My 3 mods for Wurkkos TS30S and TS30S Pro w/ SBT90.2:
1. Powerful Battery ($6-$10) for 10-15% output gain: Batteries with high current capability is a must for the SBT90.2 LED. Measured with both ceiling bounce test and later with Texas Ace lumen tube (with numerous runs & repeats ) I’ve found in both Turbo and High modes, the gain of Samsung 40T over Wurkkos OEM battery is about 10-15%. Samsung 40T is good enough but those who like to live a life of luxury could go for the $10 Molicel P45B Grade A at Liionwholesale.
2. AR Lenses ($3-$6) for about 4% output gain - $5-$10: TS30S First gen: Another absolute must for the Wurkkos as the OEM lens is not coated. UCL made two AR lenses that fit perfectly, one acrylic (purple reflection - makes tint greener) and one glass (blue reflection - no change in tint). Either one fits perfectly but I would recommend the glass. Impressively they achieved ~98.4% of max brightness (ie no lens), meaning about ~4% improvement over Wurkkos’s OEM non-coated lens. Click here for UCL v3 Borofloat glass lens.
TS30S Pro The first group of lights had non AR lens, latter lights have purple reflection lens which being purple increases Duv and makes tint greener. The best solution for me is the blue reflection lens size 55mm diameter x 3mm thick CLICK HERE for Aliexpress Link.
3. Increase Tmax: With FET driver, a super bright & super hot LED, and Anduril’s Tmax set at 45°C from factory, this light enters thermal step-down extremely quickly. I reset mine to 55°C and external temp remains a cool 45°C at this higher Tmax. Warning: read about and reset Tmax at your own risk as increased output and temp means increased risk of fire. I’m not “recommending” this step, just reporting what I do.
Some comments as to how these white-wall shots predict the result of how these lights look during my walk. Olight and Sofirn use TIR optics. Nitecore smooth reflector.
Olight M2R Pro Warrior Limited Edition: Note the warm pleasant tone of Olight - it’s one of the very few (or maybe the only one?) 300 meter throwers with on-body charging AND a warm tone. Throw lights tend to have high CCT, 6500K or so, which gives them a uniformly harsh & flat bluish tone. Not so with this Olight, which has a warmer ~5000k LED. The Olight’s warm tone is crucial to me and is the reason I bought (& collected ) these Pro Warrior 2 lights even after knowing Warrior 3 had been released. The warmer tone allows leaves and flowers along our walk to stand out clearly and pleasantly to the eyes. Objects without doubt appear more 3D. As typical of Cree LED, the green tint is there especially with white wall hunting , but it is not noticeable during actual use. The spill is not as bright as Nitecore for example, but still good. TIR optic means spill is very wide and in this case it is bright so the area immediately in front of us is well illuminated. This is a great walk light and one of my most favorite. My only wish is for the step-down not to be so aggressive (too dim).
Sofirn IF22a has a VERY narrow pencil-beam spot that cuts through the night like laser. The throw of this bad boy is utterly amazing for its size and cost. It’s one of those lights that regardless of whether you need it, you want to buy it. Keep in mind, the hotspot is smallish so it doesn’t illuminate a wide area. The spill of this TIR optic is wide, but in this light VERY dim. It illuminates the immediate area around you, but faintly, meaning it’s ok but could be better. The IF22a is a fun light to play with, but because of the small hotspot and faint spill the width of illumination is limited. IMHO it is just average as a walk light.
Nitecore MH12S - Throw is better than Olight and the spot is wider and much more useful than Sofirn’s pencil beam. The spill is brighter than average and illuminates the area immediately in front of you very well. It has a wide illumination area as a result of bright hotspot AND bright spill. It’s a very good walk light except for that harsh blue tone. IMHO it should truly shine as a light for security work because of its excellent brightness and throw, and nicely small size.
Close-up view of a tree about 50 yards away to show the different CCT tone of Olight, versus Nitecore. Throwers tend to use 6500k LED, which results in a harsh and flat view of 3D objects such as a tree or shrub. Warm throwers such as 5000k LED Olight are rare, and this warmer CCT makes objects appear more 3D, with depth and details.
The Sofirn IF22a uses a similar LED to Nitecore so would look the same as Nitecore, except that IF22a’s pencil beam pattern would illuminate less of the tree.
FWIW I’ve learned from beamshots of a review that apparently only the limited edition of the Olight M2R Pro Warrior such as my Patriot, Orange, and Purple models (yes I have 3 of them - went a little overboard there ) has the warmer tone. Cannot confirm this 100%.
