http://www.lupine.de/products/flashlights/piko_tl_minimax/
does anybody out there own any Lupine products? I would like to get this QUALITY light and then call it quits on any more light purchases.
curious what Forum members would rather get for their $370?
?
?
?
The size and output are attractive. Have you considered one of RMM's modified Convoy S2's with triple XP-G2? Get it built with 5.8A and it'll put out around 1600 lumens. Battery life should be the same as the Lupine Piko since the S2 can use a 18650 instead of (two?) 18500. You have the choice of three different driver programs with up to 6 modes and none of those have to be a blinkie mode. You can choose and swap the optics to get the beam pattern you desire. The only mod I'd make is to attach the pill extension to the pill with a screw that has loctite as further protection against it coming lose over many miles of bumpy riding. It's ~$55 if RMM builds it, or ~$40 if you buy the parts and build it yourself. Spend the rest of the money on a Supbeam X60 from v54.
Other than that, the bike light market is disappointing. Modding isn't as straight forward, and the light bodies could be a lot better. I can understand why you'd want to spend a lot more money on a premium bike light.
Personally, would never spend that kind of money on a light.
I need to spread out my purchases on ammo & guns and multipe lights for the Zombie apocalypse. LOL
Easily you could get two of RMM’s modded S2 Convoys for double the light and warmer beam, then buy one for your wife, 2 for your kids or relatives, batteries for all, and have enough left for a nice steak dinner 
dqg triple xpg2
rmms convoy @ 5.8amps
vinh x3vn @8.2amps and 3000 lumens
I don’t own any Lupine lights but I’ve read that they are of excellent quality.
For those suggesting RMM’s triples: Those are great lights … but note that the Lupine says their light can run for 2 hours at 1200 lumens. You can’t do that with a small triple. Battery in 1x18650 triple won’t last that long at 5.8 amps … and in any event it probably can’t be run for more than 5 minutes or so without becoming burning hot.
RMM sells a triple that runs off of a 26650 that should do it. Sag would probably prevent full output during that period though. It helps that the Lupine runs at 7.2V.
Come on though, given the price, it seems like a no brainer to get two of RMM's modified triples.
The Lupine appears to be a very nice light, and trying to match its performance and size and weight may not be possible at this time.
from all that I have seen and read about Lupine lights, I think I would find myself drooling on the light as I first opened the box. Some serious quality.
I’m curious what this “serious quality” means.
At the end of the day, isn’t it still just a host, two XML emitters, two Ledil optics, a 3 mode driver, a switch, and two Panasonic 18500s? Judging by the specs, it seems to pull about 3 amps. Nothing spectacular.
The driver doesn’t look like anything special. 470lm medium mode rated at 3 hours on two 2000mAh 18500s. That’s not especially efficient. ZL H600 claims 660lm for 2.5hrs on a single 18650 and costs less than $90.
What am I missing here.
Quality isn't a sum of its parts. It's how those parts work together.
It's not made on a lathe. That alone adds a lot of manufacturing cost, but comes with benefits.
Because it's not shaped like a pipe, it won't roll off a table.
It can tail stand or sit flat on a table with a lanyard.
It has a built in charger that is weather sealed.
It can be mounted on a bike, tripod or attached with a clip.
It has color indicator lights in its side clickie.
It almost certainly has a direct thermal path from where the mcpcb sits to the fins. No removable pill creating an interface that heat must traverse.
There are a few manufacturing details that this light may have that would make a huge difference to me. It might have it, but I haven't been able to confirm it.
1. The screws attaching the tailcap may thread into a brass or steel nutsert. That could effectively last a lifetime of heavy use, unlike aluminum threads. The aluminum threads for the bike/tripod mount makes me doubt that though...and that should also be steel.
2. The tailcap and bezel might have molded silicone gaskets instead of o-rings. That would be a very nice engineering touch, and because of the way they are attached, there's no concern about it eventually ripping like silicone o-rings.
