A few days ago, I was in Germany at a camp-site, where the woods began just behind our tents :twothumbs
That called for a quick comparison by night, like I did a year ago.
This time, I had four candidates:
1. Surefire M6 / HO-M3T bulb / 2X 18650 blue Trustfire (the GOOD ones!)
2. Megalennium / WA 1185 / 3X AW 18650-2600
3. Wolf Eyes Rattlesnake / 3X AW 18650-2600 setup / HO WE lamp (1.9 Amps)
4. Wolf Eyes M300 Lion / 3X WE original 2200mAh 18650s
First, the Surefire M6 had to show what it was worth. The lamp in it, a Lumens Factory HO-M3T bulb, was originally designed for the M3T but also fits very well in an M6 with 2X 18650 setup. It draws 2.1 Amps and will give over an hour of runtime.
Beam was very well focused and showed a nearly round hot spot. This is a typical property of all Lumens Factory bulbs and produces a far-reaching beam, despite the relatively modest power. Of course, this will reduce flood, and the light isn't that wide, so you may have to swivel the light now and then to see the full path you are walking on.
Second, the Megalennium came on... oops, that's what you call light! This one clearly has the highest output of all candidates. Although a WA1185 can't be focused so well as the LF bulb due to the size of its filament, throw was even further! At the same time, it lit up a wider area, so it is just easier to walk with more confidence: you won't miss a single thing
The third one was the Wolf Eyes Rattlesnake. This one has surprised me numerous times in the past, and this time, that was not different. I ran it with the large extender, so three 18650s can be used. An enormous flood comes out of that relatively small D36 module. Throw is the least in the test field, but that was expected. It easily lights all area in front of you, you can walk fast and have confidence you won't miss important information on how the circumstances are under your feet!
The fourth one was relatively new to me, I finally bought one: a Wolf Eyes M300 Lion! This one has a remarkable feature: it is focusable with nearly NO beam artifacts!!
This feature makes it especially interesting. When adjusted in such a way that the beam resembled the beam from the Rattlesnake very much, throw was remarkably further. When turned to flood more, the very best flood I ever saw can be seen.... a huge area is lit and will encourage even two people walking side by side to go fast!
Focus will, however, never be so tight as Lumens Factory manages to do. Again, a fairly long, bent filament prohibits exact focusing, but it isn't bad at all!
Overall, I would choose a Wolf Eyes lamp - again! - as the winner. The M300 has all the right properties to excel in the woods. It has an adjustable beam with nearly no beam artifacts, and will run for more than an hour. The size of it makes it a very handy lamp. It is a little fatter than an M6, but a lot shorter. It's just very balanced in your hands.
The M6 setup used here also runs for an hour, but lacks flood. The Megalennium lacks runtime, while the Rattlesnake is enormously long, and lacks the focusability the M300 Lion has. There can only be one overall-winner... and it comes from China this time!
Timmo.
That called for a quick comparison by night, like I did a year ago.
This time, I had four candidates:
1. Surefire M6 / HO-M3T bulb / 2X 18650 blue Trustfire (the GOOD ones!)
2. Megalennium / WA 1185 / 3X AW 18650-2600
3. Wolf Eyes Rattlesnake / 3X AW 18650-2600 setup / HO WE lamp (1.9 Amps)
4. Wolf Eyes M300 Lion / 3X WE original 2200mAh 18650s
First, the Surefire M6 had to show what it was worth. The lamp in it, a Lumens Factory HO-M3T bulb, was originally designed for the M3T but also fits very well in an M6 with 2X 18650 setup. It draws 2.1 Amps and will give over an hour of runtime.
Beam was very well focused and showed a nearly round hot spot. This is a typical property of all Lumens Factory bulbs and produces a far-reaching beam, despite the relatively modest power. Of course, this will reduce flood, and the light isn't that wide, so you may have to swivel the light now and then to see the full path you are walking on.
Second, the Megalennium came on... oops, that's what you call light! This one clearly has the highest output of all candidates. Although a WA1185 can't be focused so well as the LF bulb due to the size of its filament, throw was even further! At the same time, it lit up a wider area, so it is just easier to walk with more confidence: you won't miss a single thing
The third one was the Wolf Eyes Rattlesnake. This one has surprised me numerous times in the past, and this time, that was not different. I ran it with the large extender, so three 18650s can be used. An enormous flood comes out of that relatively small D36 module. Throw is the least in the test field, but that was expected. It easily lights all area in front of you, you can walk fast and have confidence you won't miss important information on how the circumstances are under your feet!
The fourth one was relatively new to me, I finally bought one: a Wolf Eyes M300 Lion! This one has a remarkable feature: it is focusable with nearly NO beam artifacts!!
This feature makes it especially interesting. When adjusted in such a way that the beam resembled the beam from the Rattlesnake very much, throw was remarkably further. When turned to flood more, the very best flood I ever saw can be seen.... a huge area is lit and will encourage even two people walking side by side to go fast!
Focus will, however, never be so tight as Lumens Factory manages to do. Again, a fairly long, bent filament prohibits exact focusing, but it isn't bad at all!
Overall, I would choose a Wolf Eyes lamp - again! - as the winner. The M300 has all the right properties to excel in the woods. It has an adjustable beam with nearly no beam artifacts, and will run for more than an hour. The size of it makes it a very handy lamp. It is a little fatter than an M6, but a lot shorter. It's just very balanced in your hands.
The M6 setup used here also runs for an hour, but lacks flood. The Megalennium lacks runtime, while the Rattlesnake is enormously long, and lacks the focusability the M300 Lion has. There can only be one overall-winner... and it comes from China this time!
Timmo.
You need it! 
.
