Trustfire X6 or multi T6 light?

LED Flashlights ā€“ General Info 18650 Flashlights
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Hello fellow budgeteers:

Hopefully this is in the right area.

New member here, who has been heavily lurking for several weeks, getting the lay of the land.

What a GREAT web site!

Thank goodness there is a CPF alternative. To each their own, but especially the thread Gestapo over there seems kinda wound up tighter than a roll of bridge cable. :wink:

Anyway, for the past 16 years, my wife and I live about 8 months of the year in the middle of nowhere ā€” a tiny town (population 35 on a good day) in the mountains above Death Valley, California, second hottest place on earth ā€¦ Although since weā€™re in the mountains, itā€™s much cooler than the valley floor, where it really is a toaster slot from April-October.

But itā€™s probably one of the truly rural, most sparsely populated areas in the u.s. ā€” where a good flashlight is a real necessity, where it can mean the difference literally between life and death, or certainly between life and extreme discomfort, like sitting in the dark overnight in a cold or hot trackless desert. Weā€™re 90 miles round trip to the nearest gas station or store or anything for that matter. Home depot? 180 miles round trip. Nearest neighbors ā€” besides others in the town ā€” are also about 60 miles round trip.

Well enough of the personal intro already: So far I have found a WEALTH of info on budget lights here. Thanks to all of you for making this a truly valuable site! Most anything you can be had by just reading the archives ā€¦ā€¦ Well almost anything. I am looking for input from the real experts on a large light purchase (pun intended).

I need a powerful thrower (if I have the def of a ā€œthrowerā€ correct). I have been looking at the Trustfire X6 SSt-90. Yeah, bragging rights would be nice, but we would really use it. But as I do more research, maybe the multi T6 lights are better and brighter? If so. How many emitters? What is the most cost-effective, reliable, nicely made multi-t6 light?

My only caveats are that I donā€™t really wanna spend more than $150 and that the light must have a far-reaching spotlight-type effect. A really powerful spill light would not help. The X6 seems to have a nice spot, but if I am misreading x6 descriptions, and it has a bright spill, it would be useless for us.

We do a lot of walking/hiking at night down unexplored canyons and washes and open desert. So just about any 200-300 lumen multipurpose throw-and-area light works for that. But what it DOES NOT work for is when we change courses and need to see the lay of the land mucho yards in front. I have an ultrafire WF-1500L (5 Q5 emitters) that has the right idea but isnā€™t bright enough. Does that wash 100 yards ahead connect with that one over there? ā€¦. Or will we dead end and have to climb up a vertical cliff?

We have NO streetlights or other light sources besides the moon and stars, so lights tend to go farther than they do in a highly light-polluted cityā€¦

So experts what say you? X6 or multi T6?

And what is the best outfit to buy the X6 from?

And if a multi T6, which one and from whom?

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Ubehebe

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You need a single xml for throw, not multi. The x6 would work but itā€™s really big. Iā€™d suggest the Crelant 7G9. Really bright, great throw and good runtimes. I like the shorty battery configuration. The Thrunite TN31 is even better, in fact fits your needs perfectly but is over your spending limit.

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Hey welcome to BLF!! Yeah CPF is a money machineā€¦ it HAS to be (to some extent) in order to fund its own existence. Its in their best interest to protect those retailers who buy into CPF membership and use CPF as an advertising machine. So there are strict rules, and theres heavy moderation in place to safeguard their endorsee retailers. Actually a LOT of commercially driven www forums are this wayā€¦. guitars, watches, RC hobbiesā€¦etc.

Anyways, glad to have you here!!! There are BLF rules too, so make sure you read up on that as well.

Not sure about lights like the X6, or Trustfire TR-J10 which also uses an SST90. Relatively little is discussed on BLF about these lights.

What kind of throw do you want? Do you want sharpened pencil-beam, tunnelvision spot-throw of an XRE / aspheric? Or do you want something that will reach way out, yet still open up enough to allow your eyes to scan a far off area?

I personally am more a fan of the latter, so I prefer XML throwers.
Stay away from the smaller multi-XML designs like TR-J12/18, Apex 5T6, DRY and Skyray King. They donā€™t have the reflector diameter to capture a lot of side emitted lumens and reflect them forwards. You will need to stick with lights like the HD2010, STL-V2, Fandyfore V6 and Stanley fatmax spotlight if you want the efficiency and compact-ness of XML throw. These lights are under $50, and will get you 45-50K lux (slightly more for the Stanley fatmax which is the throwiest XML light in its price range). You could spend more within your $150 ceiling, but youā€™re not going to get THAT much more lux from a single XML. You will however get higher quality though, if you shop wisely.

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$150?

Assuming you have other gadgets powered by AA, AAA niMh or even alkaline cells in emergency situations , I would suggest the Fenix TK41. Good throw/flood combination, powered by 8 AA cells (even four). You can use the nimh charger for your other gadgets too. Sanyo Eneloop/charger combo will complete the package.

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I strongly recommend the olight m3x, its high quality and light weight. It well out throw any flashlight except for the bigger more expensive lights that cost $300 plus. I got a great deal over at ebay for 100 bux free expedited shipping. PM me if anyone wants the link to seller.

