Review: Tank007 E09 3-mode 1x AAA/10440

LED Flashlights – General Info 1 x AAA Flashlights
39

Awesome! Thanks kreisler. So happy it disassembles!

Kapton (polyimide) tape, its designed for this. Non-conductive. Also called just Heat resistant/High temperature tape on DX / chinese sites. Used on PCBs everywhere & in protected batteries to insulate the wire along the side that leads to positive. Kapton on a 18650.

Would be faster to pick up those transparencies for laser printers then waiting for kapton in the mail.

Just in case, don't use any superglue (cyanoacrylate) near leds/optics, the fumes will cloud it.

40

okay, thanks for the suggestions. my idea was to use Scotch tape (tesa movie haha) but since i had some transparent book foil flying around i tried that first. And it works!! Now both of my E09's work again, and i can tighten the upper head part as strong as i want to!!!

My very first idea was a combination of Tipp-Ex (for the sides of the mini PCB) and a circular cut adhesive foil ("foil ring") to fit into the reflector seam, and the Tipp-Ex works really good at the sides as expected. But it's easier and more straight-forward to drop the Tipp-Ex completely and cut out a larger square from the adhesive foil with a hole in the middle and fit it over the LED dome.

The cut out square should be anywhere between 5x5mm² and 6x6mm². The green mini PCB's size is 3.5x3.5mm².

Verdict:

Now knowing and understanding what can go wrong with the E09 (when you take out the rear spring, when you screw off the upper head part and rip off the reflector from the PCB) and that it is easy to exchange o-rings, lenses, reflectors, i am growing fond of this little serial-numbered thing even more.

It's unlikely that the lens would ever break with normal usage and drops. If the E09 is attached to your keychain or keyrings and you let it drop, the lens will not break, i am sure.

And if the light doesnt turn on anymore, then we know already why: it's because of the rear spring (if you've ever taken it out before. otherwise not.) or because of a short (short circuit) due to the compromised insulation, as described. Then you fix the insulation, as described, and your light is back on.

The head is massive aluminum .. great as heatsink.

The beam pattern (=the reflector) is maybe kind of a lottery but most likely not. I am so happy with my beam pattern ;)

It's definitely built like a tank!!

The major missing part in my review: runtime measurements with Eneloops and with Protected 10440's (and qualitative description of the brightness regulation).

I would ask you guys to help me with the review and provide some RL beamshots and wallshots (or comparative beamshots, in comparison to iTP A3). I dont have a digicam, so please provide some shots for this review thread, thanks!!

41

All shots must be made with the same camera, mobile phone, etc. Almost all digicams can be configured, but some mobile phones don't, so if you can't configure your phone/cam, you must made beamshots with 3 lights together, your phone will adjust brightness, color correction and so on automatically for all lights together.

42

Thanks joerch. Last night when i discovered that the head consists of two screwed (not even glued!) parts and got some silly flickering issues when i reunited them and the light would turn off when i tightened the threads as much as possible, i remembered your above suggestion. Why does the light turn off when i fully tighten the parts, and why would the light turn off it i loosen them or separate the two parts. To anyone with a dead light, i would suggest to screw off the upper head part and see if the light turns on ("mule mode"). In all above cases, my assumption/bet is that the reflector caused a short on the LED board as suggested by joerch. The insulating layer chips off/flakes off/crumbles when there is some movement or play between the reflector and the LED board. The first time i noticed it was when i clipped on the generic Fenix AAA clip, which is a tight fit and it clips with a loud snap. The shock of the snapping action caused my E09 to turn off. Puzzled as i was, later attempts were successful: the light turned on again. Flickering light means there is some loose connection thru dodgy contacts. In our case, we do not want the contact/connection. But we do get the beginnings of the connection (=It's a short circuit connection!!) as soon as the insulating falls apart. And this happens rather fast with the E09, especially when the upper head part is not fully tightened (to secure holding the insulating "manufacturing debris" in place): when you drop the E09 on the floor, when you bang it against your car, when you violently snap a Fenix pocket clip onto the head (not the tail!), when you ever unscrew the upper head part, when you ever take off the reflector from the LED board, etc.. -- you get the point.

Check my review (OP) for a simple way to fix it for good. All you need is adhesive tape (or adhesive foil).

The E09 is light and built like a tank. Clearly, in a typical situation where you drop it on a hard floor or the light seems dead for some other mysterious reason, it's going to be due to the crumbling insulating layer which is being crushed (anyway) by the LED board and the aluminum reflector. With the E09, there is little chance that the others parts get damaged (broken glass lens, broken driver board, lost soldering, damaged LED?? -- No way!!) unless you try take the driver board apart by unscrewing (scruffy dog?) from the battery's side.

