For review : I have the Tank007 E07 BLF Edition 3 Mode AA flashlight .
This light came about @ Budgetlightforum , a BLF Admin and Manafont Collaboration , and is the 2nd such light to be made available to Budgetlightforum.com members .
I would like to thank Manafont for making this light available for review so quickly .
You may notice something different about the emitter , its a Osram with neutral tint , the E07 is 3 mode , High - Medium - Low and has memory . It has a smooth reflector , tailstands , and supports the 14500 Li-ion [ to be verified latter on ] . The light comes with a wrist strap and a BLF monogrammed lanyard which is actually quite nice [ nice taught carbiner ] .
On removing the light from the shipping package I was a little surprised the light was so well made , the UI [ User Interface ] was very easy to get used to , to operate the light , there is a twisty tailcap , twist clock wise to turn on the light . Once the light is on , you can twist the tailcap anti clock wise , and then clock wise quickly to change modes . Or if you wish you can twist the body in a similar manner to change modes , if your more comfortable doing it that way , the good thing is , you can do either way [ or both ways as the case may be ] .
Lets check the performance on AA batteries :
Nimh cells = I used 4 different batteries here , Kodak - Eneloop - GP Recyko - and a Rayovac 4.0 , and the performance on all cells was so close as to call the results the same ...
High - 70Lumen - 1.95A , Medium - 23Lumen - 0.64A , Low - 2L - 0.05A
Next I tried one of those HK Lithium cells that were cheap enough , High - 68L - 1.75A , Medium - 22L - 0.61A , Low - 2L - 0.05A
Then came a Alkaline cell , High - 69L - 1.85A , Medium - 23L - 0.63A , Low - 2L - 0.05A
And just for the heck of it a Dry cell , High - 46L - 1.3A , Medium - 15L - 0.44A , Low - 1L - 0.05A
Time for some white walls :
Tank007 BLF Edition white wall ...
Maratac AA for comparison
Some more pictures for you :
Ultrafire M2 - Jetbeam BK135A - Tank007 - Maratac : From left to right .
Lets start at the tail end , the tail cap is threaded into the end of the battery tube and locked in with a brass screw [ I wont bore you with how I got it back ] , and there is no spring to take up battery slop [ should you end up using shorter than normal batteries ] , also if you use longer than standard batteries then screwing down the head all the way will turn on the light . All my Nimh batteries fit just fine , but the Alkaline and dry cells were a little different and being longer than the Nimh cells , I found that with the tailcap in the off position I was able to use the light just fine by twisting the body and head just like the Maratac . I guess all those cheap Dry cells and Alkaline's I have just aren't built to as high a tolerance as the Nimh cells .
Nice even anodizing
Glass lens
Osram Golden Dragon Emitter
PWM - low frequency
Modes 3 , if the light is on for 4 seconds or more it will turn on again in the same mode , no matter how quickly you turn the light of and on again .
As long as you turn the light of and on again within 3 seconds you can change modes .
Well cut threads
Head and body fit well
Well sized for AA
Tailstands
Excellent Knurling
Time for some AA beam shots :
Control shot
Low mode [ 2 Lumen ]
Medium mode [ 23L ]
High mode [ 70L ]
Next ill try the 14500
14500 Measurements .
High - 123L - 0.68A , Medium - 39L - 0.21A , Low - 2L - 0.01A
The 14500 Flame Trustfire fit with no issues [ protected ] , and ran really well , I was expecting a lot more heat from the head on the Li-ion , but its a cool night out tonight so the light got barely warm in the two or so minutes I ran the light on high [ I was being careful ] .
Conclusion
I was very pleased with the overall build quality , the threads were very cleanly cut [ I should have cleaned the threads before taking pictures , cos after cleaning them , they were flawless ] . The output in each mode worked well for me , I really liked medium , 23L on a AA and 39L on the 14500 really hits the spot for me , and the efficiency on the 14500 is good , unfortunately on the AA its not that great [ efficiency ] . The output on High is again good , 70L with the AA is good enough , but on the 14500 it was excellent for the current draw . Low mode was right on the money @ 2L with both the AA and 14500 , Im sure this will make a lot of folks happy , and after using the light for a while now I was able to turn on the light and change modes one handed [ it wasn't that hard ] .
The Tank007 E07 BLF Edition overall is an excellent little light , supports AA and 14500 batteries , is well made , outputs a usable amount of light , is easy to carry and use , and is equipped with the Osram Golden Dragon emitter .. There are no annoying blinky modes , there was nothing that needed fixing or teaking and the performance on a 14500 is very good , and with the pill being such a nice hunk of brass I can see why it ran cool on high [ even though it was a short run ] on the 14500 . I ran the light for several minutes on high on the AA and the light only got warm , again I think thanks to the hefty brass pill .
I have to score the light 8 out of 10 , but this light really shows potential to compete with the likes of Nitecore or Jetbeam , The head is put together really well , and the battery tube is excellent , the light shows what Tank007 can do , and the only thing that let it down for me , was the tail switch , I just didnt think it did the rest of the light justice [ even though its perfectly functional ] . If tank007 made this light with a clicky switch , I think it could be legendary , it has the potential .
