US - Defiant ArmorMax 3D Tactical Flashlight - 3D XML light $29.97 - GET BACK TO HD NOW!!!!

Yeah, mine too. I went into the store, armed with the SKU# and they looked at me like a deer in the headlights. Finally, the aisle guy, got the ladder out, and there was a box of them on the top shelf, all taped shut. They brought it down, and I bought the whole box, minus one that the salesman wanted. They didn’t seem to know anything about them, however, the had bunchs of the Garry Bunk Defiant models.

Photos of the light in taken apart

1

3D and 3C

2

3C on left 3D on right

3

Breakdown shots

4

Two O rings. Very nice threads

5

Again, Two O rings and nice threads

6

Star & LED

7

Head

8

Bottom side of pill. This plastic cover just unscrews

10

Driver and big old spring - Resistance

11

Driver. I believe it's direct drive with modes. H/M/Strobe

12

Tail cap insert unscrews

13

Another super long spring and an inner insert that holds the switch in.

14

Switch assembly I doubt it would take 3+ amps for long

Beam Shots - Mouseovers. MOUSEOUT is 3C MOUSEOVER IS 3D in ALL Shots.

m1

1/8 second shutter, to show the beam better.

2m

1 second shutter

3m

2 Seconds Shutter, to show the tree.

4m

Down to 1 second shutter here You can really notice how much more spill the 3D is, but it's still brighter in the spot as the 3C is. At least to me it is.

5m

1 second shutter

Sorry, I don't have a stationary holder for the lights when I take photos. Handheld does not make each shot in the exact place as the last one.

What this proves is that the Depth of the reflector has little to do with the size of the spot. It is the diameter and profile of the reflector. The spot on the 3D is just about identical to the 3C and it is brighter. The 3D has more spill, due to the shallow reflector.

Now to Stipple the 3D and make it into a 1D.

That's it for tonight.

thanks O-L! i updated the OP with a hot link to your photos

I am picking mine up today… I bought it online and within 15 minutes HD called me saying they have secured one and its ready :slight_smile:

Mines ready for in store pickup!

You might need a pick up truck! Preferrably with a lift gate! lol

Nice pics, OL! Seems to throw better AND have more spill than the 3C everyone was scrambling for. Nice!

mine too! im going in about 4 hours after work

if i could get my hands on a P bin sst-90 that would be ideal for this… i already have 4x c nimh i use in my vpt3 so i will test to see if they fit with minor modification

To me the 3C still outdoes the 3D on all counts. I would be leery of ‘handheld’ beamshots telling the whole story. No offence meant to anyone here doing so but IMO if you’re really going to compare light output, spill, throw, etc., the lights should be fixed and pointed exactly the same onto something immovable like a tripod or what have you. Hotspots for example at those distances just need a tiny bit of variance to throw perceptions off on how things are lit up. Much less spill and flood. IOW I wouldn’t jump to conclusions just quite yet.

The 3C’s larger reflector when all’s said and done still makes the difference. JMO.

>>>>>To me the 3C still outdoes the 3D on all counts.

Ditto. Tried it last night. Might be my new glass lens in my 3c, but my 3c leaves the 3D in the dust for throwing. Just no comparison.

Yes!
Maglite is missing out on a huge market. It’s infuriating that the American company won’t put out an 8xAA/2D or 12xAA/3D-size XM-L light with a 3” turbohead. Throw in a white diffusing lens with their anti-roll bumper, and they would have no excuse for including the now-obsolete cam-action focus system.

As for this light…I’ll have to wait and see if I’ll pick it up over the 3C.

Obviously the 3D is going to have a longer runtime just by shear battery horsepower and one could also think that its ‘brightness’ will last longer at x-mount intensity than the 3C hence individual differences in performance at any given moment. But that’s why we also mess around with lithiums more than alkalines here. lol

But like Ubehebe said no comparison really.

Will parts interchange? Maybe a 3C head with 3D body?

ID of the 3D tube?

I always thought the q bin was top dog in the SST-90 world. Hey, just do a MT-G2 build and make us all happy…

heads wont interchange, different threads and diameter. Tried last night when i got home with mine. :frowning:

Agreed, so take some fixed shots for us, please.Wink

Wow, this looks great! So whats the consensus, is it a better thrower than the 3C?

Anyone able to do some light output measurements?
l

I’m sure someone here like an Rdfronty can do that well enough though.

Thanks for the pics O-L.

I have to admit, I wasn’t tempted by the 3C - but this one is VERY tempting to buy and hot rod.

But I won’t, for now, due to size.

In the mean time, even though you’ll all think I’m nuts, I will pray that they make a 3xD zoomie w/ 60mm lens of similar quality :bigsmile:

>>>>Anyone able to do some light output measurements?

Hopefully someone with a light-measuring sphere (or bathroom) will post actual lumen output, but my 3C moirders the 3D in throw, even on a white wall (and tested outside last night). I don’t have the equipment for a real lumen readout. For my eyeball test, 3D had the brand-new defiant batteries with maybe 3 minutes of run time on them; 3C was with only one 18650 (with the spacer mod), a fully charged fasttech unprotected Samsung 2600 pink.

The 18650 spacer mod for the 3C is really simple to do and totally worth it. Lightens up the weight considerably and no more throwaway alkalines! (You can also just screw a 26650 on to the 3C head with the BLF A8 battery tube.)

Haven’t tried anything with the 3D tube yet, but it’s cavernous!