Hi,
I've never purchased one like this before. One of the posters on DX said it would have a narrow intense beam. Any other thoughts? How ugly is the beam gonna be? Is it actually useable as an indoor light or just a gimmick for throw?
Thanks
A TIR (which entails appreciable light loss if it isn't good quality) is an alternative to an aspheric lens, both are intended to increase throw by tightening focus and decreasing spill. Using either one with an XM-L would be interesting - I would like to know how well it does or does not work with that emitter.
I have a 2C Task Force from Lowes that I like. It has a TIR and an older XRE Easy 1000 emitter. It has a tight hotspot for throw, but enough spill to be useful inside. I guess we won't really know about the Ultrafire in question until someone actually uses one. The T6/TIR combination is tempting, just out of curiosity.
Hi 2pts1scn,
One of my absolute favorite light is the Lowes Task Force 2 x C cell (a.k.a. Advance Auto 2C). I've replaced the original LED with a XML T6 about 6 months ago. I've also cut some foam pipe insulator to allow me to use a single 18650. The original driver has no problem handling the 4.2v (measured from the tail to be around 2.1 amps). The hot spot is much larger and smoother than the original LED. I can see further but my non-expert opinion is that the extra "throw" is not from better LED to TIR matching but just more raw lumens that are available. Wonderful and super easy conversions. I feel that this is the best size and balance and wish more manufacturers would consider 2 x 25500 size flashlights. 2 x 18650 is too long and skinny to balance properly. This is also a better size reflector/TIR diameter than a typical p60.
Welcome aboard, JHBUDGETLIGHT, that's a great upgrade to a very good "over the counter" light!
We went a bit astray, Innerlight, but that upgrade shows that the T6 works okay with a TIR (TIR quality in the UF still being an unknown), but for indoor use a plain window (lens) would generally be better.
From the TIR examples I've seen there isn't actually more throw. There is less spill intensity. The TIR is basically like a reflector with a small collimating lens oven the center of the emitter.
This catches some of the light that would have been spill (light not hitting the reflector and therefore not being collimated). This increases the corona a bit but actual throw should be the same. TIR's should be more efficient than a reflector (they use more of the light). Aspherics aren't efficient but are effective in what they do.
I bought a few of the 10048 Carclo optics (the 26.5mm Plain tight) that are roughly the size of a p60 reflector. I found that they were not nearly as good as the Sku 5297 lens from DX for use in a P60 size host. With the lens from DX the wires can be clearly seen in the outline of the LED produced, with the 10048, it shows a mild square in the middle of the beam with hot spot in the center of the block but not nearly as focused and really no better throw than a standard reflector at least to my eyes. Considering the Dx lens is 1/3 of the TIR I'd save my money for other things.
Thanks for the info
For some reason some people have gotten the idea that TIR's are better than aspherics for throw. They aren't. That isn't what they are for. They are cheaper (in some cases) for manufacturers than reflectors (I think) and they allow for a more efficient beam since they use more of the light than a reflector.
They can have a smoother beam but they don't do what an aspheric does.