BessieBenny's Budget LED (DX/KD etc) Flashlights Review Roundup (Part XIV)

[bessiebenny]

UPDATED FEB 2nd 2010
- Good news first. We now have our own little sub-forum @ CPF to discuss all things we used to discuss in this thread.
- So no more being confined to discussing everything in a single thread like we did for past 2 years!
- Now the bad news. I was told that PART 13 thread with over 400 posts and reviews has been deleted during CPF site maintenance!
- Basically, we have lost ALL the posts/reviews that was posted in my thread between DEC 14th 2009 to JAN 28th 2010.....
- Luckly, myself and few other members here post all their reviews at my website www.jayki.com. So not all is lost. Phew.
- I will update my main post to fill in as much lost info as I can. But please repost your recent reviews if you don't see it in PART12.

UPDATED OCTOBER 29th 2009
- I've started using a new method to measure my lightbox readings. (again.. doh..)
- It's called New Lightbox2 and more info about it is here - http://www.jayki.com/5754

----------------------------


[Budget LED DX/KD Flashlights Review Roundup]


Continued from Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3 , Part 4 , Part 5 , Part 6 , Part 7 , Part 8 , Part 9 , Part 10 , Part 11 and Part 12 (PART13 is gone for good...)
FYI - This main initial post carries over every time. (Except Part 4 that includes many of my older reviews)

[BESSIEBENNY (aka JAYKI) REVIEWS]

I will try to keep this list as much as in sync with my website. But may not be all the time.
So I do recommend you to visit my new site www.jayki.com for latest reviews / updates.

Older Reviews - Check here and here for now. All of them will be transferred to my new site www.jayki.com over time.

[10 24 2009] ★★★★★★ - Trustfire XP-E F23 Stainless Steel
[10 24 2009] ★★★★★★ - Romisen RC-29 Q5 Zoom (preview)
[10 18 2009] ★★★★★★ - Aurora SH0030 XP-E Q5 AA/14500
[10 10 2009] ★★★★★★ - TANK007 E07 OSRAM AA
[09 20 2009] ★★★★★★ - Small Sun ZY-C60 RCR
[07 01 2009] ★★★★★★ - EastwardYJ YJ-18WA Q5 2-mode 18650
[05 15 2009] ★★★★★★ - AKOray K-103 AAA CREE Q5 1-Mode
[04 25 2009] ★★★★★★ - MTE SF-22 SSC P7-D-SXO 5-Mode
[03 28 2009] ★★★★★★ - Akoray K-106 3-mode Q5 AA/14500
[03 15 2009] ★★★★★★ - Kaidomain 2-Mode HAIII Long Throw Q5
[02 22 2009] ★★★★★★ - planet bike blaze 1W w\ superflash
[02 18 2009] ★★★★★★ - TANK007 TK-702 P4
[12 17 2008] ★★★★★★ - KD Buckle V5 HAIII XRT
[12 10 2008] ★★★★★★ - MTE C2-1 Q5 AA
[11 16 2008] ★★★★★★ - Romisen RC-T6
[08 24 2008] ★★★★★★ - Quick 6 flashlights Impressions
[08 10 2008] ★★★★★★ - Romisen RC-A8
[06 21 2008] ★★★★★★ - Romisen RC-A3
[06 06 2008] ★★★★★★ - Romisen RC-F4 Q5 Shiningbeam
[05 01 2008] ★★★★★★ - Romisen RC-I3
[04 16 2008] ★★★★★★ - Romisen RC-G2 Q5 Shiningbeam
[04 11 2008] ★★★★★★ - Ultrafire C3 Stainless Steel P4
[04 09 2008] ★★★★★★ - Eastward YJ-XAQ5 18650
[03 27 2008] ★★★★★★ - Romisen RC-N3
[01 05 2008] ★★★★★★ - Romisen RC-G2 P2
[?? ?? 2007] ★★★★★★ - Romisen RC-F4 P4
[09 ?? 2007] ★★★★★★ - Gree Cree P4

fyi - If it doesn't say "New Lightbox", it is the OLD lightbox which is very different.

