The V11R is, last I checked, selfbuilt’s EDC of choice. And the very similar JETBeam RRT01 is GoingGear’s EDC of choice. I think it says something that two of the people with the most experience and widest choice of lights both chose very similar models. The two are like Pepsi vs Coke.
I have a RRT01. It was $54 in early 2013. It’s nice, but … I’ve found that cr123/16340/18350 lights are just too wide for my taste, especially when they’re stubby. And the variable control ring is neat but not worth the massive drop in runtime. And it turns out I prefer having a few well-spaced fixed-output modes instead of continuously-variable. And although the tint on my particular RRT01 is the nicest Cree tint I’ve ever seen, it still pales compared to a Nichia 219. The V11R has the additional issues of the clip being clip-on instead of screw-on, and the need to flip it 180 degrees all the time to switch between clicking and twisting.
So, they are very nice lights, but it really depends quite a bit on personal taste. Personally, I’d rather have a slim 1xAA light like the L3 L10-219, the D25A 219, or perhaps a T10S/T10T. The ZL SC52 is also quite nice, but doesn’t come with any high-CRI emitter options and has a rather military aesthetic that I don’t like. Fantastic output and modes and runtimes though, and it stands up to more abuse than any other aluminum light I’ve tried.
If you like relatively large cr123-sized lights, the V11R is easily one of the best in the world and this is probably the lowest price ever for it. But if not, there are some very nice 1xAA options too.
I wouldn’t be interested in the light without the extender, so the best price on that combo would be helpful.
I already have the Mirage and RRT-01. The beam on the Mirage is disappointingly ringy, but I like the clicky to prevent accidental activation (and I’d install the Ti button onto the Mirage). The 18350 option of the RRT-01 is also a plus for the Jetbeam.
I have the Vinh modded versions of both, and both are excellent lights. Personally though I find the V11R to be better mostly due to the magnetic ring being very smooth, and with no wiggle. With it, there is also no parasitic drain. While it's negligible, it is there on the RRT01.
RRT01 has a noticeably lower low. As a backup I carry the SC52 because I can always swap in a regular AA battery into it, and do like the way it looks. Zebralights also have (imo) by far the best quality finish of any lights out there. I carry mine with my keys all the time, and it barely has a scratch. Did that with an mm15 niwalker, and it looks like it's been to war.
If an increase in size is not an issue, I would very strongly suggest looking at the nitecore SRT3. It's similar the the V11R, but comes with a AA extension default, and has a ton of extra modes you'll likely never actually use, but that will be a lot of fun to play around with (beacon, sos, blue, red, "police strobe" and regular strobe).
I don’t have an RRT01, but my CW V11R is so dim at it’s lowest setting, I have to hold it within about 2 inches of a piece of paper to be able to read printed text. It’s hard to imagine a light with a lower level.
Mine is a modded version, but so far in my experience mods don't really have much, if any impact on low modes.
The V11R has a much brighter "low" and the SC52, RRT01, and V20C all have lower output. The V20C and RRT01 are definitely the "low" champions... if I were to be stock in a cave I'd like one of them.
The RRT01 definitely has a lower low than any V11R. It goes smoothly from about six hundred lumens all the way down to zero.
Like, actual zero. Or at least the very bottom of human perceptual range.
I’m very photosensitive so I see well in the dark, and after I have allowed my eyes to adjust to pitch blackness for hours, if I hold the RRT01 directly up to my eye, millimeters away, and use its lowest setting, I can barely even tell if it’s on or not. And it can still go lower than that. Like, you could probably measure the number of photons coming out per second. They say the low is 0.005 lumens, but it’s probably even less than that.
I’m not saying that low of a level is useful… but it certainly is low.
I find, for practical purposes, the lowest useful level is the 0.06lm setting on a ZL SC52. It has a 0.01lm level too, but even in the middle of the night that’s barely enough to simply avoid tripping over objects on the floor. Also dim enough to shine at a sleeping person’s face without disturbing them. I prefer moon modes in the range of 0.1lm to 0.3lm.
If I were stuck in a cave, I’d want a ZL SC52. It has the longest run times of any 1xAA light — up to 3 months per charge. The RRT01 and V11R die after only 4 days or so, even on the dimmest setting.
Same here and good point about the cave situations... I've run some of my zebralights for well over a week with. Btw the newest SC52's are just a bit less bright, and the button on them feels a lot more mushy. Personally I prefer the click of the older ones.
The light I've kept running the longest is my first S6330... left it on for about a month, and at the lowest setting it is enough for me to get around at night. Personally I think some of the sub lumen ratings from companies out there are off.
Check out the sunwayman V20C if you like super low output, it's on the same level as the RRT01.
That[ mods NOT affecting low] is not totally true. Maybe for the smaller lights[you did not specify] but NOT for some of the high output lights. I know some of Vinh’s high output lights can lose some of the lower modes.
I just thought of a smaller torch that loses a mode. My PD12vn loses medium mode!It is Low/High/High! That is not low,but I know that some of the high powered torches lose low or some of the lower settings.
I’m a little bummed that I never got a ZL S6330. I really don’t need one, but it might be nice just for the unique things it does that nothing else had ever done before. It has “overengineered” written all over it. If I ever needed to face down a Weeping Angel, that’s the light I would want with me.
In any case, back on topic, the V11R really is a nice light, and I bet just about anyone’s dad would be happy to receive one as a gift. How often do you get to say this to someone you care about? “Here, I got this for you. It’s considered by many experts to be the best in the entire world. Enjoy!”
It is a great gift!! A guy from another forum got a V11R for his Dads 90th Birthday!! His Dad is a WWII Vet! He will love it!! Imagine what his concept of a flashlight is going back 50/60 years?!!!
A while back I gave my dad a Fenix TK75 and a non-clone Skyray King 2500lm v2 (black). Oh, and a SK-68 just because. And you know what he uses the most? The SK-68.
*sigh*
I guess I should have just given him a V11R and called it good. Would have cost a lot less and he’d probably be happier overall.
I bought both, and that's why I gave away the V11R and kept the RRT01. AA capability would be nice, but at least the RRT01 can be used with 18650's with an extender or Convoy tube & tailcap.
Er, which Convoy model(s)? It didn’t work with my S7, and the S3 is only head plus tailcap so it can’t lego either. I’m guessing maybe a S2 or perhaps S4? I wouldn’t mind having a 18650 tube for it… and the S4 has a nice clip.
It looks like someone custom made some extenders recently, too. They cost a bit more than a complete Convoy host though.
