Which is the most powerful 18650 zoomable flashlight?
Most zoomies are not really that bright because of the size of die and lens not being big enough to get the lumens out. I have a Canso XM-L zoomie and it boasts 630 lumens (which I believe). But it’s not as impressive as the Small Sun ZY-C10s. The well-driven XR-E is putting out a higher surface brightness, and aside from a Sipik 68, I won’t have another zoomie than this one. It’s a super-duper thrower.
My 3xD tractor supply xml zoomie pulls nearly 6 amps from tenergy Ds :bigsmile:
But, stock, the zoomie that draws the most power from a cell, is probably the keygos m12 (>3 amps)
it won’t touch the zyc10s as far as throw - but it has enough throw for my needs (if there is such a thing as enough…)
next would be uft20 (depends on the driver that comes with it, but mine are all >2.5 amps stock)
Actually, i’m more interested in the flood capabilities, with the optional throw for when i need it. But more important is the flood.
The most "powerful" flood zoomie I have seen is the Sipik SK96. It has very poor heatsinking though. It is still one heck of a light though.
then you’ll want xml.
the sk98 if price and size are priorities
trustfire z6 has much better heatsinking but is a bit larger
m12 if you prefer 26650
all great flood lights
(max lux)/(flood area)? This can be quantified.
maximum beam width depends on how close the lens gets when pulled back, and how much side light is blocked by bezel.
max lux with lens in flood position would mostly be a function of how much current the LED gets, but also heatsinking plays a role
m12 highest current and good heatsinking.
My Poppas W-878 is an 18650/26650/3AAA light that is direct drive on high - 4.16A on a King Kong 26650. It's very bright, has a wide flood, and good heatsinking. Note that TomE found the current version sold at Manafont has a hollow pill (not branded as Poppas anymore). See the review thread for photos.
-Garry
that’s a great option. much more compact than the m12, if that matters…
There's an Ultrafire version too, but I don't know anything about it.
-Garry
Thanks.
I don’t know how to post graphs but having one with lux vs. spot area @ a distance (10’, 20’, 50’, 100’ ?) and then showing some candidate lights as points on this graph, each showing a price, might be helpful.
That way the OP can see the tradeoffs at a glance and then hopefully choose but he’d have to pick a distance.
For some of these tradeoffs “3D graphs” might be necessary, where they show a “surface” and so different distances could also be shown at the same time.
For images of representative graphs Google Images has let me down. 
I must not have picked the right keywords - “scatter plot” should work, though.
i was also gonna say the uf t20. dont know how it is stock, when i remember reading threads on it and it is or is one of the brightest zoomies. i bought mine modded and i dont know how many amps its pulling, but its the brightest and furthest throwing zoomie i have.
but if you want flood, i got a great one for ya! no light that i have even touches it for flood. its like a full moon everytime. but its not so bright tho. but its nice to have still. there other sellers with this, but i bought mine from him, very reputable. its basically a sk68 but uses 18650 instead.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1600-lms-Adjustable-Focus-3-Modes-CREE-XML-XM-L-T6-LED-Aluminum-Flashlight-Torch-/140899906273?pt=US_Flashlights&hash=item20ce49f2e1
hey garry, that poppas 878 got me kinda interested. i always did have a thing for zoomies, and that one you mentioned sounds bright…especially on 26650’s. might have to get one.
but you also found a new 26650 light that you posted about 2 weeks ago. i wonder how that one is.
oh, and that m12 looks promising as well.
to the op…you wanted 18650 for size or price?
You mean this one? It's not a zoomie though (just don't want to confuse anyone).
-Garry
hmmmm…possibly . looks different now. i sorta remember being it a zoomie. oh well.
I’ve only had a few different zoomies - the sk68 and sk98 and clones, The TF Z8 (crap performance), and the one that blew the SK98 clone out of the water - a TF Z5 clone I found on eBay a while back. Pretty much a copy of the Trustfire Z5, but 1 x 18650 instead of 2x.
Widest flood of them all, with a very bright zoom beam that is almost as tight as the sk68 beam, and much brighter. Pretty impressive for an XM-L zoomie, I think.
Do you have a link for the seller and the flashlight?
id be interested in that light your talking about. do you think you can look up your archive’s on purchase history on your ebay account so i know the seller where you purchased this clone from?
thanks,
ray
actually its this one, i found it.
surprised you forgot that you posted it.
fasttech sells a sk-98 also with good tail switch
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Like this one. My current EDC. Like you said, it’s a full moon everytime I turn it on! I have applied the
470K resistor mod to remove the next mode memory.