[REVIEWS POSTED BY OTHER MEMBERS IN THIS THREAD & AT JAYKI.COM]

[Nov 29 2009] UniqueFire AA-S1 3W Osram by Don
[Nov 24 2009] Ten small lights beam shot comparison by Don
[Nov 23 2009] Aurora SH0030 XP-E Q5 Multimode by Don
[Nov 05 2009] Solarforce L2M from DX by old4570
[Nov 03 2009] Ultrafire A10B by Don
[Nov 02 2009] Romisen RC-C6 Focusable Asphericby Crenshaw
[Nov 01 2009] Ultrafire RL-118 Stainless Steel Osram by Don
[Oct 25 2009] Ultrafire WF-504B Multimode by Don
[Oct 01 2009] Romisen RC-A4 Q5 II First Impressions & Followup by hatman
[Sep 11 2009] AkoRay K-109 quick review by Superpila
[Aug 27 2009] AkoRay K-106 comparison review by CampingLED
[Aug 26 2009] Spiderfire P7 Review by randomlugia
[July 21 2009] Aurora SH0030 mini-review by Superpila
[May 31 2009] AKOray k109a Review by Wiggle
[May 20 2009] Ultrafire A20 Q5 Cree 5-mode RCR by old4570
[May 02 2009] Romisen RC-N3 v SmallSun ZY-C61 by Luau
[Apr 15 2009] RCR123A Battery Test Roundup by old4570
[Apr 04 2009] Ultrafire 503B & Trustfire TR-C2 Pics and 503B REVIEW by kramer5150
[Mar 29 2009] Ultrafire WF-502B / 501B by old4570
[Mar 28 2009] AKOray K-106 beam shot comparison by vali
[Mar 13 2009] Ultrafire 602C vs KD Cree Q3 by old4570
[Mar 09 2009] Akoray K-102 / Romisen RC-H3 / MTE C2-1 by copperfox
[Mar 04 2009] SacredFire NF-011 Cree P4-WC by Phill
[Feb 18 2009] Akoray K-102 by Hrvoje
[Feb 18 2009] Romisen RC-A3 by seaside
[Feb 18 2009] Kaidomain 2-Mode HAIII Long Throw R2 (sku:S004798) by skyva
[Feb 17 2009] Romisen RC-G2 (non-Q5) Review by rockz4532
[Feb 12 2009] Romisen RC-N3 & Akoray K-102 by vali

- PM me if I missed yours. Some I didn't include as I wasn't sure what light was reviewed or was just a bit too short etc.
- If your review is in the closed thread but you want to update/modify it, just copy your review into this new thread as a new post then PM me.


----------------------------

[How to read my reviews / FAQ]

- You can see information on how I measure my outputs, take photos etc from this link > http://www.jayki.com/497


[RESULTS AT A GLANCE]

- From SEP 2009 onwards, the chart will be updated at my site here - http://www.jayki.com/1045
- I will be adding review links to each flashlight name over time for far easier navigation directly from the chart.
- Output values are for the near absolute peak while batteries are fully charged at its highest voltage.
- Always check the runtime graph if available as you cannot expect most to maintain peak output for very long.

[HIGH PERFORMANCE / HIGH RATED LIGHTS]

[FLASHLIGHTS] - Not all flashlights reviewed may yet be shown below. (very outdated now)


Submitted by MetalZone


[help~!] [help~!] [help~!]
I am constantly running short on funds to buy and review more recent lights. :mecry:
Feel free to send me $2 or $4 or $8 donations so that I can keep adding new lights. :devil:
(fyi - Paypal takes away ~40 cents per donation which sorta sux.)

All new lights from FEB 2008 will be bought with the addition of your donations. (if any )
I thank you for all for the amazing support so far. It helps greatly to keep this thread alive!

