This is my first review here and I look forward to any feedback anyone has.
Update: I have the review up on my blog now as well, and I’ve cleaned up the formatting on this one.
Product Description
The FandyFire STL-V2 is a triple emitter (XM-L T6) flashlight which takes 2 18650 Lithium-ion batteries lengthwise. It features a smooth reflector, reverse clicky switch at the tail, and a 5 mode driver.
My review sample was provided by WallBuys.
Official Specs (From WallBuys)
Name: FandyFire STL-V2 CREE XM-LT6 5Mode 1000LM 3LED Tactical Flashlight (2x18650)
Brand: FandyFire
Color: Black
Color BIN: White
Model: STL-V2
Type: CREE XM-LT6
Total Emitter: 3
Brightness: 1000LM (Max)
Runtime: 90 minutes at high mode
Battery: 2x18650 battery
Voltage rated: 8.4V
Current Rated: 3000mAh
Features:
Mode: 5, Hi > Mid > Lo > Strobe > SOS
Material: Aerospace Grade Aluminum Alloy?
Sturdy military grade hard-anodized
Switch Type: Clicky
Switch Location: Tailcap
Lens: Coated glass lens
Reflector: Aluminum Smooth
Waterproof
The light itself is a beast. It’s hard to get a feel for how big it is until you actually hold it in your hand.
It has 3 smooth reflectors. Manufacturer claims Aluminum but it sure looks like plastic to me. I guess they could be Aluminum just set in plastic. Either way, they are fully functional and give a nice beam.
All 3 emitters are well centered.
Shown with some random flashlights of various sizes to give you a feel for the size of this thing.
All the various pieces. Notice what I am calling a spacer. I have no idea what this spacer is for. Taking it out does not allow it to run a single 18650 (switch doesn’t reach far enough to engage) or 3xCR123A’s (the last one sticks out too much), so your guess is as good as mine.
Tail Switch
The tail switch is the typical reverse clicky switch found on most budget lights. It has a nice, solid feel to it. Also, the recessed button allows the light to do a stable tail stand.
The inside of the switch has a spring-loaded plunger instead of the typical spring. I’m not used to seeing this on budget lights, and I think it’s a nice touch.
Head / Bezel
The head is a pretty good chunk of metal, as it would have to be in order to have decent heat dissipation. The spring in the head gives it a spring at both ends and makes the light more shock resistant. Again, not something I’d normally expect with a budget light. Notice all the rough edges and machining marks on the inside of the head. It doesn’t look pretty, but it’s on the inside and I don’t count against it for the fit and finish.
I’m not an electronics engineer, but the heat-sinking on this light seems to be good. The head has a lot of mass, and the ribbing on the outside seems to be effective. I had the light on high for about a half hour before it was putting off a noticeable amount of heat. After about an hour into my test, it was almost too hot to hold, though it was mostly tail-standing and probably could’ve gone the whole 90 minutes, which is the stated run time on hight.
Build Quality / Body
The build quality on this light is very good. A little surprising even for a budget light. Considering that its closest non-budget competitor costs about 4 times as much, I think this light is a great value. The threads the the typical triangular threads you’d expect for a budget light, but the machining is above average.
Fit And Finish
Overall, good. There are no obvious flaws in the anodizing or tool/machine marks to be found. There’s a slight flaw in one of the reflectors, but it doesn’t seem to affect the beam quality. The emitters are well centered and the light makes liberal use of o-rings, though no trace of lube that I could find. If you intend to carry this near water, you will want to use some lube first.
Run Time Test
My run time tests are still in progress and I will update them as I go. For this test I am using TrustFire flame 18650 batteries from ManaFont. I thought about using some higher end batteries, but hey, this is a budget light, so it makes sense to test it with budget batteries.
High Test 1 hour, 5 minutes* (Current Draw: 1.63A)
I ended the test after 65 minutes because the light was almost too hot to hold, and I was worried about damaging it. Because it spent most of that time tail-standing, it might’ve gone longer had I been holding it the whole time. It hadn’t dimmed noticeably either, so my guess is that it would’ve gone the whole 90 minutes as the manufacturer claims. It’s nice to finally see accurate and conservative estimates from these xFire companies.
Medium test (Current Draw: .77A)
Low Test (Current Draw: .13A)
Usability
Since I’m not a first responder such as a fireman or policeman, and I’m unlikely to be called on for search and rescue. So, I’m having a hard time finding any real world use case for this light, other than pointing it down the street and hearing a bunch of people say “WOW.” Make no mistake, this model does put out a “wow” amount of light. But I have no doubts that this level of output would be ideal for something like search and rescue.
In a real world scenario, this thing could probably go the full 90 minutes on high if you really needed it to. I’m not thinking this light would be your best fit if you intended to use it mostly on low. Sure, you would get great runtimes out of it on low, but it’s a little heavy if that’s all you’re using it for, and the PWM is really noticeable on low, which really drives me nuts since I’m sensitive to it. But this isn’t a light you buy to run on low.
1 pound exactly with the TrustFire Flames in it.
Beam Shots
Please pardon my sub-standard beam shots as I do not have a tripod. I’m a noob photographer, too. The beam for this light has a good mixture of throw and flood, owing to the 3x emitter design. I’m not sure I would call this a true thrower, but with this amount of output it pretty much has to throw.
The tint leans a little to the neutral side, with no green or bluish tinge. There are no real ugly artifacts to the beam pattern. It’s definitely not as “ringy” as I would expect it to be. The optics seem decent given the reflector.
Conclusions
This is a solid light. My few little issues with it (PWM, plastic lens, etc.) are minor considering that its next closest name brand competitor costs 4 times as much as this one. You get 3xXM-L performance for 35 bucks, which gives it an excellent cost-to-performance ratio.
It’s also nice to see the xFire brands like Fandyfire grow into mature brands. It looks like they are upping their game as far as build quality goes, and they’re even publishing accurate specs! The run time and lumen estimates for this light appear to be conservative, and maybe even understated.
