Coleman Max Cree 2xAA runtime and beamshots

[mattchase]

Update: I've updated the photos and added a size comparison shot.

Once again you guys have forced me to spend money and stay up until the whee hours playing with flashlights! :thumbsup:

I bought 2 of the new Coleman Max Cree 2xAA flashlights yesterday and have some beamshots with a Fenix L2S for comparison as well as a runtime graph.


Not an entirely fair comparison I know, the L2S is only rated at 45 lumens while the Coleman is rated at 115 lumens. This was the best I could do though. Besides the obvious brightness difference, the other big difference is the size of the spill. The Coleman has a bright hotspot and a fairly bright spill that coveres a good amount of area, slightly less than the L2S but much brighter. Color is a bit warmer but not much, and in actual use you probably won't really notice it.



Since I have two of these I tested them both for throw and overall brightness, first with fresh Eneloops then with the Duracell alkalines that were included in the package. Since I got two different sets of numbers I then swapped the batteries between the two lights to rule out a difference caused by the two different chemestries and came up with similar results for each flashlight (readings @ 1 meter using the Quickbeam methods).

Flashlight 1
- 1935 Throw
- 7020 Overall
- 97.5 Lumens

Flashlight 2
- 2187 Throw
- 8050 Overall
- 111.8 Lumens

So quality control isn't quite perfect with these, not entirely surprising. In actual use both lights are close in output and very bright, the manufacturer claim of 115 lumens is not too far off if you happen to get one of the better units.

I only tested one of the flashlights during the runtime test (flashlight 1), I will probably go ahead and test the second one too (maybe...). Runtime is pretty good but not quite what they advertise. At the time that I stopped the test at 22 lux the readings were dropping about 1/10th a lux every 4-5 seconds. So had I run it down to 0 at that rate it would have added up to about 18 more minutes of runtime. With higher capacity NiMH batteries this light might actually make it to the advertised 5 hour mark, though it would probably be fairly dim by then.


PS. For anyone else who has one of these, take the tailcap off and take a whif of the inside. What is that smell?

 

[adirondackdestroyer]

Very good review! Do either of your units flicker at all when the tailcap latches on from constant on after being used momentarily?
I bought two lights and both of them did, so I want to make sure that other people aren't having the same problem.

Thanks

 

[mattchase]

There is a bit of flicker when the button is pressed about 60%-70% down but it doesn't continue to flicker even if I hold the button there. It's more like a few quick flickers and then it settles back into it's normal brightness. If I press down / slightly release / press down / slightly release I can get it to flicker / normal brightness / flicker / normal brightness etc. But again with mine the flicker isn't constant, it's just a few hiccups and then goes back to normal brightness.

There must be something in the switch that is causing a little extra resistance right when you get to that certain point before it goes into constant on mode. I'm not sure how to take apart the tailcap to investigate this further.

 

[GPB]

Nice review !! Thanks for the technical data.

 

[parawolfe]

Great review, the best on any of these Coleman Max Cree lights. How about a review on the Coleman Max 2xCR2?

 

[Ryanrpm]

Could you give us a picture of the 2AA light compared to another recognizable one?

 

[mattchase]

Parawolfe,

If you want to send me one, I'd be happy to review it.

 

[darknessemitter]

There is a bit of flicker when the button is pressed about 60%-70% down but it doesn't continue to flicker even if I hold the button there. It's more like a few quick flickers and then it settles back into it's normal brightness. If I press down / slightly release / press down / slightly release I can get it to flicker / normal brightness / flicker / normal brightness etc. But again with mine the flicker isn't constant, it's just a few hiccups and then goes back to normal brightness.

There must be something in the switch that is causing a little extra resistance right when you get to that certain point before it goes into constant on mode. I'm not sure how to take apart the tailcap to investigate this further.

I've noticed the same flickering behavior. It flickers a little bit if you jiggle the switch while it's already in constant on mode, but there's no flickering when it's pushed in all the way, and there's not flickering once you release the switch completely after it's been turned on.

I think I've actually something very similar to this with some C/D maglite switches.

 

[kramer5150]

How is the mod potential on this light? the body tube is huge, any way to fit an 18650 or 17XXX in there?


thanks!!

