I left public work to start my own business about 6 years ago…. Around the time my second kid was born… unfortunately I had to cut back on most of my hobbies, both in terms of time and money… I never was hardcore like most of you guys… the last things I really remember was when the xpl-hi emitters where replacing… what was it t6… something like that in budget throwers. As far as floods went everyone was oohing over the nichia stuff.
Always loved convoy stuff, I still use my xpl-hi c8 and nichia s2 plus lights. After my thorfire s70s went under the blades of the bush hog I got a Astrolux ft03. Love that light. Love the UI. I forget what it’s called but having forward clicky, bat check, ramping, and the ability to go from off to moonlight or turbo is literally perfect.
Currently my cell inventory is getting pretty scarce. Down to only 1 26650 left and it’s seen better days. As far as 18650s go I still have one or two 18650GAs and or don’t vtc5s around here somewhere and a few power tool/laptop harvests but I need to get some more cells. The 21700 was just starting to get adopted it seemed when I was last into lights, but already trying to support 18650, 26650, and back then 14500 (don’t have those lights or cells anymore but damn did I used to love my Astrolux s3) I wanted to see if it really caught on before adopting it (kinda like when new trendy calibers come out). Should I get a 21700 light? 18500? 18350?
The TLDR here is this: recommend me a sub $40 light and fill me in on the most popular of the emitters that have came out since 2019 or so. I love throwers but have more practical need for a flooder… my fav lights I’ve owned in the past have been Astrolux fto3 and s3, convoy c8, s2+, thorfire tk18. I always wanted but couldn’t seem to justify an emisar d1… are they still a thing?
I would recommend a Convoy S21E. I love mine. It uses a 21700, and is quite small. I would recommend getting it with a Cree XHP50.3 HI. It uses a boost driver and is extremely efficient. With a battery, you can get one for about 30$. You can buy it at convoy’s own store: Convoy S21E black 21700 flashlight - Convoy flashlight
Looks like a decently regulated light. There are 9 (nine!) different emitters to choose from (times their CCT variants). How do one choose?
I’ve seen how some of them perform (519a, SFT40) in different hosts, but how to guess how they would do in this one?
I know I don’t want 6500K or 3000K. I know I want to use it outdoors and thus to have some range (I already have a headlamp for cooking). I know that better colour rendering is nice, but at what cost in range?
I was kind of thinking off SFT40 5000K which is low CRT but at least not as clinical as the 6500K version of it and probably will throw far enough even with small diameter optics. Is there a better choice?
Also, I don’t understand the driver that is being used in this light: is either buck or boost depending on the LED Vf?
Thanks. Hadn’t realized convoy had its own store now. I’ve always considered convoy lights to be the best bang for buck all round workhorses out there. Maybe not as fancy as some but great value and capable of withstanding the abuse all my gear is subject to.
The driver is dependent on the LED’s forward voltage, yes. A boost driver is the most efficient driver out there. This is at the cost of size, complexity, power and, well, cost. Convoy make amazing drivers for really cheap somehow, so this is an amazing deal. As for emitters, the SFT40 does well for throw, along with the SFT25-R. I would however choose the XHP50.3 HI since it throws decently, but the beam isn’t too narrow. Also, as mentioned, it is very efficient too (even in r9050, which is high CRI). If you need throw, something like an M1 or M21B with an SFT40 should do.
Unlike most folks it seems, I like 6500k when it’s in a dedicated thrower. The main thing I use my thrower for is scouting wildlife and hunting, where the “pop up book effect” doesn’t matter as much, mainly just looking for eye shine.
Yes, that is an amazing review by an amazing reviewer. That review was a part of the reason I bought mine. Check out the runtime graphs. They are insane, then you remember that it is in high CRI and it becomes crazy!
High CCT like 6500 kelvin produce a lot of back-scatter. This can be fun, and make throwers look like a lightsabers. For practical use however, it can be impractical since you have to look through the beam.
I looked at the Convoy page for the S21E. There is a TIR option - how different of a light beam to expect with this? Also, there is the Anduril map listed. I thought the the light was Anduril-free?
As mentioned, there aren’t really any 18650 convoy flashlights similar to the S21e. Also, the anduril version uses the out-dated anduril 1 and uses a wore driver.
Zak from Reddit does twice a year a list of popular Lights. It is a nice starting Point
Zak Homepage
You also missed the fancy (bloated, complicated, … ) User interface / firmware : Anduril2 from @ToyKeeper . It is Not everyones jam, but when you want to try it a Wurkkos TS10 (2th Edition) is a 14500 light ($19 with Bat.) and the Wurkkos HD10 is the right angle version. The Wurkkos Hompage has often Coupons and are relatively inexpensive
TS10 4000K with battery
You probably want the BLACK clip for the TS10 also
The TIR will make it have a floody hotspot with dim spill. It is kind of difficult to explain, but if you look search for something like «TIR vs reflector» you might understand.