The battery is a non issue. If you want a shorter version, go for the MiniMax that uses 18500's. If longer battery life is desired and a slightly longer light is ok, then go for the Max. It costs about 5% more and has double the battery life.
The efficiency is something we should think more critically about all lights. With very rare, or no, exception, lights aren't going to put out full output until the battery is dead. With the SC600mkII, selfbuilt found that runtimes in high modes are considerably shorter than what Zebralight has published. Maybe it's the same for the Piko, but it'd mean a lot if they actually published tested times instead of calculated times. That's one reason I don't like Spark lights. I like their designs, but their ignorance of their product has put me off for years.
Lupine isn’t budget, yet a bloody nice set-up for what I’ve seen.
If one fell into my lap, I’d be most gracious 
I would agree if you had said, quality isn't just a sum of it's parts. The quality of the individual parts matters a lot I think. And it appears that other than the host, the components are the same ones available in less expensive lights.
The host and the way it's put together are really the only distinct things about it. Does that alone justify the price tag?
Well, I wouldn’t have it. The specs don’t add up for me, and the run time certainly does not. Aluminum board for the LEDs, that’s what the specs say. 1200 Lumens? Yeah, calculated emitter lumens, not Out the Front measured.
Once you’ve built 60 to 80 lights you really see how it all correlates. Emitter to mass to cells. And yes, in the end it’s all just a host with emitters and drivers. Get fancy, CNC mill it if you want to, but if it’s so “lightweight” and all that, with aluminum under the emitters, where’s the heat control, the thermal mass required for keeping the emitters cool? 2 18500’s? Seriously? 2 hours? (Edit: I see now that they claim 1 hour and 20 minutes, still don’t see it. It would take 2.8A at the very least, and 2000mA of battery isn’t going to push 2800mA for 80 minutes) On high? Laughable.
Look at Match’s chart. 1.4A to make 600 lumens on Al. A big healthy chunk of Al. If we only were talking one emitter at 1.4A, how long will a 2000mA battery run it? (look into 18500 cells, what are the most capable one’s out there? Can they physically perform this well?) No losses, no inefficiencies, no sag and no drain considered. Now double the emitters. And since this is touted as a bike light, why aren’t the fins running in the same direction as the expected air flow? Losing efficiency right there! The claims don’t add up. Sorry. I would expect you to see around 800 lumens out the front, maybe, and about an hour run time also in a best case scenario, with lumens dropping down to 350 or so by the time your cells were depleted. I’d be surprised to see it do better than that. (Edit II: please keep in mind that TIR optics are usually at best around 90% efficient. So that’s 2 optics robbing 10% of the emitters output with no consideration to the driver efficiency or heat loss)
To me, $100 would be high priced with so many opportunities lost.
But what do I know. I just build em and play with em. This rant is all about personal perception. I don’t ride, anymore, and have no need for a light that serves the purpose this one is aimed at. I DO have an expensive well made light. At the end of the day, it’s no different than my modded keychain light that cost a fraction of the monies. If you like the build, the hype, go for it. Let us know after you use it for a while what you think about it.
I’ve been wrong maybe more than I’ve been right, I’m sure if I’m way off base here someone won’t hesitate to show me the error of my ways…
I’m not a techy person at all. So, I can’t comment on your post here. But I took the liberty to copy it and send it off to Lupine for their comments on it. If they comment, I’ll post it here. I hope it’s in English.
Ever buy a Macintosh product, bring it home, and take it out of its box/packaging?
Im thinking you could buy 3 or 4 of plenty of others and then you and your mates can go to a field at night and play cricket/baseball/lacrosse/whatever.
Bike?? Gaffa or duct tape to the bars.
Does the Lupine have a more intuitive interface or something? A sleeker user experience?
Personal preference.
Don’t get me wrong, I love biking and I love bike lights, owned couple of magicshine lights, Fenix BT20 and BT10, many clones etc but $370 for a bike light!!! that’s nuts…
If you want nuts, look at the price for highway legal automotive headlights.
