Maybe if you’re clueless and have nothing better to do with your time, otherwise you could just measure the parasitic drain and then you’ll know whether you’ve got 3 months or 3 years before the aux LEDs will drain the cell.
The OP’s point is that lights with aux LEDs should be scrutinized, i.e. measured.
As we are seeing, not everyone uses Aux in the same way. A few people have mentioned that they do not leave them on 24/7, but that is what river345 wants to do.
I think it is great that the OP is developing parasitic drain info, so he knows how long his 24/7 use of Aux would last.
I am also interested in 24/7 locator light application… and appreciate Parasitic drain info that people in this thread are sharing.
the assumption that Aux are Intended to be left on 24/7 is not a universally shared expectation. But it is certainly helpful to know how to measure parasitic drain, so that people who want to use Aux 24/7, can anticipate how often to recharge.
Anticipating how long a light will last on different outputs, both Aux and main LEDs, is a very reasonable objective. I am grateful to all the people that know how to measure parasitic drain, and share that info here.
I will share the Aux drain I can measure, from the new TS25, when it arrives. The order was just placed today, so it may be a couple of weeks before I can share the results. I expect it will also use the latest Anduril 2, with LVP for Aux, pending confirmation.
I expect the TS25 will also have a button indicator light, that can be used as a locator 24/7, pending confirmation.
Meanwhile, I am happily using Low Red Aux on 24/7 on my TS10 with Stock firmware. It has the latest Anduril 2 firmware, with LVP for Aux.
.
Same is true for my reflashed SC21 Pro (not the stock Anduril 1). I use the Low Green Button locator light, on 24/7. This reflashed firmware also uses the latest Anduril 2 with LVP for Aux.
.
imo a reflashed SC21 Pro is a great light to leave attached to some metal, for example, top of fridge. With indicator light facing the room, so the light can be located in the dark.
I plan to use the new TS25 in a similar way as the SC21 Pro, as they both have tailmagnets, and the same lighted button.
well
sometimes they are there for
tint correction
to add spill to a thrower
color effects
those could have pretty significant currents
fwiw, Anduril Lights before the TS10 firmware update of 7/19/2022, did not have LVP on button lights, nor on single color Aux.
Anduril builds for lights listed in this repository, https://ghart.com/blf/firmware/hex_files/sofirn_anduril2/
dated after the Wurkkos TS10 update, Do have LVP on the button lights, and single color Aux lights.
So I am happy to use the SC21 Pro, reflashed to Anduril 2 anduril.2022-10-12.sofirn-sc21-pro.hex
with the button light on low, 24/7, safe in the knowledge that the button light has LVP. I have also calculated that parasitic drain should last 10 months, if the light sits unused. I generally recheck my lights batteries every month or two, and I dont store w aux On
I am looking forward to the updated Wurkkos TS25 with firmware:
anduril.2022-08-17.wurkkos-ts25.hex
and lighted button, like the SC21 Pro. For locating the light in the dark, the button light is enough… I dont need aux to be on 24/7. And imo, the button light is more convenient, on a light with a tailmagnet… easier to aim the button in a way that it is visible, while the host is attached by magnet, top of fridge, under a shelf… or as desired
the idea to use aux as 24/7 locator lights, is not necessarily a proper use of Aux… totally depends how bright, and how much power they use
alternatively, people who want a locator function on Anduril lights, could choose to use a beacon mode instead of Aux or Button lights, subject to verification of the parasitic drain levels, and how long the battery can sustain the beacon.
imho, Aux are a novelty, a fun sort of Bling. They are not inherently intended to be left on 24/7 as locator lights… But if someone wants to Aux as locator lights, I think thats great, as long as they do their due diligence and are aware of whether their model has LVP, and have learned how long the parasitic drain would last, if used 24/7…
jon, are you saying the sc21 pro before update, will kill a battery if the button light is left on?
do they not have a hardware based low voltage protection?
yes, because the button light does not have LVP (unless it is on blinking mode). There IS hardware LVP for the main LED
however, on low mode button light, it should last almost a year, based on this:
so, if youre recharging more often than that, it is nothing to be worried about
otoh, on bright button, the drain will only take 13 days… so… dont leave the light unattended for 3 weeks w bright button On 24/7
otoh, if youre recharging once a week, the lack of bright button LVP is nothing to be worried about
It is really up to the operator, to check battery voltage periodically… best to recharge long before LVP kicks in…
also note, the blinking button mode Does have LVP
I dont know the parasitic drain for the beacon, but since it is not an Aux, it has LVP as part of the main LED circuit
and, if you dont store your light with button light On, the drain is even lower… or if you want to stop all drain, use physical lockout
jon, i believe you but how do you have all that inside info?
