The Cyclone C88:  Wow, what a flashlight.

You don't have to be around Foy too long before noticing, he can be quite full of himself occasionally.  Besides an odd addiction to thrid person narratives, it's an indulgence I try not to burden my friends with too often and it's been especially difficult to avoid while trying to put thoughts to print about the Cyclone.  The back story, briefly is; some time ago E1320 asked if I wanted to buy an UltraFire MCU-C88 he was planning to refit with an XM-L emitter.  When he made the offer, it sounded like something that had been done before to great effect and after hem hawing around for too long, I finally made the purchase.  I'm not sure what I was expecting but the torch I got from Erik fairly blew my socks off.  I had never held a C88 before and because of its as-delivered XR-E emitter, this hefty chuck of a light never blipped Foy's radar.  With a properly driven XM-L however, "Erik's" C88 became an instant legend, around these parts at least.

Our amusement could perhaps be excused, or at least understood, when the fine specimen here discussed showed up for sale at Int'l Outdoor Store.  It appeared somebody finally did what UltraFire should have done and my initial reaction was a bit of lofty disdain . . . and mild concern.  Imitation may be a superb form of flattery but I simply was not prepared for the Cyclone to be the better flashlight.  I did not want it to be better than the gem "we" created.

But it is.  The Cyclone C88 gets a well deserved . . .

Foyapproved

Bottom line:  The Cyclone C88 is a versatile and very well made flashlight.  It is top quality inside and out, reliable, good looking and bright as hell.  It is easily worth double its $45 asking price and it actually throws better than a few "throwers" I can think of.  This is a seriously good flashlight.

What I like:

- fat, 26650 form factor

- accepts 26650, 18650 lithium-ion or 3 x AA NiMH  (or even 3 x AA alkalines)

- stainless steel bezel  (not crenulated)

What I do not like:

- "3AA XM-L" printed on head

- type III anodization?

Cyclone C88 XM-L/U2 Flashlight

$45.00 from Int'l Outdoor Store  http://www.intl-outdoor.com/cyclone-c88-xml-u2-910lm-flashlight-p-349.html 

ordered:  3-26-12

received: 4-16-12

Cree XM-L/U2 1B emitter

SMO reflector, aluminum

designed for 1 x 26650 (with large o-rings) or 1 x 18650 (with sleeve and large o-rings) lithium-ion, 3 x AA rechargeable or 3 x AA alkaline batteries

working voltage: 2.9 to 4.5 volts

AMC7135*8 circuit board  (Nanjg 105C)

3-mode (ascending) user interface with mode memory: low (5%) medium (30%) and high (100%)

6061-T6 aluminum construction

hard anodized black finish

scallop cut, tail standing, reverse-clicky tail cap switch with single lanyard hole and 16mm boot

water-proof rated IPX-7  (immersion to 1 meter for 30 minutes)

selected manufacturer specifications:

"910 lumens"

"toughened" glass lens

147.5mm (length) 38mm (body) 49mm (head)

battery tube inside diameter: 30mm

223 grams without batteries

what you get for $45.00

- Cyclone C88 flashlight

- 2 spare o-rings

- 2 o-rings for 26650 usage

- lanyard

tail cap draw with 1 unprotected King Kong 26650 (XSL) lithium-ion battery charged to 4.22 volts:

  .15 amp  (low)

  .87         (medium)

2.78         (high)

with protected Xtar 18700 lithium-ion battery charged to 4.22 volts:

   .13 amp  (low)

  .87         (medium)

2.78         (high)

with 3 x Eneloop AAs:

   .09 amp  (low)

  .58         (medium)

1.90         (high)

Run Time:

With 1 unprotected King Kong 26650 (INR) charged to 4.22 volts, the light ran on high for 1 hour and 30 minutes with the battery discharged to 3.40 volts.

With 3 fully charged Eneloop AAs, the light ran on high for 1 hour and 10 minutes when it dropped into low voltage warning mode.  (blinking light)

Flashlight arrived in flawless condition.

Part of the Cyclone's charm is its unpretentious style.  The body itself looks and feels almost like a classic D-size flashlight.  The two knurling bands are hardly aggressive and along with the four styled shallow cuts, serve aesthetics only.

The finish is great and seems pretty tough.  Int'l Outdoor describes it only as "Hard Anodize" and although I haven't subjected it to the rigors my L2P daily faces, my guess is that it is at least as tough as the ano found on say . . . an UltraFire C88.

The Cyclone is one handsome torch.  To my eyes the look suggests performance, which is why I never understood UltraFire not offering an XM-L in the original C88.

I can't find much to carp about with the Cyclone but the "3AA XM-L" printed below the beautifully small "C88" on the head is intensely unnecessary.  Not to mention stupid.

I'll tell you what; both Cyclone and UltraFire got it right with this stunning and smooth, stainless steel bezel.  It's the Cyclone's best styling feature and all sellers should take note.

The Cyclone's XM-L is perfectly centered by a raised edge around the emitter.  It's depth within the reflector is also ideally placed, something I've long suspected adversely effects the original C88's (with XM-L) beam pattern and output.

This is a fuzzy shot of the Nanjg 105C driver.

The threads aren't square but they're well cut and feel smooth.

I've lately discovered that tail cap spring contact is not to be overlooked.  The Cyclone's spring is long and presses firmly against the battery.  (Did I just say long and firm?)

Solarforce L2 with 3-mode UltraFire XM-L.  (SKU 5720)

E1320 modified MCU-C88.

Cyclone C88.

While these beam shots make the Cyclone look dramatically brighter, the E/C88 is brighter on the Foyometer.  I think it may be an incorrect emitter depth issue and as a result, the MCU has no spill.  Exploring further . . .

Also; I wanted to include some of my comments from below, for the record.

When considering the purchase, and then buying and now using the Cyclone . . . I've not even remotely thought of it as primarily a AA flashlight.  Indeed, I find the "3AA" printed on the head amusing.  In fact, I find the whole idea of a 3 x AA NiMH, high performance XM-L torch down right hilarious.  There is no free lunch - if you want to run with the big dogs, you need big power.  It doesn't have to be lithium-ion but if normal run time is expected, it's either a TK41/8 x AA solution (or equivalent) or a more compact battery.  Otherwise, we'd all still being using bag phones.

Anyway, I think the Cyclone is so good, I'm going to go ahead and say "you're welcome" because you're going to be smiling and nodding in agreement when you finally get one.  If I were you Hank, I'd order up a new batch.

Foy