@ garrybunk -- Yes, I need a better digital camera. I have a Kodak EasyShare C183 (14MP) digicam I will test next, to see if it does a better job of capturing beamshots.
@ scheven_architect Yes, the HD2010 is a good thrower, including outside. But keep in mind that my experience in this area is limited as I don't own nor do I have an interest in 2x18650 thrower lights. I've never even seen the pencil-beam V2- or HS801-type lights in operation. I prefer the compact designs of 1x18650 and 1x26650 lights. So I'm exploring the ability to push the light-output envelope in these single-cell configurations.
That being said, I would characterize the HD2010 as a compact spot/searchlight. The hotspot is very bright and throws far, but the inner corona (for closer-range illumination) is not as prominent when compared to my MCU-C88 or TF-R2. But the overall spill area on the HD2010 is a little larger than these two lights, which is a minor plus.
To put this into (my) perspective, I consider output from flashlights like my MCU-C88 and TF-R2, and C10 and C8-class lights a little differently. I place them in a more-practical "patrol" light category since they exhibit combination spot/flood beams that are useful for illuminating nighttime areas and activities simultaneously at various outdoor ranges.
One level down the food chain, I consider P60 lights as general purpose "backup" lights that exhibit combination flood/spot beams that are useful, especially for shorter range illumination. To me a big advantage of these lights are their compact size, easy handling, and low cost.
To me the UltraFire NH-T60 (and probably the UF-980L) is in a unique class of hybrid patrol/backup light that can serve double duty in a compact package.
I think the HD2010 is well worth $35, and actually I don't think it "needs" an upgrade to U2 emitter. It performs well enough as is. On the other hand, if it's only driven to 2.3A, I'm curious how a U2 emitter @ 4.2A might perform in this host. In looking at the innards of the light though, I don't know how difficult this light would be to upgrade...
Yeah, that's a question I forgot to ask - how easy is it to access and remove the driver? It didn't look very upgrade friendly in the photos you posted in another thread.
Ideally I'd like to see this host outfitted with an XP-G R5 driven at 1.5A. This would give excellent throw that's not a pencil beam, but yet conserve battery power. Then again, perhaps this light as is on medium power is close to that? Any idea how far you can throw on Medium? Would you say this light's medium is around "50%"?
I just think paying $35 for a 26650 host is a little much and I bet with one look at it I wouldn't want to change it! If only that SAIK SA-305 would work as a proper host for 26650 / 32600 / 32650's! (Currenty still pursuing an XP-G in a 2D Maglite running on 3 C NiMh's.)
By the way, I didn't mean to say your camera is junk. I just wanted to vent on how frustrated I was trying to get good photos out of mine (which should be very similar) and to comment that you likely don't have a "manual mode" just as I don't on mine. I have to borrow my brother-in-law's camera to take beamshots.
The driver (under) side has an aluminum ring that appears to hold the emitter in place, but the two indents are shallow, making it difficult for me to unscrew. I'm thinking I'll deepen them a bit so I can gain purchase when unscrewing this ring to get a look at things in there. I was hoping in my previous post (https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/5251?page=1#comment-105669) that included measurements someone might analyze my information to let us know if this is some standard driver/pill (perhaps a C8?) that could easily be swapped out.
Maybe someone reading this might take a look and offer up some conjecture?
You're right, since the host was $35 I would only want to upgrade it if there was little chance of messing it up. If it's easy, I have a Cutter U2 1C I can use... Personally, I would never remove a T6 and put in an R5. I would only move up to U2 or drive the T6 harder. I would conserve power using lower power settings. This is just my preference. I know everyone has different needs.
H-M-L seems evenly spaced. I'll post a beamshot of this spacing tomorrow.
Any digicam without manual settings is not going to be great at capturing beamshots.
Very nice collection. I really like the looks of the TrustFire TF-R2, especially the color. Make sure you show lots of pics when you finish modding it.
I never thought to compare HD2010's medium to the high from other flashlights. On medium the HD2010 has a brighter hotspot than the ones produced by my TF-R2 (T6 @ 1.4A). This is based on an indoor beamshot comparison. Now I want to compare these lights at these settings at night to judge throw. More beamshots to come...
I would say HD2010's H-M-L are evenly spaced, medium looks like half of high, and low seems half of medium. This is a loose approximation. Remember, I new to flashlight evaluations...
HD2010 run time on high was over three hours. In fact it didn't die. That's when I stopped the test. At the end the emitted light was about half of what low setting produces. However, I failed to notice when high output starting decreasing. Sorry.
If the light is being driven at 2.3A, now I understand why. The light got hot but never so much so that you couldn't wrap your hand around it and hold it. Based on how long this light runs on high and the controlled heat generation explains why the designers of this light set it up the way they did. You can use these light continuously for hours on high without it becoming a hot potato.
At this point I don't intend on changing anything on this light.
Wow! This HD2010 might just be what I'm looking for! I wasn't expecting that much runtime on high! (Although it would be really nice to know at what time the light output really started dropping - maybe to the level of medium.) For my use, I'm aiming for just one battery change on a 6 - 8 hour almost continuous use shift. I also need to keep the flashlight's size to a minimum. My idea to build with an XP-G in a 2D Maglite running on 3 C NiMh's is getting a bit too large (although there is a trade-off with battery cell safety).
Isn't running that battery down as low as you did on the runtime test dangerous? I know the King Kong battery is unprotected, but does this HD2010 have any kind of low voltage warning or anything?