You may instead opt to use my referral id at DX. It doesn't cost you anything which is the best part. =)
To use my id, just add ~r.29749062 directly to the end of any product url address. (without "" of course)
Every ~$1300 spent using my referral id, I get $10. Not a lot but better than nothing I guess. =P

Donations received:
Paul.F < DEC '09 ChiKot DonM < NOV '09 sunnyrt < OCT '09 crescendopower < JULY '09 toby1275 crescendopower < JUNE '09 SleepEXE < MAY '09 bensonm < APRIL '09 tommy_tiger66, old4570 < MARCH '09 dp62 < FEBRUARY '09 AndreD, lenny, waddup < NOVEMBER '08 JEFFSR < OCTOBER holeymoley < SEPTEMBER FlemingWak < AUGUST gunnut, PhantomLights, tmlwyb, Dandan, Crescendopower < JULY RafS, ScottM, SteveZ, Rizky ,WarriorZ, kostas, yekimak, JoeBob, smootik, RepoUK < JUNE stinky, Wolf359, alohaluau, johnnyngo, OCDGearhead, Wagen < MAY Wolf359, Centropolis, amdaxiom, t3h, Deks, SPRocketman, Flash25296, Fabio, tip61 < APRIL Wolf359, dudu84, marcus, Pokerstud, wmissen, RecycledElectron, qtaco, fizzy, briiansd, meuge, SportyBen, Raymond < MARCH Schierle, HenryL, Andres(ocau), baconheist, Dougmeister, linterno, anarchocap, saedwards, docian37, violatorjf, MikeSalt, Debbie, Luke, dulridge, martinSE, mmbeller191, ReGet, Mascione, Probedude < FEBRUARY '08

I would like to sincerly thank everyone who supported this thread and my reviews. (donation or not)
P.S. Every dollar is put forward to purchasing more lights/equipment for this thread and nothing else!

 

[DM51]

The launch of the new Budget Lights sub-forum seems an appropriate time to close Part 12 of this long-running thread and start a new part. Part 13 was unfortunately lost, so this is Part 14.

Edit: I have now also moved all the previous parts of the thread into this section, so they will be easy to find for reference.

 

[bessiebenny]

Thanks DM. I guess 13 is a bad number afterall. =P

To all CPF members, as this is now inside its own buget lights forum of its own, please use the forum as it's intended.

You now don't need to rely solely through this single thread for all your budget flashlight discussions. =)

I will continue to update my main post in this thread with updates of new reviews of my own and others that are posted on my own www.jayki.com homepage. (my own flashlight portal)

 

[how2]

I'm Happy that we small people have got our own section

 

[how2]

ultrafire MCU C7 & Smallsun ZY-C-81 review

Here is my review of the

Ultrafire MCU-C7 $12.90(Bestofferbuy.com) Hi-Mid-Lo-Strobe-SOS
Smallsun ZY-C81 $10.73 (Popbuying.com)Hi-Lo-Strobe

The Ultrafire claims to be 230 lm on the DX site and the Smallsun 150 lm (80 lm) on pop site.


The Ultrafire is smaller than the Smallsun Macro image

Weight
C7, 36g without battery,
C-81, 48g without battery.


The Smallsun is 9cm tall and the Ultrafire is 8.2cm tall

The build quality of both of these torches is good. Unlike the Handy torch I bought from DX,which I had to clean and file the threads down. The C-81 feels more heavy weight than the C7 but don't get me wrong the Ultrafire is just as good. The C-81 seems it can take a knock or two. The green "O" ring (battery end)came off the C7 once, it's very thin in design. The C81 did not have a "0" ring in front of the lens. The C81 came with a plastic lens the product information said is was glass. I have informed popbuying about these issues. Apart from these minor issues I'm very pleased with my purchases.

The Smallsun(LOP) has a greater throw than the Ultrafire(SOP)

The threads were not clean for both lights, I cleaned all the threads with White spirit and lubed the m with Vaseline. After that they were smooth, there are no cross threading issues with either of the lights. The threads are more fine on the C7. There are no flicker issues with these torches.


