DQG Tiny 4th 18650 xml-2 review

this small baby flashlight is a atriple xplhi is really suicide…some convoy i have and its really hot model:)
but i would like to get this tiny with better driver and it would be enough.7 amps on IMR…

Yes, there’s enough room inside for a triple. You might even fit in a quad, though you’d have to file down the sides of the optic and star.

For the triple, there’s also enough room for a small heatsink behind the star

Yes, one downside is with the FET driver at max power, the head gets VERY hot very fast. Too hot too comfortably touch in 15 seconds is possible.

This was such a problem on my DQG Tiny III triple I ended up installing an external heatsink and button cover. This enlarged the head of the light, but made it able to run considerably longer without overheating.

Note that the Tiny III’s button is setup differently than the Tiny IV. In the Tiny III, the button is mounted inside its socket in the head and is connected to the driver via 2 tiny wires. In the Tiny IV, the button is part of the driver.

For purposes of modding the light into a triple, I think it’s easier to mount the button in the socket in the head rather than as part of the driver. Glue a replacement switch in place with arctic alumina then wire it to the driver. File off a notch in the star and heatsink so the switch wires can get from the switch to the driver. You can buy switches 50 to a pack for a few bucks on Ebay.

Here’s a link to my thread on Modding the DQG Tiny III into a Triple

The exact same mod can be done with the Tiny IV. The only changes you would need to make:

  • The Tiny IV’s head is actually removable from the body. They didn’t use too much glue. Instead of drilling out the center of the stock driver, simply unscrew the head and remove it. Then install a replacement driver. I haven’t measured exactly, but I suspect either a 20mm or 22mm FET driver from MtnElectronics would be the right size. Measure before you buy your driver.
  • Install a replacement microswitch in the head under the button boot with arctic alumina. You may need to slice off part of the inside bottom of the button boot to give enough room for the switch.

Be advised with a FET driver the head will get incredibly hot. This may not damage the light, but it could cause your pants or your hand to catch on fire. Use caution.

look at this lens

very good for triple

Considering buying this light, but I’m stuck between this or the HC30 NW by Nitecore… Anyone recommend one over the other? DQG wins in size and half the price but turbo sucks in comparison, probably worse build quality I imagine, and better tint on HC30… Will I miss the small size of 0.4 inches in length and 0.1 inch in diameter difference?
I own Nitecore MH20 and can’t EDC (too big to,carry, I don’t want to move to any smaller capacity battery because of losing so much battery time, 18650 or nothing!!) looking for replacement EDC. Thanks.

I have the Nitecore P12GT,and the buildquality is the best from all the lights I own.

The HC30 is a totally different light than the DQG. Quality of DQG is definately worse than Nitecore IMHO. However my DQG 4 is ok, besides some scratches in the ano. Very very light (allmost too light) and super small. I like it, and for EDC 1 cm shorter is a lot. I like the modes on the DQG 4. I think it’s slightly under 850lm, but it gets rather warm already. The 18650 seems to be the heatsink, warms up as fast or faster than the light itself.
I don’t own the HC30.

Buy the DQG in NW tint, my CW tint is hideous, but I am modding it into a triple XPL-HI anyway.

Edit: If you go for the DQG, don’t buy from cnqualitygoods. Their customer service is non-existent…
In the end, it’s really up to you. The DQG is $27 with the coupon found on BLF

Thank you very much for your input sir, though I am mostly concerned about turbo run times… 60s for an overrated 850 is horrible because I use my light on turbo for 5-10 min streaks usually. Especially getting home and bringing in groceries….

Light module burn out in long turbo.

I don’t know about the HC30 turbo stepdown. Maybe there is none? HI in DQG is about the same (400lm) I guess as the nitecore.

If you like the looks of the nitecore and don’t mind the bigger size, I’d go for it. Looks like quite a floody (not much throw) headlight.

If you want the smallest possible 18650, go for the DQG.

I do very much mind the bigger size, but it’s a regulated drop in output, dependent on cooling ability (air temp, air flow, heat dissipation from other objects) and the smooth drop is mostly unnoticeable, I believe it will still be around 700-800 lumens after 10-15 mins on turbo according to reviews I read.

The timed step I can imagine being frustrated pausing what I’m doing to turn the light off and back on every minute literally… And I think they have nearly equal hot spot size and throw, but the spill is a lot more usable on the HC30. In fact, the HC30 might have more throw (177m on Nitecore site vs I thought I read the DQG having a mere 140m? I would buy the HC30W that just dropped rather than cool white, I heard the neutral option on the DQG is unpleasant and extremely warm yellow. (I have no warm lights, so to dive in the deep end to 3k rather than a small drop from 6k to 4.5-5k temp might leave me disappointed.)

PS. My experience on this forum started an hour ago and it is awesome!!! So active, replies flying left and right in minutes, CPF seems less popular at least in some forum categories lol.

no, if you click it once, it goes to low
no memory
if you click twice, med, 3 x - high
turbo from off is one long press
{answering question “does dqg tiny 18650 start on high?”}

wle

some photos
http://forum.fonarevka.ru/album.php?albumid=1062
plus of the battery is connected to the LED Thermo


Got my DQG Tiny IV today….

Sad enough it looked horrible.

I submitted a ticket to seller, hope I atleast can get a refund…


You’re welcome

II

What is so horrible on your light?

The different anodizing colors? That had been a thing since the first one……

Edit: Saw the scratches now… Well that stinks, on the up side, it is broken in…

What? :slight_smile:

Yep. bad scratches and a couple of dents. Looks like its been rolling in a conveyor belt for a while :stuck_out_tongue:

Mine’s got some comparable scratches. I bought a faulty DQG AAA in the past, at least this one works :smiley:

Still very much like the size, but quality in general sucks. With only slight scratches as an EDC for me it’s oke though…
Offcourse it should be flawless, good luk with aftermarket sales…
Will post my mod once done. Still need some work on the driver.

Grey color have bad anodizing. They send me black for rewiew and it was OK.

I have a grey from Banggood, and it was very nice anodizing, with the bit of color mismatch that is “normal” for DQG tiny it seems. No scratches or flaws like shown…