The next ZEROHOUR flashlight - Would love to hear your ideas, but...

Hey, BLF!

So my team and I have already started working on our next flashlight project. We wanted to come on here and get some ideas from everyone as well. BUT, there is a catch to this thread… due to the fact that there will be competitors of ours watching, learning, and taking notes (e.g. our ex-contractors, ex-manufacturers, etc.) Please understand that we may not make it so obvious or public that we love/hate your idea on this thread; but just know that if you make a suggestion that we did use in our final production flashlight, credit will be given when credit is due :slight_smile:

I hope you guys understand why we have to do it this way and still wish to participate… You can all also PM me your ideas if you also don’t want your ideas posted publicly. Actually, you can post a ridiculous/impossible/bullsh*t idea for fun and PM me a real idea… LOL. We can’t promise that we are going to put everyone’s ideas into this flashlight (due to our budget limitations and the current level of alien technology our engineers are capable of at the moment) but we promise to read each and every suggestion and discuss them in-house.

*Note: We are also taking in suggestions from our Kickstarter backers and same rules apply.

Here are the basics…

- Smaller flashlight, single cell 1 x 18650 / 2 x CR123

  • Micro-USB rechargeable

OK, let it pour in! We are a sponge…

I would love to see a light that is about the same size as the TX25C2 with Xp-L V6 led waterproof 3m, throwy smooth reflector with a infinetly variable control ring to select output, 3.5a turbo mode, hidden strobe SOS and beacon and a 2A charger port, use tougher aluminum 7075 in HAIII with coated glass and SS crown bezel, and powered with a single 18650 or 26650 protected or unprotected battery, and don’t forget a lanyard hole and glass breaker and be able to tailstand…

You want a little Research & Development (RD) ideas
and suggestions from flashaholics ? The suggestions
and ideas will come. Just give it time.

how sbout a secret mode that goes past the emitter specs, IE from a max of 3a to a new max of 4a? (don’t be afraid to go over the current rating, xm-l2 have safely gone to 7+amps and survive, while XP-G2’s can make it past 4 amps.)

XM-l2 U3 bins?

some of the more preferred tints around here are t6-3c, t6-4c, U2-1A

Direct thermal path (DTP) copper board

IF YOU HAVE TO INCLUDE BLINKING MODES MAKE THEM HIDDEN!!

A low low mode (.1 to .7 lumens)

high PWM (true constant current would be better)

I prefer a good deep carry pocket clip, (head down) But that’s my preference.

If 18650, 2x16340 (8.4v) support would be nice

a red mode would be cool too, but I can only imagine it to be feasible if you were using a TIR

try to keep everything simple. If I bought it, I expect to be able to hand it to anyone and have them figure out how everything works relatively easily. If I want fancy, I can just ask ttrev3 to build me a light.

tailstanding, and para-cord lanyard holes would be nice

I like my smaller lights to be suited for more close up to midrange distances than being throwers.

if you are going to implement charging, make sure it charges with correct CC/CV. A li-ion packs a lot of power, and putting that in a sealed metal tube, then incorrectly charging it is playing with fire.

If you need any advance product testers, I know some who might be interested :wink:

Great! Thanks, I am excited to see what you guys come up with!

Neutral white XP-L or XM-L2, dual switches, tailcap switch for on/off and side switch to change modes, moonlight mode, 18650, and 3.5 amps on high/turbo, AR coated lens, and HAIII anodizing like AlexGT said. What price range will this light have?

Edit: and like musicmagic said, a direct thermal path mcpcb is a must with current greater than 3A.

And if you use some of BLF member ideas, please consider a super awesome amazing budget minded generous group buy price for a very limited time to BLF members that contributed… :bigsmile:

I would also like to see you use copper mpcb with direct thermal path and screwed down to the heatsink for best heat transfer, make lots of fins on the light for heat dissipation, can you make a special run with no glue to easily upgrade emitters? also consider potting the driver…

Depending on the features that we go with the flashlight may range from $75 to $150 also depending if it comes with or without batteries. We will offer two or three packages similar to our ZeroHour X, XS, and XD sets.

We are shooting for a $99.99 MSRP for this particular piece but can’t really say this early into design.

Oh! One more thing, if we can’t hit our target price in this particular project, your ideas are still going to be considered for our 3rd and 4th projects. =) Our long term goal is to offer a wide range of flashlights to fit all budget ranges and scenarios. This is only the beginning, bros!

