I wanted to reconstitute my Sofirn C01 stash but it looks like they have been dicontinued, does anything like it exist ? small AAA twisty, 5mm led, decent quality.
Thanks.
Skilhunt E3A is similar and has a decent quality but it is 1 mode 100 lumens light.
I would like better if it would has one low mode more.
Thanks, looks interesting but i’d rather have one with a 5mm led (i have a ton of great quality 5mm warm leds to mod it with) and a similar power output/battery life as the C01
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C01’s output is 8 lumens… Any new modern AAA twisty with a 3535 emitter gives you somewhere around 100 lumens. Time to let the old timer go to the pasture.
Pretty sure all 5mm AAA lights are discontinued.
Maybe pick up some of the cheap “squeeze” 5mm LED lights that take coin cells? Cheap host and should be an easy mod.
There’s a move towards “modern” emitters and COB chips, so even the multi LED work lights (24+ 5mm LEDs) are getting hard to find.
The purpose of these lights is not the power, but having a key ring light with a lot of longevity in case of emergency.
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I get the attraction of the C01’s. Saw the writing on the wall & bought a few on closeout. When the time changes in fall it’s dark when I get up. A C01 is an excellent low-output AAA vampire. I use one as such to move around a dark house to not trip over a dog, cat, or step on some random dog toy & still retain decent nights vision.
slmjim
I love C01 but this little guy is diminutive, well built and handy.
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The C01 is just the right amount of light and beam profile for 99% of all my needs, it’s always on me while being unoticable, and i knew that even if it had a few weeks of sporadic use without recharging it still had around 10 hours of battery life in it, i’ve had more than 100 lights (still have 50+), a lot of different EDC, at the end this simple low output is the perfect light for me when modded with a High CRI warm led.
I have a Fenix E01 v2 modded with 519A. It does 5/25/100 lumens with a single AAA for up to 25 hours. Maybe you can look at this one?
The stock SST20 6500k has an ugly green tint that’s why I had to swap it out. The 519A has beautiful tint and high CRI and the output is about the same.
Sounds great, i’ll have a look at it, thanks
Have you looked at the Fenix E01 V2. That is what is on my keychain. I have several of the AAA type keychain lights. I like the Fenix because it has three levels. Always comes on the lowest level. It is also pretty cheap. Smaller than the C01 too.
I Just saw them for $12.95 (sale price) on the Fenix web site.
I bought 6 of the C01s when they were closing them out. I wish I had gotten more… I have given all but one away. They made the change to defaulting to low on the “s”.
The E3A is a bit smaller, but not enough to notice in the pocket. And only a single level. It is almost too small. I find it difficult to operate it with one hand. Mine is very stiff as well, so that doesn’t help. Yes I have lubed it well…
I also like the Lumintop EDC01 for size. But it defaults to the highest level of the three it has on turn on. Still a nice small light if that doesn’t bug you.
Same here $3/each iirc.
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The point of the C01 was never high output. Similar size 100 lumen lights were available years before the C01 was introduced. The C01 that I use as a nightstand light is actually brighter than ideal for that job.
The point was to take a light that was both a cockroach and a vampire, and also make its light beautiful. The old Fenix E01 can survive multi-story falls onto pavement, and run on batteries that most devices think are dead, but it’s stock emitter has often been described as “angry purple” or other unpleasant tints.
Fenix was not interested in the idea, but Sofirn agreed to make a clone of the E01, and although it really is a niche product, the first batch sold out quickly enough Sofirn decided to do a second run.
If you know the basics of reflow soldering and want a neat DIY project, you can make a low output, single mode driver, and possibly find some existing light to fit it in, or get creative crafting your own peculiar body.
See this post, for a simple Joule thief design, including a parts list, and a link to where you can have the PCB that gchart designed for it custom made:
I think there’s probably still a market for a tiny AAA 5mm “muggle” light. Not sure why Sofirn/Wurkkos haven’t done a new version of the C01/C01S. Budget price, do it in multiple colours, I’m sure it would sell. The originals sold pretty well as I recall.
the olight i3e. It’s one of two olights I have. No onboard charging (bonus), aaa non-priprietary battery. It’s a twist on / off (easy one handed), very bright (90 lumens), and small. I have had two as freebies - they give them away during sales. You don’t have to buy anything else, just have an account and log in; it is Au$7.50 (< US $5.00) postage.
Also, during sales they usually come in different color schemes. The last one I got is orange with skulls. I will give this away to a family member.
I also have the olight i3T eos. It’s another simple aaa; 2 modes (5 lumens, 180 lumens), non proprietary battery, no onboard charging, tail switch. I keep these in urban and bush kits, along with an extra battery. They’re backup lights for me, just for when I get caught out. I can actually walk bush tracks at night time with the 5 lumens pretty easily.
The i3t is a pretty good light - dare I say one of Olight’s best imho (I’m not kidding). Only problem is it’s a bitch to do a reflow, I managed to get the TIR out but I had to use an air compressor. And Olight continues to refuse to adopt high CRI emitters wide scale.
But if I’m getting a muggle keychain light like the C01, I’d want it to be a high CRI. I don’t need the high output or 10440 support of the I3T, as good of a light as it is. A high CRI emitter with nice tint makes more sense in this type of light.
I personally have been using the Skilhunt E3A for the last couple years. Love almost everything about it. I only wish it had 2 modes instead of just 1, then it would be perfect to me. Bonus is it’s even tinier than the C01.
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Varta make keychain AAA flashlight with 5mm led.
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