Re "reliability": With a tailcap that does not locked out securely there is a (very small) risk that the light accidently turns on when carried in a bag with other stuff inside, thus draining the battery. Happened to me once, and -of course- when I didn't carry any spares.
Ah, I see now, but that shoudn't be a problem here. The oring exerts quite a bit of friction that should prevent the tailcap from turning easily when losened.
Your concern makes sense, though, since the switch is the softest I've seen.
When you receive the flashlight don't be disappointed if the lens looks total crap and soap and water doesn't make it clean. I had to rub it very well with acetone to get it in shape. Must be some protective layer applied to the glass while being cut to size. It's the first time it happens to me.
Thanks for the review, agedbriar. I had to pull out my M8 when I clicked on the link. Except for the shinier finish, pretty close to exact match in most details. That is a great price too.
As promised, here are my lux readings, taken at 8m, luxmeter in Max-Hold mode.
61.3 kcd Small Sun ZY-C10-S aspherical (1.37A)
59.5 kcd Jacob A60 (1.75A)
47.3 kcd UniqueFire HS-802 (1.60A)
40.6 kcd UltraOK Tactical (1.75A)
As expected, the aspherical wins, but not by much and with a smaller hotspot and a less pleasing/useful beam. Note that I kept Jacob's current within reason by using a low-quality battery, as I don't want to overdrive it too much for now. Small Sun, on the other hand, got a Panasonic grey unprotected, and 1.37A is as high as it would go.
UltraOK was not at its best tonight. I already suspected that the original plastic reflector might have been better than the current alu C8 replacement, but didn't switch back yet. Anyway, the difference could only be small, undetectable to the eye in real use.
I apologize if I made the wait for Jacob even harder to some forum friends.
What a bargain this seems to be. I have my thrower needs somewhat covered but seeing this makes me wonder if I should try to mount a XR-E EZ 900 to my X8 and drive it at 1,8 A. Just for the fun of it and to see what Lux readings I can obtain.... Decisions decisions.
Anyway super review. As others mentioned this is potentially bad for the wallet! LOL
This relation remains pretty much unchanged at grater distances.
Jacob's XR-E ringiness is not pronounced, practically invisible at working distances (100-150m for me). There is no corona to speak of, only a nice soft-edged spot. Compared to an aspherical, the outer spill is quite bright, but less so than with any of my XM-L lights. Target image is crisp, there is no haze (the big issue with my X9).
BTW, I applied thermal paste to the pill/head screws, without much effect. The stupid thread anodizing there seems to raise an effective barrier, unless the bottleneck is the emitter star to pill contact. Didn't try to lift the plastic insulator to see how the latter looks.