EC06 Tear Down Review

[Tom_E]

For a light like this, max performance is only there for a few seconds. A 40T would be fine, even the P42A is an excellent choice. The initial draw on each cell will be about 30 amps, but not sustained - short burst.

[Fedtro]

@Tom E

For a light like this, max performance is only there for a few seconds. A 40T would be fine, even the P42A is an excellent choice. The initial draw on each cell will be about 30 amps, but not sustained - short burst.

Tom I use Vapcell T42...

[Fedtro]

@Fedtro

@Tom E

For a light like this, max performance is only there for a few seconds. A 40T would be fine, even the P42A is an excellent choice. The initial draw on each cell will be about 30 amps, but not sustained - short burst.

Tom I use Vapcell T42...

Vapcell T42 21700 4200mah 35A/50A - Vapcell batteries and Chargers

[Tom_E]

So do I but not everyone is goin to spring for them. The T42 is a borderline 30T with more capacity - excellent, $46 + tax for 4. Also the T50 would do well at $75 plus tax for 4 (Ali VapCell store), but the T50 is lower performing slightly, but better capacity - funny, I was just gonna add that link (https://www.vapcelltech.com/h-pd-148.html). It shows head to head against the 30T and 40T at 30 amps. It's a better 40T, much better than the new 40T-3's.

[Fedtro]

@Tom E

So do I but not everyone is goin to spring for them. The T42 is a borderline 30T with more capacity - excellent, $46 + tax for 4. Also the T50 would do well at $75 plus tax for 4 (Ali VapCell store), but the T50 is lower performing slightly, but better capacity - funny, I was just gonna add that link (https://www.vapcelltech.com/h-pd-148.html). It shows head to head against the 30T and 40T at 30 amps. It's a better 40T, much better than the new 40T-3's.

If you are interested I bought them on Alibaba because they cost less than on AliExpress, you have to talk to Annie and ask for the lowest price they can do, I bought 40 and paid $ 265 including shipping and tax.

[Fedtro]

@Fedtro

@Tom E

So do I but not everyone is goin to spring for them. The T42 is a borderline 30T with more capacity - excellent, $46 + tax for 4. Also the T50 would do well at $75 plus tax for 4 (Ali VapCell store), but the T50 is lower performing slightly, but better capacity - funny, I was just gonna add that link (https://www.vapcelltech.com/h-pd-148.html). It shows head to head against the 30T and 40T at 30 amps. It's a better 40T, much better than the new 40T-3's.

If you are interested I bought them on Alibaba because they cost less than on AliExpress, you have to talk to Annie and ask for the lowest price they can do, I bought 40 and paid $ 265 including shipping and tax.

One day (hopefully soon) someone will have to organize a group buy also for batteries, not just for flashlights.

[Tom_E]

Yea, volume is the key because of the high shipping costs. I just submitted a request for quote for qty 10 - we'll see. If it's in the realm of $7-$8 each plus tax, that's decent. Group buys are tough w/shipping, domestic or Int'l.

[Tom_E]

She could do qty 20 for $152 shipped, but the order has these trade terms:

EXW: Your supplier suggested the trade term for this order is EXW, so you need to pick up the goods from the nominated factory place, and arrange shipment by yourself, also afford all the fees and risks that may occur during delivery. If you are not satisfied with this trade term, please contact your supplier to negotiate about it.

Sounds a little scary to me. I don't want to get hit by some tariff, import fee, or have to drive 2000 miles away to pick them up - the US is a big country....

[Scallywag]

A great teardown and review as always, Tom.

The FET is the ChipSourceTek HYG013N03LS1C2, labeled: G013N03 (C2)(link is external) they are using I haven’t seen before, but the specs on it look pretty good, so I’d rate it up there with the better Infineon’s and Vishays we use.

I’m very curious, and would love to see before/afters with SIRA20DP swapped
But that’s a lot of work

As far as all the runtime testing, I keep comparing these lights to my M6. Set to 65C, it will sustain full 16*7135 until it drops out of regulation, powering 3 XHP50.2 3V. That’s tail-standing on a table without cooling. Maybe this guy is putting out more heat because it’s on the FETs.

