Ultra cheap flashlights for testing

I’ve been reading a lot about colors and will continue to do so.
But in the end I think actually seeing the color myself is the best.

So whatever light I buy, the color temp must be known.

For testing I don’t really care if it falls apart after 10 minutes, what batteries it takes, etc, etc.
All that said for comparing I think the brightness should be equal?

Any advise for such a test kit?

BTW I own a Convoy BD04. Is it easy and cheap to replace the LED?

Unless you are getting it from MTN or another trusted source, the color will be usually “best guess”.
Most of the “ultra cheap” lights are just that. No guarantee if you buy 2 they will be the same.

If you have a good soldering iron its simple enough as long as the mcpcb is not glued down or bezel threads glued. Un-solder, and re-solder 2 wires. Thats it.

Most 3volt (single battery) led will be close to the same price. Copper star for better heat transfer. Aluminum is fine if you are staying tame with the power level.
http://www.mtnelectronics.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=60_106&product_id=794

Off topic a bit, but……….
I have the BD01 and love it. I actually wish it was available as a host. The shell is just a great fit in the hand I think.

If you have soldering equipment, and would like to do side by side testing, you can use just about any light you have 2 of.

Just get something with a 17mm driver, and 16mm or 20mm led star (mcpcb) and try different combos.

Maybe a P60 type light, so you can get extra “drop in” parts to build several and switch back and forth easily. Though that’s not a must if you don’t feel the extra cost is worth it.

P60 lights. I am sure the led and driver are not worth much, but the hosts should serve well enough for testing.

https://www.amazon.com/Ultrafire-WF502b-Flashlight-Focus-Lumens/dp/B00OK85KGM/ref=sr_1_5?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1515932604&sr=1-5&keywords=ultrafire+flashlight

Drop ins in smooth reflector
http://www.mtnelectronics.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=86&product_id=147

or orange peel

This isn’t exactly what you asked for, but I’ll give you my opinion anyway :wink:

You might not want to cling too tightly to that requirement. I would take 400 lumens of high (90+) CRI warm or neutral tinted light over 1100 lumens of 70 CRI, 6500K cool light any day. And I’m not sure I would have come to that conclusion based on a quick test in a dark room, I came to it from years of carrying crappy lights and then carrying nice lights.

I buy flashlights to see stuff in the dark. CRI and tint make a huge difference to me, based on my experience. YMMV.

But, Jaxman makes high-quality, inexpensive lights with several tint and CRI options available. For example, you could get an E2 with a low CRI XML-2 in several tints, and one with a high CRI Nichia 219c. Carry each of them for a few months, and use them for your intended purpose and decide which works for you. I believe the M8 and E2L are also available in as many options, depending on what kind of light you want.

Hi manithree,
How about this light?

Scroll down to pictures of the availble colors.
1A: 6500-7000K
3A: 5000-5200K
3B: 5000-5200K
4C: 4300-4500K
5B: 4000-4200K
7A: 3000-3200K

About the same price as what you suggested and a little lower with this sale.
An added advantage is that is comes in:
7135*3 output current 1050mA
7135*4 output current 1400mA
7135*6 output current 2100mA
7135*8 output current 2800mA

I currently have a 6500-7000K light.

You mention CRI 70 and 90+ but I have no idea how that translates to K temps.
After some Googling, it seems there is no relation.
Every light regardless of the temp may have a good of bad CRI. At least that’s what was said in discussions about old fashioned light. Perhaps thinks are different for LED?

What would you suggest from the above options. I could go all the way down to 3200K but that might hav esome drawbacks too?

CRI and colour temperature are different things.

CRI is colour rendering index.

I found some spec sheets.
There seems to be no relation between CRI and temps, but the variation is huge.

XM-L2 CRI 65-90
XHP70.2 CRI 70-80
XHP35 CRI 70-80
Nichia 219C D260 CRI 90+
Nichia 219C D280 CRI 80

Or compare

S2+ is largely what I would suggest. This is a very good light for a very good price. You’ll sure find good use for a couple. You can give away the rest to someone you like.
But they can often be cheaper on gearbest (with coupon). Most extremely, 1B can be often had for $7.
So it might be best to get the ones you can from GB and the rest from Convoy. If you make an order, but don’t pay; then tell the owner (Simon) that you came from BLF - he’ll give you a small discount.

Far be it from me to ever discourage anyone from buying a Convoy, especially an S2+. I have numerous, and will probably get more.

And, yes, CRI is different than color temperature, but for me, they both make a difference in how much I like a light. So I suggested the Jaxman because it’s one of the least expensive high-quality lights you can get with high CRI emitters. I don’t know of any high CRI Convoys. If you think you’re likely to be a tint snob, you might also end up being a CRI snob. I was just trying to save you a step.

There’s too much personal preference involved, so if you have the budget you might want to get a selection of output currents. I like the *6 because that’s a good balance between safety (heat), battery life, and lumens for me. I think the *8 don’t look any brighter, but they get hotter, so I wouldn’t feel safe handing it to a family member. Other people think the *8 is so underpowered it’s useless.

And I have some 3000K lights that I quite like. Other people think they’re way too yellow, and won’t buy anything warmer than 6000K.

As agro said, you’ll probably find a use for all of them, Convoy or Jaxman.

I have several flashllights, and 6 S2+’es in different tints.The one i use most is a 8$ GB one, swapped the ugly U2-1B for a 4000K 92 CRI Nichia 219C from kaidomain.

http://www.kaidomain.com/p/S026300.Nichia-219C-Neutral-White-4000K-CRI92-LED-Emitter-with-KDLIGHT-3535-16-16mm-x-1_5mm-DTP-Copper-MCPCB

Tip, with the Nichia, 2,8 Amps might be pretty optimistic, since it gets too hot to hold after 5 minutes, you might get one with 4 or 6 7135’s :wink:

@all, thanks.

I know it always comes down to prefrences, but tips are always welcome. I mean, without this thread I wouldn’t even have known CRI exists. Or the kaidomain site.
Two days ago I was confused because I knew little, now I’m confused because I know much :slight_smile:

My first LED flaslight I ever bought was a BD04, a zoomie. I hardly ever use the zoom because it goes te wrong way… I want more flood instead of that little dot.
I always carry my flashlight in my pocket so there are size restrictions. But I think a 45mm head would fit and be quite floody.
But even then I’m picky. Take for example the Convoy L2. Let’s for a moment assume the head is 45mm. Then I still wouldn’t be satified because I would prefer a 26650 (or 32650) flashlight.
Does anyone know a 26650 flashlight with an not overly big head?

KD has a few in several different tints. I have one of these on order).

Compared to an L2, it’s not big, but it is slightly bigger than a C8.

ETA: If you like flood, the Jaxman E2L is very floody, as is the Astrolux S41. Or you can put something like this or this into a Convoy S2+, or a Jaxman E2.

The L2 is a very nice light, but definitely not a flooder, its a ‘thrower’
For a floodier beam you do not need a large size diameter reflector, but a less deep reflector, so the light diverges and gives more of a flood.

Usually an S2+ is a nice compromise between flood and throw

If you want flood, you might want to try optics instead of reflectors.
For instance the Emisar D4 or an Astrolux S41 or build yourself a Convoy S2+ triple :sunglasses:

Cheapest way I know is using P60 drop in modules and just about any cheap 6P clone host.

What’s the CRI of the KDI? All I can find is 70, 80 or 90.