Sky Eye F13
Reviewer's Overall Rating: ★★★☆☆
Rating As Mod Host: ★★★★☆
Summary:
Battery: |
26650 18650 w/sleeve 3AAA with Included Holder 4AAA with Optional Holder |
Switch: |
Reverse Clicky Tailcap Switch |
Modes: |
5 mode: Hi-Med-Lo-Strobe-SOS (Next mode memory – never resets?) |
LED Type: |
XM-L U2 (as claimed) |
Lens: |
Glass (Claimed AR coated) |
Tailstands: |
Yes, perfectly |
Cost: |
$21.60 |
From: |
|
Date Ordered: |
Apr. 12, 2013 (Shipped Apr. 22nd, Recv’d May 6 2013) |
Pros:
- 26650 / 18650 / 3AAA / 4AAA compatible
- Nice solid feeling switch (after tightening retaining ring)
- Good build quality (though it’s a bit lightweight & thin)
- Nice size in the hand
- Glass lens & aluminum reflector
- Good (above average) heatsinking
- Driven at a decent current level on high
- Nice beam pattern with wide spill
- Well centered emitter
- Sexy red tailcap
- Makes for a very nice mod host
- Tailstands perfectly
- Heatsink fins work for “anti-roll”
- Springs at both driver & tailcap ends
- Glass Lens came with protective plastic film
Cons:
- No thermal paste under the emitter
- Reflector centering device blocks the emitter from achieving optimal focus (needs replaced)
- The “next mode memory” never resets (perhaps after a very long time)
- Threads were dry upon arrival and “rough” (smoothed out nicely after lubing)
- Glass lens claimed to be AR coated, but doesn’t appear so
- Both driver & tail springs soldered off-center
- O-rings everywhere, but should be slightly thicker for better seal
- Knurling is a little too smooth not giving much grip
Other Specs/Details:
Reflector: 36.8mm wide (33.65mm inside) x 26.2mm deep (to LED)
Body Tube: diameter 40.8mm at head, 32.0mm @ battery tube, x length 151.3mm (total)
21.95mm driver diameter (pill opening is 22.7mm and steps down to 20.26mm) with retaining ring
Pill depth of 15.14mm
20mm emitter star
SMO reflector
Driver should be using PWM but I can’t detect it shining at a fan
Extremely faint driver whine in Medium & Low
Decent threads once cleaned and lubed
Strobe seems to me to be a “fast” speed strobe (but not super fast)
Comes with 18650 sleeve & 3AAA holder (typical cheap ones)
Works with an optional 4AAA holder
First of all this light is a clone of a mix between the Shadow JM07 & JM07 Pro. It has the body style (heatsink fins & tailcap switch) of the JM07 Pro, but the bezel of the JM07 (although it’s smooth and not crenulated and aluminum instead of stainless steel). For comparison, see TurboBB’s recent review of the updated JM07 here. Here is a photo from TurboBB’s review showing the JM07 Pro 3rd from the left, and the JM07 beside it (4th from the left):
(Credit goes to TurboBB for the photo.)
Note that all of my photos were taken with a cheap point & shoot Nikon. Beamshots should be very close to what I actually saw. All captions are above the photos they pertain to.
I ordered this light the day DX listed it. I was very excited to get a Shadow JM07/Pro clone! The light came in the typical cheap thin cardboard box. The light was wrapped in bubble wrap inside. The lens had a plastic protective film over it. It was about a week before DX shipped out the light, and then about 2 weeks until it arrived.
Lens Has a Protective Film Cover (Also Notice the Knick in the Bezel to the Left Side):
DX also sells this light branded as an Ultrafire F13 and a Raysoon F13. I would expect that they are nearly identical lights with the typical variations we see between Chinese budget light samples.
My first impression of the light was that it was very mediocre; however I’ve grown to like it a lot more. As it is in stock form the “next-mode memory” really ruins the light. After 20 minutes it still doesn’t reset back to the first mode! This can be fixed with a resistor mod to force it to start over in high in a matter of seconds. The light is a very good looker (the sexy red tailcap adds to that), although it feels a bit lightweight (due to the thin-walled body). Once you place a 26650 into it it feels much more solid. The heatsink fins are made in such a way as to not allow the light to roll (anti-roll feature). The light also tailstands perfectly (a feature I am learning to appreciate more). The switch was a little squishy at first, but is now nice and solid feeling after I tightened up the retaining ring. O-rings are included everywhere they should be, however they are a little too thin for me to trust for making the light water resistant. They are all green GITD o-rings.
The light came with a few minor imperfections in the anodizing (knicks) and one nice size knick in the bezel. I’ve come to expect these in budget lights. Other imperfections include the spring on the driver and tailcap being soldered off-center. One really big issue is that there was no thermal paste under the emitter! (I quickly remedied this issue.)