Both are reverse click. The switch seems more positive no the C-81 than the C7. C7 has memory mode just 1 second wait, the C-81 does not have memory mode It just comes on +1 to the one you were on before. C-81 [FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]coated plastic reflector,[/FONT] [FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]the [/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman, serif]DX site says is Aluminum Textured/OP Reflector[/FONT][FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif].Popbuying says is plastic.[/FONT]


Both lights are bright, the C7(Q5-WC) claims to be 230lm but I would say more 180lm the C-81(Q3-WC) claims to be 150lm which would seems about right, I could just about tell the C7 was slightly brighter. The C7 has a larger hot spot, both have similar spill.

The Ultrafire uses PWM for low modes i think, as i was taking the pic in medium and low mode is was blinking on and off. The Smallsun was not doing this. Can someone correct me if i am wrong.

Ultrafire C7 on High about 180lm

Smallsun on High about 150lm

Ultrafire on Medium

The C81 has more throw, on initial impressions. The low mode(slightly green)on the C-81 is brighter than the Low on the C7 which I think this better. The modes for both lights are nicely space for both lights. Both light have cree rings but not to the extent in the pics. They are barley visable and do not effect the light in everyday use.

Ultrafire on low

Smallsun on low is brighter than the ulrafire, greenish tint.

I also have a Smallsun ZY-C42 ($12.42 KD)which is a Q3 Led, this is no were near as bright as the C-81. This is more warm (yellow)

Tight fit for the AW blue in the Smallsun, the Ultrafire has on problems

The C7 runs for 30min on AW blue 750mAh 3.7v and 35min on 7dayshop 650mAh 3.0v rechargeable. Then the battery protection kicks in, 2.75v (AW) and 3.85v(7Day). It ran hot after 5mins on AW battery and Hotter on the 7dayshop battery. The 7day battery was really hot after 35mins.Then I decided to use copper grease on the pill to body contact area after this, it run cool to warm for both batteries.

Run time update for the C-81 on AW Blue 750mAh was stopped at 60 mins, there was slight(I think) visible output drop. Checked the battery voltage 3.5v. I thought the PCB was going to kick but did not happen. It ran a lot cooler than the ultrafire but it does has a lot of copper grease between the pill and head.


Ultrafire pill with Copper Grease

C-81 no test runs done. Both batteries are difficult to fit due to the width of the batteries so be careful as the diameter of the bore is just over 16mm, length wise there is no problem. I have put copper grease on the pill that meets the body of the light of the C-81, this does screw out, I had difficulty, so decide not because I did not want to damage my light (limited monetary funds).

Smallsun Head will Copper Grease between the pill head and the body

Over all both lights are good value for money. I would definitely purchase them again if I had the money. I will do night shots in 1 to 2 days. Sorry about the pic quality on beam shots camera is old like me.

 

[phlowcus]

Re: ultrafire MCU C7 & Smallsun ZY-C-81 review

Thanks for reposting that review how2. On DX you (well I guess it is you) state the Small Sun can be had for only $9.73. Where would that be, please?

 

[how2]

Hi Phlowcus

I bought it from Popbuying.com Used a discount code.They don't have any codes that work.

Dealperfect.com is the same company try them, just register and look for the codes

 

[FlashPilot]

How2 - Thanks for the great reviews.

What brand of copper grease are you using? Also, a part number or type might also be helpful. Do you think that this is the best solution for a heat/electrical conductor for these types of applications? I found this on Amazon: "Copper Anti-Seize Lubricant, 8 oz. brushtop bottle (38650)"

Thanks!

 

[how2]

How2 - Thanks for the great reviews.

What brand of copper grease are you using? Also, a part number or type might also be helpful. Do you think that this is the best solution for a heat/electrical conductor for these types of applications? I found this on Amazon: "Copper Anti-Seize Lubricant, 8 oz. brushtop bottle (38650)"

Thanks!

Hi Flashpilot I bought Car lube copper grease 500g. I paid £6 for is from my local motor parts shop. It's very good at drawing away heat from the pill of both torches.


