I’d take one of them for $100 or less over a TM26 (for $350) anyday.
Or maybe 2 of em 
Not everyone... post 37 ;)
I'm not so sure there is an XML2 variant... the only listing for xml2 is from IlluminatioSupply, and the description contradicts the title.
Edit: Sent a PM to Calvin to clear it up.
Hmm… since this is a budget forum after all, wonder why no one mention TR-J18? ( edit - n/m didn’t read the whole post, need more coffee 
)
TR-J18 can be had for around $45 these days, in stock itself is an awesome flood with decent throw.
with simple resistor mod that cost less than $2 it can achieved 4000+ lumens
with $20 KD beast driver it can hit 5500 lumens and if you want to go crazy like Tom E did… 9000 lumens!
beside…you don’t really need a flood/thrower more than your eyes can see at night anyway
save your money and get TR-J18 and still have some left more few extra batteries 
Nobody buys NitecoreTM26 anymore, why pay for premium price when you can have other for much less?
I’m sorry, but IMO people who buy TM11 or TM26 is because they didn’t do any research before they buy the light or maybe they just like they way it look.
as for the price? Stock TK75 XM-L2 walk all over TM26 with it’s bigger and deeper reflectors and still have some money left to buy extra good quality batteries and extender to carry them
heck… ask Vihn for one and you’ll want to sell TM26 as quickly as possible but good luck selling it around flasholics around here without 1/2 off the original price.
I voted for the Fenix TK75 XM-L2 only because it's the one I have out of the one's listed. I've never seen the others in person so I admit I'm biased. That said, I've never had a problem the any of my Fenix's which include a TK50, TK35, LD20, LD15, E05. The quality is first rate, great beam and tint. I love it...
How heavily you have to mod C8 to achieve 120klux/1m?
It’s not really better, it’s just smaller. It may have those 3800 lument but just for 2-3 minutes before serious stepdown. And before that you may even not notice the difference between TM26 and TK75 (XM-L2) because Nitecore is much floodier while more concentrated beam visually appears brighter. TK75 will at least match both spill and throw of your BTU. TM26 will have brighter but tighter spill and much less throw.
Lol, the TM26 is a modern marvel man, where have you been. I read tens of thousands of post and hundreds of reviews, watched hundreds of YouTube videos before ever getting the TM26.
I think you meant what you said the other way around.
Once you get a TM26, you will happily sell your, twice as big, oversized, non-digital display TK75! You can take that to the bank :)
Also, because this is a budget forum I got my TM26 for $195 even, from illumination supply. That's about the same as what you would pay for a TK75.
Plus TK75 low mode is 25 Lumens? That's no low mode. No way that can touch the nice 3 Lumen firefly mode. And no tripod mounting? And no digital display? Come on man, what century are we in? This isn't 1995 anymore man!
The TM26 paves the future. I own a Fenix TK45, and its pretty good, nice build quality. But it's way too big and impractical to carry around.
While I am in the same boat thinking that they’re far overpriced for my tastes, I can see why someone would pay ~$240 for a Nitecore product like the TM26. The quality of Nitecore is far and above outstanding. I honestly can’t imagine a day when my MH40 will die. I think I mentioned this before, but my Thor has been mounted to the side of an AR-15 that has seen thousands of rounds pumped through it, and has been taken on and off the gun close to a hundred times. It still functions perfectly and looks almost brand new. It retails low side around $100.
Where can you get a TM26 for less than $200 today? I went on IS's website and it's $390. I don't care how good it is. There is no way in hell I'm paying $390 for a freaking flashlight no matter how good it is. I paid $169 delivered for my TK75. And yes, I'd love to own one, but not at that ridicules price
I agree with you there, no way would I pay that much for a flashlight, but too be totally honest, it is easily worth the $390. But I got mine when they had their black Friday sale. TM26 3800lm can be had for around $240 on eBay or Amazon easily. That's one full tank of gas more than the TK75! And if I were a betting man, which I am, most people, as in I would say 95%, would happily and easily choose a TM26 over a TK75, if the had both flashlights in front of them. Everyone who has ever seen the TM26, has to respect the TM26.