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also love this forum!

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It's good to have you here, Ubehebe!

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I would suggest that you look into the Jacob A60 XR-E light that dealextreme carries. It uses the best throwing emitter ( XR-E) in a big reflector. Big reflector or big aspheric lense is the way to go. No exceptions. It comes highly recommended from some of the other thrower lovers on this site and is reviewed/talked about in several threads.
The cost of 15 usd should be appealing too because then you can buy 3. One for your missus, one for you and one for the backpack, just in case. And leaves you with enough money to buy a good charger and 6 or more good batteries. I would suggest the Sysnax intellicharge V2 that Dinodirect offers for 20 USD and for batteries I would suggest that you buy panasonic 3100 mah. You probably wont find many recommendations of cheap xxxxxfire batteries because it seems it is always a crap shoot and in your situation it seems to me (and I could be totally wrong, AGAIN :frowning: ) that you would rather pay a little more from a respected vendor like HKequipment.net and start using the lights than you would risk getting some poor or DOA cells that you have to wait several more weeks to replace.
I hope you find the site as entertaining as i do. Have fun.

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Someone knows Death Valley ā€¦ Well, itā€™s my namesake Big Ubehebe Crater!

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Have to agree with the comments about single vs. multiple T6. My single TF T6 with 2 cells and ~50mm lens is plenty of light with long run time. I live in a very rural and fairly natural area as well; and find too much bounce from very strong spill interferes with night vision. Also found I quite like an aspheric which has almost none (Thanks TheShadow!).

If you arenā€™t sure about whether you want strong spill or a very tight beam, Iā€™d suggest considering a very inexpensive flood to throw style light with an aspheric to experiment.

Still very inexpensive there is a thread on the different sipiks you can get (larger or smaller lens). Or I might look at Poppas versions for something only slightly more expensive.

Back to the single XMLs, Iā€™d give serious look to the Crelant 7G5. Itā€™s pricey, but the upgrade option of a 7G5 with huge collimator head is pretty awesome; very useful in areas where you can opt up the power to very long distances, so I am now going to watch prices on those.

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Thanks to everyone for answering ā€¦ā€¦ I didnā€™t expect answers to be so quick.

>>>>>>>>>>Iā€™d suggest the Crelant 7G9. The Thrunite TN31

I will check them out. Thank you!!!

>>>>>>What kind of throw do you want?

Thatā€™s a great question that I should have thought more about before posting my original parameters. What Iā€™m looking for is something along the lines of a high-beam headlight, and of equal brightness (which I know is probably not possible). When my truck is parked at an overlook, the high beams provide just what weā€™re looking for. Not a pinpoint of bright light like a W-C11 XPG-R5 but more like the pix I have seen of the X6 beam pattern. MUCH brighter in the center with some slight spill. Actually a zoomie would be best, but I know that wonā€™t happen with a SST-90 and certainly not with multiple T6s.

>>>>>Or do you want something that will reach way out, yet still open up enough to allow your eyes to scan a far off area?

Yes, exactly. But huge brightness are the watchwords here. The brighter the better because the farther it will go, although I have noticed substantial light loss because of the substantial amount of dust suspended in the air. Itā€™s not enough to interfere with daylight acuity, but it sure subtracts from flashlight beam efficiency.

>>>>>>You will need to stick with lights like the HD2010

GREAT!!! I just ordered one of those, so I may already have the answer in hand.

>>>>>>Trustfire TR-J10

Didnā€™t even know they made that one. I will have to compare it and the X6. thanks.

>>>>>>>>>You could spend more within your $150 ceiling, but youā€™re not going to get THAT much more lux from a single XML.

EXCELLENT POINT!!! Thatā€™s why I wanted to perhaps go with multi T6s, but what Iā€™m picking up is not much of a spotlight effect with multi T6s.

>>>>>I would suggest the Fenix TK41.

Looks like I have more research to do. Thanks. Yes, I have ye olde eneloop charger so that would make it a no brainer if itā€™s what I want.

I will have to try and do a night pic to see if I can capture just how far a beam will go up here ā€¦. In a couple months. We bail from up there during the summer. Too hot. I may be crazy but Iā€™m not nuts.

>>>>>>>I strongly recommend the olight m3x,

Another one to look at. SOOPER.

>>>>>>>>>>>Jacob A60 XR-E light that dealextreme carries.

I have my homework cut out for me.

>>>>>Big reflector or big aspheric lense is the way to go. No exceptions.

Oakey doakey. Thatā€™ll help narrow down the finalists.

>>>>>The cost of 15 usd should be appealing too because then you can buy 3.

Thatā€™s a no brainer! Iā€™ll be ordering one of those today!!! Man, thatā€™s what I love about budget lights ā€¦. No remorse on individual purchases (but when the paypal bill comes for the the whole month, now thatā€™s a different story.)

>>>>>>>>>>>suggest that you buy panasonic 3100 mah. You probably wont find many recommendations of cheap xxxxxfire batteries because it seems it is always a crap shoot

I have some of the panasonic and sanyos, but I thought that there seems to be a consensus for using protected cells in multi-cell lights, although the A60 you recommend is not a multi cell.

