Review: UltraOK Technologies V-SHARK VS-X1 XM-L 18650x1

LED Flashlights – General Info 18650 Flashlights
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UltraOK Technologies V-SHARK VS-X1

Be-Seen Triker's Overall Rating: ★★★☆☆

Summary:

Battery: 18650
Switch: Reverse Clicky in Tailcap
Modes: Low/Med/Hi/Flash/SOS
LED Type: XM-L
Lens: Glass - uncoated
Tailstands: No
Price Payed: $20.69
From: ebay (UltraOK link)
Date Ordered: June 12th, 2011

Pros:

  • Plain design
  • Large reflector
  • Nicely machined
  • GITD all around
  • Includes lanyard and holster
  • Budget XM-L Flashlight * (needs an appropriate driver!)

Cons:

  • Seriously underdriven
  • Solder quality on switch and plus terminal
  • Long 18650 cells don't fit ** (can be easily mod'd to accept 18700 protected cells)

Features / Value: ★★★★☆

This is a nice aesthetic design for a single 18650 flashlight. A simple large reflector host with an XM-L emitter. As a budget XM-L at sub-$21 delivered would seem a great deal. And it realy is a great deal with the exception that the driver is made for the XR-E. Even so, this light puts out good light at only 800ma giving it excellent runtime. This V-shark was built properly and worked right out of the box. This light was delivered clean complete with all GITD o-rings and tailcap. The tailcap uses the larger 16mm switchcap but it is too big to tailstand. My 4-star rating is based on the low output being the accepted norm for this light. Obviousy, if you expected the advertized 1000 lumens, this would get -maybe- 2-1/2 stars. Think of it as a $20 XR-E light with an XM-L emitter.

Design / Build Quality: ★★★☆☆

I am quite happy with the machining of this light. All the threads feel smooth, particularly the threads that are still anodized. The re-machined threads, those for electrical contact did benefit form a wipe down. Overall, this light was clean and lightly greased. I'd throw this light in a bathtub and I wouldn't worry about it drowning.

I will deduct a few points on the soldering of the switch to the circuit board and the plus (+) spring on the driver. I also didn't like the fact that the brass ring that holds the driver was not completely press-fit flush. That last one is a nit, but I did notice it in the disassembly process. The driver was well built and clean and the wiring was soldered well. Unfortunely, there was a flux-splatter on the emitter dome but I was able to remove it without any visible defect.

The 16mm emitter is glued with soft putty. A nicely designed disk snaps into the pill as a backup insulator. The reflector does not press on the emitter. The chance for an electrical failure is quite minimal. I do have to deduct points for the lack of space for the longer protected cells. The attempt to provide fit and finish to the switch spring made for an awkward button that is much to thick. Removing the brass button solves the problem, but this is not something an amature flash-a-holic to be should have to deal with.

One feature that impressed me is the lip in the front bezel. It has a specific recess for the o-ring. The bezel itself feels a bit delicate but it really does help this light remain elegant.

Battery Life: ★★★★★

This is a -DUH- section of the review. The current draw on this light is 800ma on high, 300ma on medium, and 50ma on low. If you can't get 3 hours on high, you have some very bad batteries.

Light Output: ★☆☆☆☆

1000 lumens; -NOT-! ...but for an 800ma drive on an XM-L, it puts out some good light. I used this light for one night time bike ride and it easily put out the light I needed, very comparable with my 1400ma XP-G R5 flashlights. Even at 50ma, the XM-L still likes to flood a room with light. I will rate this section according to the advertized output... one star for gross false advertizing.

Summary: ★★★☆☆

I am happy that I was able to modify this flashlight to accept my Panasonic 3100 protected cells. I am also happy that all it needs is a driver change to bring it up to its full potential. I am not concerned about heat discipation; this light has a very nice thermal path. I am not concerned with the components of the driver being on the battery side as there is already a spring in place that would be similar to the NANJG 105 8x AMC7135 2.8A driver. I am also very happy with the reflector and the beam it throws. The smooth reflector is finished very well without any blemishes. As a matter of fact, the whole light is free of any serious blemishes. The emitter is perfectly centered, and the assembly of the light is super simple. I would have preferred the KAN-028 switch but there is room for that one for a future upgrade. I give this light 3-stars mainly because of the disappointing driver. If it had been driven harder, I would not hesitate to go with 4-stars.

