A few thought / questions / ramblings……
I think I’d prefer at least a 2 cell flashlight over a single cell…. or can there be advantages with having a single cell?
Also what about LED Numbers? Is having 3 LEDs better then one? Will it be brighter / better thrower? or just suck up the batteries faster without much performance gain?
This would be the handheld flashlight I take spelunking.
The one flashlight I’m leaning to most at the moment is;
” Small Sun ZY-T08 Cree XM-L T6 635LM 5-Mode White Light LED Flashlight “:https://www.fasttech.com/products/1188301
I like this one because of the side by side batteries keeps length down.
FandyFire STL-V2 Cree XM-LT6
I’ve read some good things about this light, but I’m not sure I’d like the extra length of the flashlight.
You want to look at the size of reflector to judge throw. A wider deeper will produce a tighter hot spot with more throw. Most of the multi emitters will be more flood, because they need smaller reflectors to fit multiple inside the head.
The zy-t13/t08 are good for the price. Needs some minor modding to get the most out of them though
If I were going into a cave Splunking I'd probably take a 2xAA light .I can't imagine wanting to haul a big light around with me but it depends on the cave I guess .
On the other hand the lights you picked are all very popular here and any and all of them are good picks .
The STL-V2 is your best bet, and it can be shortened with 2 x 18500 batteries. Most throw for little money. And it has been my experience that the HD2010s vary in quality. The T-08 is a great budget pick. I miss mine ever since giving it away to an uncle.
Are you sure you want a thrower for spelunking? I would think you would want more flood than throw or something well balanced between the two. Tint would also be a big concern I would think. A cool white would seem like carrying around a florescent light and in a cave I would think you want something that would make colors pop out at you.
I love my Small Sun ZY-T08 and if you really need something that throws hundreds of yards than this is it in a small package. A simple de-domed XM-L2 mod and you have unreal throw and a more neutral tint.
If what you need is something that can throw and has good flood in a small package and you don’t want to mod I don’t see how you could go wrong with this. XinTD C8 V4 XM-L2 get it in Neutral it’s worth it.
Other than the obvious size considerations, IMO, the advantage of a single cell is that you have fewer problems with cell mismatch. Rechargeables that are not protected should be matched by voltage and charge capacity to be sure that a cell doesn’t over-discharge.
I also fail to see how a thrower is the best bet in a cave, surely tint and run time are more important? I’ll also second the xintd c8 suggestion but with a caveat, carry another light, a low current 18650 xm-l tube light, and get at least four good cells. then you have a back up light for changing a cell and if one light fails, you have cells that will run either functional light.
just got out from the place where you are standing right now, pick a ZY T08.
with less budget, either HD2010 or ZYT08 is good. reflector size is similar. however for mod purpose i think HD2010 is better for thermal management. the reflector is alu while small sun is resin or plastic.
those choices if for thrower with useable spill and bright.
if really just aim a thrower, pick the similar reflector size but using XRE emitter. throw like pencil beam although not always can identify object at distance clearly.
My T08 has an aluminum reflector it came from manafont and it also has no thermal problems that I am aware of. It throws too, especially now with a de-domed XM-L2 it’s really something else. For an all around light it is probably my number one light. It’s not that big, it throws like crazy but does have a usable spill. Batteries last a good long time.
I ordered mine from FT, and there’re users reported as a plastic or resin reflector. I’m gonna revert it here once received it. the other reason that I pick T08 instead of HD2010 is the parallel battery. more running time
Well my first thrower came; Small Sun ZY-T08; a few days ago and was playing around with it.
Pretty sure that I’ll never take it into a cave with me. Will be good spotting wildlife at night.
Was back at the cave again and the Convoy M1 does work extremely well….
