I want to hear your round up thoughts for 2017...Flashlights and Life
What you bought
What you like and hate
What you hope for 2018
Anything that's important to you please share
2017 Round up thoughts:
I have to say the flashlight community is a very honest, generous and stand up group of enthusiasts. I have been in the flashlight world for about 7 years now and I have only met may be 4 person I rather not interact with. I took a look at my address book and saw that I ship to about 3000 unique addresses. Each day I spend at least 3-4 hours dedicated to just answering emails and surprisingly things are still in order most of the time. Passion for flashlights and paying the bills is one thing but having a community of support to continue and innovate together is priceless. Thank You!
Lux Signifer raised~ $3000 for 2017! That's $250 a month!!! Current unspent balance $960!
1. 10.3.2016 White Center Food Bank $95
2. Winter 2016 Seattle Homeless $500
3. 4.24.2017 VHC (Vietnam Health Clinic) $100
4. July7 - July27 2017 Random Vietnam street help $1000
5. September 2017 Hurricane Harvey, $500 shelter goods, $500 to Lakewood Church
6. Winter 2016 Seattle Homeless FUNDRAISING IN PROGRESS - LAST YEAR FOR A WHILE
Year of memorable LEDs
XHP35 HI, XHP50.2, XHP70.2, SST40, Oslon Black, CFT-90
Oslon and CFT-90 alone will promise many exciting things to come
Cree XD16 will also be an Oslon competitor
Year started for flooders and ended for throwers enthusiasts
MANY big personal amazing changes which I will share in 2018
I have so many things I want to share for 2017 but I cant yet talk about it. One thing I can share is this is the happiest year I have ever been. Life is so good it scares me sometime. Wonder if you ever had that feeling...Like is this a dream? How long will it last? Hopefully I am just a positive happy person and that is just simply how I live life...Cheers!
What's the game plan for 2018?
- New PFET driver to best utilized the use of Oslon Flat Black & CFT-90
- A new UI ... Just a hint ;-)
- Unless Cree release a XHP35 HI successor/competitor CFT-90 will will almost dominate the High Output Thrower Playground. It is very very hard to not be impressed with the CFT90 performance. The first sample with perfect beam tuning was sent to Richard for inputs. I can't wait to get his feedback on this light. It is amazing. Its like a heavily supercharged XHP35 HI with worlds better heat sinking design. The price! The D*mn price is the only thing holding me back from raving and goign nuts with this LED... :-( At ~$120 shipped per LED this LED is likely only for true heavy spending enthusiast. Sooo pray that a factory put this LED in their lights so the modded version from me will be more affordable. Otherwise much less will be able to enjoy this LED. Myself included.
- I LOVE the Oslon Black. This LED to me is amazing because I am a hardcore throw fan. It's cheap, low heat, excellent output for a tiny LED. I am neutral about cool white...LOL soudns funny. I can see this LED dominating smaller throw host. Only issue I can think of beam tuning. Most of the light that has this LED has a FIXED reflector. This mean if the LED go bad we might not be able to repair the light...High risk high reward I guess. However I do not recommend this LED for the my general buyers if you are on a budget and very worried about future repair costs should a LED go bad. Also light with Oslon are relatively expensive due to the extra labor. Go SST40 instead. Oslon replaced the XPG2 Dedome in terms of performance and may be tint for some...This is big to me personally hahah
- SST40...I guess this is kind of like an "XML3". Basically XML2 beam and tint but just for performance. Cheap to implement in most lights. I love the XML2 but rarely with a dome on. This LED however I love it dome on and shave dome just as much. May be even an ever so slightly edge with the dome on. Tint is an excellent pure white to my taste. Output to throw ratio is more impressive than the oslon to most and thats a good thing!
XHP35 HI high Vf is limit its use in many single cell lights. Even the best boost driver like ones from EC60 isnt that great. Heck even the XHP .2 LEDs are too much for a single cell. I not a fan of boost circuits...Buck circuit and direct drive is the way to go for flashlights I think.
Sky Lumen's Best
Some are not great sellers but these are my personal picks.
1. Charger: Nitecore i8, $45, 8 cells, NiHm & Li-ion. Worry charging station.
2. EDC Thrower: Goliath with SST40 or Oslon Black. $138 high price. Excellent throw & Beam. Stainless is classy but heavy. Lighter Aluminum version heat sink better. Lucky few with Oslons.
3. Long range rifle spotter: M25C2vn w/ Oslon Black. Even if you don't have a rifle it's still the best thrower for the packaging. T21vn edges it out but is a bit longer and more expensive.