Bonus Section: Images (next post)

I know this flashlight is much like the Sky*Ray 1JC8 previously reviewed.

I hope that the images posted in the next post will answer questions some of you may have had about this light.

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Continued:

The basics - 3 parts that just -fit-:

The tube:

...labeled:

The head:

...again:

Fine fit and finish:

The o-ring in the bezel:

Bezel ID:

Lens OD:

Reflector height:

Reflector width:

Emitter hole ID in reflector:

Emitter in pill w/ insulator:

Emitter in pill w/o insulator:

Driver in pill:

Driver's brass ring in pill: (note how its crooked)

Driver getting yarded out of pill:

It is worth noting here that I simply scraped the solder from the brass ring and the driver with a hobby knife and it popped right out.

Driver detail - Circuit board, component side: (I think the coil was already damaged but functional)

Driver detail - Circuit board interface side:

Tailcap:

Switch bits:

Switch bits closeup:

Switch bits stacked:

Switch bits - spring and button:

Switch bits - ID the switch: (The soldering of the switch tabs is really ugly)

Switch w/ brass button - long cell prohibitive:

Switch w/o brass button - long cell permissive:

Switch Spec

Here is my dilema with this switch... although it is rated for 1.5A on the body of the switch, all additional references I find for the PBS-101 Omten switch says 1A at 30V. This is also the switch that is the "replacement" part from Manafont. I hope to get inside of one of these sometime to see if we can really make this a 5A capable switch.

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The link says 28usd... Aynway looks like just a skyray 1jc8 which can be had from manafont for dirt cheap. Modding to xm-l must be pretty straightforward. Presonally i rather get a F15 body... .

I like the design tho. My samples were exactly like this but 18700 fit in nicely. Perhaps a bit tight but no rattle that way.

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A $4.70 driver from KaiDomain and it is a full blown XM-L. Still waiting for that order to land.

I got it for $20.69 cents on ebay but I linked UltraOK because I know that link won't disappear.

Anyway, once done, it will be $26 which is a bit more than a standard XM-L C8. I just like the looks of this better.

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Looks very nice. Very sensible styling. Thanks for the sweet closeup shots!

Well done sir. Frontpage'd and Sticky'd.

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Nice review! Good work.

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great set of pics with that review. Nice

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I've got this one from the same source. It's realy to bad that it has low current driver. It looks very like this one at DX: http://www.dealextreme.com/p/3v-8-4v-5w-cree-5-mode-circuit-board-for-flashlights-16-8mm-6-3mm-26107. I can't recall where I've read (maybe DX forum), but I remember someone said driver can be moded to deliver higher current and it's designed to be driven with two Li-Ion cells.

BTW, excelent review!

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Nice find, ledoman. Indeed that is the same driver. I suspected the driver could tolerate 8.4V and indeed, that would brighten it up significantly. I wasn't going to chance it since the ad specifically stated 4.2v max.

The appropriate driver in this case is the NANJG 105 w/ 8x AMC7135 regulators. A cheap and simple fix being that the emitter is already an XM-L and it is already wired and glued. Once I get the driver, it will only be a matter of minutes to update. I might even opt for the extra AMC7135 to make it a 3.15A driver since I have those coming too. I will disable the flash modes for this light. It just doesn't make sense to keep them.

Other drivers would probably work fine but I am liking those NANJG drivers. Simple and clean solution.

I will update this thread when I make the mod.

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I've talked to the seller quite some time ago about poor performance driver. They said they have informed factory and they will improve it. Yesterday I've asked them again (sending link to your review) and they responded with:

The factory is improving this flashlight’ circuit board, and it need some time.
Hope you can understand.
If the factory has improved this flashlight, I will inform you.
Your understanding in this matter will be highly appreciated.