Side clickie

Mcpcb with direct thermal path, for example, Sinkpad or Noctigon mcpcb's

XM-L2 U2 NW

Anti reflective lens

Lanyard holes that allow perfect tail standing

Much better mode spacing. Developing your own driver from scratch is probably more than your small business can handle, so take a look at what the driver designers on this site are doing. There are commercial designs from people on this board too, such as the Qlite from Intl outdoor, DrJones, Cereal_killer, texaspyro, Mtn Electronics (RMM) and several more. The ability to get an American designed and manufactured driver could be good for marketing.

Stretch goal: Wireless charging.

This is basically what I was going to tell you if we got a chance to meet as you wanted, but unfortunately my schedule hasn't allowed that.

I like the idea of lights with many capabilities in various situations from camping, search & rescue, emergencies, survival, SHTF, and so on.

- A light in the form-factor size of the D40A/F40A/EA41, etc.) that can use various different power-sources & cells, such as come with adapters or configurations to be able to use a single 18650 with sleeve, a 26650 and possibly even a 32650, a carrier for three or four AA Alcaline NiMh cells & one to three 14500 cells, and In emergencies be able to use a single D-Alcaline, single C-Alcalines with adapter sleeves.

- Also it should have the usable modes, particularly a Moonlight mode, a Low mode, medium mode, and a high mode, with a Turbo mode for momentary only. Also it should have several hidden modes, including a 2 second Beacon, the SOS, and an alternating Strobe.

  • the light should have two other colored smaller Emitters along with the main Neutral White emitter. A Red and a U/V. The U/V only needs one mode, but the red mode should have a high and a Low.
    The light should have two side electronic buttons, one for the modes, and the other for on and off, with a long press from off to select between the white, red and U/V. Also the light should have a tail switch for locking it out.
    It needs to be at least IPX7 waterproof, have HAIII Anodizing in satin/matte black, come with a belt holster, a lantern diffuser, and a rimmed tail cap with holes big enough for para-cord lanyard connection and still able to tailstand.

- If this light could be built for $150 or under, i would definitely buy one.

Some important points are named before - neutral white is a big plus for many of us, lanyard hole (550 paracord should fit), coated lens and different battery types (for me 18650/26650 is enough).

Please think about the max. battery size. 70mm protected 18650 should fit, maybe 70,5mm (maybe the batteries become a bit longer in a year).
Maybe it would be possible, to get a other color as black. Great would be blue or white. Awesomr would be a glow in the dark color, but I think this is much more expensive as a usually HA III coating.

and everyone is submitting their idea for nothing

why not get yourself a designer

Keron,

You’re missing the point here. We do have designers and engineers on our team. But there has been a change in the way we are going to do things on this particular project. We want to learn and hear it from true Flashlight enthusiasts so that we can grow the company in the right direction.

high PWM

neutral tint

smooth beam profile

clip

tailstanding

unglued ( easy to upgrade )

Multi led multi 18650 dive light with deep-ish reflectors. Basically a TK75 or X40 dive light.

Direct thermal path
Copper
Decent pill
Secret modes
3-3 5A
Xp-l or xml2-u3

I am less inclined to worry about the flashlight proper and want to see some serious “universal driver” development.

I want mode… programmable by the user! Something with a real PC “emulator for dummies” and a USB “send to driver” connection. I need runtime and awareness blink modes. Pulsing and strobing and randomness. Power consumption calculators and runtime estimators. Add a PWM limit to provide max output and not just 100% to the blink modes. What I am asking for is a reverse engineered programming UI for the user with massive flexibility and feedback!

The light isn’t as important. I prefer aspheric lenses with wide dispersion (90 degree cone angle minimum) and with the continued improvements in the larger cells, the “host” should be more Lego style design. Even “remote” cells.

Obviously I am not talking about conventional use cases. However, with this perspective, you could easily fit custom high performance builds into the same lineup. I need be-seen light for cyclists. Headlights and tail lights. Don’t forget the remote switch.

Anyway, that is what I need, not just want.

this may sound funny, but i prefer it to look
like a single 18650 cylindrical power bank
with interchangeable heads for flashlight,
electric screw driver/drill, e cigar, electric fan.

or make the flashlight tube adjustible in length
and thickness to accomodate all battery sizes

linear/boost driver and no pwm