Lightmalls has C12, XM-L2

I don’t know I haven’t heard or seen anything from him since his lightmalls C8LU2 his reviews got me hooked on C8 from lightmalls but I haven’t seen or heard from himsince been wondering that top.

To clarify, my ‘no review’ comment referred to no reviews since ’18sixfifty’s review on (4/25) in Review: Lightmall's C12 UltraFire XM-L2 .

reporting back….my lightmalls c8 xml2 and c12 arrived today…finally, took about a month.

as i stated earlier, i dont have a lux meter or any kinda meter. but by judging with my eyes, comparing to some flashlights that i have with confirmed lumens, id say they are both around the 1000-1200 max mark.

both lights have almost identical beam pattern. the c8 has more of a cooler tint but nowhere close to being purple or anything. while the c12 is a bit more warm. they both have a outer ring around the beam.
the flood and spill is very big. its one of the floodiest c8’s out there in fact without having a orange peel reflector.

let me tell you guys, i have a thing with c8’s and i have had quite a few, and this light malls c8 is the bomb! its not completely dark here yet, but it looks as though its outhrowing my c8 champ, the kdc8!

c12 is not bad, but get the c8 xml2 instead!

Which KDC8 do you have? I think I went and did exact opposite of you I started out with lightmalls XMLU3 ans then later purchased a KDC8XML2 and with my bad naked eyes I don’t see any difference.

Kaidomain has C8 XM-L2 U2 1-Mode for $17.08 w/ Free ship:
http://www.kaidomain.com/product/Details.S021239

Dang it evrytime I buy a light it comes out for less I originally paid 20.59 $ oh well anyone else get this light yet and try it?

i should be here anyday now. ill report back once it arrives

Subscribed and anxiously waiting review!

ok got the kd c8 xml2 in.
it looks identical to the lightmalls c8xml2 except it doesnt have any logos on the light.

in terms of brightness and throw, very close. the light malls is still king of c8’s.

the kd was not far behind. i forgot how much i paid, but whichever one is cheaper should be the one you guys get.
it was a very touch call. i may have to even test them both out again tonight……

Is that the 5-mode or 1-mode version?

5 mode version. do you think the modes affect the brightness? are you just wonderin?

Wow and the lightmalls light is cheaper to how , I saw that again the only reason I went with Kaidomain C8Xml2 is everyone said it was best in build quality and output only second to XtindC8 .congratulations to you again please let me know of outcome :slight_smile:

You say Lightmalls is slightly brighter than the KD. So was wondering that’s because you have 1-mode. Wonder who makes KDs C8.

Kaidomain makes the KDC8

Thanks for the info.
(For a while there I couldn’t access BLF.)

I received my Lightmalls XML2 C12 (SKU M08535) yesterday. :smiley:
Here is my mini-quasi-review:

Output
It is damn bright! Don’t have a light-meter, but going by eye it seems a small, but noticeable amount brighter than my XinTD V3 C8 with XML T6 3C. So, those two lights match up as I expected. Guesstimating, the C12 seems about half as bright as my Fandyfire UV-S5 which is supposedly 2000-2500 lumen… given that, around 1000 lumen for the C12 seems believable. 1800 that was originally thrown around is obviously inflated.

Beam/Tint
Beam is pretty clean for a smooth reflector, but there are some weird minor smudgy artifacts surrounding the hotspot. Evident on white walls, but not in real use. No big deal. My emitter is pretty well centered. Tint is definitely cool, but not as bad as I feared it might be. (Tint snob.) The hotspot is pretty nice and white, the spill is a bit purple, but not awful. Doesn’t have the sickly blues that I loathe. Would obviously love a 4C bin instead, but don’t see that coming from Lightmalls anytime soon.

Modes
H/M/L modes seem well spaced on my C12. Medium is still bright, but with less heat than high. Low is pretty low. Could be lower, but for this light’s intended use, it’s good. Memory works as expected. Personally, I would really prefer default-to-High after off for 1 sec, because I plan to use this as a blaster and that reset would avoid the strobe & SOS. Ahhh yes…… If only it didn’t have the damn seizure-inducing blinky disco modes!!! A simple H/M/L mode arrangement would make this light soooo much better. About the only thing I can suggest LM improve for this price.

Throw
My XML2 C12 throws pretty well, but quite floody too. It is a good all-purpose outdoor beam (like C8s). I think the LM C12 throws well mostly because of sheer grunt (lumen output). The XinTD’s hotspot seems a little tighter and better defined, due to its unique deeper reflector. Again, this is as I expected really. I compare to the XinTD because it is my C8 benchmark which all others are measured against.

Thermal
I have to believe [all other things equal] the body of the C12 sheds heat a little better than the C8, because of its big arse fins. My LM XML2 C12 gets good and hot on high after 15 minutes or so on AW IMR 18650. Good sign is - the heat is well dispersed through the body, which suggests heat sinking is good. It does seem to cool down pretty quickly too, especially with some airflow.

Summary
I love C8s - like we all do! :slight_smile: This is my first C12 and I am liking it a lot as well. Quality of the host is not quite on par with the more expensive XinTD C8, but it seems as good or better than most C8s I have seen. Threads and fit n finish are good - not quite what I would consider excellent. Performance [output] is comparable to the more expensive XinTD C8 (my V3 anyway… the V4 is out now).

For the $19 paid for the Lightmalls XML2 C12, I am very happy with it. However, mode arrangement & levels, LED tint, and overall quality of the XinTD still make it my “go to” C8-style light. If this LM C12 was a 3-mode instead of 5 that decision would be tougher.

Verdict
All in all, I recommend the LM XML2 C12 for fans of C8s and anyone looking for a 1x18650 pocket rocket. :bigsmile:

Well done direct and righth to the point and keeps your attention and good references to C8

thanks mate. I likes ta write n use dem wurdz! :stuck_out_tongue:

i’m happy of your good opinions Haterade…thank you!!…… :smiley: my C12 should arrive tomorrow!!

I love the C8/C12 with smooth reflector. I have gotten 7 C8’s in the last couple of years. Every one came with a different driver and LED. My favorite is one that I put a XM-L2 T6 3C 5000K emitter on a SinkPAD that is driven with a 5 amp V10+ 2.7~4.5V 2-Group 3/5-Mode driver from Fasttech and using a Efest IMR 18650 cell. For me, living out in the wilderness, it’s the perfect combination. I hate under-driven lights. With this driver the “blinky’s” can be hidden. Driven at 5 amps it’s best to use a copper SinkPAD or Noctigon MCPCB for their direct thermal path. This setup makes normal C8/C12’s look dim.