ArtieT59 knows how to upgrade the LED to High CRI… suggest you consider asking about his modding service… recommended to improve color contrast on your walks
Wait are there hapless nutty people out there who actually COLLECT Pro Warriors? I thought I was the only one. :innocent:
Kidding aside, thanks Jon for the rec but the 5000k XHP 35 HI is perfect for my use so no mod. Limited edition Pro Warriors like these in comparison to the “regular” ones have lower CCT to begin with anyway, plus I’d like to keep them original. My Patriot actually had all the red stripes lined up, so it’s going to be a garage queen LOL. BTW desert tan is nice, but if you’re from the US IMHO Patriot is the one. Orange was once voted most desirable by Olight fans I think, and it IS stunning. The price gouging is ridiculous for these 2, especially Patriot.
At a younger age I was into the modding game with my cars and cameras (Bilstein suspension, race exhaust, removing the AA filter of my Canon DSLR, etc.). Not anymore. Enough headache :).
I have no business ordering another light, but this Wurkkos with SBT90.2 was on sale and I couldn’t resist 3760 lumens and 865 meter throw in a (hopefully) jacket-pocketable light. (Review here: Wurkkos TS30S Andúril Flashlight Review - ZeroAir Reviews .) It seems to be a monster of a bright light, and it’s somewhere in LA waiting for me.
The SBT90.2 (note the .2 - that’s the more desirable second generation version) is no Nichia or GT-FC40 when it comes to beam tint and color rendering, but has created some wave because of its tremendous output. I had A LOT of difficulty deciding between this and Convoy L8, but in the end I prefer smaller lights and the Convoy’s head diameter is just a little too big. Wurkkos appears to be the least expensive host with excellent review for this LED, so it made decision a little easier. I like to compare lights to give some perspective, and hope comparing it to these 3 throwers should be an interesting one.
2022-05-03 16:48 Palos Verdes Peninsula, CA, US, In transit - Inbound
2022-05-02 13:07
Los Angeles, CA, US, In transit - Inbound
2022-04-30 14:29
Port of destination - Arrival
2022-04-29 17:30
Port of departure - Departure
2022-04-27 04:52 Yanwen facility - Outbound
The light is here - will get some beam shots when I have time. But basically it’s like a lighthouse with tremendous brightness. The throw is unreal even compared to the excellent IF22a.
One curious aspect of this light is how expensive just the LED is - $32 compared to just a few bucks for most other LED’s.
With the LED costing $30, the Wurkkos at $60 is quite a deal. I couldn’t resist.
Wurkkos TS30S: Quality is not just good, but outstanding especially considering cost is so reasonable. For a SBT90.2 light that meet my requirement of on-board USB-C charing and consistently good reviews, I feel this IS the both the least expensive and best choice on the market presently. Size wise, although big and looks a touch unwieldy, it actually feels great and balanced in the hands. The big top is absolutely necessary to deal with the monster LED for better cooling capacity - I wouldn’t want anything smaller than this. The closest comparison size-wise is to Sofirn SP36 BLF: Sofirn at 15 oz is 4 oz heavier. The SP36’s beer can sizing and heavier weight make me hesitate to carry it on my walk, but this Wurkkos is easy enough to carry in my jacket. Once I have experienced the tremendous beam of this light, really I didn’t mind ANYTHING .
All surfaces are anodized; the anodized finish is a touch too shiny for my taste (I prefer matte) but other than that it’s excellent. The quality is outstanding both inside and out: large contact surface on top, double spring in tail cap. The light comes with Wurkkos 5000 mAh battery and because something like high-current Samsung 40T is recommended, I will do an A:B battery shoot-out. Pocket clip is not provided, so I use my trusty Convoy clip-on clip after bending its arms outwards so it doesn’t scratch the finish too much. There is one bezel of modest size, model sold on Amazon has a second bezel of that is ridiculously huge. That huge bezel is NOT included with this AliExpress sale and it’s not missed at all.
The body (battery tube) looks even but actually is not reversible. The top end is slightly larger than the tail end. There is no knurling but what’s there is good looking and provides good grip. The side switch, used in other Sofirn lights, might not be the best looking but functionally is the best of all the side switches I’ve experienced: it’s flat, has just the right amount of travel, and clicks easily with a nice tactile feel. Overall, really just an excellent and very good looking light.
Large battery “button” on top, and double spring at the bottom. This LED is extremely current hungry. The current draw as measured in the excellent Zeroair review is 15 amp in Turbo mode.
It’s great to see the attention to details despite of the very low cost of the light. (To be fair the original cost was $85, not the $60 I paid.)
I am beginning to think out of my 20 plus recent-vintage lights, 3 lights starting with Wurkkos TS30S, for its incredible brightness and tremendous throw, Convoy S21D with 219b 4500k for color accuracy and tint, and Convoy M21E or F with GT-FC40 4500k for color accuracy and throw,
would make an ideal starter kit for someone new to this hobby. Meaning, I probably could eliminate about 17 other lights and still be happy with this trio (or maybe not lol - I love my SP36 BLF also).