I cant confirm any of that, honestly. Threads are smooth, beam is nice (and it depends on your personal copy of the reflector -- it is easy to imagine how difficult it is to manufacture 100% identical and uniform output when the product (here: the aluminum reflector) is so tiny), can tail stand with the supplied split ring, head doesnt wobble and doesnt feel like it would ever slip off. Several people have placed E09 orders another times because they were convinced by the quality product, here on happy camper:
If not the iTP A3, then there could be some other competing product:
The Brinyte/Brynite might not be brighter than one of my E09 copies which has a very very tight hotspot, and therefore produces a very bright beam (and slightly brighter than the Lumintop Worm) with immense throw. So it's difficult to generalize whether the E09 is brighter than XXXFire (no pun intended haha) ..because production quality of the reflector may vary as it does with my copies. In any case the E09 is very bright .. and beats the max brightness of the iTP A3 and my Klarus MiX6, both XP-G R5's.
I got my original sturdy Fenix LD01 clip from this US seller who ships globally with FREE INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING:
Fenix-Store.Com (send me PM for 15% off discount coupon code)
You end up paying 4.25$ shipped for 1x Fenix LD01 original sturdy pocket clip.
The E09 is a perfect gift (the tin box has a compartment for 1x battery, and you could add the Tank007 wrist band, the Tank007 diffuser) but before you give it to someone, better fix the insulation issue beforehand. As this post proves, the insulation issue can/will emerge sooner than expected. With a brand-new product you wouldnt expect it to happen soon. But with the E09 it will.
Just clip a Fenix pocket to the head (bezel up carry) and it goes like this: "snap!" and "poof!" :D
43

.. ok ok , all pretty good and nice.

GREAT review btw.

But come on now: What about the copper rings? I really don't get it.....

44

the copper (or aluminum) ring is not a primitive flat washer but so-called sealing washer (or ring joint gasket). it is as electrically conductive as the body tube, that's why you could think of it as extension of the tube.

now you have a longer tube.

A longer tube can host longer cells.

Protected 10440's are such longer cells :D

( i havent received *any* 10440's yet (DX), so i cant confirm if the gasket theory works out fine lol. it's an idea which i stole from a German forum where kreisler is banned because of exemplary bashing and shilling lol )

If you dont plan to feed 10440's, then never mind.

45

how u get $5 gift card? :scratching my head:

46

This message is for kreisler

I have posted my review of the E09 at forolinternas

http://www.forolinternas.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=3077

You can take any photo you want and add it to your review. You have my permission.

[img]http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/664/dsc00914vn.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img577.imageshack.us/img577/1336/dsc00912v.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/2590/dsc00913oy.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img11.imageshack.us/img11/41/dsc00920kx.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/664/dsc00914vn.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/681/dsc00915w.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/8043/dsc00921tz.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/9754/dsc00922dm.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img835.imageshack.us/img835/2716/dsc00916jp.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img813.imageshack.us/img813/7126/dsc00917l.jpg[/img]
[img]http://img46.imageshack.us/img46/2033/dsc00918us.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img813.imageshack.us/img813/9963/dsc00919y.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img813.imageshack.us/img813/7126/dsc00917l.jpg[/img]

Beamshot a 3 metros en high con NiMh:

[img]http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/8752/e09nimh5mhdsc00924.jpg[/img]

Beamshot a 3 metros en high con 10440:

[img]http://img813.imageshack.us/img813/8029/e09104405mhdsc00923.jpg[/img]

Beamshot a 3 metros en high de la iitp A3 (q5) con NiMh:

[img]http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/2104/a3nimh5mhdsc00926.jpg[/img]

Beamshot a 3 metros en high de la iitp A3 (q5) con 10440:

[img]http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/6760/a3104405mhdsc00925.jpg[/img]


Ahora la E09 a 5 metros en pared blanca con NiMh:

[img]http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/3156/e09nimh5mhdsc00929.jpg[/img]

Ahora la itp A3 a 5 metros en pared blanca con NiMh:

[img]http://img576.imageshack.us/img576/4673/a3nimh5mhdsc00930.jpg[/img]

47

Thanks fran for everything, excellent p*o*ographic material!! H)

i am going to download them and put them together in the beamshots review section. Very thoughtful review you did too!! Now there are already 2 lengthy reviews of this new Tank007 product, wow. Today i received the Fenix LD01 clip and added a 3 pix with the clip.

You're a savior. Gracias al salvador

Too cool :steve:

48

Good news: Today i've received Protected 10440's (grey Ultrafire, not grey Trustfire), ordered from DX. Thanks to the nice quality of these Ultrafires (e.g. the small (+)plus pole cell nub) no grinding/sanding of the copper washer is needed. The small washer (8.0 x 12.0 x 1.0mm) is perfect as it is!

