if I was you, I’d get a zy-t08 from fasttech, some sanyo 2900mah protected cells, same supplier, your at $35 and I got this exact combo for someone last month, without mods I was seeing 3a at the tailcap ie the emitter was driven at cree’s recommended maximum current.
If that wont throw far enough, contact Tom e on here, he’s built a few kick arse zy-t08’s now and can pretty much double the throw on them, he’d also lose the strobe modes into the bargain, that is one item not on this poll, you said the light cannot have a strobe. The zy-t08 does I think have no mode memory, so if its off for a minute or so its back on high which does hide the strobe if you stick to the on, off for a minute rule, it can also be locked out so it wont activate on you. I find mine is no issue in the pocket of a jacket or fleece, or a cargo trouser pocket.
There is also the asgard from fasttech, its a zy-t08 with a very cool driver you can program from your android phone by blue tooth, unfortunately its too new to have gone under the scalpel yet but you can set up your modes to suit you and it does strike me as very moddable in due time.
My favorite light on your list is the XinTD v4 by far. It’s an XM-L2! It comes with a choice of modes and LED tint when you order! The construction is totally solid, and they’ve even added an AR coated lens to the V4! All this for $29.95! I’ve ordered 3 of the V3 models for my friends in the past already. (All of them A&Ps) This light is winner.
But if it’s ONLY about throw, the HD2010 is a little bit better.
Downfalls with the HD2010:
*Crappy PWM on lower modes
*Heavier and larger, not very pocketable. (but it’s very solid.)
*No choice of modes, and has strobe (blech.)
*No choice of LED tint
*Does not come in XM-L2 (that I’m aware of)
There are plenty of lights on your list I don’t have, so others will have to chime in on those.
A tweaked out C8 (build I did) can do about 100 kcd with a de-dedomed XM-L2, 3.85A Nanjg. Didn't try an XP-G2 though - should be better. Pretty amazin compact thrower though, doing 632 meters.
I mean, I like my XinTD C8 V3, but a maxed-out V4 would be way better. That’s more throw than a TK75, but in a host small enough to fit in a pocket or purse. If you decide to make more (especially if you try XP-G2 and can get even more throw), sign me up.
I might try it in a Convoy C8 host - i got a couple of them. Bad thing is the small alum pill with non-standard threads, so can't use a stock brass C8 pill. The reflector I can change out to an SMO though.
gords1001 - It seems like the Small Sun is leading in the poll so far. I see it has SOS and Strobe though. I wonder if I can click past it? Meaning… get to high or low without having to deal with the flashing light. Not good for my line of work (flying people around at night)
ChiggerPepi - You keep showing me this XinTD and its really growing on me. Read some reviews on the V3 and it looks like a solid light that is on par with even some of the strongest lights which are customized to be amped out… yet it is totally stock. Leaves me with the option to customize it later. The HD2010 sounds like old news. I want the newest and greatest… Although I do want some serious throw.
Tom E - I think your name has been thrown around on a few of my posts quite often. Apparently you are the guy who makes some serious flashlights. I would be interested to see if you can make me one within a price range. Would you be interested in taking a XinTD V4 or a similar light and maxing it out?
This has gone a lot further than I had hoped. I wish there as a clear winner on which light could throw the furthest, but it seems as though this topic is extremely opinionated (everyone’s eyes see something different i suppose).
I’m considering buying the XinTD V4 and the SolarSun ZY-T08, getting them both tweaked and then settling this topic forever LOL
For a single cell light, and especially if you're looking for the most throw, I'd have to say stay away from anything with an XML/XML2. Not that they're bad, just that the smaller XPG2 is better in that configuration. Longer run time, lower LED voltage means the driver regulation works better, smaller die size gives much better throw, and on and on.
Now with a two cell light with the cells in series, XML2 starts to be potentially better in some areas - mostly, just sheer horsepower. All else being the same though it will still lose out to the XPG2 in throw.
I'm not aware of any off the shelf lights with either XML or XPG that are 'good enough' to meet your specs, but there are enough folks here who can build you one that really gets the most out of the available hardware.
There sure are a lot of options to get a good little thrower. I got a UF-T20 mod'ed and that's a nice option as well - it's a high quality zoomie, if you would want to go that route. It's about the same size as a C8, maybe a little smaller than the XinTD, with a true glass aspheric lens. Here's my post on the T20 build:
I got 75 kcd measured, but with the dome. Now I can reliably de-dome (using gasoline), did several now 100% success, so could probably get 150 kcd out of this light.
Can't go wrong with modding a XinTD though. For the V4, I'd up the amps to 3.85A (mod the stock driver), re-program the driver to have any set of modes you want, add copper to the inside of the pill, upgrade to a SinkPAD or Noctigon copper star, change the emitter to a XM-L2 U2 or XP-G2, depending, and de-dome it. In theory should get about 95-100 kcd out of the XM-L2 U2, and higher with the XP-G2, just not sure how high - maybe 120-140 kcd. It already has a nice AR lens, nice brass pill, good tailcap switch, and can re-use the stock driver.
Edit: Oh - I'm certainly not the only one that can do these mods - there are quite a few guys capable, many more technical than me!! I do like publishing the results though, using my lightbox and light meter - it really puts it into perspective with actual measured results.
Oh - not so compact, but the T13 mod is one of my favorites! FT trimpot resistor mod to boost amps up to 3.4A (1.7A at the tailcap), XM-L2 T6 0D de-domed on copper star, getting about 150 kcd - about $10-12 in parts.
Good question! Right now all I have is a Solarforce L2 with a XML-U2 and a Maglite ML125 (led rechargeable)
I’m just getting into the flashlight craze (yes its a craze as I have seen), so I haven’t experimented at all. I have a phobia though that I’m sure you guys can appreciate; I would hate to buy a light, upgrade the crap out of it, just to find out that some other guy has a brighter light than I do. Or that there would have been a better combination other than the one I went with. Which is why I am asking you guys on what the best combo would be, because I gotta have the best!
Tom E - If you could, send me a PM with what you think the BEST thrower would be and how much you could charge to customize it. Whether you want to buy the host and parts yourself or if you would rather me buy them separate (mods, parts, labor, etc)
For something off-the-shelf, the Lumintop T5 Hunter looks really nice. Came reeeaally close to nabbing one. Like the proportions of it, and of course, xpg2.