Not really inside info, just using and observing the light.
glad to share info I collected from others
I read every post, in the BLF threads I participate in. :student:
I do a lot of searching by keywords so I can post links
I read the manuals for the lights I use
I also have a light meter, a DMM, and an Opple,
I check outputs, battery levels, and Tints often,
because I change LEDs in most of my lights.
and, when I learned to reflash the TS10, SC21 Pro, and SP10 Pro, I had a lot of help from some very smart people.
I think most of the info came from SammysHP, Adair21, gchart, the_freeman, ToyKeeper, and several other unsung heroes, whose names escape me at the moment.
oh i see
the key is apparently not being lazy
i guess i’ll have to pass on that one 
wle
lol thank you… Im just old and bored… still lazy 
Im a retired teacher, so it helps me feel normal to explain stuff
Im sure youre not lazy, probably just different priorities
enjoy your lights, in whatever way makes you happy
I got a TS25 recently, and added the aux drain for the TS25 to the OP.
TS25 (Production version as of 2022-11-15)
Off: 87uA
Blue Low: 131uA
Blue High: 3.2mA
Blue Blink: 257uA
Red Low: 206uA
Red High: 6.25mA
Red Blink: 450uA
Green Low: 213uA
Green High: 2.1mA
Green Blink: 164uA
LVP of 2.8V works at all levels (low, high, blink)
I can’t find it now but I believe armytek has said the flashing indicator/switch will drain an 18650 battery in approximately 25 years. That’s a fairly small green flash every 4.8 seconds. It’s enough to find a light in low light conditions or in total darkness. I would assume the LVP works but I’ll be dead in 25 years so I’ll never know. There is some room for error in measuring these things. Edit. It actually changes to an orange flash rather than green when the voltage is down around 3.3v. I’ve only had it that low a few times. And the instructions say it will go to red at some point also. I don’t think I’ve ever seen red with the light off. I have seen red while using the light. So it’s function is to work as a beacon and a battery level indicator.
@Oli
Here is the drain of a Wizard C2 Pro. The color matches the state of charge, from green over yellow to red. Eventually it will turn off completely.
|
Voltage |
Color |
|---|---|
|
> 3.4 V |
green flashing (every five seconds) |
|
3.1 – 3.4 V |
orange flashing (every two seconds) |
|
2.8 – 3.1 V |
red flashing (every second) |
|
2.65 – 2.8 V |
Firefly without switch LED |
|
< 2.65 V |
Flashlight turns off |
And here a Prime C2 Pro (notice the different scale):
So that means you have to measure amperage at all three color levels. I believe I’ve read that the tail cap has a resistor in it. You cannot measure voltage with the tail cap tight. Measuring voltage with the tail cap loose it starts low and climbs usually to about 3.2, 3.3v on the three different ones that I’ve measured. That is when the battery is at 4.0 volts. So didn’t you say you’re measuring through the contacts on the tail cap? I think there may be some problems there.
I don’t think it’s necessary to measure the current for all colors. We’re talking about microamps.
The tailcap doesn’t contain any electronic parts at all, just a PCB isolated from the tailcap itself. Depending on whether it is screwed tight or not the outer contacts allow an access to both the negative and positive pole of the battery. Well, almost because there’s indeed some voltage drop (in my case 0.65 V). But that doesn’t matter for the current measurement.
Something is different. I have two C2 pros here and at least three other various wizards and I cannot measure voltage with the tail cap tight. Are you saying you can? And if you can, can you also charge it without loosening the cap? With the tail cap loose I get readings yes at 0.3, 0.6 or 0.8 volts less than a true battery reading depending on what mode you had the flashlight in before you loosen the tail cap. It varies quite a bit.
I’ve never said it works when the tailcap is tightened. In that case the battery tube makes contact with the PCB and both contacts on the outside are directly connected. charging works only with loosened tailcap, of course.
Yes, that’s right. I haven’t checked if there’s a difference from the previous mode. But this doesn’t matter if you want to measure the current from the outside.
Okay. The part where you said “Depending on whether it is screwed tight or not…… ” is a little confusing but that’s all right. Back to the program.
Yeah, might have been confusing.
If screwed tight everything shown is on the same potential.
When the tailcap is loosened, the negative pole of the battery is connected via the spring to the center contact. The outer contact is just part of the tailcap and connected via the battery tube with the driver / positive side of the battery.