With this original unmodified standardized washer and the 47.1mm long UF cell, you're all set! It's a perfect harmonic successful satisfactory combination, with smooth operation, no wobbly head, and the head still covers by far the o-ring. Water-resistance maintained!!

Bad news: the E09 on High-mode is not as bright as the iTP A3 Titanium with the UF cell. (i've tested 2 copies of the E09. both are beaten by the insanely bright iTP A3!). But maybe that's good news. It could mean that the E09 draws less current from the cell: Energy-saving is desirable! In fact, on my copies, the brightness difference between E09@Eneloop and E09@10440 is rather marginal. In other words: If you hand me the E09 and i dont know what kind of cell is in it and i wallshoot against a white wall on High-mode, personally i would not (really) be able to predict whether the E09 is powered by 1x Eneloop or 1x 10440. Since the light is about equally (impressive) bright, i would have to guess.

No guessing needed in the case of the iTP A3. the A3 blows your head away on 1x 10440. so when you twist it thru (Low-Med-High) to High-mode and your head is off, then your friend will know that a 10440 was/is inside haha

Verdict: i can highly recommend the E09 for the use with Protected (or unprotected) 10440's. And at some later point i will try to measure runtimes (of the E09 and the A3) on the grey UF cell.

49

I did it at forolinternas ( http://www.forolinternas.com/viewtopic.php?p=26031#p26031 ).

I measured the current draw on a itp A3 with R5 and another itp A3 but with Q5, both with NiMh and 10440

The results were:

R5 NiMh Low 0,09A ----- Q5 NiMh Low 0,08A
R5 NiMh Med 0,35A ----- Q5 NiMh Med 0,28A
R5 NiMh High 0,85A ----- Q5 NiMh High 0,9A


R5 10440 Low 0,06A ----- Q5 10440 Low 0,07A
R5 10440 Med 0,24A ----- Q5 10440 Med 0,33A
R5 10440 High 1,12A ----- Q5 10440 High 1,13A

50

Hi, well, now i own an expensive DMM too but the leads are a little too thick to immerse into the small head of my AAA lights (here a demo pic by HKJ with a larger head):

So what would be the best way to get ~accurate readings. Should i use an unfolded copper staple (as short as possible) or mini round magnets (which i dont have)?

I do have a copper staple to bridge the connection but i am not so sure about the accuracy of the reading then. Maybe anyone with a photo taken from the setup?

51

I use test leads with alligator clips, and a paperclip or a piece of solid copper wire to make contact in the flashight head.

If you do't have alligator clips, just hold a paperclip or solid wire against the + probe of the multimeter to make contact in the E09.

52

Great photo, thanks a million for your efforts!! I will try to reproduce your measurements with the copper paperclip i have (and no, i dont have alligator clips. i should get some one day, maybe from Dinodirect hehe). the "+" probe of the DMM is the red cable afaik and plugged in the "V/Ω/Hz" plug of the DMM.

Nice copper wire you have there. Thick. It acts as extension of your "+" probe, i see. And it is contact with the "-" plate of the E09's PCB. good good.

Thanks again. Will do my best now..

EDIT: this seems to work for now:

I also need to recharge my AAA-sized cells (Protected 10440's, Unprotected 10440's, Eneloop AAA's).. argh.

53

keltex78 wrote: [quote=keltex78] I just received the Tank007 E09 and I aleady like this little light! I've been carrying the Super Bright 7-2 as my EDC pocket carry, but the E09 makes the 7-2 look huge! With the well-used AAA alkaline battery I have on hand, the E09 is unimpressive, but with a freshly-charged 10440, it's much more impressive. I can tell the throw will be less than with my DD-modded Tank007 TK-703, but for pocket carry, the beam is well suited for a general-purpose light. I have a fresh set of the Ultrafire Protected 10440s on the way from DX to use in this light.

My unit has a decent reflector and a well-centered emitter, but the inside of the assembly is rather dirty. The emmiter dome has a small bit of crud on it, and the inside of the lens is dirty, including either a small hair trapped under the glass, or a tiny scratch inside the lens. I can't tell for sure which it is. Based on comments here, I think I'll live with it the way it is rather than trying to disassemble the unit...

[/quote]

The current draw on High-mode is at least 1.6A and it increases up to 1.8A. Hehe. i've measured runtimes on the UltraFire Protected 10440's (you need 1 copper sealing washer as explained). On my units i dont see much of a difference between 10440's vs. Eneloop -- both are quite bright. If your beam pattern is okay (no severe corona artifacts) then congrats to the won lottery on the reflector! "rather dirty"?,.. heck yeah i had to clean 1 lens too and rearrange the lens o-ring. the dirt (hair, debris) may stem from the flaking insultation .. and you should NOT use the light with 10440's before having fixed the insulation issue (as explained) with some scotch tape, adhesive foil, and or TippEx white ink. 10440's is high power, high energy. If you create a short with 10440's, it can damage the driver or LED. Creating a short with Eneloops is harmless: the light would not turn on, that's all.