 

[Radiophile]

There are 6 ridges of about 1mm in width that run the length of the battery tube so that AAs fit in there. The diameter of the tube without the ridges would be a little less than 18mm. As long as you can find a way to remove those ridges you should be able to fit batteries of 16mm or 17mm diameter easily. For 18mm batteries you'd need to remove more than just the ridges.

I'm more than satisfied with it's performance on Eneloops, so I'm not going to bother doing anything to the light - at least for now. Of course if someone else finds out it's a real flame thrower with different batteries, I'll probably have my Dremel in had shortly!

BTW - These are all gone at my local Walmart. I don't know if they were pulled to make the ROV Sportsman Extreme AA lights (currently on clearance at $15 1 watt and $19 3 watt) move, or if they sold out. All of the other Coleman Max flashlights are still there, and the 3xAAA models are placed at eye level on a high visibility center stand next to the counter in sporting goods.

How is the mod potential on this light? the body tube is huge, any way to fit an 18650 or 17XXX in there?


thanks!!

 

[marinemaster]

maybe a round or semi-round file....

 

[Wyeast]

I posted some beamshots in the other Coleman (3AAA) thread for comparison w/ two brighter lights. It definitely fell between the Bolt (probably around 60-80 lumens) and the Task Force (what, 130lm out the door?) Unfortunately, I can no longer test the light, as I lost it over the weekend during a test ride on my bike. :mecry:

 

[mattchase]

That's too bad about your light Wyeast!

I went back to Walmart yesterday and noticed they were out of the 2xAA as well, they still had the tags / hanger for them just were out. There were only 3 when I bought my 2, and there seems to be a ton of the other Coleman lights.

I'm curious, how would you recommend removing the ridges inside the body tube? Is a lathe the only way or just the best way?

 

[parawolfe]

I'm not a Walmart expert but I know my local Walmart many times puts these lights on end cap displays. So if they are out on the wall where all the flashlights are sold they still may be available if you look around the dept. At my Walmart they even had the 2xAA mixed in with the 3xAAA lights, multi-color and white. I think the employees just see the similar packaging and don't bother looking at the sku#. I like these inexpensive LED lights but I'm not too excited about the Rayovac Sportsman Xtreme™ 1W LED Flashlight. I thought for $15 I can't go wrong. I don't like the bottom twisty on/off setup. How hard would it have been to just make it a clicky? It sort of reminds me of the JetBeam Jet-I Pro aesthetically. Clearly not in performance though.

 

[parawolfe]

Parawolfe,

If you want to send me one, I'd be happy to review it.

Mattchase,

Right after I "submitted reply" I thought to myself that would be your reply. I thought if I mentioned the 2xCR2 model your curiousity might get the best of you.

 

[mattchase]

The CR2 version looks like an interesting light, but I have enough different battery types to keep track of already!

 

[led4me]

Does the Coleman Max 2xAA run okay with alkaline batteries? I'm looking for a simple (on/off switch) led flashlight using normal batteries (alkaline either AA, C, or D) with decent run time for my parents. Prefer floody over throw since this will be indoor emergency use light. Does the Coleman sound right for this purpose?

 

[Wyeast]

If you're getting about 3 1/2 hours with Eneloops, you should get at least a couple of hours with alkalines. Pretty fair duration for the power.

The light's fairly floody, although how much power you need is subjective for an "indoor emergency light". If it's mostly up-close work, you'll get much longer runtime with a 5mm setup like a Minim*g + NiteIze drop-in.

To get an idea of what the beam looks like, I posted beamshots of the MAX 2AA here. Hope that helps!

 

[led4me]

Thanks Wyeast for the info. They don't lose power often and so I leaned towards brighter for their aging eyes. I think this is close to what I want to get them. I would prefer slightly longer run time, maybe 4 hours on alkaline. A 2C or 2D version of this might be perfect.

 

[degarb]

Just pulled this thread up, pardon me if some questions are already addressed.

1. Are there more settings than one 115 lumen? THis would be an essential mod if not.
2. How heavy is it? Could it be put comfortably in headband? Or too much inertia?
3. How does it compare with the 3 AAA version, run time. (They state the 3 AAA has longer runtime, when 3 AAA have fewer watthours available, thus must be a crummie driver)
4. Most importantly, how is color rendering? Does it do green, yellow, and red well? What bin do they use anyway?
5. Hello, how about something that can run 8 hours and still be small/bright?