As far as battery fitment goes, I don’t see any issues with protected or unprotected, button-top or flat top cells. My protected Tenergy 18650’s have just a very slight rattle when using the included sleeve. My protected TF 26650 has very very little rattle (hardly noticeable). The 3AAA carrier fits very sloppy for width (every 3AAA / 26650 light I’ve seen does), but when the light is in use the springs at both ends seem to hold it in place fairly well so as not to rattle much at all. The tailcap doesn’t quite screw all the way up to the ridge on the body (I believe the end of the battery tube going into the tailcap is stopping it from going further). This isn’t very noticeable though (it’s only about 0.5mm). See Photo:
The tint is typical cool white, no greenish or purplish hues in my sample. DX specifies it’s an XM-L U2 bin, but I have no way to prove or disprove it. The beam is slightly ringy around the outer spill which is created by the bezel. I also believe the centering ring for the reflector is interfering with getting the LED up into the reflector for optimum focus resulting in a slightly blurry corona around the hotspot. At a distance of 5 feet away from a wall, the hotspot is 6 ½ inches with a 9 ½ inch corona, and a wide 6 foot 8 inch spill. In comparison, the BLF A8 only has a 5 foot 3 inch spill. This light is not a mega thrower, but basically has good mix of flood and throw. The reflector width is slightly less than a typical C8 (C8 @ 42mm, F13 @ 37mm) and so you should expect this one to throw a little less than a C8.
The wall in these photos is "Lettuce" green. I didn't take a new control shot, but here is one I had on file:
Sky Eye F13 on High:
BLF A8 on High (T6 3C tint, but doesn't appear nearly as neutral as my Xiaozhi T6 3C):
F13 Tailstanding on High in My Living Room (only light on):
Outdoor Beamshot. Note that the photo is dimmer than it really looked. The shed is 184 feet away. I didn't use a tripod; I just held the camera against the fencepost underneath the light. It was a miserably wet day, but the rain had just about stopped for me to get this shot.
Modes are a little too closely spaced for my liking. I had a really tough time getting tailcap readings on any modes other than high (still don’t understand why). With a protected Tenergy 2600mAh 18650 @ 4.18v I got 2.35A, and with a protected Trustfire Flame 26650 @ 4.19v I got 2.74A. On 3AAA Turnigy LSD’s (900mAh fully charged) I got 1.10A (and managed to get a reading of 0.58A on medium). On 3AAA’s high & medium outputs look nearly identical. I tried a 4AAA battery carrier I had and the light is much brighter than with 3AAA’s with even better spaced modes, but I could not get a good tailcap reading. I believe the output to be very close to the output on 18650 (see lux readings below). So with a good 26650 it’s not driven too bad in stock form. I believe medium is at 50% and low around 25%. Medium is a bit too close to high to tell much difference.
I tailstood the light on high for quite a while to check how it handled the heat. I was very impressed! Note that I had already reassembled the light with thermal grease on the pill threads. After 5 minutes the heatsink fins were warm, but the battery tube was still cool. By 10 minutes the head was hotter (not too hot to hold though) and the battery tube was very slightly warm. By 17 minutes (the end of my test) it was the same. I took the 18650 out and it was only slightly warm. I would say the heatsink fins really do their job of dissipating the heat.
I tried out the “lux meter” in my new Harbor Freight DMM (clone of the Mastech MS8229) which will at least give me relative readings. (Note: I didn’t take these readings until the 18650 was down to 4.08v, and I forgot to take a reading on the 26650.) The lights and meter were held approximately 4 feet from the ceiling for “ceiling bounce”.
3AAA: 62
4AAA: 128
18650 (4.08v): 142
BLF A8 on 26650 (2.66A in high mode): 158
Here are a few photos comparing a fake Solarforce L2, a BLF A8, the Sky Eye F13, and an HD2010 (in that order):
Breakdown Photos & Misc:
Beautiful reflector!
Inside the Head:
Tailcap:
Emitter Not Quite Far Enough Into the Reflector:
Logo:
Reflector Depth (26.19mm):
Outer Reflector Diameter (36.79mm):
Inside Reflector Diameter (33.65mm)
Head End:
Tail End:
Spring Not Centered In the Tailcap:
Tube Thickness:
Inside Tube Diameter:
Lens Diameter:
Lens Thickness:
Spring Not Centered In the Head:
Head Diameter:
Bezel Ring Diameter:
Emitter Mounting:
No Thermal Paste!:
Pill & Driver (Driver Sitting in Pill on "Seat" Ledge):
Driver:
Inside of Pill (Notice the Ledge):
Driver Diameter:
Width Below Driver Seat "Ledge":
Depth of Inside of Pill:
Emitter Mounting Area Width:
Fit of 18650 Spacer:
3AAA Holder:
Loose Fit of the Included 3AAA Adapter/Holder:
Fit of the 4AAA holder:
4AAA Holder & Light:
My conclusion is that this light is very very nice apart from the driver’s next mode memory. I’d highly recommend doing the resistor mod (search for relic38's post on this on BLF) to remove the next mode memory, or replace the driver. If you choose to replace the driver, remember that you’ll need to find one that fits the pill or use a contact plate. Once modded I expect this light to be excellent. I’m personally planning on modding mine with an XM-L2 T6 3C with a 3.04A Nanjg driver with Dr Jones’ custom “lucidrv” firmware. My intended use is for a cycling light.
Feel free to comment and/or ask questions!
Oh, and don't forget! This F13 body tube fits the Defiant Super Thrower head smooth as butter!
-Garry