[Tom_E]

Yea, 16 7135's is 5.6 amps - that's nothing. I suspect this light does ~24-28 amps per cell, ~72-84 amps total for a very brief amount of time, like 1-2 seconds, maybe....

Figure to hit 27K, each LED has to do 4.5K lumens, and that takes in the realm of 12-14 amps.

Maybe 1-2 secs is an exaggeration - maybe nano-seconds.

[how_crazy_is_this]

@Funtastic

@Tom E

Funtastic - is the light free standing? I know if I were to do the tests in my PVC tube lightbox against the glass and with tight fitting foam around it, it would bottle up the heat

Ah, that’s interesting, I had never thought of the heat rising from the tube or projected back from the diffusing disc.

Well, I’m not making more runtime tests, so guess I’ll just use it on my review. How should I make graphs without the tube? Maybe a shoe box? I can’t just sit it in a dark room since it needs monitioring

I am glad that Tom E mentioned this. I have thought it when I look at your charts compared to my completely uncalibrated eyeballs;-). My personal lights seem to me to perform better and I have always wondered if the tube itself was causing more aggressive regulation. Of course I live in the frozen north so my lights will always have more cooling. Even indoors my lights typically are working in about 19 degrees vs a more standard 22. The other night, when it was much warmer than it is now, I ran my SC31 Pro on Turbo for a short block with the dogs. My guess would be roughly 3 min or so. Did a temp check at the end of the block and it was 23. May have to try it again tonight when ambient should be about –15.

[icpart]

@how crazy is this

@Funtastic

@Tom E

Funtastic - is the light free standing? I know if I were to do the tests in my PVC tube lightbox against the glass and with tight fitting foam around it, it would bottle up the heat

Ah, that’s interesting, I had never thought of the heat rising from the tube or projected back from the diffusing disc.

Well, I’m not making more runtime tests, so guess I’ll just use it on my review. How should I make graphs without the tube? Maybe a shoe box? I can’t just sit it in a dark room since it needs monitioring

I am glad that Tom E mentioned this. I have thought it when I look at your charts compared to my completely uncalibrated eyeballs;-). My personal lights seem to me to perform better and I have always wondered if the tube itself was causing more aggressive regulation. Of course I live in the frozen north so my lights will always have more cooling. Even indoors my lights typically are working in about 19 degrees vs a more standard 22. The other night, when it was much warmer than it is now, I ran my SC31 Pro on Turbo for a short block with the dogs. My guess would be roughly 3 min or so. Did a temp check at the end of the block and it was 23. May have to try it again tonight when ambient should be about –15.

I tested a little bit my EC06 at room temperature of 20 degrees. I also calibrate it and set thermal limit to 55 degree. I tested temperature of body with thermal probe in tripod hole. For reference I used my SP33 v2 light which I know it is about 1000 lumens stable and ceilingbounce with tail standing in dark room. From my measurement at room temperature without to activate turbo I tried to measure sustained output without to trigger thermal control. From my measurent that was about 2500-2600 lumens without fan coooling, with fan it is around 4000. Also there is difference between MCU temperature sensor and body temperature. It is within around 5 degree. Maximum body temperature was about 50 degree.

[Scallywag]

@Tom E

Yea, 16 7135’s is 5.6 amps - that’s nothing. I suspect this light does ~24-28 amps per cell, ~72-84 amps total for a very brief amount of time, like 1-2 seconds, maybe….

Figure to hit 27K, each LED has to do 4.5K lumens, and that takes in the realm of 12-14 amps.

Maybe 1-2 secs is an exaggeration - maybe nano-seconds.

Right - I was just trying to guess at sustained lumen comparisons, since I don’t have a loomentoob

[Light_Veteran]

Nice review Tom.
Thank you so much for sharing with us!
I think I’ll buy one in next future

EDIT 12/18/21: I buy one

[richbuff]

Omg, mine is finally unstuck from Fontana Awesung and on its way!

I ordered from BG without waiting for the group buy code, on November 27, and soon I will find out if mine is a hot as Tom E's.

