I had to buy one for that low price. $36 shipped
Thats a great price. almost tempting but i already have the Skyray STL V2. probably more like the STL V3
but i still like the looks of the X9
James, Sky Ray STL-V3 is more like C8/U80/UF-980L class. 40mm reflector.
Hey thommy, thanks a lot for all the good info. haha....
My Fandyfire STL-V6 (which is supposed to be exactly the same as Sky Ray STL-V2 big reflector version) was ordered and shipped first before I found that the Ebay sellers are doing it cheaper for this X9 light. Not sure if this light is also regulated too, but cheap and beautiful enough to try.
25cm vs 40cm is great. That's 2.56X smaller in area. I persume that also means 2.56X higher lux. To get 2X the area it'd be 25 and 35cm, 5cm smaller - just for info, so i don't think you made a 5cm mistake which seems too much.
I got 283 lux @ 8.14m for UF-980L @ 2.95A, equalling 18751 candlepower / lux @ 1m Times 2.56 = 48000 lux @ 1m. It looks like it has about the same intensity as a Solarforce Masterpiece Pro-1 (275 lumens) as measured on my meter.
But I'd estimate the hotspot to be ~ 1.7x longer in diameter or 3X bigger in hotspot area for the lumens to "tally". Not too bad. BTW 20cm hotspot vs 40cm hotspot = 4X area, 200 lumens and 800 lumens will tally in lux intensity.
Do let us know if it works out ok! (should be)
yeah? i know that, i was generalizing under bigger reflectored look alike lights. like the stl v2 is 60mm. sorry i figured they looked alike thats all i was implying. single 18650.
Yep..I see. Well for the STL-V2 you can also take out the extension and do 2 x 18500 (ie 181000), which would net you approx the same capacity as 1 x 18650. But there are excellent 18650s like Panasonic 2900s which probably would a little bit more capacity. The generic IMR rated 1100mAH probably would be about 1000mAH each from mitro's cells testing (so its like a 18650 with true 2000mAH capacity). Then you'd get a 180mm light, the X9 is 200mm.
I don't think the x9 is regulated like the 2*18650 lights are.
Could you expand, please?
Thommy measured his and it looks to be DD (ie, essentially hooked up directly to battery). I'm sure the build is nice, and the price on ebay is excellent, but I just prefer to be regulated at that price point even if it means going to two cells (somewhat less safe).
I agree, especially with my TrustFire F15 betraying me with 3.5-3.9A (rather than the initially shipped 2.6-2.7A samples).
But all that Thommy reported was 3.1A (from memory, but never mind). Is that enough to conclude that it's DD? Are the 2.8A Nanjg drivers as high as budget regulation goes?
I'm asking because i don't want to take part in another DD-current lottery.
I remember he said it drew significantly less as battery went down. There's supposedly a good driver(s) in the ~50$ 2 cell lights, but afaict, but pretty much none of the 1 cell ones except the x8, but I suspect that's also just a buck driver..
I see, agenthex... thanks.
Wait agenthex! One more question.
If a driver is found to be DD on High, does it mean it's not regulated in the lower modes as well? Or can Mid and Low still be regulated? My F15 is unregulated (current receding with voltage) in both High and Low.
I suppose it can be, but the med/low modes on all these lights are all just done via pwm because it's cheap (and by cheap I mean it's a few dimes worth simple circuit they copy from someone else). I'm guessing they half-ass it because most buyers don't know anyway.
No problem, remove first the double o-rings and then the attachement, back the o-rings in place and everithing fits tight without a gap.
The lanyard shown in my pictures is not the original, it's a Ultrafire that I bought a few weeks ago.
Agenthex, you really want a lot for your money. 
*joking*
Anyway it is just usd36 shipped for the "bare" flashlight from Ebay. If you manage to bid succesfully, I guess low 30s is doable, that is if the seller does not play tricks.
The odd thing about these lights is that they don't really sell enough to take full advantage of economy of scale. I mean, if walmart made a 50k unit order, they'd set up a real factory and make them for $20. Then Walmart would sell for 60.
Thank you guys for your replies.
Now all I'd need is Thommy taking tail current readings in each mode with a fully charged battery, and again at a lower voltage.
Cheers!
You wil get them by tomorrow evening
On the other hand, there are really fatal decisions made on looks alone... 