I didn’t do the drop down protection on the FF3 even though it technically has a 24W mode only because you have to run the thing till it gets that hot. That alone is a major improvement in the FF4. The Sanyo 2600 blue top unprotected cells fit awesome. They don’t overcompress the springs and are a perfect fit. I haven’t tried any Panny IMRs or protected cells because this is what I planned using from the start. The FF3 has protected 3100 AWs with cut springs and they still barely fit and I’m afraid the wrappers are going to get ruined. But anybody not familiar with unprotected cells needs to be aware that if there is parasitic draw that they will need to check their cells if left sitting.
lawallac:
This is a direct quote from one our fellow contributors here in BLF that has an FF4 too:
I would say the blue tops are ok for high mode but if I use the turbo for the three minutes after having it on high for a time they don’t like it… the PDs are def the way to go.
I also use the 10A, high-drain NCR-PD cells. I will be charging my NCR-B 3400s tonight just to compare it with the PDs.
The PD’s fit ok, or do the FF4 springs need a slight trim for a perfect fit?
With a true flat-top, or a cell no more than 66mm, no trimming of spring. Try to see post 289 and 301 of this thread, there are pics of cells that will and will not fit.
Just got into this thread and holy crap, 428k lux.
I’m guessing warm up time is ~15-20 seconds. What’s the run time at 60W?
3 minutes
Lots of lux but also 6000+ Lumens on 60W mode. I attempted a video last night but there was way too much humidity and pollen in the air. It was like doing a fog video. The flying bugs went insane too. I’m sure there is some Uv produced even if the glass filters out 99% of it because I’ve never attracted bugs like that with an led light.
Actual 3 minute run time? or 3 minute before it steps down to 40w?
Runtime of 3min.@ 60W, then a step-down to 42W. The HID bulb runs so hot @60W, 6k lumens, it can burn your hand placed 3-4 inches in front of its glass lens, so it should step-down.
3 min is the stepdown. But it’s going to be very warm. This light stays warm for a while even after its been off. There is a lot of metal in there. You can go back to 60w if you shut it down to reset. The Ff3 drops out of 40W after 10 min or so to 24W. This runs considerably cooler in the 40W and may hold that level the entire
charge.
Went to Florida on vacation, got my Olight SR95 from Illuminationsupply delivered to my hotel, no problem with security to bring it back to Sweden…
Back home I had two packages waiting for me, one from Doingoutdoor (FF4 and EA8) and one from FastTech (8 NCR-PDs and 2 NCR-Bs unprotected).
The NCR-B is for my EagleTac G25C2 Mark II, which is now much smoother to operate than with protected.
Loaded my new FF4 with PDs and yes this is a beast……
What a bright vacation you are having there… 
Just received my FF4 from Bill today, charged the pana pd’s up and gave it a blast outside.
OMG this thing throws baddass ,beam colour outside is the best ive seen , far better than a XML t63c
Did some comparative lux readings with my S3
TN30 3xXML neutral lux 320-330
FF4 lux 1070 >)
Whitewall hunting shows a very splotchy beam with a rose tint on outer edge.
Does anybody know if the bulb will change colour as it breaks in ?
Some say it does require some burn-in period. The link below (from FF factory FAQ page) might provide additional enlightenment for people like me who are new to HIDs:
Still too much humidy after a rain to attempt a decent video but here is a short clip.
Just made a comparative whitewall beamshot to a white-painted house across the street comparing the Panasonic NCR-B 3400 vs the NCR-PD 2900 10A high-drains. Both brand new. The NCR-PDs ‘boots-up’ a lot faster, turning the HID’s pinkish hue to a very warm then to a neutralish-warm hotspot seconds faster and culminating into a noticeable, more intense hotspot and over-all output.
tatasal, have you made any battery carrier spring mods or will the NCR-B 3400 unprotected fit just fine without cutting down the springs on the battery carrier?
On this light, are the positive and negative output for the batt. carrier both on the bulb side, and therefore it’s tough to make tailcap measurements?? Can you take tailcap measurement differences between the NCR-B vs. NCR-PD?
The unpro NCR-Bs are 65mm flat-tops and they fit just fine, with very little room to spare. I think the max is 66mm.
With its existing battery-carrier design, I am not technically proficient enough to find a way to measure tail-cap current-draw measurements, if it can be done at all. Our more experienced fellows here in the forum might have the answer perhaps.
I’ve also had good luck using cgr18650s 2250IMRs. Looking at HJKs comparitor, the CGRs can sustain about the same as the 2900s at 3A, with the 2250s a little more and quite a bit more ability at 5A and moreso at 7A. They don’t have quite the capacity, but the CGRs are closer to their listed capacity at 2200 vs about 2700 mAh.