It works better in the Smallsun (runs cool to warm) as there is a gap between the pill and the head. On the ultrafire you have to screw in the pill to the body and it works very well. I applied a good amount, any overspill I wiped off.


The ultrafire used to run very hot to hot without the grease, now it runs warms, this means that the grease is working as it draws heat away from the pill.


I was going to get Thermal grease but that was expensive and Copper has a great Thermal conductivity rating, this works just as well.




http://www.carlube.co.uk/index.cfm?product=121

 

[FlashPilot]

The ultrafire used to run very hot to hot without the grease, now it runs warms, this means that the grease is working as it draws heat away from the pill.

Hello How2,

That's some interesting information. I do have a concern though. Is the entire body of the light running cooler or just the pill (or certain parts of the light). Can you please be more specific? If the copper grease is beneficial, the entire body of the light should be warmer, not cooler. The idea is to conduct as much heat from the led out through the pill and into the body of the torch. If its thermally conductive and not insulative, the body of the entire light should feel warmer after applying the copper grease, not cooler.

Thanks again.

 

[how2]

Hello How2,

That's some interesting information. I do have a concern though. Is the entire body of the light running cooler or just the pill (or certain parts of the light). Can you please be more specific? If the copper grease is beneficial, the entire body of the light should be warmer, not cooler. The idea is to conduct as much heat from the led out through the pill and into the body of the torch. If its thermally conductive and not insulative, the body of the entire light should feel warmer after applying the copper grease, not cooler.

Thanks again.

The entire body gets warmer, the pill area is warm. Before the pill area was hot (Head would get Hot) and the body would get hot at a slow rate, also the battery was getting hot. The torch shut itself down the first i did a run-time test. When i put in a fresh battery it would not work until it cooled down properly.

Now the pill warms up and the body warms up quickly. It does not get hot. The battery is not so hot depending if i'm using 3.0v or 3.7v rechargeable. When i do a run-time test and change the battery the lights would work.

Hope this helps.

 

[how2]

Re: ultrafire MCU C7 & Smallsun ZY-C-81 review

The Smallsun Will always start on high.

If you switch it on and off wait 5 minutes or more then it starts on high

 

[FlashPilot]

The entire body gets warmer, the pill area is warm. Before the pill area was hot (Head would get Hot) and the body would get hot at a slow rate, also the battery was getting hot. The torch shut itself down the first i did a run-time test. When i put in a fresh battery it would not work until it cooled down properly.

Now the pill warms up and the body warms up quickly. It does not get hot. The battery is not so hot depending if i'm using 3.0v or 3.7v rechargeable. When i do a run-time test and change the battery the lights would work.

Hope this helps.

Yes, it does help... and thank you.

All my lights seem to be doing fairly well at the moment with the thermal paste I've been using. The added benefit of using copper paste would be that it would provide not only a good thermal conductor but an electrical one as well. That to me sounds far more logical, at least for the applications that we use it for. The next time I need to tear down a flashlight, I'll be replacing the thermal paste with a copper formulation.

Thanks again!

 

[phreeflow]

Do you have the Spiderfire X-07 Stainless Steel P60 Host? Was wondering if you or anyone else that has this light could do a quick review.

thanks!!!!

 

[bob13bob]

total flashlight and battery newb here. got two questions.
What light/combo of lights would you use for your bike? planning to use it with this universal bike light mount.

I have a Vanson speedy box Ni-Cd and Ni-MH computer controlled link. What batteries should I use, is this charger sufficient?

I'm value minded so I'm looking to get as much performance/dollar I can get.

 

[DM51]

Welcome to CPF, bob13bob.

We have a Bicycle sub-forum here, where you may find some helpful information.

 

[ryaxnb]

Submitted for consideration in the "other peoples reviews" part of the initial post: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=287393
My review of the Romisen RC-N3 R4. with beamshots, impressions, and comparison to minimag rebel (what i consider the "benchmark" ~$25 light).
:twothumbs: