Skyray King vs Klarus XT11

I’m out to buy a stronger light and the Skyray King and the Klarus XT11 have been my choices so far. Quality wise, I’m sure the klarus is a lot better especially since it can be weapon mounted. In terms of brightness, on paper Klarus = 600-700LM while the Skyray King is 2000LM. Is the skyray king significantly brighter than the klarus xt11?

You understand that 2000 lumens is a LOT more than 600, right?

The Klarus might throw better than the King, although we’re witnessing 600 vs 2200 lumens.

Rather different lights tbh. The Klarus is much more compact and will fit in a pocket. It also has an awesome UI.

The Sky Ray is likely to be a lot brighter, but has less modes, far inferior UI, is a lot bigger and heavier and likely not as usable as it only has High and Low. And you can’t run it on high non stop.

The king has enough power it will actually out throw the klarus pretty easily. Though the form factor of the klarus is much more practical. The king will produce huge amounts of light though. Comparing these two lights is pretty much like comparing apples and oranges really.

There’s a point till which output power matters. I have a Q5 200lm light that out throws the King and its 2200Lm. It’s all down to how focused is the beam.

Now, I have absolutely no clue how the Klarus throws, I only said it could out throw the King because usually, single emmiter lights are more focused. The Klarus head doesn’t look that big though.

Well I don’t own the klarus, but do own two kings, a T6 version and a U2 version. I am basing the Klarus’s performance based on Selfbuilts testing. He tested that light with its best battery setup with two RCR’s. He got 10,250lux and an estimated throw of 224m.
I have tested my king with the T6 at 25,100 lux. I have also verified it’s true throw, not estimated, with a meter to throw .25L at 300m. My U2 version, I just got and havent done full testing yet, but it should have even a slight edge on that.
So yes lumens does have it’s limitation in throw, but the 2200 verified lumens my T6 king has certainly helps. The king is a serious fat little light. It’s not a thrower, but that doen’t mean it doesn’t have decent throw.

Welcome…

but, uh, it would not be a fair comparison to put the Klarus up against ANY triple XM-L, budget or otherwise—for the same reason that a GT Mustang would not be put up against a Ferrari F40.

Enjoy your stay here, t43m4n!

Thanks for the warm welcome guys. I guess the pictures posted says it all hehehe. I was under the assumption that these budget lights were overrated when it came to lumens.

I’m guessing since i dont have a weapon long enough to mount anything to yet, the skyray king would be my best bet as it has decent throw and superior lumen output.

A lot are either over rated, claim theoretical LED out put rather than OTF (out the front) or ANSI lumens. And others plain lie.

However 3 mildly driven XM-L’s are still going to output a lot of light.

The Sky Ray doesn’t really have any real throw. What it has is lots of lumens, this means it floods a large area and gives it an ok beam distance. Throw is more about the beam pattern, e.g. a standard incan Mini Maglight is a good thrower as it can concentrate almost all of it’s light into a small narrow beam and project it a long way (considering it isn’t hugely bright).

As an example of a flood beam, remove the Mini MagLite head and use it in candle mode. It’s still the same lumens as it is with the head on (ok slightly more due to reflector/lens loses). But it really doesn’t throw very far. Imagine if you could make it 100x brighter it would now increase it’s beam distance (ie throw further) but it would still be a flood light and not a thrower in this guise.

Great info there Chicken. So basically the Sky ray throws far because of brute force lumen strength?

No the king will NOT throw as far as the klarus .

these lights are two very very different lights trying to compare them is almost impossible . one will be a huge flooder and the other will have much more throw , even though by definition it isn't a thrower ..add one more light and we could cover the entire gamut.. how about a keychain light like the fenix ld01 :P

Yes, but the King is around 20kcd and the XT11 around 10kcd.

This is a shot taken appx at appx 100yds of my T6 King shooting at 500yd, 400yd, 300yd, 200yd, & 100yd. No lumens really made it to 500yds. It measured .1cd at 400yd, .3cd at 300yd, .7cd at 200yd, and 3cd at 100yd.
My U2 King is slighter stronger but I haven’t measure exact numbers or done beam shots yet.
Yes a King will out throw the Klarus xt11.

Yep spot on! :slight_smile:

The King looks like a superb bit of kit, even more so when you consider the money. Just make sure you are going to be happy with it’s size and weight and somewhat limited use on HIGH. I don’t have a King (yet… :wink: ) but what I’ve read suggests it heats up pretty quick, maybe only allowing 10-20 mins worth of use on HIGH as a max (maybe less).

Something like the XT11 will also heat up, but if you wanted you could leave it on high until the battery runs out. Also it only needs 1/4 of the number of batteries as the King, so less cost here and less charging time if you don’t have a 4 x 18650 charger.

Both are good lights though.

Here’s a picture from the videos of goinggear. Nitecore TM11 (im assuming this is the same as the Sunray King except for the UI) and the Klarus XT11

Looks about right to me. The XT11 has quite a small head, so is actually relatively floody for an XM-L light. And with only 1 emitter, 1 battery and less than 1/3 the lumens it’ll appear a lot less bright no matter how you slice it.

But it all comes down to pocket ability and intended use. Personally I don’t see the XT11 as an alternative to the Sky Ray King at all, very different lights.

The XT11 is more a p60 sized light. EagleTac G25, Niteye TS20, Crelant V9CS sort of size light. Easily fit in a coat pocket and just about fit in a trouser pocket.

The King is compact for it’s ability, but it’s one chunky light that you wouldn’t be able to fit in a pocket unless you have huge pockets on your coat.