Can anyone step up for an AA/2AA only BLF budget flashlight?

[hank]

https://www.google.com/search?q=four+direction+button

finds the kind of button I’m imagining our driver designers might find interesting.

What could you do with the up-down-left-right choices available?

[Lexel]

@Lightbringer

@dhvl1357

My ideal in the single AA format is the Jetbeam MK-1 with tighter and more turns in the head threads. Also no pwm and a neutral 219b/c dedomed on an OP reflector. Retain the clip and AA/14500 support.

And no AR glass to greenify the tint. I like mt Jet I, but don’t like the green.

My Jet II isn’t so accursed.

The green is not from the lens, the LED itself has an ugly green tint
Replaced with Nichia 219 high CRI mine has now a rosy tint

If this would happen an e-switch light with rotary head like Jet-1 and a tube machined from one piece
And a ramping firmware like Narsil added with NiMh support, likely a sandwich driver with 2 boards
Nichia LED 219 D320 CRI80 or high CRI as LED choices
Cree LEDs with a small reflector get always a too warm yellow hotspot from tint shift

[TexasLumens]

@MountainKing

@texaslumens Do you ship from China? Because if it is US based, going to be very expensive for me. Cheers

Well, Texas is close to China! It’s just right over yonder. I don’t attempt to do China prices but if we can get some volume, we can keep the price down. We’ll do our best if we build it.

Thanks TL

[Lightbringer]

@Lexel

The green is not from the lens, the LED itself has an ugly green tint

Replaced with Nichia 219 high CRI mine has now a rosy tint

Hmm. Recall offhand how hard it was to take apart? Glue everywhere, or not too bad?

[TexasLumens]

Just kicking this around… what I see plus my thinking… (dangerous)

What I am seeing….

Small light
Single AA
Neutral White
Simple UI

My thinking to add…. to the above ??

14500 capabilities
Make an extension tube available for 2 AA
Perhaps an XML-2 ?
Some selection of LED Tints

Keep going…. :+1: TL

[Boaz]

side by side AA ,world be my first choice

If it had to be a 2x AA long light I’d want either very very thin straight tube with no flare on the head …
Or the opposite with a very large head and lots of throw .bigger head than the jaxman 2xAA

moon , no visible pwm and high cri

[hank]

A side-by-side like those old RayOVacs could support two emitters instead of one big oval reflector, if it could drive two LEDs.
Or an either-or (white and amber would be my choice if I had a choice)

(and yeah, those old RayOVacs had a horrible beam pattern from an incandescent bulb.
I’m using one now with one of the Dorcy PR2 LED dropins and it makes a decent but dim spot of light across the room — or a figure-8 almost 2 separate circles of light up close.
That’s the rectangular reflector.

[Echefanthony]

The more I look at the Jaxman M2 the more I like it. I especially like the neutral white tint which is why my other choice is the Zanflare f2 nw.

[Lexel]

It is glued, but way easier to get open than Nitecores red glue

Heat helps a lot making it soft
Usually clamping it with some wood to protect the finish should work

[Lightbringer]

@Lexel

It is glued, but way easier to get open than Nitecores red glue

Heat helps a lot making it soft

Usually clamping it with some wood to protect the finish should work

I don’t want to put any scuffs or scratches on it, but I’ll try… gently.

[Kindle]

@Boaz

side by side AA ,world be my first choice

I’m down with that.

If it had to be a 2x AA long light I’d want either very very thin straight tube with no flare on the head .

Note my 4Sevens recommendation above.

[Kindle]

@hank

Now called the WH2AA-B

There was also an Eveready with this form factor.
Very good backup lights when I was doing a lot of cave crawling.

Driver designers take note — This kind of thumb-pushed side switch can move both forward and backward from the neutral point.
Or go in 4 directions as on many cell or wireless phones.

That would allow more possible signal combinations.

I’d live to see a modern version along these lines.

Don’t forget the awesome Durabeam…

[Jack_Kellar]

@Kindle

Don’t forget the awesome Durabeam…

Oh wow, blast from the past there. Too bad the beam was horrendous

Either way, if they manage to make this with a nice beam, I’d be down for such a form factor.

[hank]

20mm x 40mm at the reflector end of the RayOVac, wide enough for two emitters, and the head had room for a decent heatsink if a light used two 14450 cells.

I recall the Eveready model had a rocker switch (simple cam bending a metal strip contact) on a narrow side, while the RayOVac has a slider switch on the wide side (also a cam bending a metal strip)

[ChibiM]

So are we settled on 1xAA or 2xAA yet?.. or just both? Could be nice as a gift set as well! I don`t like the idea of extenders too much, but can live with it.

My preference still goes out to a 1xAA dedicated, so no 14500. And the thing is that there are just not enough good small AA drivers.

Tailcap switch (no-twist, no fancy lighted switch)

Neutral White

3-4 modes

no blinkies

no electronic switch with thousands of modes

UI that every person in the world understands in 10 seconds.

[Phlogiston]

I prefer 2xAA, but both camps can be catered for if the driver can handle 1xAA or 2xAA. Make 3-part lights - heads, tailcaps and tubes - so that people can use a 1xAA or 2xAA tube as they wish. I’d happily pay a bit extra if the light came with both tubes as standard.

I’d love to be able to use 3xAA as well (I like long lights ).

I vote for 5000K Nichia 219B 90+ CRI, and 4 modes: moonlight, 15lm, 50 lm and “maximum with reasonable efficiency”. No mode memory, no blinkies, always starts on moonlight and works up.

If the highest mode was especially high, I’d be open to the 50lm mode being moved up a bit in order to maintain a more equal mode spacing. For example:

Moonlight	15lm	50lm	150lm
Moonlight	15lm	60lm	250lm
Moonlight	15lm	75lm	400lm

I’d lean towards a general purpose / intermediate beam profile, rather than aiming for maximum flood or maximum throw.

I prefer a perfectly straight tube light format, but would also be open to a form factor similar to the Jaxman M2.

[MountainKing]

I’m fine with either 1XAA or 2XAA but preference to 2XAA for runtimes tbh.

[Caleb]

There are already so many AA lights on the market. To get enough interest, what is going to differentiate a BLF AA light from the rest?

[Phlogiston]

@Caleb

There are already so many AA lights on the market. To get enough interest, what is going to differentiate a BLF AA light from the rest?

High CRI? Sensible modes? Configurability? Ability to use 1xAA, 2xAA, maybe even 3xAA? Nice firmware like Biscotti?

All in one light.

Remember, the BLF-348 was based on the existing Singfire-348, which is a tiny part of the crowded 1xAAA market segment. The only difference was an LED upgrade for high CRI, yet the BLF-348 sold like hot cakes in four separate group buys.

[Dutcheee]

I’d prefer single AA/14500 with true moon, balanced beam and nice u.i. (Narsil, guppydrv, Bistro…)
Lighted tailcap would be nice, but maybe too complicated and expensive…?