4. Short range rifle spotter. S2200c2vn. This one and SST40 SD is on my AR15. I don't shoot iron sights so the throw is more than adequate. Larger hotspot and lumen is more appropriate compared to Oslon.
5. Best Tactical Light: G25C2vn with SST40 HD. Excellent beam, decent throw, larger hot spot for scanning ease. My LEOs agree that tactical lights shouldn't have pencil beams. Cool white is most blinding.
6. Aspheric no spill thrower: XSvn with Oslon Black single mode. One mode is all you need for fixed focus aspherics. I am not an aspheric fan but this one sells well for a reason.
7. Long runtime High output: MT35vn with 70.2 6500K. Pushing 6500+ Lumen with surprising long turbo time due to heft and heat sinking design. Almost the light I always grab when I go look for Tiger at night outside. Don't have to worry about turbo heat andit thrower enough yet lights up everything.
8. Turn Key: M2Rvn with XHP35 HI 5000K. An excellent light from the factory really. Might be worth it just to pay a tiny bit extra for my version as it throws more and if you prefer my warranty.
9. Budget headlamp: A2S. You get a 3400mah cell with built in micro USB charging and XPL pushing 1000+ Lumen for $30! I don't use this light myself but I sure recommend it to everyone on a budget. They are all satisfied! Some comes back for more.
10. Pop can with optics: MT18vn with ANY LED! XPL HI 6500K is you can afford it. Optics lights = all the lumen measured is in one large hot spot. Nothing wasted in places you don't look, AKA spill. Yes peripheral vision matters too but it's not an issue in this light.
11. Popular single 18650/18350 compact thrower: D1vn with SST40 SD. Price and UI is on point. I rarely use it as I am not yet used to ramping UI but I do think its an excellent one. This UI will be extra popular in 2018…You won't likely guess why!
12. Popular Single 18650/18350 compact flooder: D4vn with XPL HI 6500K. One of 2017 best seller. I am more busy building this light than using it.
13. Best Tactical Thrower: L16vn with XHP35 HI 5000K. Hot spot can have slight artifacts but otherwise a PERFECT light. Get that raised oring over button mod! A light Acebeam can be proud of. Most of Acebeam are really excellent lately. Ironically I have to get some of their lights through third party nowadays so prices will climb.
14. Highest output BYB (Bang for Your Buck). X45vn with 4 xhp70.2 6500K. Especially now with smooth reflector for more throw! Best high output seller?
15. Olight H1 headlamp. 13 cells included! Excellent beam, tint, UI. Buy 5 set for your house and car!
16. Smallest popcan light: MK34vn…An excellent light minus weak anodization which makes light feel a bit cheap.
17. All around pop can: X7vn. I hate it when someone orders it as the build is tough but it's too good to discontinue. A light I proudly display.
18. EDC Thrower. D25Cvn. Even smaller than Goliath but less throw. Expensive with Oslon Black but worth it!
19. Dedicated throwers: TN42vnM & TN42vn90…largest "practical" size IMO. Other than price not sure what's not to love…These are the kind of lights that keeps me going!
20. Lantern: CL25R. Nothing else this perfect.
21. Keychain: ToolVN. You will understand when you have one…The kind of light that make you say WTF yet most useful as its always with you. I however stop carrying this light after I lost 4. 3 copper one and aluminum.
22. Searchlight: X65vn. A legitimate search light with all the right designs. Seems expensive but when you break it down it has 8 quality cells with built in magnetic charging!
23. Classy Bling: TimebackVN II with trits. A great value even at $300+. Never thought I love spinners and trits.
24. Brightest headlamp: H2R neutral. Likely my most favorite stock light of all time. Other than size the light is PERFECT. Yes I mean perfect. Nothing I can fault or be picky about.
25. Lego fun: P60vn with 219c 5000K. Stay away from P60 legos as its gets addicting and expensive!
26. True Popcan: M43vn with XPL HI. Best heat sinking, current transfer and build quality. Performance is not class leading but will remain a timeless classic for me. Everytime I hold one in my hand I feel an appreciation and respect for the designer.
27. Fenix timeless: TK75vn in any led configuration! Likely the most adaptable host of all time. The kinda light you kinda have to have one if you are an enthusiast. 70.2 version is expensive but impressive.