So there was a word IF instead WHEN. Now who knows what might happened ;-)

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I'm not holding my breath... there are probably 100,000 of these in the pipeline. Still, for under $30 and some DIY, it is a worthwhile light. I got my driver from Kaidomain today so I have some work to do.

If I added the 9th AMC7135, I'd want better heatsinking between the star and the pill. The standard glue goo is probably not as good as Arctic Silver's verion of epoxy. Since this emitter is so well centered, I wil drive it at 2.8A and see what it does. I can always do the mod again at a later date.

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I'll modify mine too, but will take 1.4A driver - maybe the one with added 7135 to gain 1.75A. I'll try to run stock driver with 8.4v to see how it stand that voltage.

Please let me know how it goes with your mod and heatsinking at 2.8A and BTW how/where did you get that price?

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I have this light and I have to say that even though it only pulls 1A, it is my go-to nightstand light.

Unless I want to impress a friend or see something 2 blocks down the street with my TK41, the VShark is all the light I need in 90% of the situations I find myself in. It has been very reliable, long runtime, nice size to handle; good all-around light. And at the price point I bought it at, I don't worry about scratching it up. No complaints, I like it a lot more than I thought I would.

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Okay, as promised... The NANJG 105C driver install photo essay:

For the purposes of completeness, here are the x-ray views of the NANJG 105C:

NANJG 105C emitter side:

NANJG 105C battery side:

After grinding the edges: (this driver comes in a bit on the large side so I it ground down a bit)

And the battery side:

Spring ground down for a flat contact surface: (Dremel with cut-off wheel) The soldering of the spring was superb!

Fixuring the negative lead: (negative pad is a bit small)

Fixturing the positive lead:

Emitter leads attached:

Holding the driver in the pill:

Driver soldered into the pill: (hint - soldering the driver might be easier if the brass ring was removed. The aluminum sucked up a lot of heat.)

...note the budget acid brush for cleaning flux - a Dremel accessory!

LOOK!: Be-Seen Triker actually bypassed the blinkin' blinky mode!

I have no way to measure the full drive current although these AMC7135's are very reliable so 2.8 amp is pretty much a given. I do know that my panasonics (3100 and 2350) pull down to 3.75V under full load. On a fresh cell I get 800ma on medium and only around 50ma in low. This means I have exactly the same light I started with except I now have a turbo mode instead of the former medium. Memory works well on these drivers.

The protected 3100mah Panasonic, which is considered an extra long cell fit without any effort and the standard length unprotected cell also works fine.

I did run the light on high for 5 minutes and the thermal discipation was well within acceptable limits. No blisters or even discomfort. This will be a great camping light.

Beam shots to follow once dark sets in.

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Be-Seen Triker, great photo session. What camera do you use? Macro is perfect. Looking forward to see your beam shoots.

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I have a Nikon Coolpix P100. I think the Canon will out-perform Nikon's macro mode, but with a little work it gets right in there.

We will hereby assume we have 2.8A, 800ma, and 50ma; the battery is the 3100mah Callie's Kustoms Panasonic. The rested battery voltage after the tests was 4.0V

3 standard performance series were shot:

White Wall Beam Shots @ ~3' - Exposure - 1/60 sec at f2.8 control was all black.

Low

Med

Hi

Ceiling bounce: Exposure - 1/4 sec at f2.8

Control

Low

Med

Hi

Real World: Exposure - 1/4 sec at f2.8 - House at 70'

control

Low

Med

Hi

I don't know how to calculate effective throw so this will have to do... but I can say, as a 1st time XM-L user at near portential... WOW! I SAW THE LIGHT!

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Just out of curiosity I've tried to run it with two 16340 batteries and it pulled 0.41A out of them. So yes, stock driver is the one I've found on DX - see my post #7. It can stand 8,4V input.

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Yep, I thought as much ...and at 0.41A @ 8.4v, this means it is no brighter with the extra voltage.

That driver only has one regulator device, typically limited to delivering 1.2A max to the emitter.

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I must say I really like the idea of an under driven xml for a long run time bright light. It seems like it would be really useful in a compact light where heat would be an issue.

I also say this review gets an extra bonus point for having Brown & sharpe calipers