point is this website: Batteries and chargers (the author, HKJ, is a frequent contributor here).
- Buy from a trusted vendor who sells only high quality products, such as RMM (Richard, the owner, is a respected BLF member).
- Or simply ask questions on BLF.
2. Discharging. Avoid over-discharging your batteries. Your regular li-ion battery is nominally rated at 3.7V, but that’s only a rating. It actually varies between 4.2 (fully charged) to 2.7 (fully discharged).
- When using your batteries, learn about their charge state by checking with a voltmeter (or with your charger if it is so equipped) whenever you recharge the batteries. I’d recommend targeting 3.5V as the level when to recharge, with 3.0V being “acceptable”. Lower than 3.0V and you’re doing some (slight) damage to your batteries. Lower than 2.7V and you are definitely hurting your batteries. If you ever hit 2.5V or lower, you should be very careful whenever you recharge and use this battery.
- If you have no means of measuring the batteries’ voltage, then the next best thing is to recharge your batteries as soon as you notice the flashlight output declining. Get into the habit of recharging your batteries on a regular basis.
3. Charging. A good quality charger will help prevent overcharging. On the better chargers, digital readouts help you to keep track of the charging process.
- Never charge your batteries when you are not present. While it’s not necessary for you to hover over them while they are recharging, you should be alert and close enough to respond to any problems.
- Periodically check them to see if they are getting hot, especially if they seem to be taking a long time to recharge. (Depending on charge rate, they may get warm, but they should never get hot.)
- If you need to leave while your batteries are still charging, pull the batteries out and re-start the process when you return.
4. Care and maintenance.
- Avoid physical abuse.
- Avoid getting the batteries wet.
- Discard any dented, deformed, or punctured batteries. Properly dispose of them as eco-waste.
- When not being used, store them in a cool, dry location.
- When storing them for long periods of time, store them at 70% or about 3.5V-3.7V.
- When storing them, make sure that there is no possibility for short circuits. Ensure that there is no way for any loose metal (or jumble of loose batteries) coming into simultaneous contact with both terminals of any battery.
5. Multiple cell applications. Understand that your risks go up exponentially by using multiple cells. Not only do your chances increase and the potential magnitude increase by the number of batteries being used, but the risks of unbalanced discharge between batteries is introduced. So all the caveats of using single cells are even more important: don’t overcharge, don’t over-discharge your batteries, and take care of them properly. In addition, the following guidelines have been suggested:
- Use mated sets of batteries. Use the same brand and specific model of battery within a set.
- Always keep the same set for the flashlight. Don’t mix and match batteries when recharging.
- Always recharge all of the batteries at the same time. Don’t partially charge individual cells.
6. Protected cells versus unprotected cells. Protected cells have circuitry that provides safeguards against overcharging (usually set at 4.2 volts) and over-discharging (set at somewhere between 2.6V to 2.9V, depending on manufacturer). Do not depend on the protection to work. While they are fairly reliable, they are not foolproof. Consider them as a fail-safe device or measure of last resort.
Other things that you should know:
- Protected cells are slightly longer than their unprotected counterparts. Most flashlights can accept either, but some have such tight margins that only unprotected or smaller models of protected cells will fit.
- Protected cells, because of their additional circuitry, are limited in providing maximum power. For most flashlights, this does not make a difference, since the flashlight driver is the limiting item in providing power to the LED. However, for some of the newer flashlights, the drivers are direct driven and the limiting item is the battery. Unprotected high-drain cells are recommended for such flashlights.
- The protection circuit is sometimes referred to as PCM or PCB (Protection Circuit Module or Protection Circuit Board).
- Besides protected and unprotected types of batteries, batteries may come in either button-top or flat-top versions. Button-tops are the more common variety and fit almost all flashlights. Flat-tops are suitable for single cell flashlights that have both head-springs and tail-springs. If you plan on buying flat-tops, make sure that they will work for your particular flashlight.
7. Low Voltage Protection (LVP). Some flashlights are equipped with LVP circuits to prevent the overdischarge of batteries. Depending on the specific manufacturer, the LVP circuits may cut off the battery between 2.6V and 3.0V. In some cases, the LVP circuit may merely warn the user about the low voltage by some sort of flashing mechanism - while allowing the battery to continue to drain well below the warning level (down to zero in some cases). Again, similar to the battery protection, it is recommended that you not rely on LVP to prevent over-discharge of batteries.
8. Sizes and Types of Li-ion Cells.
- There are different sizes of li-ion cells. The first two digits represent the diameter in millimeters. The next two digits represent the length in millimeters. Hence, a 10440 cell (about the size of a AAA battery) is 10mm wide by 44mm long. A 14500 cell (about the size of a AA battery) is 14mm wide by 50mm long. The last “0” at the end of the 10440 and 14500 represents the shape of the battery, i.e., circular in shape. Note: These are nominal dimensions, some so-called 18650 batteries are actually over 70mm long!
