…and I just ordered an Ultrafire C8 - T6. I know, the 88,891st thread on a C8! $14~ish from Amazon…with a cheap 18650 thrown in, be here tomorrow. Am I an idiot?! What SHOULD I have ordered?
Bought a DST from Home Depot and loved the throw, but it was too big. That got ‘gifted’.
I’m new here, GREAT site, BTW! Thanks in advance.
have a look at a unique fire uf-v3 from tmart.
Small, Cheap, & Throwy?
Thanks gords, that UF looks nice! Is it more powerful that the C8? Build quality is better? More throw? How long to get it from Tmart? I like their website! Sorry for all the questions…
Dale, comparable to the C8…under $20, 6” and under, and as throwy as ya got!
Why not look at the XinTD V4?
Or this one…
I’ve got one of these, albeit mine is bronze coloured and I got it on a special from KD for $5 shipped.
Stock it throws quite well. I rather like the light too, not sure why. But it just seems nice. I’ve recently converted mine to direct drive, now it’s single mode, which I like and even brighter. It easily out throws any XM-L I have in a similar reflector size.
The UF V3 is a nice light with a super nice beam pattern but it’s underdriven and is not a thrower at all. I like mine from T-mart though and I think there is a coupon around plus a first time buyer discount if you do decide to buy it.
Jacob A60 from DX is under $15 and it’s small and throws a long way. (but DX takes their time shipping)
http://dx.com/p/jacob-a60-cree-q5-3-mode-310lm-white-led-flashlight-w-strap-black-1-x-18650-114268
Better yet if you can solder, you could de-dome the emitter on the C8 and make a decent little thrower out of your C8 for free. If you have access to a soldering iron and solder that is. The De-domed C8 won’t throw quite as far as the Jacob but you will still be putting more light down range and it will seem like it’s brighter than the Jacob plus when you de-dome it you get a nicer neutral tint.
If you are interested in working on the C8 let me know and I’ll talk you through it step by step.
Welcome aboard but watch out this place gets expensive fast if you get hooked. I stopped in six months ago to find one good light. Now I have close to thirty and have modded 25 of them, and bought and sold and modded another dozen or so. I bet I have $500 or so into my little collection. But who knows how many hours of fun, money well spent and not THE most expensive hobby either.
You might be surprised at the C8 from Amazon that you got.
Might.
I got my 2nd C8 from an Amazon seller, a T6 like yours, and till today, it still may be the brightest C8 I have, including a Convoy C8 and a C8 with a P7 emitter.
I don’t think all of the T6 C8s are like that (in a good way), but there’s something really weird about the one I got.
Re. your question, and while it’s not a pure thrower, I’ve really been surprised by this light https://www.fasttech.com/p/1300400.
Thanks to everyone for the thoughtful responses! The C8 has shipped, so there’s no backing out at this point. It ‘could’ be returned if it doesn’t impress, of course!
I need to read up on de-doming and all the other mods. Soldering is a thing to be avoided for me…we’ll see. Thanks 18sixfifty, for the kind offer on the mods!
Keep those recommendations coming, I’ve learned a LOT since posting this earlier today!
Ohaya, I already have a nice little ‘thrower’ in 123 format, the NiteCore EC1. It goes on my hat when I ride me bike!
A big +1 on both lights 18sixfifty is is suggesting. Both the A60 and dedomed C8 are awesome throwers.
This, the Jacob A60 for sure. It is probably THE best thrower for that size and price. Nothing will beat it. The only downside is that it gets a little hot, but that’s expected from such a power house which throws INCREDIBLY well.
55kcd, versus a Fenix TK41 of 45kcd.
Wow, 55kcd from 310 lumens?!
Yes, it really is a laser, and when you dedome the A60 it literally becomes a pencil beam thrower.
55kcd might even be a little conservative. I have two A60’s. One is stock except for the resistor mod (eliminating next mode memory) and it throws right at 72kcd. The other one has an XP-E2 with the IOS driver putting out 2.8 A and it throws about 115kcd. I love these little lights.
After looking at some reviews, the Jacob A60 beam might be too tight for what I’m going to do. I’d rather achieve throw from higher power vs. pencil-thin beam. At this price range, that might be asking too much! Seems like the EA4 might be perfect but a bit pricey.
if your considering a jacobs, just get a zy-t08 and be done with it, the head size is not that much different, I’ll get a comparison shot later if you wish
C8 was just delivered. Excitement turns to sadness when the battery won’t take a charge and the flashlight won’t operate on 2-RCR123s. 
Love the form factor though!
Is there some way to tell if the flashlight is functioning without a battery?
if you have a 4.2v battery and some wire, or a 4.2v power supply, then yes, using two cr123 cells is worrying as 6v may have killed something, may not, I’m slightly worried about the cell you recieved and hoping like hell the problem is a poor tailcap assembly.
What do you have available to mcgyver a test rig?