28. Brightest Popcan X80vn. Turbo and Turbo max gets light hot TOO fast but hey there are lower levels. Center LEDs keep light from being a 1 trick pony. Bugs me when people complain that a light like this one is impractical. I guess it bugs me less if they said Turbo is impractical or at least impractical for specific situations. How many practical situations is there that demands the use of 26,000 Lumen from a palm size light? Not that many I would think. I can't remember that last time I demand 26,000 lumen in practice. The first few levels gives plenty of practical outputs for general tasks and that should be fair. I don't expect my stingray to run at its top 186mph speed all day. I do however expect it to cruise at 60 extensively as would with the X80vn on lower levels. I do appreciate it very much that the stingray is capable of such high speed as my X80vn of such extreme output. I have said, if I can harness the power of the sun for just 1 second I would. Sorry to rant!
29. Light bar: MTN Litebar. Really THE BEST out there!
30. Exotics: Solis & X65vn100. At +$2000 its too expensive. So expensive it's hard for me to keep one for myself. But the performance puts them in a class of their own. Solis 400Kcd with 35,000 Lumen. X65vn100 at 100,000 Lumen ;-) One day when I no longer build lights I will look back at lights like these and be content that I lived my dreams.
31. Only if Fiat Lux: T21vn with Oslon Black. This light is Amazing…but only if it's a Fiat Lux! Perfect focus, artifacts free beam, crazy intense 600+ Kcd makes this the hardest light to resist stealing from a customer. Why is the beam so hard to tune. Not so fun facts: All T21vn oslon reflectors are glued for focus…Not sure how the hell I can repair one if the LED gives.
32. High output thrower: TN40Svn. Simple light but does its job exceptionally well. ~5000 Lumen and 345kcd in a package that is not too big to take out of the house. Yes X65vn is too big!
Honestly I love almost all the lights in Sky Lumen. I certainly like them all but the above are just a tad above and beyond. Most of 2017 was times of the flooders but 2018 will certainly be rises of the throwers!
Things to be excited for in 2018:
· DriverVNX3. Simpler UI with D4 ramping UI as one of its mode group plus new advancement features.
· PFET Circuits to support Oslon Black & CFT-90 LEDs
· DriverVNX3 UI Buck Drivers for more power than direct drives
· Scylla presence in more high end lights
· Giga thrower host breaking new reflector throw records
· TN42vnM & TN42vn90 and its class leading throw for the size. Largest acceptable size for many actually.
· Cree XD16 & and Osram synios to dethrone Oslon Black as king throw LED?
· CFT90 + Scylla in Multi Emitters lights!
· Return of review videos
· New Lux Signifer charity efforts
Happy New Year Everyone!
What you bought
What you like and hate
What you hope for 2018
Anything that's important to you please share
2017 Round up thoughts:
I have to say the flashlight community is a very honest, generous and stand up group of enthusiasts. I have been in the flashlight world for about 7 years now and I have only met may be 4 person I rather not interact with. I took a look at my address book and saw that I ship to about 3000 unique addresses. Each day I spend at least 3-4 hours dedicated to just answering emails and surprisingly things are still in order most of the time. Passion for flashlights and paying the bills is one thing but having a community of support to continue and innovate together is priceless. Thank You!
Lux Signifer raised~ $3000 for 2017! That's $250 a month!!! Current unspent balance $960!
1. 10.3.2016 White Center Food Bank $95
2. Winter 2016 Seattle Homeless $500
3. 4.24.2017 VHC (Vietnam Health Clinic) $100
4. July7 - July27 2017 Random Vietnam street help $1000
5. September 2017 Hurricane Harvey, $500 shelter goods, $500 to Lakewood Church
6. Winter 2016 Seattle Homeless FUNDRAISING IN PROGRESS - LAST YEAR FOR A WHILE
Year of memorable LEDs
XHP35 HI, XHP50.2, XHP70.2, SST40, Oslon Black, CFT-90
Oslon and CFT-90 alone will promise many exciting things to come
Cree XD16 will also be an Oslon competitor
Year started for flooders and ended for throwers enthusiasts
MANY big personal amazing changes which I will share in 2018
I have so many things I want to share for 2017 but I cant yet talk about it. One thing I can share is this is the happiest year I have ever been. Life is so good it scares me sometime. Wonder if you ever had that feeling...Like is this a dream? How long will it last? Hopefully I am just a positive happy person and that is just simply how I live life...Cheers!
What's the game plan for 2018?
- New PFET driver to best utilized the use of Oslon Flat Black & CFT-90
- A new UI ... Just a hint ;-)
- Unless Cree release a XHP35 HI successor/competitor CFT-90 will will almost dominate the High Output Thrower Playground. It is very very hard to not be impressed with the CFT90 performance. The first sample with perfect beam tuning was sent to Richard for inputs. I can't wait to get his feedback on this light. It is amazing. Its like a heavily supercharged XHP35 HI with worlds better heat sinking design. The price! The D*mn price is the only thing holding me back from raving and goign nuts with this LED... :-( At ~$120 shipped per LED this LED is likely only for true heavy spending enthusiast. Sooo pray that a factory put this LED in their lights so the modded version from me will be more affordable. Otherwise much less will be able to enjoy this LED. Myself included.
