Convoy S2 or S3

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S2 from Fasttech.

I've recently purchased both the S2 and the S3 from FastTech. The quality was very good on both hosts, I have no reason to believe either are counterfeit.

The S3 is slightly shorter than the S2, but I prefer the S2 as it has the removeable brass pill. The brass pill makes it easier to solder a copper PCB or triple spacer directly to the pill for maximum heat transfer.

The S3 has been redesigned, and now has an integral LED shelf that makes it much more difficult to assemble and modify. If it weren't for this, I'd say take your choice, based on personal preference.

Both take my longer Sanyo protected 18650s with no issues.

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Don't forget about this host: https://www.fasttech.com/products/0/10002463/1198400-18650-diy-edc-led-flashlight-host-with-switch-refl

$6.87 + BLF discount makes it very nice option. Good quality flexible EDC sized host. It's my current EDC carry, with the pocket clip, 25-degree TIR optic, CW XML-U2 emitter and 3-mode 2800mA 105C driver.

I don't have an S2+ so I can't comment on that one... It's a bit shorter, and says 67mm maximum battery length; I don't think my protected cells would fit, at about 69mm.

The combination you picked looks good to me, but I prefer the cooler LED tint.

Gearbest has a awesome deal on the red S2+ for $12.99. I bought one for the wife.
Convoy S2+ 1000LM Cree XM L2 T6 - 4C 3 / 5 Modes LED Flashlight Torch ( 1 x 18650 Battery )

They also got the 4C NW C8 for $13.39.
http://www.gearbest.com/led-flashlights/pp_188779.html

I got the grey S2 from FT yesterday and it’s awesome value for money. Thick lens and a pretty good reverse switch too. I just took a xm-l2 and driver from the spare parts bin, centering gasket for xm-l2 was included with the host. I only got one problem with it and it was the friggin anodizing threads in the front got no electrical contact with the head. I had to sand it off manually and then it worked. Maybe Convoy are a bit of overachievers. :slight_smile: Driver I put in was a 105d 6x7135 and I thought that the driver ring would fit but it didn’t so maybe one improvement to hope for in the future. You could possibly sand down the ring to make it fit with 105d but I was too lazy to do it. The body gets pretty hot when running on full output (2.1A) so I wouldn’t recommend going higher than that. If you do you should flash the driver to get away from the pwm buzzing. I’m guessing here that Convoy ships complete flashlights with stock 105c/d drivers.

I bought the Convoy S2 (Grey 2.8A)from Fasttech well over a year ago (maybe 2). It’s been one of my favorite torches and I use it most days. The 2.1A model is probably the best as the 8x7135 version heats up quickly and more use can be gained from a 2.1A model. I dont have a S3 to compare against

The S2 takes protected batteries. My protected Sanyo 70x18 mm fits. But next time I shop batteries I will try to find a tad shorter ones with pcb in the top.

Think of the S2+ as an S3 without the integrated shelf.
S2+ and S3 both have shorter/floodier reflectors.
People who build triples and quads prefer these as the extra space in the head is not needed for those.

Also this holster fits like a glove to the S series.

https://www.fasttech.com/products/1762902

Yeah it heats up pretty quickly on 2.1A too. I just checked and the weight of the S2 is 72 grams so not much but the light beam is awesome for such a small reflector. Haven’t tested that much yet but seems pretty close to a P60 sized reflector. A tad more flood in the P60 otherwise the tiny S2 holds up pretty good.

I use a Panasonic NCR18650B protected battery in my S2. Fits fine. No probs

I’ve had no problems with length of protected cells in my Convoy lights. There can be a problem with width though that I ran across recently. I discussed this in detail with Richard at Mountain Electronics. At the moment the only protected 18650 batteries he carries that I can confirm fit in the S2, S3, S6 and M2 are the Panasonic NCR18650PF. Contact him for more info there. I had originally ordered the protected LG 18650MH1 and was bummed that they wouldn’t fit any of the Convoy lights I listed above based on width. They just wouldn’t fit into the tube. The reason for this is that the original cells are wrapped and then they wrap them again to add the protection and/or button top. Based on our conversation Richard has contacted his battery supplier and they are working with him on a new supply of single wrapped protected cells. Richard is excellent about helping to resolve issues like that. As far as suppliers go Fasttech is the first place I started ordering Convoy lights from around 2 years ago and they should still be reliable. Ordering directly fro Simon through hi Ali store is my personal preference now because you can just message him with your preference in driver setup, tint, modes, etc. and he’ll customize it for you and ship it quickly. Faster than any order Chinese supplier I’ve dealt with including Fasttech and I like knowing that I’m going straight to the source. That said, if Richard has the exact light you want in stock he’ll get it to you faster than anyone if you’re in the US and his prices are great. I think the S6 and S2 are about the same in beam pattern (someone correct me if I’m wrong). The S6 is a little throwier than the S3 and S2 but not by a huge margin. All the S models I’ve seen are great and an excellent value. The S3 with the integrated shelf does handle the heat a little better but if you’re doing a custom build all that can be dealt with. My S3 is a 7135*8 at 2.8A and the heat is not unreasonable at all but if you want longer runtime with less heat you can go down a few notches without losing too much output. I love these Convoy lights, stock, semi-stock or totally hotrod-modded. Phenomenal value.

I would prefer to order directly from Simon’s shop on AliExpress, but I heard that they don’t take PayPal.

Is this so? - Justs seems better to use PP, than sending my CC# out of the country.

Thank you,
-Chuck

I’ve heard people say they’ve had no issue giving credit card info to Aliexpress but I agree with you. If you go to Simon’s store on Ali and send him a message you can pay him directly through PayPal to his email account. It is a little unconventional but having done it several times now I can tell you that he is absolutely trustworthy. I felt weird about it on my first order but Simon is great. I do it all the time now. Just go to his store and hit the contact button and take it from there. Keep in mind he’s in China. I’m in the US on EST in Michigan and the only time I get a quick response from him is if I’m up late (10:30pm and after). If I message him then, we message back and forth quickly. If I send him a message mid-day my time it takes him a day to get back to me but he always does.

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Thanks Guys!

-Chuck

+1

It’s the same size as a Convoy S5 (thinner and shorter than an S2, thinner than an S3), but after you finish it, the cost is still ~comparable to the host-only S5 (which you’d still have to build) and you get a color that doesn’t attract sticky fingers or get lost in the inevitable sea of “tacticool” black-anodized gear. Best of all, you get what you want, no compromises.

I chose the 60° optic & (being knotty) prefer a lanyard to a clip, but I would be just as happy with Keltex78’s version.

I just wish I’d known about this “discount”…

I was gonna say, "when in doubt, just get both" ;) :cash:

I just received an S2+ from gearbest, it is a great torch. It will not dissapoint.

You were right!!! I finally got the red one I ordered and it’s really nice. Definitely gonna order a few more cuz $13.00 is a steal for these things. Love the red colored body, beam pattern, metal switch and tint. Don’t think I’ll be using my Solarforce L2’s anymore.

Thanks, this looks like a good deal! Hope it really has the pill-less design.