BTW, Unfortunately I lost my job last year. Thank God for Social Security. Yep, I'm an old fuck, I'll be 62 May 2nd and will get my first SS payment the second week of June. That said, if I can get a TM26 for a reasonable price, I'll pick one up. It looks like an amazing flashlight...
Sorry to hear that! You sure your 62 or that a typo? Your pic doesn't look like your a day over 40. I do regret not buying at least 1 more TM26 at that BF price of $195!
No typo. The picture is from 2 years ago. It's a good one I must admit. It's getting harder and harder to take pictures that makes me look young like that! lol! BTW, I still feel like I'm in my 20's. I still laugh when someone (or myself) farts :)
And as far as losing the job I had for 30 years, yeah that sucks!! But I'll be fine. My house is paid off, and I have a tenant that pays me enough to get by, and now I'll be getting a decent amount from social security. I'll be living decently well. If I sell my house and move south, I'll be living the life!
Last I checked, the TK75 gets about 92 kcd of lux.
A C8 with a de-domed XP-G2 at ~3A gets about 90 kcd, and with some extra copper and 7135 chips, people here have gotten them up to 125 kcd or so. But from what I hear, simply swapping the emitter on a decent C8 should be enough to get its throw up to par with a TK75. Or a modded UF-T20 can apparently get up to 135 kcd in a body roughly the same size, with no spill to impair night vision.
I’ve got a C10 w/ de-domed XP-G2 on its way, and I’ll compare it to the TK75 I gave my father next time I see him. I suspect I won’t be able to see any difference in throw. Someone else who did the same mod measured 93 kcd afterward.
That's an opinion. We're all entitled to our own :)
Objectively, the price to performance ratio just isn't there, and in terms of quality, nitecore and fenix are about the same (I say this as an owner of several fenix, and nitecore lights).
The only truly interesting thing about the light is the LED display, and while it's a nice, it just isn't worth the extra $290. For that you can buy a cheap laptop instead.
The XMLu2 version was rated at 92kcd, the xml2 version...
Dedomed and modded it goes to around 300kcd.
Thats interesting, but is it really a viable option to walk/hike with? TK75’s spill makes this possible, and the wider hotspot makes the spot more use-able for distance spotting. I really don’t know what my C8 I have produces in kcd, but its one of the direct drive ones and a nice 4C tint, so I like it, but definitely not too convenient hiking for much more than playing around/spotting things, if your primary is maybe a weaker flooder.
Of course I’ve been spoiled and had fun going ridiculous in a couple night hikes lately, using my 15x as a primary, when I spot something I pulled my TN31vn out for distance identification, those reflective eyes in the distance watching me a couple times were a herd of deer
To be fair, 3 lumens is a far cry from being a firefly mode. I’d say even 0.5 lumens is probably too bright for that label.
While I definitely like low lows, I don’t carry a multi-cell light for just a couple lumens. That’s what a 1xAA or 1xAAA light is for. It’s nice to have the option, but I don’t recall ever having a practical purpose for so few lumens from such a large light. I don’t bother carrying anything that big unless I expect to need something blindingly bright.
The beauty of having a really low moonlight mode on a multi cell light is, you basically never need to turn it off, just leave it running on low.
Edit: nvm. Pretty far off topic.
Best 3k lumen light: still vote for TR-J18. Quality and mod potential off the charts for $40-50.
I probably wouldn’t attempt to use either a C8 or a TK75 for hiking. Both are way too throwy, and while hiking I mostly want to see what’s near me. I’d most likely use my ZL H52Fw for hiking, or some other floody 1xAA light with long runtimes at a ~3 to ~30 lumen level. Even my DQG Tiny AAA IV (on low) is generally enough, but I’m also photosensitive.
If I spent extra weight bringing a thrower, I’d only use it for occasional distance spotting, and I’d want the smallest thrower I could find. I probably wouldn’t consider anything bigger than a C8 for that sort of thing; too heavy.
That reminds me, I should go on some night hikes as soon as it warms up a bit more.