- I LOVE the Oslon Black. This LED to me is amazing because I am a hardcore throw fan. It's cheap, low heat, excellent output for a tiny LED. I am neutral about cool white...LOL soudns funny. I can see this LED dominating smaller throw host. Only issue I can think of beam tuning. Most of the light that has this LED has a FIXED reflector. This mean if the LED go bad we might not be able to repair the light...High risk high reward I guess. However I do not recommend this LED for the my general buyers if you are on a budget and very worried about future repair costs should a LED go bad. Also light with Oslon are relatively expensive due to the extra labor. Go SST40 instead. Oslon replaced the XPG2 Dedome in terms of performance and may be tint for some...This is big to me personally hahah
- SST40...I guess this is kind of like an "XML3". Basically XML2 beam and tint but just for performance. Cheap to implement in most lights. I love the XML2 but rarely with a dome on. This LED however I love it dome on and shave dome just as much. May be even an ever so slightly edge with the dome on. Tint is an excellent pure white to my taste. Output to throw ratio is more impressive than the oslon to most and thats a good thing!
XHP35 HI high Vf is limit its use in many single cell lights. Even the best boost driver like ones from EC60 isnt that great. Heck even the XHP .2 LEDs are too much for a single cell. I not a fan of boost circuits...Buck circuit and direct drive is the way to go for flashlights I think.
Sky Lumen's Best
Some are not great sellers but these are my personal picks.
1. Charger: Nitecore i8, $45, 8 cells, NiHm & Li-ion. Worry charging station.
2. EDC Thrower: Goliath with SST40 or Oslon Black. $138 high price. Excellent throw & Beam. Stainless is classy but heavy. Lighter Aluminum version heat sink better. Lucky few with Oslons.
3. Long range rifle spotter: M25C2vn w/ Oslon Black. Even if you don't have a rifle it's still the best thrower for the packaging. T21vn edges it out but is a bit longer and more expensive.
4. Short range rifle spotter. S2200c2vn. This one and SST40 SD is on my AR15. I don't shoot iron sights so the throw is more than adequate. Larger hotspot and lumen is more appropriate compared to Oslon.
5. Best Tactical Light: G25C2vn with SST40 HD. Excellent beam, decent throw, larger hot spot for scanning ease. My LEOs agree that tactical lights shouldn't have pencil beams. Cool white is most blinding.
6. Aspheric no spill thrower: XSvn with Oslon Black single mode. One mode is all you need for fixed focus aspherics. I am not an aspheric fan but this one sells well for a reason.
7. Long runtime High output: MT35vn with 70.2 6500K. Pushing 6500+ Lumen with surprising long turbo time due to heft and heat sinking design. Almost the light I always grab when I go look for Tiger at night outside. Don't have to worry about turbo heat andit thrower enough yet lights up everything.
8. Turn Key: M2Rvn with XHP35 HI 5000K. An excellent light from the factory really. Might be worth it just to pay a tiny bit extra for my version as it throws more and if you prefer my warranty.
9. Budget headlamp: A2S. You get a 3400mah cell with built in micro USB charging and XPL pushing 1000+ Lumen for $30! I don't use this light myself but I sure recommend it to everyone on a budget. They are all satisfied! Some comes back for more.
10. Pop can with optics: MT18vn with ANY LED! XPL HI 6500K is you can afford it. Optics lights = all the lumen measured is in one large hot spot. Nothing wasted in places you don't look, AKA spill. Yes peripheral vision matters too but it's not an issue in this light.
11. Popular single 18650/18350 compact thrower: D1vn with SST40 SD. Price and UI is on point. I rarely use it as I am not yet used to ramping UI but I do think its an excellent one. This UI will be extra popular in 2018…You won't likely guess why!
12. Popular Single 18650/18350 compact flooder: D4vn with XPL HI 6500K. One of 2017 best seller. I am more busy building this light than using it.
13. Best Tactical Thrower: L16vn with XHP35 HI 5000K. Hot spot can have slight artifacts but otherwise a PERFECT light. Get that raised oring over button mod! A light Acebeam can be proud of. Most of Acebeam are really excellent lately. Ironically I have to get some of their lights through third party nowadays so prices will climb.
14. Highest output BYB (Bang for Your Buck). X45vn with 4 xhp70.2 6500K. Especially now with smooth reflector for more throw! Best high output seller?
