I mean, that should be the multimeter leads.
I measure with 2mm thick, 3cm long copper(paper clip) and must be very carefully to get a 100% contact.
From all lights i have (plenty) i always had decent current draw from all cept the TR-801 of the famous ebay deal which were heavily overdriven.
Currently i have 2 XM-L's both doing over 2,9A. 3 more on the way. The manafont one 3 mode no strobe is however the best.
All lights i have, had one problem.
After some battery chanches the pill or sometimes the switch was a little bit screwed out and loose contact.
When i now get a new flashlight, i always check, if all screwed tight togehter (pill/clicky).
But it could be, after some battery chanches it´s the same.
Reason maybe the protected batteries....too long/too much pressure on springs.
First of all, I just want to thank Flashpilot for his awesome review - it convinced my to buy what is a very well implemented flashlight. Also seeing all the other first time posters here (and everyone else - love your work), I just had to join in as well, these LED flashlights are just too addictive, and yet so much cheaper and than other addictions (the budget ones anyway).
Onto the light, with Trustfire 2400mAh "flames", measured at the tailcap with a cheap, but not cheapest multimeter, I got:
@3.8V @4.14V @4.24V
High 1.96A 2.5A Basically the same as @ 4.14V
Med 0.78A 0.98A
Low 0.075A 0.094A
So the light, throw and spill coming off this thing is VERY impressive, and second only to the 5*R2 drop-ins in the budget spectrum. Also, as Flashpilot mentions, the pill being screwed into the head, rather than the body, is great for heatsinking and the best on any of the 8 budget flashlights I have purchased so far ;-).
However, with a 2 of my 5 flaming trustfires, when their voltage is up over 4.04V and they are in the torch (not being measured by the multimeter), when I switch it onto high it flashes very brightly (brighter than normally on high) then cuts out. It works fine on medium and low, flashes once and cuts out on strobe and SOS. However, when I take that same battery out and hook it up through the multimeter, i get only a touch over 2A on high. The other three batteries @ 4.2V don't cut out.
So my best guess at the moment is that for the two 'cut-out' batteries, these batteries have lower than usual internal resistance and the light is drawing so much current that the batteries protection circuit cuts off the current. If the setup is that high mode is direct driven, this would seem to make sense as XMLs have quite a low Vf.
I think I might need either a better multimeter and/or thicker wires, because it is obvious that by hooking up the multimeter to measure current, I am increasing resistance in the circuit and reducing the current at the LED. I am considering the virtues of purchasing a lux meter and setting up a test rig to hold the light pointed as the meter and measuring lux with and without the multimeter measuring current. Also might need another multimeter just to compare. And maybe some unprotected cells.
So I have pretty much the same results as Andi, and for those out there who are getting slightly lower current readings, it *might* be related to the multimeter and affect only the readings, not actual performance in torch, or it might be the battery, so there might be something you can do.
Keep on chasing those lumens.
Hi Darren
Welcome to BLF - I hope you have fun here.
I do.
When i´m searching in net for flashlight measurements, i ever get much different readings.
Reason is the different quality of the multimeter/leads. LOL
Voltage can be measure with very cheap leads correctly, but for Ampere you need a very good contact.
Try it out, pull out the leads and use a thick curved copper paper clip as leads ;-)
p.s. i now have 3 Trustfire 18650 i EVER measure 3,1-3,4A (@4,2V) and it works fine :-)
hmm, i will have to try this! Thanks Andi!
Darrenm, I think you're spot on in thinking it's the protection circuit kicking in. I've had this same thing happen in the past.
Oh, and Welcome to BLF! You won't save any money here vs that other site, but you'll have a hell of a lot more lights to show for it 
You beat me to it!
Nice thing about budget lights is that if they are junk at least you haven't spent that much. Several of my lights cost less than a Big Mac. Two of them cost enough to block my coronary arteries with junk food.
Aloha and welcome to BLF darrenm!
I measured a 18650 fired Trustfire run(All on High):
4,21V = 3,49A
4,18V = 3,32A
3,90V = 3,01A
3,73V = 2,63A
3,00V = end (flashlight switch to mid)
All measured with this multimeter: http://www.dealextreme.com/p/xl830l-digital-multimeter-10018 and use of thick paper clips as leads.
I think about it, to solder 4mm thick copper wire in my multimeter, then i can measure Ampere directly and for others i buy some "crocodile clip" leads.
edit: Have noticed, when i´m pushing the battery down to the pill(like working flashlight screwed togehter) i have higher Ampere measurements, i now measure 3,83A at HIGH (4,18V) !!!
Could it be, there are 2 versions of this flashlight, somewhere i read about a white led-protector, mine has a black one.
And on driver is a soldered spring.
Manafont has this flashlight with white led-protector, driver without a spring and SMO reflector, but maybe kaidomain has also 2 versions?
And my question, do anybody know, where i can buy a SMO reflector for this flashlite, i only found the OP one.
Do the "flat top" 18650 cells fit ok in this light ?
Thanks to this review I have this torch on order and have spotted some (admittedly expensive) panasonic and sanyo cells on ebay from a uk seller (torchy - anyone bought from him before ?). Wish I'd read the reviews of uniquefire cells before I bought a couple, still, the u/fire's both work and hold voltage - lucked out there I guess :)
Mine from KD has springs on both sides of battery, so "flat top" 18650 should work.
Brilliant, thanks Andi
Welcome to the madness Darren. Im glad you’re enjoying your new light. Many of my friends have purchased this model and all give it high marks. Im not so sure about the battery problem you’re experiencing. I doubt the pair you described have an exceptionally low resistance, but rather a quality variance in the protection PCB. Whatever the cause, Id advise you not to remove the PCB from the battery. With 18650’s most protection circuits never work well, except on constant current regulated applications - or in the case of a dead short. Many of us with budget lights have certainly experienced the later where the protection circuit has potentially saved our asses... including myself on more than one occasion with all the fiddling I do when modding these lights.
It wont be long before you’re looking at buying another light... you have been forewarned. Haha!
i have no numbers to confirm or deny, but, i have a few other very bright flashlights, mc-e, p7, overdriven r5 etc. but this is clearly, without a doubt, not even close... the brightest flashlight i have seen. wow. someone, i think don, said something about an xm-l being too bright for indoor use, and possibly, just possibly, it is conceivable with this.
Hi guys, I just got mine and would almost agree with you guys about everything about this light. This light can produce the same amount of lumens as my lumintop TD15X, just that the KD C8 hot spot is larger and more of a white/blue tint. However I am experiencing a problem with the light when it gets hot. Are you guys able to switch mode when the flashlight gets hot? I wonder if it is a driver problem.
I dont let mine get hot enough to tell, but then I only use mine outside where it gets plenty of cool moving air to exchange the heat. It still gets warm but not hot enough that it becomes uncomfortable to hold. After a sustained burn, it still changes modes without any difficulty. Are you using it inside or outside?
How long must it be turned on to be hot enough?
I have no problems, after 15Min. running at high (indoor), i would say, it´s not hot, only warm.
(maybe i had cold hands^^)
Only, if i get too much A from Battery (only one of my 8 x 18650) flashlight switch to lower mode.
It switch also to lower mode, if battery is empty.
I will be putting mine to the run-time test tonight, however the temperature is going to be around -2c (very very warm for this time of year) but still, it will help keep the light cooler. I will let you know if I have any mode switching problems or any other issues of note.
My multimeter only reads 1.95a of draw on my KD C8, however it is a cheaper multimeter.