- There are a number of different types of cells that are referred to as lithium-based batteries. It is customary to distinguish “lithium” batteries as those primary (non-rechargeable) 3.0V batteries, “LiFePO4” batteries as the rechargeable 3.2V-3.3V batteries, and “li-ion” batteries as the rechargeable 3.7V batteries. And within the set of so called “li-ion” 3.7V batteries, there are several different chemistries: LiCoO2 (ICR), LiMn2O4 (IMR), LiNiMnCoO2 (INR), hybrid of other chemistries (NCR).
=
This is just a brief overview to get you acquainted with the subject of li-ion cells, what they are, and how to treat them.
For the two flashlights that you are interested in, the BLF A6 and the Convoy C8:
- Both of them take 18650 cells.
- Both have head-springs and tail-springs, so they both can take flat-top batteries (button-tops, too).
- Both use single cells, so you avoid the multi-cell complications.
- The BLF A6 has an FET driver so is capable of being directly driven. For maximum output, it’s recommended that you use an unprotected high-drain cell like a Samsung INR 18650-30Q battery.
- The Convoy C8 is not directly driven. There’s no advantage to using unprotected cells with it.
Buy good quality stuff, be aware and alert, and act with due diligence.
That’s the formula for staying out of trouble.
EXCELLENT post, brah!! Thorough, logically ordered, excellent fact-to-hype ratio (i.e. 1-to-nil), and a literary treat.
Another Golden Nugget!
Not just kidding, this is the best dog advice of the thread.
Did you consider that those stray dogs might have simply wanted a friendly human to run with? The advice to hit them or burn them with noxious chemicals (or fire!!!) may lead you to shun or even injure your Next Best Friend.
Just as fact-based advice about lights and batteries is best, you would also be amazed at the Truth about those dogs!
Next time you’re out, see what this advice does for you:
The Dog Whisperer Way
Better?
Please don’t advise people to run for the next Darwin award. 
Guys I’ve decided to go with the BLF X6 as many mentioned on here . The Convoy s2 seemed ok but The X6 seems to be the fit. My only issue now is that I see multiple versionsof the X6 which is confusing (for a newbie). How do I determine the correct X6 to purchase?
BLF Special Edition X6 (new version)
BLF Special Edition X6 (original)
Eagle Eyes X6
Also, I’d like to have either Cool White tint +XPL HI
Thanks.
Thank you, this was extremely useful.
Need help selecting the proper X6. Is this the one to buy? I feel lost about the X6 types
Eagle Eye X6 CREE XP-L HI V21A 1200LM 4Modes LED Flashlight 18650
I think you’ll be happy with that one. There are reasons for each one that exists, but for your purpose, that one will be a great fit. Enjoy!
EDIT: Oops! Just looked at that link, and it says out of stock! I guess I’m going to recommend the new BLF Special Edition instead. The price is higher, but IMHO it’s worth every penny.
Please enlighten me about the reasons for each different X6. Thanks
Get pepper gel instead of spray. The spray can blow back into your face in the wind, where the gel will stick to your barky attacker.
Well, it’s a long history of group buys wherein we’ve asked the manufacturers to update the specs to the latest technology in exchange for promising to buy a certain amount. The older BLF X6 was a good one, but in the end it didn’t actually meet the specs we were promised. I certainly wouldn’t recommend it, since there are newer, better versions.
The Eagle Eye that you linked was supposed to be our second BLF Edition, but we changed to a different maker in the middle of it, and they decided to finish it and sell it on their own. It’s a nice light, but I just looked again at the link, and it says out of stock. So, I’m going to switch my recommendation to the newer BLF Edition. This is the light that replaced the Eagle Eye in our second group buy. It was originally sold only in a set of two lights (the other was a smaller version, called the X5), for a low price. Now, individually, the price is higher. It is a much better light than the others. The reason I didn’t recommend it before was because of the price. But really, it’s worth the price, I think.
Awesome info David. So the Eagle Eye edition is not better than the BLF X6-SE V2 ?
This issue was already resloved. Thanks
But then for the price of the BLF X6 one could get a manker U11 instead…which in my opinion it’s a more suitable light: integrated micro USB charging, easy access side switch, temperature step down, low voltage protection, and a more compact design.
I hope to not have brought any further confusion to the topic, but the truth is that for this price range there is so much to choose from, and what defines which is better is often just matter of personal preference.
https://www.fasttech.com/products/0/10018008/4090800-authentic-manker-u11-led-flashlight
yeah
……the set is what I’d buy
what defines which is better is often just matter of personal preference…. <— nicely put …
but ,if you’re gonna buy a x6 than the blf / kronos x6 is gotta be the best out there 
Yeah, if the code is valid then the aluminum X6/X5 set is the best deal going! Two lights for the price of one and arguably the best X6 available currently! Don’t forget to buy cells. If you get just the X6, you’ll need 18650 cell (s) and a charger. If you get the set, you’ll also need 14500 cells for the smaller light.