15. Olight H1 headlamp. 13 cells included! Excellent beam, tint, UI. Buy 5 set for your house and car!
16. Smallest popcan light: MK34vn…An excellent light minus weak anodization which makes light feel a bit cheap.
17. All around pop can: X7vn. I hate it when someone orders it as the build is tough but it's too good to discontinue. A light I proudly display.
18. EDC Thrower. D25Cvn. Even smaller than Goliath but less throw. Expensive with Oslon Black but worth it!
19. Dedicated throwers: TN42vnM & TN42vn90…largest "practical" size IMO. Other than price not sure what's not to love…These are the kind of lights that keeps me going!
20. Lantern: CL25R. Nothing else this perfect.
21. Keychain: ToolVN. You will understand when you have one…The kind of light that make you say WTF yet most useful as its always with you. I however stop carrying this light after I lost 4. 3 copper one and aluminum.
22. Searchlight: X65vn. A legitimate search light with all the right designs. Seems expensive but when you break it down it has 8 quality cells with built in magnetic charging!
23. Classy Bling: TimebackVN II with trits. A great value even at $300+. Never thought I love spinners and trits.
24. Brightest headlamp: H2R neutral. Likely my most favorite stock light of all time. Other than size the light is PERFECT. Yes I mean perfect. Nothing I can fault or be picky about.
25. Lego fun: P60vn with 219c 5000K. Stay away from P60 legos as its gets addicting and expensive!
26. True Popcan: M43vn with XPL HI. Best heat sinking, current transfer and build quality. Performance is not class leading but will remain a timeless classic for me. Everytime I hold one in my hand I feel an appreciation and respect for the designer.
27. Fenix timeless: TK75vn in any led configuration! Likely the most adaptable host of all time. The kinda light you kinda have to have one if you are an enthusiast. 70.2 version is expensive but impressive.
28. Brightest Popcan X80vn. Turbo and Turbo max gets light hot TOO fast but hey there are lower levels. Center LEDs keep light from being a 1 trick pony. Bugs me when people complain that a light like this one is impractical. I guess it bugs me less if they said Turbo is impractical or at least impractical for specific situations. How many practical situations is there that demands the use of 26,000 Lumen from a palm size light? Not that many I would think. I can't remember that last time I demand 26,000 lumen in practice. The first few levels gives plenty of practical outputs for general tasks and that should be fair. I don't expect my stingray to run at its top 186mph speed all day. I do however expect it to cruise at 60 extensively as would with the X80vn on lower levels. I do appreciate it very much that the stingray is capable of such high speed as my X80vn of such extreme output. I have said, if I can harness the power of the sun for just 1 second I would. Sorry to rant!
29. Light bar: MTN Litebar. Really THE BEST out there!
30. Exotics: Solis & X65vn100. At +$2000 its too expensive. So expensive it's hard for me to keep one for myself. But the performance puts them in a class of their own. Solis 400Kcd with 35,000 Lumen. X65vn100 at 100,000 Lumen ;-) One day when I no longer build lights I will look back at lights like these and be content that I lived my dreams.
31. Only if Fiat Lux: T21vn with Oslon Black. This light is Amazing…but only if it's a Fiat Lux! Perfect focus, artifacts free beam, crazy intense 600+ Kcd makes this the hardest light to resist stealing from a customer. Why is the beam so hard to tune. Not so fun facts: All T21vn oslon reflectors are glued for focus…Not sure how the hell I can repair one if the LED gives.
32. High output thrower: TN40Svn. Simple light but does its job exceptionally well. ~5000 Lumen and 345kcd in a package that is not too big to take out of the house. Yes X65vn is too big!
Honestly I love almost all the lights in Sky Lumen. I certainly like them all but the above are just a tad above and beyond. Most of 2017 was times of the flooders but 2018 will certainly be rises of the throwers!
Things to be excited for in 2018:
· DriverVNX3. Simpler UI with D4 ramping UI as one of its mode group plus new advancement features.
· PFET Circuits to support Oslon Black & CFT-90 LEDs
· DriverVNX3 UI Buck Drivers for more power than direct drives
· Scylla presence in more high end lights
· Giga thrower host breaking new reflector throw records
· TN42vnM & TN42vn90 and its class leading throw for the size. Largest acceptable size for many actually.
· Cree XD16 & and Osram synios to dethrone Oslon Black as king throw LED?
· CFT90 + Scylla in Multi Emitters lights!
· Return of review videos
· New Lux Signifer charity efforts
Happy New Year Everyone!
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