With the TN30, ThruNite has thrown down the guantlet and self-proclaimed it to be the "King of flood light" with a max output of 3000 lumens. We shall see if it lives up to that billing.
NOTE: This is the finalized production version that I will be reviewing (HKJ had previously reviewed a pre-prod one)
MFG SPECS
MSRP: $240 USD
- LED: Three Cree XM-L U2 LEDs with a lifespan of 20+years of run time
- Max 3000 lumen output using 3 * 18650 batteries
- Level 1: 1 lm. 1200 hours; Level 2: 38 lm. 75 hours; Level 3: 352 lm. 10 hours; Level 4: 932 lm. 3.5 hours;
Level 5: 1580 lm. 2.5 hours; Level 6: 2780 lm. 1.2 hours; Standby: 67 uA; Strobe: 2780 lm. 2hours
- Working voltage: 8V to 13V
- Max runtime: 1200 hours
- Max beam distance: 370 meters
- Peak beam intensity: 35000cd
- Impact resistant: 1.2 meters
- Waterproof to IPX-8 standard, 2M
- 178.00mm length, 64.50mm bezel diameter
- Weight: 559.80g without battery
- Aircraft grade aluminum body structure
- Premium type III hard anodized anti-abrasive finish
- Ultra-clear tempered glass lens with anti-reflective coating
- Momentary forward click tactical switch
- Strobe mode for tactical and emergency use
- Smooth reflector for max light output
- Highly focused beam for maximum distance
- Tactical knurling for firm grip
- Streamlined body design
- Mechanical reversed polarity protection design for battery carrier
- Intelligent highly efficient circuit board design for max performance and long run time
- Specially designed for Military, Law Enforcement, Self-defense, Hunting, Search & Rescue and Outdoor activities
- Intelligent temperature controlled light output for user safety
With the TN30, ThruNite has thrown down the guantlet and self-proclaimed it to be the "King of flood light" with a max output of 3000 lumens. We shall see if it lives up to that billing.
NOTE: This is the finalized production version that I will be reviewing (HKJ had previously reviewed a pre-prod one)
MFG SPECS
MSRP: $240 USD
- LED: Three Cree XM-L U2 LEDs with a lifespan of 20+years of run time
- Max 3000 lumen output using 3 * 18650 batteries
- Level 1: 1 lm. 1200 hours; Level 2: 38 lm. 75 hours; Level 3: 352 lm. 10 hours; Level 4: 932 lm. 3.5 hours;
Level 5: 1580 lm. 2.5 hours; Level 6: 2780 lm. 1.2 hours; Standby: 67 uA; Strobe: 2780 lm. 2hours
- Working voltage: 8V to 13V
- Max runtime: 1200 hours
- Max beam distance: 370 meters
- Peak beam intensity: 35000cd
- Impact resistant: 1.2 meters
- Waterproof to IPX-8 standard, 2M
- 178.00mm length, 64.50mm bezel diameter
- Weight: 559.80g without battery
- Aircraft grade aluminum body structure
- Premium type III hard anodized anti-abrasive finish
- Ultra-clear tempered glass lens with anti-reflective coating
- Momentary forward click tactical switch
- Strobe mode for tactical and emergency use
- Smooth reflector for max light output
- Highly focused beam for maximum distance
- Tactical knurling for firm grip
- Streamlined body design
- Mechanical reversed polarity protection design for battery carrier
- Intelligent highly efficient circuit board design for max performance and long run time
- Specially designed for Military, Law Enforcement, Self-defense, Hunting, Search & Rescue and Outdoor activities
- Intelligent temperature controlled light output for user safety
PACKAGING / CONTENTS
The TN30 comes packed within a nifty metal box:
Additional accessories included were:
1 x holster
2 x o-ring
1 x lanyard
1 x spare tailcap cover
1 x user manual
1 x warranty card
CONDENSED VIDEO SUMMARY
In order to provide you with timely info, I've created this quick high-level review of the light and will be fleshing out the rest of the review in the coming days:
http://www.youtube.com/embed/R6umXswJM5U
(again, still a relative novice at making videos so apologies if they aren't good)
DESIGN / FEATURES
[NEW 6/11: The TN30 bears a passing resemblance to the TN31:
However, it features a smaller head overall without a SS bezel that is crenellated to allow one to easily see if the TN30 is on when stood on its head:
There is a double-sided coated AR lens:
The reflector while relatively shallow is still deep enough to provide pretty decent throw for the tri-XM-L's:
Just aft of the head are four circular cooling fins followed by three trapezoidal-shaped ones that alternate in pattern:
These are definitely needed considering the temps this light can achieve (please see runtime section below for futher details).
The body itself features three "flat" sides of which one is unamrked, the other features the company name and slogan and the final bears the model and serial number:
]
There are two machined grooves that run parallel between each of these flat sides and the body features texturing that provides decent grip:
[NEW 5/23: The tail cap features two attachment points for the lanyard and has flat surfaces allowing the TN31 to tailstand:
There is a forward clicky switch that acts as the master on/off for the light (more details in UI section).
Save for the model/serial no. etched on them, the battery tube and its components is identical between the TN31 and TN30 and thus interchangeable:
Digging into the "innards" of the light, there is a spring tip for the positive battery path while the metal plate surrounding it mates with the corresponding surface of the battery carrier for the negative path:
The battery carrier aligns the cells in series and is wired in such a way that the postive/negative paths are redundant on either end thus allowing it to be inserted into the tube either way, care however still needs to be taken to ensure the batteries are inserted with the correct polarity into the carrier.
