FW3A, a TLF/BLF EDC flashlight - SST-20 available, coupon codes public

I believe LH351D 70+ deserves to be listed just like CRI 90+. Frankly, I have no idea why with this particular emitter so few people are interested in lower CRIs…

I totally agree & IIRC your statements are correct also about pteferences. I am hoping for at least 5000K Zulumoose. A bit more is fine too…. but at least 5000K. Hopefully below the BBL too.

I am good with 2D or 3D. 3A is perfect.
.
EDIT: @Zulumoose…. Here is one of the Polls you mentioned.

Amen!!! :+1:

Xpl Hi with BELOW 5000K, the Q8 is somtimes too cold.

(I hope I can replace it to use Nichias 219B 4000K)

Hmm. I would like to have a throwy “XP-L Hi” and a floody “LH351D” version of this light…

Considering the intention is to have TIR optics, how much difference will the “throwiness” of the LED actually make?
Won’t the lens produce a similar result regardless?
Are there different triple TIR optics out there that would allow for different beam patterns, like with a single emitter TIR?

I would like to see xpl-hi’s in the 4000k range. But in any case whatever in ends up with,if its not too late, please put me down for 2. Thank you for everyone working on this!
Steve

Much. Just like with any other optics.

Yes, with Carclo you can choose smooth or frosted finish. And cups that shape the beam to different beams.
Though really the only options that make sense is the narrowest cups with clear or frosted.

I’m aware of 1 other 3-up 20 mm lens, it’s from Kaidomain. I think it’s clear only and has slightly different hole spacing.

If the throw of the Samsung LEDs were an issue could we not just as for the narrow clear optic instead of the narrow frosted? I’m putting the floodiest optic I can find it it regardless.

Very, very floody with clear lens too.

Dedoming the LED is the only thing that can make it “floody” without adjectives in this lens size.

Another vote for xpl-hi (5D)

XP-L HI 5D or the Samsung is my choice. If they were to do multiple, I think XP-L HI 5D and 219C 5000K would cover a lot of peoples preferences. I’m interested in seeing the poll results (once the poll is created).

I used doubled 20ga wires to get more current through my 219C triple. This didn’t hurt the emitters. It does have more of a heatsink than the FW3A will, but the FW3A will thermal throttle sooner.

My preference would be XP-L HI in warm white.

Right there with you. I actually have a Samsung 4000k and it is absolutely even tinted, large hot spotted and a wall of light. I love this Convoy S2 with Samsung triple mod. I also have a 5000k samsung triple.

Personally, I would prefer a HIGH cri option, so the 219c is best led of the bunch IMO.

And so it begins……. :smiley: . :smiley: . :smiley:

Being willing to buy a light that’s not high CRI is different from preferring it. Given the option, I’d much rather this light be one I can use for everything I might need to do that day which includes pulling it out to help gauge the color of something (clothing/fabric or other colored products, for instance), like I sometimes do with the d4 219c. If you’ve ever bought clothes under poor quality florescent lighting, and then when you look at them outside they are a different color, you know this can be frustrating. If not, look up the old “The Dress” controversy; the type of light source the viewer thought was being used determined what colors they thought the actual dress contained. My use case does not include trying to look for things further from me than a high brightness can reveal, but rather using a floody beam to see the entirety of a nearby object, instead of only a small spot on it. Indeed, I could see down a path with trees on either side for some considerable distance using the d4 219c turbo, although of course that’s not usable for a long time in warm weather. I only used it for ~30s or so. Still, the standardized throw of that would have been around 160m at the time (ga cells and a lee minus green filter). In the fw3a, the throw of a samsung comes up as about 155m assuming 2cd/lm and the xpl is 243m or so.

Personally I like the d4 219c and don’t particularly want something throwy, so if the fw3a was as similar to my d4 as it seems, I’d be very happy. The choice seems to come down to this: do you want your small, elegant light to produce a beam which is rather wide but is definitely soft and as aesthetically pleasing as befits the design, or do you want to tack on another few dollars to fit a CREE in order to chase cd, despite small multi emitter lights being entirely wrong for that?

No, multi-emitter lights are not wrong for throw.
Being right for throw, for me, is maximizing cd/volume and cd/weight.
Beam intensity is roughtly intensity of LED multipled by reflector area / active TIR area.
Multi-emitter lights add some dead area on the front of the light, so they need to have wider heads for the same effect.
OTOH they are shorter.
So of we compare 2 lights, one with 4 mm² emitter and another with four 1 mm² emitters and same reflector area, they’ll have similar intensity and similar output. The former will be longer, the latter thicker.
The latter will be lighter and have smaller volume.
Due to smaller size, it will cool worse for smaller sustained performance. It will have a weirder beam.
Overall….I think that both approaches make sense.
But I digress….

TK wrote:

Worst part about each:

  • XP-L HI: Costs more.
  • XP-G3: Strongest “Cree Rainbow” effect: angle-based tint shift, green around hotspot.
  • XP-G2: Lowest output. Old.
  • 219c: Most heat, lowest sustainable output, highest chance of damaging itself on turbo.
  • LH351D: Super floody. May be a bit green at low levels.
    ………………………

As shown above, the only downside to the XPL HI is that it costs a tiny bit more.

It is equal to or better than the others in every other category… especially heat management. In a light this small, heat management is a big deal & should not be ignored.

As TK mentioned a few posts back…. there is much more to consider than CRI. Consistent beam is another consideration. The XPL HI is the best in that category also.

The XPL HI is by far the best ’all around’ choice for this light.

It is not just a matter of throw vs. flood. It is a matter of the best choice for ’all around’ use.

Nope. LH351D is more efficient and more powerful. Much more efficient. As long as you compare units with the same CRI which TK didn’t do.

As to heat management - this is a matter of opinion. Some want flashier with more output for shorter time, some want cooler that shine for longer.
There won’t be much difference though. Vf is pretty similar. 2 seconds?

Maukka praises LH351D for tint consistency.