Help me pick my new edc light

I have been reading this site for years but never made an account but now my 2014 tn12 has finally kicked the bucket and can’t seem to find a proper replacement.

Was thinking of maybe getting a 21700 light but not seeing anything with the features I want.

What I am looking for

Tail clicky

A primary use brightness of 700 - 800 lumens

A high mode of at least 1200 lumens brighter is always better

A medium low mode maybe around 200 lumens

Low of around 30 lumens

A proper moonlight mode

Tailstanding

No built in charging is preferred

Color Neutral white

High cri

Simple ui for instant use primarily going to 700-800 lumens but allowing direct access to moonlight and quick to high I have flashlights with andruil ui but looking for an edc not
another toy

Needs to be fairly durable I dropped my tn12 over a thousand times even ran over by accident once can’t really blame it’s dying on me :slight_smile:

If the highest brightness gets to hot needs to have a built in throttling won’t always be in my hand

Price 50-100 dollars saving money is always good but might spend more for the perfect light

Haven’t modded lights much but wouldn’t mind if there is a high probability of success

Beam pattern similar to the tn12 not floods but not a thrower but be able to check the back side of a field

Any suggestions would be appreciated

Ps I do realize making an account on this site will properly bleed my wallet dry :slight_smile:

Welcome! I bet you’ll get lots of good input here about your new EDC.

You’ve got a good list of wants. I think high CRI will be your limiting factor.

Have a look at Parametrek’s amazing flashlight database for starters. The ‘LED Color’ parameter has a ‘high CRI’ field.

Have a pleasant time at this friendly forum, sparks and lumens!

Would it be a good idea to look at doing an emitter swap? I have a hot air station and soldering iron and have done a little smd work. Don’t know how easy it would be to cook the led though.

Swapping the LED would certainly open up your possible flashlight choices. You might search around for posts regarding swaps for specific flashlights. Some lights are easy to mod, while others are especially difficult to open without risk of damage to the exterior or even the inner workings.

I’ve done a few dozen LED swaps and haven’t cooked an emitter yet. I’ve heard that excessive heat may decrease an LED’s lifespan rather than ruin it immediately. Since they’re usually rated in tens of thousands of hours, I might never notice. :laughing:

If you’ve already got SMD and hot air experience you shouldn’t have much difficulty. I use my friend’s hot air station when I can, but when I’m impatient I’ve resorted to butane torches and heat guns. :partying_face:

You’ll also need to consider differences in footprint and voltage of LEDs. You could get around footprint differences by also swapping the MCPCB, but you’ll also need to consider how it affects the fit and/or focus of the reflector.

FW3A is pretty good

i dunno about cri though, i dont track that

FW3A is good, but it’s not what the original poster is looking for. He specifically mentioned he:

  • does not want Anduril. That rules out FW3A.
  • wants something durable. His previous EDC withstood hundreds of drops and even being run over by a car. FW3As are very thin. Definitely not durable enough.
  • wants 800 lumens main mode. Assuming he wants a light than can sustain that output, that also rules out the FW3A which can sustain I think maybe half that.

Get an S2+ (or its 21700 equivalent, forgot what it is, S21 or something) and you can pick your own emitter and driver to pretty much do whatever you want.

I got more S2+ hosts than actual complete lights for just that reason.

*==oh
well he’s going to have to give up something!
there are too many requirements

plus:
my fw3a has been very reliable
he just said simple ui, he didn;t say ‘no anduril’ (it;s too subjective :slight_smile: )

wle*

Andruil would work if i can flash it to default to a set brightness and have a simple ui with the more complex options hidden so to speak. I did however forget to add one more requirement needs to fit the loop on my pants or have a good quick access holster.

flashing is a lot of trouble

anduril does have memory, of course

and you can set ceiling and floor to the same value, so that is the only level available

you can also set the stepped mode and the ramping mode ceiling and floor independently
so you could have the ‘stepped mode’ set to one level
then when you switched to ramping you could set ceiling and floor apart so it would actually ramp

anything beats #$#$ing flashing lights
i won;t do it
and i flash and program micros for a living!

Anduril 2 has two modes, Simple and Advanced.

Simple is on/off, ramp up/down and battery check.

Advanced has all the strobe/blinky/specialty modes.

Starting to think I might should get two lights. I normally carry my S1R Baton as well an my tn12. Maybe get a lumintop fwaa as the high cri with tailstanding and go for brighter and high efficiency with the main light.

FW3A is great. You won’t be disappointed

Light has just released the Warrior-mini-2, it meets all your requirements.

Yup, I agree get a S2 or S2+. The selection of emitters, driver’s, and even tint options should be able to make you happy.
Another plus is the simple UI. You can even choose how many modes you want your UI to have.
Also it appears you put your lights through some abuse. The bang for the buck prices Convoy has will make your wallet smile.

Acebeam TK18 Nichia meets some of your requirements. I can’t tell about been durable.

The olights I have all have very poor color rendering does the warrior mini 2 have any different leds cant seem to find any specs on cri. Far as the ace beam and convoy how much throw can you get out of the tir optics my only experience with them is my emisar d4 CuTi with its stock optic and that is not quite enough throw for me. Also with the ace beam it seems to only use button tops I have way more 18650s than I can count and none are button top so kind of annoying for me.

Looks like you got your money’s worth.

Had to take a file to it to get the burr off after dropping it on concrete a few times :slight_smile: