I usually go to 3.5 or 3.85A for C8 size lights, and 4.2A for HD2010/SS T08 sized lights, but this hunk of metal I figured could do more - I don't think I've ever seen this amount of weight in such a small sized light and the uni-body construction must help. I ran it for 6 minutes straight on high and it holds up well - well warm but nothing crazy.
At 350g stock, no cells, it's heavier than a SRK or most standard 2 cell throwers like the STL-V2, TF X9, or bigger head single cell lights like the HD2010 and Small Sun T08, and all associated lights in the same form factor.
That looks like a nice light that didn’t quite get finished at the factory. As a stock flashlight, it seems lacking. After Tom’s work, dynoMITE! :party: It throws 551m?!!
Wow Tom, cool stuff! I'm satisfied with my stock X3. If it gives me a problem in the future, I'll mod mine just like yours. (I may need to get in touch with you on some of the details)
Well you could argue the price I suppose, but figure a XinTD C8 at $30, this has a SS bezel, weighs a ton more because of all the solid aluminum, seems to have an excellent reflector, same length as the C8 but bigger head/reflector. What is a shame, for me, is it targets the triple AA carrier, but I would have preferred it as a 26650 targeted design (can only take short 26650 cells with lots of side slop). Of course the finished anodizing and threading is awesome. Also the 22 gauge wires and QLite driver is a hugh plus too.
I have never modded a light before. I want to replace the stock board with a U2 Noctigon. Do I just buy this http://intl-outdoor.com/noctigon-xm20-mcpcb-cree-xml2-u2-1a-led-p-749.html unscrew the bezel, de-solder the wires, replace with the noctigon and solder the wires back? Does something need to be done under the board?
Well.... Not so simple, but basically that is the procedure. As shown above, I had a hard time prying up the existing star because it was epoxied down. Then you have to clean up all the old epoxy. I'd recommend using a thermal grease instead of epoxy for seating down the new replacement star.
Over 6A domed, you can hit 1800-1900, but de-domed, max is about 1500-1600, at least from what I've measured and seen posted. 12% - 20% loss for de-domed. The X3 is excellent for lumens output, near the top from my tests.