Net time, wait for Freeme to reply with the code.

[richbuff]

Mine finally arrived today. I did a small white room ceiling bounce check comparison with my X45 that was significantly boosted to 25,000 lumens by Vinh54.

I used three fully charged 40T with professionally done solder blob top.

I made sure I was in Advanced UI by checking to see that double click from top of ramp yielded Turbo.

(Simple UI does not yield Turbo when double click from top of ramp)

I made sure that I was in Turbo from Off, by double clicking from Off, then double clicking again; or by two clicks and hold the second click. (2H)

Yes, the light definitely is much, much closer to 25,000 lumens than 16,000 lumens. Same with Molicel P42A 4200mAh 45A slightly raised tops. Yes, it gets hot in Turbo in a short amount of time. I am very much impressed with the turn on power per size per cost per quality ratio.

Pics of the box labels that show dates:

EC06-product-label-1 hosted at ImgBB

https://ibb.co/h1F0fkQ

[torchfanatic]

Nice!

I hope mine is also from the first batch. I just ordered last night.

Hope it reaches the UK before the end of the year!

[richbuff]

I have been so very intrigued by the turn on performance of this light, the inimitable Astrolux EC06. How intrigued have I been? Intrigued enough to keep this thread going.

Well, anyway, I decided to do a small white room ceiling bounce comparison of it with:

X45, boosted and measured by Vinh at 25,000 lumens. 4 x 70.2, 4 x unprotected max drain 18650.

MS06 vn, measured by Vinh at only 18,000 lumens. Manufacturer speced at 25,000 lumens. 6 x 70.2, 3 x Imalent branded protected 21700.

D18 vn, 18 x W2, measured by Vinh at 15,500 lumens, 3 x max drain unprotected 18650.

And the star of the show, the EC06, 6 x 50.2, 3 x unprotected 40T 21700 professionally solder blob top and also with 3 x Molicel 21700 P42A 4200mAh 45A.

All tests were conducted with all contact points and surfaces assiduously cleaned and tightened, cells fully charged.

After more than a few years of doing small white room ceiling bounce checks with a few dozen high performance lights that were measured by Vinh and whose lumens were recorded by him, I have concluded that turn on lumens for my sample of the EC06 is halfway between what the manufacturer speced at 16,000 lumens at one end, and what [b]Tom E[/b] indicates for his early/first production sample, 24,000 lumens.

That would be very close to 20,000 turn-on lumens for my second(?) production run Astrolux EC06.

Not bad, actually very, very nice turn on power to size ratio, and very nice power to cost ratio, and very nice quality to cost ratio.

Excellent power/size/quality/cost ratio.

Thanks to everyone who made this screaming, nice quality, nice price, 6 x 50.2 flashlight possible, and thanks to all the reviewers and thanks to [b]Tom E[/b] for his tear down review and screaming lumens measurements.

----------------------------

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[Review] ASTROLUX EC06 Pop-can flashlight with 16,000 lumens, 566m beam distance, Type-C charging/discharging & Anduril II [Review] ASTROLUX EC06 Pop-can flashlight with 16,000 lumens, 566m beam distance, Type-C charging/discharging & Anduril II The_Flashaholic

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[Westie]

Hi Tom!

I’m copy-pasting my comment from another thread. I’m hoping you could help me, please.

I was thinking about replacing the LEDs in the switch of my Astrolux EC06.
I think it’s pretty straight forward and it can be done by unscrewing the switch collar. L That’s gonna be my first flashlight mod.
Is there a tool to take it apart other than needle nose pliers? Maybe a wrist watch spamner?

Does someone know which size SMD LEDs are in those switches? It looks to me like Astrolux/Sofirn/Matematico use similar switches.

Does the color of the LED matter?
The stock LEDs are green and I would use some other color. Maybe amber. I even saw UV. That would be cool but I don’t know if resistors are needed on those small LEDs because of the different voltages like in the bigger LEDs.

[Scallywag]

Different colors will have different forward voltages. They may be brighter, dimmer, or not work. You could possibly adjust some resistor values to correct this.