There are raised tips allowing the use of flat top cells, however the heatshrink can catch on the edges during removal:
Both my shortest cells (AW IMR 1600 @ 65.2mm) and longest (XTAR 18700 @ 69.2mm) had no problems fitting in the carrier length-wise, however as per my video review, cells with wider diameters will have difficulty being inserted/removed from the tube:
The "tail cap" can be removed allowing access to the switch. The aluminum retaining ring helps ensure water resistance for the rubber tailcap and there is an o-ring around it that serves the same purpose:
Anodizing has been removed on the edge that the switch PCB sits on. The threads aren't square-cut on either end but I had no difficulties during threading:
They are however anodized thus allowing lock-out at the head (the tailcap wasn't really meant to be removed).
While the switch itself is mechanical, there are additional chips and resistors integrated into the PCB it's soldered to:
I measured full voltage @ 12.55v with the battery carrier isolated, but it dropped to 10.34v with the switch inline and turned on and nothing when off:
The switch itself draws 9.56μA when turned on (again isolated w/just the battery carrier) and measured either through the negative spring or the ground/negative path on the PCB. I however wasn't able to measure any draw when it was off:
With the switch wired inline w/the head, I measured the current draw of Stand-by mode to be 8.55μA when on (this jumps to 91μA without the switch) and nothing when off:
]
SIZE / HANDLING
L to R: NITECORE TM11 (v1.12) | Niteye EYE30 | Elektro Lumens Big Bruiser | ThruNite TN30 | ThruNite TN31 | XTAR S1 (Production)
I elected to show how the TN30 compares to other 3 x XM-L with stout tubes but big bro TN31 wanted to tag along so in he went into the group pic. 
There wasn't enough room on my desk to squeeze in an 18650 battery for reference but suffice to say these are all chunky lights, and the TN30 is on the larger side of the 3 x XM-L lights.
MEASURED PERFORMANCE
Again, in the interests of time, here is a quick vid on what I measured:
http://www.youtube.com/embed/gWSpuzgoVqM
[NEW 5/2: Taking into consideration there is a factor for deviation with my PVC LMD but given the amount of lights I've measured and the % rate of error, I feel that what ThruNite has quoted which is Max of 3K lms and 2780lms for level 6 is within reason. Just be mindful that the 3K max is not sustained for long but despite the step-down L6 is within the ballpark as can be seen in the runtime chart below.]
BEAMSHOTS
Indoors (5m)
L6
L5
L4
L3
L2
L1
For details of the above indoor shots and comparo vs. many other lights, please check Epic Indoor Shots Trilogy
Whitewall Hunting
Exposure settings in sequential reading order from top left: 1/25, 1/100, 1/800, 1/1600 @ f2.8 on AWB (light is ~.4m to wall / camera ~.59m):
[NEW 6/4: 500ft (152.4m) Beach Shot
40ft (12.2m) campsite shot:
100ft (30.5m) tree top shot:
For details of these shots as well as comparo vs. 23 other lights, check here.
Also, here is a mini video review I did while camping (best to check thread linked above in beach beamshot before viewing this to get a better understanding of the route taken as well as a layout of the campsite):
http://www.youtube.com/embed/NyrckvmrmUo?hd=1
RUNTIME
The relevant battery stats are provided above each runtime graph along with:
- Voltage of the battery at the start and end of the test
- Current draw as taken right before the test
- Actual runtime using ANSI FL1 (first in HR and then in M so for the RL3100 read this as 1.5hrs OR 91min)
- Also for High, captured the temperature: ambient, the head at start and the max it reached (fan was used for all bats)
[UPDATED 5/19:
As mentioned in my review, there is a soft ramp up as shown at the very beginning of the run. Also, there is a distinct step down of approx. 100 lumens after about 1 minute then it runs in semi-regulated mode for roughly 20mins before starting a gradual drop. There was a flickering at the end of the run to indicate low voltage. At this point, the TN30 was still putting out roughly 180lms.
[NEW 5/19:
At L5, while there is no step down, the light does gradually drop in ouput a little at the start and then settles into a pretty well regulated run for the entire duration before output dropped. Using AW2600's I only managed 1.6hrs on this run falling about 1hr short of the claimed 2.5hrs for this level. Will ping ThruNite re: what batteries were used for their runtime testing.
At L4, there is a less of a gradual drop from turn-on and the TN30 runs just about perfectly well regulated for the entire duration. I again wasn't able to match the claims but at least, it wasn't too far off vs. the L5 discrepancy. HOWEVER, unlike the other levels, I didn't get a low voltage warning at the end of this run with the light just cutting out. I checked the cells but none had a tripped PCB. The cells are pretty old now w/many deep discharge cycles so quite possibly not up to snuff but given the relatively mild current draw, not certain what caused the sudden cut-off. Will see if it happens again with different cells w/future testing.
For the other levels, given I can't have my light meter locked up for days on end, I took current draw as follows and yielding the respective calculated runtimes:
]
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Here is a quick preview and a temp check before runtime was completed:
http://www.youtube.com/embed/l-ViJ0-ZCxk
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TN30 provided by ThruNite for review