I didnā€™t include all the suggestions in this reply, but I have written them all down and am off to research them now.

*If anyone has any other suggestions, please let me know. To refine the parameters: Ridiculous lumens (more the merrier) with a high-beam center-weighted throw ā€¦. The purpose of this light is not so much to find our way but to see what the heck is that all the way over there? Hoping for something in the 2000 lumen range, but perhaps that is ridiculous thinking.

Size is not too much of a concern (x6 is okay) but one of those 8 gazillion candlepower walmart specials is way too big.*

Thanks again everyone!!

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Welcome to BLF!

Why not two lights?

For $150 you can get the best budget thrower Fandyfire STL-V6 and a very good high lumen multi emitter light Skyray King and versatile and reliable charger Sysmax Intellicharge i4 V2 and you still have some money for batteries as well..

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Man, that is going into my sig line right now! You nailed it!

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The TN31 is double the lux of the STL-V2. This guy has an actual need for the light, so I would spring for it. You could also go HID but I have no advice on those.

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@ Tecmo
I thought about that one too but refrained from recommending it for 2 reasons although I believe it is a VERY nice light.
First reason is that it would go above his intended budget and I dont want to give recommendations outside the budget frame he has set. (At least with batteries and charger it would)
The second reason is that the OP mentions dust in the air. I too live in a rural area and even a little dust or mist in the air will cut down the usable distance of my best thrower (~ 75 - 85 kcd) to 300 meters or less. So although it is wonderful the few nights when no mist/dust is in the air it does nothing a ~50 kcd thrower wont do 85% of the time.

@OP: You certainly have your work cut out for you with all these proposals for your need. I for one would like to hear about your decisions and what you think of the lights when you get them/it. Have fun.

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+1 for Ledsmoke. My thoughts, exactly.

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Not shure if anyone mentioned that lithium batteries for multi-cell lights need additional attention (i.e. balance checking).

I'm a two-lights fan. A semi-flooder on medium in my hand to illuminate the path ahead and a thrower in my backpocket for occasional spotting. Each in 1x18650 configuration. This way I get the following benefits:

- 2x18650 energy available, without the need for balancing
- backup in case of flashlight breakdown
- each light chosen to best accomplish one task only, no multi-purpose tools for me.

I love my Jacob A60 (the thrower), I use it daily. But without a backup, I'd not recommend it for wilderness at this moment. It has been around only a couple of months now, and we don't know yet how well it stands those 2.0-2.2A it's XR-E is driven at. That's the reason why I bought a spare one, I'd really miss it if it went poof.

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+1 M3X is one of the best!!!

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+1 the Jacob A60 is the best thrower for the money.

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A hearty round of applause to those who posted more answers after the second batch.

I donā€™t have the suggestion list in front of me ā€¦. Partly because it would show me how much money I have spent on flashlights in the last couple days :ā€“0 But I have taken many of the suggestions to heart and ordered 7-8 lights. I am PSYCHED!!!

>>>>>the Jacob A60 is the best thrower for the money

Definitely ordered that one. Thanks!

Iā€™m thinking that a single Q5 may not be what Iā€™m looking for in a long-distance thrower. I should have been more speciific in my original post.

I have about 30 budgie lights so far, mostly Q5s and T6s, running on 18650s and 14500s. The 2x18650 T6s and a 5 q5 2x18650 (spillee) Trustfire are close to what I need but just arenā€™t bright enough to cover the distance. The 2x18650s (one a zoomie) are ALMOST useful for about a mile, but just fall a few lumens short. I can see the beams (even on some of the smaller single 18650 T6s) hit a landmark exactly one mile from my deck, but the light isnā€™t bright enough to see much at that distance ā€” except for burro, coyote and other critter eyes which light up like fireballs even a mile away in the deep black moonless desert (not with a moon though). So thatā€™s why I was interested in the x6 or multi T6s.

Soooooooooooo ā€¦ā€¦ If this batch of recommended throwers canā€™t project far enough, Iā€™ll have to go for the big guns.

My main fear of ordering a x6 is getting a bad one and having to return in, turning a $150 order into a bottomless money abysss. There are a couple U.S. sellers for a few bucks more, so Iā€™ll probably go with one of them. But then on the other hand, Iā€™m thinking the higher-volume Chinese sellers might be turning over their stock frequently enough to get the newest and greatest revisions on the x6 as trustfire (maybe) tweaks specs for the best. Then again, even my smaller chinese lights come through mostly unbroken but looking like they were thrown from a fighter jet at 50,000 feet, so who knows how anything like a large x6 will fare.

I had thought that a less-expesnive but brighter multi-t6 might be a better solution, but most everyone seems to say they are not really spotlights or throwers.

So I anxiously wait for the next 3-4 weeks to fly past to see if any of my new purchases will fit the bill. Plus I still have MORE research from the first batch or suggestions and now this go around.

Thanks again everyone. I never could have found the actual hands-on light experience between different models that has been so kindly offered by everyone here.

I am very happy to have found BLF. I hope I am able to give back as much as you all have given to me so far.