I spent a little more than an hour the other day but I couldn’t come up with what I was looking for.
Here are my musts:
- Must be under $33. that includes shipping.
- Prefer 10440. But will consider 14500 Li.ion
- Must be 3” or Less.
- Must be at least 300 lumens.
- Must have 3 modes… one mode under 10 lumens.Preferably 1 to 5.
Mode 2 anywhere from 50 to 100 lumens.
And of course mode 3, 300 plus.
-I’m not concerned about the tint unless it’s really green. Neutral is fine, cool white is fine.
-Finally, an electronic lockout is good or the ability to twist the head to deactivate is also fine.
I had an UltraTac K18 that fit all those categories. Seems to be obsolete or at least out of stock on a few websites that I saw it on.
I actually had two of them,the stainless steel one died a couple years ago and my aluminum one just broke. The latter was my fault and the stainless steel one just stopped working.
You are a man that knows what he wants. I hope when you find this light you decide to give Surefire Titan a try. It is simply a really nice keychain light. I don’t use mine often but when I do it amazes me. I’m a fan of small lights not being very bright because I use them up close to look at combination locks at night or to read books. Too much light makes these sort of things difficult.
That’s a nice Mini torch. Although I think it’s too big for a keychain light. 3 and 1/2 in.
That’s a decision I’ll have to make. my last one, the Ultratac K18 was 3 inches, the one before that which I can’t remember the brand name, was just under two and a half inches.
I will add this I looked at some decent small lights that have proprietary batteries. No interest.
And again if it doesn’t have an attachment at the end for a keychain . It’s no good for me.
Here are five small lights I have. In my mind only one of them qualify for a keychain light. That would be my broken K18(Blue). The Beautiful Olight i3s cu is too heavy and doesn’t take 10440. Or should I say it’s not made for that you could put it in but it might fry the driver.
3 and 1/2 in is borderline and not my preference. Anything bigger is absolutely too big. I prefer 75mm/3”or smaller.
The lineup from Right to Left.
1. Olight i3s CU- 69.7mm/2.74”
2.Ultratac K18-75mm/2.95”
3.Eagletac D25Cvn-75.2mm/2.96”
4. Fenix PD12vn-82.2mm/3.23”
5. SL2Cvn-85.1mm/3.35”
I left out my Nightcore Sens CR Which is the smallest…66.7mm/2.62”
I like the Frog but will not use it with the 10180 battery. They have a maximum of 100 milliamp hours. The 10440 version needs a tube which you buy separately. Have no idea what the cost for the tube is or what the length of the flashlight will be with that.
Edit. Almost $45 for AliExpress! $22 for shipping! That’s without the tube which I have no idea the cost of the length. Maybe there’s one in the United States I can get it
Kind of like the Nightcore tip but I’m not into those proprietary batteries you’re at the mercy of the manufacturer. That battery dies, you may as well throw the light away unless you know how to modify them. Which I don’t.
Is this the Lumintop Tool AAA, or the AA?
I thought about mentioning the AAA but is seemed a bit low on output for your requirements.
OTH, the Tool AA is quite nice. For me a bit large for keychain, but for 5th pocket or front pocket with jeans it is great.
I got one a couple of months back, and now understand why it is so highly recommended around here.
BTW, if it is the AAA, Amazon (US) has them in stock.~$16 LINK
Yes, I used a 4 Sevens Mini for a long time as my EDC. I looked long and hard for an equal replacement. I never found one (though now I have a bunch of AA/14500 lights). Until I got a Tool AA. Now I can save my remaining Mini… Why I am not sure. Sentimental value maybe. . If you can find one, I think you will love it!
I really should have picked up more than one when they were on sale the end of last year.
BTW. Amazon US has three different models, Including an MAO, and Nichia 5K (high CRI) listed as in stock. Link
Not sure if you can use Amazon US, but maybe Amazon local to you might have some.
Thanks for the link. $7 more on Amazon but they have them in stock. Time to leave for my night hike. My husky always gets Restless 15 minutes before we leave! I’m bringing my very weak modified Acebeam X65 mini… 10,000 lumens 550,000 Candela. Modified. Have a good evening.
One thing to think about. Stock there is an LED in the tails witch. When I bought mine it was the “Kit” that came with the 14500 cell, diffuser, and magnetic tail cap.
I changed the switch out with the mag cap. It gets rid of the parasitic drain and turns it into a twisty. As mine often sits for periods of time, the zero parasitic drain is important. If you keep the cell charged regularly, not a big deal I guess.
You can get the mag cap for about $4 from Lumintop. But it does get rid of the keychain attachment. Not a problem for me, as I find the Tool AA a bit big for keychain use, so I pocket carry it.
But it could be a deal killer for you. Though you can always put a ring on the clip…
Now you know why I wish I would have bought more. The kit was~$19 on sale.
I’ve had the Nitecore Tini (stainless steel model) on my keyring for 4-5 years now. It’s copped a lot of abuse in my pocket everyday with about 10 keys rubbing on it, but still works perfectly. The only issue is it hasn’t got a proper lockout and sometimes gets activated in my pocket and then goes flat. I leave it in the demo mode (that turns off after about 15 seconds), but if it’s turned back on again quickly it will stay on. That must sometimes happen.
Thanks for the suggestions. I’m back on the Frog boat! Made a chart and compared it to the tool
The frog is 25 G with a 10440 battery. The tool is 47.5G with the 14500 battery Plus the tool is 3/4 of an inch longer. I like a side switch better than a tail switch. The frog has a side switch just like my K18 did.
The tool was $12 cheaper. But that length and that weight bothered me for a keychain light.
Not fond of ordering from China.Illumns is out of stock for both those lights.
However, A company called flashlightbrand who I bought three lights from in the past. Have it shipped with the 10440 extender for $34. They’ve all been good experiences. I got the light in 11 days once the other two times around 12 or 13 days.
. If you can find one, I think you will love it!