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.
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
>>>>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!
ID of the 3D tube? I have not measured, but I can tell you it's the same (within a couple thou), as a Maglite D tube. A maglite switch fits in just like it would fit in a Maglite, with a hint of drag. A Maglite ID is like 34.15mm, if that helps.