Thermal Calibration: First time using the Wurkkos was a disappointment. Turbo was bright but within seconds the light stepped down, and not only that, the step-down was to a very dim level. From past experience with Wurkkos TS21, I checked the light’s thermal sensor and lo and behold it was reading 36 C when the ambient temp was 21 C. The sensor was off by an unprecedented 15 degrees C. (Assuming linear relationship, this means that when the internal temp is 30 C, the flashlight thinks it is 45 C and shuts down.) I have other Anduril lights and usually found temp to be off by a few degrees, but never this much (what happened to QC?). At any rate correction was easy enough using the Anduril 1’s menu.
Max Thermal Limit: To further prevent premature step-down from Turbo level, I also increased the temp at which ATC (automatic temperature regulation) kicks in. Factory default is 45 C, so my first try was 60 C. At this level, Turbo stayed on longer than all other lights I have, but the Wurkkos became too hot to touch. Next try was 50 C limit, and behavior is now perfect. Step downs from Turbo is not too early, nor too late. About same time as IF22a for example (a few minutes). Light does not become too hot, and brightness and throw remains off-the-chart stunning for a “smallish” light .
Once brightness gets to a certain super-high level for this particular host (or I guess any host for that matter), it appears the limitation is solely how fast you could drain the heat. Any more brightness would probably cause either a. light becomes too hot or b. step down becomes too fast and/or too dim.
What’s interesting to me about Anduril is that if manufacturer drops the ball and doesn’t use it properly, then Anduril is not necessarily a good UI. When users are not nutty hobbyists I could easily see the light being returned. OTOH I am thankful for Anduril because one I love its flexibility and choices, and two, as seen with the TS30S, I could tailor the light to behave exactly how I want it to. I am glad I could find an ideal max thermal limit of 50 C. It’s lighting up EVERYTHING lol - near field (from the bright spill) and far field (intense hotspot); some of the most fun with flashlight I’ve had.
It’s a known thing for Anduril 1. Not only Wurkkos, All brands I’ve seen thru reading, including whatever I have, even Hank’s K1, all temp calibration out from factory are way off.
It’s also a known thing that at some point of time, those who know, 1st thing to do is calibrate the temp for Anduril 1 lights.
Beamshot shoot-outs. Sofirn IF22a with the famous SFT40 LED is in some way a technical marvel, a light with world class throw but is small & light, and costs next to nothing. It is the minimum mark I set when I got Wurkkos SBT90.2 . Really there is no point to buy Wurkkos if being bigger and heavier doesn’t bring more of “something”.
The 2 are completely different lights serving different purposes, so this is NOT a comparison to find which light is “better.” It’s more about what differences there are. And what the Wurkkos brings is a very intense hotspot and a much wider field of illumination; the increased intensity over the excellent IF22a actually surprised me. The TS30S is a light capable of flooding a huge area with GREAT brightness; from near to far EVERYTHING lights up. A remarkable achievement for a 60 buck “smallish” light.
My wife will be somewhat upset if I go out to the trail in the middle of the night to take beamshots so these pictures of the slope around my neighborhood will have to do. All shots with Canon DSLR, RAW format, fixed WB, and fixed exposure. (I picked a middle exposure “good” for all lights, and Wurkkos is too bright for it and got over-exposed.) That white streak in the Wurkkos’s beam is likely a bug flying through.
The temp calibration out of the factory is imperfect on the chips themselves - I think it was TK that pointed this out some time back. So basically if we want it to be accurate on the flashlight then it needs to be manually set at the time of product manufacture. Some do this and some do not - it’s an extra and time consuming step on the manufacturing line so by not doing it we potentially save a little cost and/or hopefully don’t suffer cost cutting in some other area to make up for it. I’ve not had any that were THAT far off, but regardless it’s wise to always check the temp upon receipt of a new Anduril light, and adjust the temp ceiling if desired. Your error is so large that it makes me think someone accidentally added a click during the set procedure (if they are actually doing it). Normally they’re only off by 2-4 degrees in my experience and many are spot on or just one degree off (usually high).
This may change if we collectively move to a new chip, as it seems may be required in the future.
Good points thanks. Yes I have 5 other Sofirn and Wurkkos (and hence an expert with clicking for temp ) & all were within just few degrees, not this much. I was afraid something was wrong with the sensor itself but so far the light behaves as it should. External surface temp using IR gun now about 45 C, similar to (non-Anduril) IF22a. During the initial out-of-the-box testing, the external temp of was in the low 30’s during a Turbo run-down.
@Loafglenn, thanks. The clip I use is the “Convoy Universal Clip Suitable for S2 S2 Plus M1 C8” —-> web link is here and yes it’s fairly sturdy and feels made for the light. It’s a touch small so I bend the arms out a little bit to reduce scratching on the light and it still holds on very tightly. Oh and no I’m not that reviewer on AliExpress.
) I’ve found in both Turbo and High modes, the gain of Samsung 40T over Wurkkos OEM battery is about 10-15%. Samsung 40T is good enough but those who like to live a life of luxury could go for the $10 Molicel P45B Grade A at Liionwholesale.
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