Thanks for all your feedback on this light!
-Garry
I guess that shows what I know. I thought the KK was protected. But a few minutes of research reveals they aren't. Also didn't realize this would be dangerous. Everything seemed fine during the test. For the next test I'll stop at two hours...
No low-voltage warning I could detect. But I did notice that when the battery was real low after three hours of use I could not switch modes. Driver was fine though because a fresh battery brought the five modes back to full availability.
Currently testing on high again. I wonder how long it would run at medium?...
Edited previous post - HD2010's hotspot on medium is not brighter than my NH-T60 on high, but HD2010's hotspot on medium is a bit brighter than the hotspot from TF-R2 on high.
The light takes more than 20 minutes to get hot. And it never gets too hot to handle.
2nd test at high -- The HD2010 took about 1.5 hours to get to medium-setting light output while on high. Based on the previous test the light appears as if it can continue on for at least another hour until light output dips below low-setting output. This is all rough estimates. At the 1-hour mark on high the light appeared bright, but I can't tell how much output decreased...
Final test will see how long the light can run on medium. Not today though.
Thanks, good information. You're not wasting your time doing this I'm sure as I bet others find this information useful as well. Would be nice to know the tailcap current though. You still doing beamshots on Medium? If so, is it possible to get them at the same location as the previous ones?
I'm sure I'll end up ordering this light. I just need to wait a bit and space out my purchases.
I can do beamshots on medium. I will tonight if the KK batteries charge in time before my 12x8 shift. The KKs take a very long time to charge, and I drained them pretty good...
Tomorrow I'll see how long the light runs on medium. I bet it'll stay on a long time...
Yeah, eventually I'll get around to ordering one of those $10 multimeters to measure tailcap draw and $28 lux meters to better measure light output.
Bear with me, I've ordered a lot of pretty nice lights lately, without let-up even around the holidays. I'm spacing my purchases so that my better half doesn't squawk.
This looks like the same body/host as the HD2010, but with 3xT6 in the head.
I believe the BT-4000's 3xT6 emitters driven by a 26650 battery promises powerful light output in a compact design. We'll see if this is the case. My fingers are crossed...
I might not be able to resist ordering that Dongrui: I wonder how many amps it's driven at?
But actually, my next purchase is probably going to be a 4.2A U2 drop-in from vinhnguyen54 over on CPF. I plan to use one of his drop ins to supercharge my TrustFire TF-R2. I expect this light to become a mini photon cannon with one of his drop ins.
Otherwise I look at nothing on CPF. That site is boring.
I can't log into CPF to contact vinhnguyen54. That other site is so unusable.
Night Breaker, did you notice the "review" and photos of that Dongrui by Kajman over at The 26650 Thread. Didn't sound so great to me. Sounds like this FandyFire is much better.
Yeah, I read it. Too bad, I really like the form factor on that Dongrui.
I tested the HD2010 on medium. It lasted about 5.5 hours until it reached a point in which I feel someone would have changed the battery. It was still bright at 4 hours -- about equal to the hotspot of a T6 @ 1.4A on high, at 5 hours it was lower than the same T6 on high, and at 5.5 hours medium was less than the low-level output of the HD2010's low setting produced by a fresh battery. At 5.5 hours the battery was not completely drained, and I believe it could have been used for another half hour at reduced light output.
Like it was said, it would be interesting to see the $20 SS-A100 stacked up to these.. I'm sure not nearly as good... but food for thought
I have not seen you or Gary's post to this light... I assume you have seen it...but if not here it is... This will likely be my next purchase if the reviews check out OK
yes it sure does...the belt pouch light is a small –leave it there “in case” you need it
But -the second thing we are looking into (just starting as we ruled out anything until the 26650 lights came up) is the "mag light' type replacement... my son caries a bigger rechargeable light that slips into a big metal ring… that’s the “beat’ light that often gets left stuck between the seats…. Maybe this TRJ12 light could fit that bill, -but I sure want to see what you think of the BT4000 as well… (only wish it had the option of a second battery ad on) –but it looks actually like there is some good stuff coming down the pipe…"other than the standard C8 18650 clones"
I like it!
On another note
The Tank007 736 seems to be the preferred –“little” pouch light ...–so far… for the “need in an emergency” light… and we found out the SolarForce little red diffuser cone is a perfect fit for the light and a little pouch… maybe for the emergency times you need to BE seen for traffic.-… I don’t know if it will ever be used –but the light set on stobe with the cone is something amazing to see.
Are neither of you interested in a modded Maglite? Esp. for a big "beat" light? It doesn't have to be an outrageous expensive mod (from what I can tell), will give great runtime on safe cells, have great throw, and has numerous accessories available for them. I'm thinking a simple single XM-L or XP-G mod to either a 3C or 3D Mag (or 4C / 4D if you prefer).
I follow these interesting "26650"-flashlight discussions for a few days now. Thank you for all the information so far, as I think that I will get myself a Ultrafire HD2010 or probably the Shadow-clone.
I have one question:
how thight does the 22650 battery/18650 fit, regarding the length? There is a quite popular Lithium-Mangan battery witch measures 70mm of lenght.
They are called IMR-26700 by Molicell, also sold as Konion 2900, 4,2v-2,5v, 2900mah. It delivers 10C, max. 15c.
Could you please check, if a longer battery would fit?
