I have my bigger lights, think I want a smaller, budget pocket EDC light….like a 14500/16340 battery….maybe 1000-1500 max lumens.
I see the Sofirn SC21 Mini, SC21 Mini Pro, and Wurkkos TS10 talked about the most, so far. Any other quality favorites to consider? Convoy?
Does either of these carry higher (or lesser) quality/use ratings than the others?
Thanks for any thoughts! :+1:
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All you mentioned are good options, and all have pros and cons. Sustainable lumens from any of these will be well below your numbers. TS10 will have the highest overall output, but it will be short lived and eat cell capacity. My vote would be Sofirn SP10 PRO. Multi fuel capability and easily modified if you’re into that kind of thing. I don’t own any Convoy T2 or T3 14500 models, but from what I’ve heard, they are too close in size to something like an S2+ to be considered in the same size class as those you’ve mentioned.
I really want to like the SP10 Pro, and if I were a modder I truly would! Just can’t get past the ugly LED. Love duel fuel lights in this size class. However, the TS10 is so spectacular that I can live with 14500 only. Every other dual fuel light that I have had truly only does one chemistry well - except for the SP10 Pro. With a better LED it would be amazing.
In terms of a light that is actually used in this size class, hands down it is the E03H II. It is also duel fuel however, on LiIon moonlight is effectively replaced by several levels of low. For me that means it is effectively NiMh only. Extremely useful light. Exceptional clip that allows it to clip on nearly anything for hands free use. Decent headband for headlamp use. Strong magnet in tail for things like using in a server cabinet etc. Beautiful 4000k SST20 with TIR. Great output levels for close work, walking, etc. Takes up very little space and is built like a tank. Clipped in deep carry position it virtually disappears in the 5th jeans pocket. This has become my primary EDC light.
The TS10 is just plain beautiful, fun, perfect design for cigar grip, and pretty much disappears in the pocket. This has replaced my venerable Ti3 as the light that is just always in the pocket. One that I don’t count as edc necessarily. It is just there.
Do you actually need those lumens or do you want the compact battery/host size instead? You won’t really get both except for a few seconds on some.
Convoy T2/T3 is certainly worth a look…pocket activation is difficult and it’s reasonably small but still easy to handle/not drop…good brightness but nowhere near what you asked for, and a simple UI. You can add a ring magnet to the tail if you want, works well and provides further button protection. Skillhunt M150 may also be worth a look, and the SP10 Pro definitely worth consideration except the button kind of stinks and is easy to activate (similar with the TS10) so using the e-lockout will need to become a habit. FWAA is still a great contender. Maybe the Lumintop Tool, too…cheap, effective, can use the rear clicky or get the mag cap and use it as a twisty, easy to mod with a nicer emitter. A thousand pardons for mentioning Olight again (really I am not a fan of their lights) but they have a newer 2.4v 14500 available with a 5000K high cri emitter…i5r EOS. It’s pretty decent if you want a simple two mode penlight - good low/high settings and while the 2.4v cell is proprietary, the driver in this light provides remarkably long run times with level consistent output until the very end (where it will shut of without warning, however). It’s only in blue, extra cell is $10 if you can’t wait for a recharge (usb on cell), and the emitter is not as nice as a 519A or similar but it’s pretty good in both temp and tint.
14500 cells can rival the best 16340 these days but if you want the latter the SC21 Pro, Olight SIR Baton II (icky emitter…), and several of the On The Road models are well worth a look (the OTR are a bit chunky compared to the others but they’re really good lights with great construction and a very good firmware).
You could even think about something like the FW3A with the short 18350 tube and you’ll be about the same physical size of many of these others, and stepping up to that cell will get you closer to the brightness you ask for, with decent capacity, and if used normally (i.e. not always on turbo or high setting, brief use periods) you’ll have good run times.
I have all of these and I don’t know if I could pick a solid favorite…kind of rotate between them all. For “edc” I use larger lights (FW3A, D4K) which are still compact but have the juice. If I had to pick a 14500 that gets the most use it’s probably my Convoy T2/T3 lights and the FWAA, and actually a low end Nicron N7 adjustable angle head (they’re not such a great value anymore, however, and they are not moddable).
Thanks for the responses, TIFisher, how crazy, and Correllux ….will be checking out stats/reviews on the added models 
Correllux: No, not expecting 1000+ lumens from a mini-light, just used that reference point from manufacturer claims of “max lumens in turbo” (even though turbo is like 10-15 secs., if that)
If you want sideswitch
I vote SC21 Pro, because of the lighted switch button,
this is extremely useful…
I change the stock LED, I like the Anduril UI
it also has built in charging and a tailmagnet
(neither matter to me, but matter to some)
and the pocket clip is deep carry, which I like
I can not deal with the SP10 Pro switch button, because I cant find it by feel, nor in the dark… It is also too big for my preferences
if you want tailswitch:
and you want Titanium, w the thinnest AA size, EagTac D3A w High CRI, 4 mode tail clicky
has an excellent pocket clip, the tailbutton is mechanical, will not turn on in pocket
If you want anduril w tailswitch, TS10 has decent LEDs, needs a different pocket clip.
I’ve got the SP10 Pro and TS10. I’ve got a Manker E03H II on order (runs 14500 or AA.)
I don’t have a problem with the LH315D LED in the SP10 Pro- I quite like it. It seems to maintain the higher turbo output fairly well and doesn’t overheat quickly. You’ve got Anduril 2 so plenty of different options to set up. I prefer the side switch set up as the switch is in the perfect location if I’m carrying it in my hand (but that side switch design does add some length to the body.) It’s got a decent output on both 14500 and NiMh. The turbo on the TS10 is brighter, but it doesn’t really shame the SP10 Pro.
The TS10 has the initial wow factor when you first turn on turbo, but that level quickly fades down to a much lower output. Mine is the brass version- I’m not sure if that would improve the heat dissipation compared to the aluminium version, or make it worse? It uses Anduril 2 again. The aux LED’s are more of a novelty to me, as if you leave them on 24/7 the battery wouldn’t last long. 14500 battery only.
The Lumintop Tool 2.0 also gets some good feedback on here and is cheap. It’s 14500 or AA.
You could consider the acebeam tk-16. Great light, but no deep carry clip.