The problem (insulation) is clear and straight-forward. And it's not very difficult to fix (if you have scotch tape or adhesive foil). It *is* necessary if you want safe, worry-free 10440's operation. If you dont fix it, any bump (drop, hit, bang, slam) against the torch can destroy the remainder of the existing (original poor) insulation and then you got your short (with 10440's, ouch!).

you are warned.

Other than that, enjoy the little gem!!

54

raccoon city wrote: [quote=raccoon city] Yesterday I got my second Tank007 E09 from DinoDirect. [/quote]

Today i got my fourth Tank007 E09 copy from DinoDirect. quick comments: The tail looks different, not just a single bore but more like Fenix LD01's tail (and i will add pictures of it in my review). The 2 sealed parts of the head arent screwed on 100% flush, so it's easy to tell (with this specimen) that the head indeed consists of 2 extended parts. I've tried to unscrew the parts but my hand power failed here. Hopefully they improved the insulation layer so that i wont need to take the head apart ("unseal"). The beam profile is not too nice, as expected. This unit has a small starry hotspot with some frayed fringy corona artifacts. Minor corona asymmetricies may indicate an eccentric LED .. yet the LED looks very centric (although it isnt, obviously). The problem of the unclean and beautiless hotspot is due to the teeniness of the reflector .. and if you pay little money for this product how would you dare to complain? ( Thanks to DD's discounting system i paid (converted) 2.70$ for this sample as part of a 20$+ cart, tsss.. amazing. )

you get premium beam profile with premium tint when you pay premium price for premium brand flashlight products. The best of the best AAA keychain light *is* the Fenix LD01. The LD01 and E09 differ in size, dimensions and weight .. but believe me, in practice this doesnt matter. The E09 is super light(!) and really small .. and so is the LD01 (in practice). The LD01 is never on sale and the least you must pay is ~35$ shipped (ebay, ..). The E09's list price is 19.95$ but street price is more like 13$, and if you're an experienced DD customer then you can buy it for much less than that from them.

For a quick comparison of leading AAA keychain lights, check out the comparison table.

You'll see that the E09 has it all .. except for a beautiful hotspot/corona. As i said, it's my 4th copy already -- and i surely prefer 3 or 4 copies of the E09 (in case i need a gift for someone or in case something breaks after the Tank007 warranty period) instead of 1 expensive LD01. If the LD01 ever breaks on you (e.g. after the Fenix warranty period), how likely are you to replace it with a new LD01? Again 35 bucks? You sure??

Interesting "note" (and i cant confirm this info personally), CNqualitygoods lists the Tank E09 with XP-G R5 emitter. It's also interesting to note that they carry only this particular Tank007 product in their sales program (Why, wtf?), 13 bucks plus shipping. comment: XP-G R5 or not, this doesnt matter. The E09 is already bright. Very bright. (because of the current draw, minimum 1.6A!!!). XP-G R5 tend to be greenish, and i've got my share on greenish XP-G R5's. The purplish tint of the E09's XP-E R2 is nice and very welcome. It makes the light look brighter. And even with an XP-G R5, the main problem with the E09 is its beam beauty. And with a larger emitter (the dome of the XP-G R5 is bigger than the XP-E R2!) things do get worse if you have a teeny reflector (E09!) and a SMO reflector (E09!). So my personal advice is, go get the E09 for much less than the 13$ and you'll be a thankful happy camper and will never waste a thought on the lacking beam (i.e. hotspot + corona) beauty. Actually, only few AAA (or AA) flashlights do have a beautiful hotspot+corona. Very few.

The Lumintop Worms (great torches otherwise!!) are other examples with unsuccessful beam perfection. So you're in good company!

God save the Queen

55

thanks a lot for this ":o( I have (2) plain ole black ones showing up any day now. (hey, one could interchange heads and bodies!)

56

Hi saypat, i have added a little review section. There's a V2 version out, with different tail etc. Your copies will be the V2!!

Maybe we will see a V3 too with full support for Protected 10440's!

57

Hello Kreisler. I try to read everything but in case I missed your review section, could u please post a link? Thanks. I'm getting the V2? Tell me it's as least as good as the V1 ":o) I'll be happy to receive anything actually. Have u done a review on the V2 vs previous? Pics? Not pushing here, just curious. Hey, why not a silver, SS, Titanium, EO9?

patrick -

58

from my review, see OP:

there are also manufacturing tolerances involved. in my V2 sample i dont get the grey Ultrafire Protected 10440's to work with a single washer. i would have to use 2 washers (which works fine). V2 is 0.5mm shorter than my V1. i am asking Tank to produce longer bodies..