Well, I took pictures while I did the build yesterday evening, but I forgot that BLF requires some link to an outside image website, and I don’t have any accounts like that (nor do I feel like making one). Oh well.
But I did learn a few things putting this light together.
1. Do NOT hold the pill with your bare hand by the threads while drilling a hole through it. The drill bit caught and the pill spun in my hand. The threads cut my thumb. It’s not a bad cut (only about a quarter inch slice, and it barely bled), but it sure was a dumb one.
2. Do not try to stretch out the spring with the positive wire attached to it AFTER it is soldered to the board, especially if you are bad at soldering.
3. Being liberal with thermal compound leads to a messy flashlight build.
Seriously though, it went together well enough, even though I am terrible at soldering. The 4000k LH351Ds give a nice tint, and the light puts out a minimum of a couple of lumens, up to what seems to be a maximum around 3000 lumens. It can maintain maximum brightness for several minutes as well (except for when my first soldering attempt came loose from heat after about thirty seconds).
The spacer was just a touch too short, leaving the flashlight prone to mode switches when shaken as the battery lost contact with the springs. Fortunately, the Convoy host came with its own spring to be attached to the board. I had Mountain Electronics put one on, so I simply screwed the extra on onto the tail spring. No more battery rattle!
The light is VERY floody. There is no hotspot nor is there any spill; the light is just a uniform disc of large diameter. It’s very pretty, though almost too much flood; I’m concerned it won’t have enough throw for outdoor use on moderate power. I ordered the carclo lens that was said to have the most throw. Either the others are absurdly floody or I was sent the wrong TIR lens.
Crescendo is an interesting firmware which would be much more intuitive and user-friendly with a reverse-clicky switch instead of a forward. As I learn it and the half/full press sequences to perform different tasks, I am still getting incorrect mode activations. I’m still fiddling to see if I like having the memory on or off.
Overall I am happy with the flashlight, though it does bother me that I could have bought an Emisar D4Sv2 with XP-L HI 5Ds and anduril for less money. But I will say that Mountain Electronics did a great job reflowing the LEDs to the board, and sells some great stuff.