P7 (or MC-E) in 1x123 or 1xRCR123 form factor: which

member 6142 · Jan 7, 2010

I'm looking for a P7 (or MC-E) equipped flashlight in 123 or RCR123 form factor.
Throw is not a major issue, but even and medium to medium-wide beam is.
3 or even four output levels are required, strobe is not mandatory but slow flash (1Hz) would be welcome.
Possibly with low battery warning AND not ultra-cool white led.
Last but not least: tailstandable.

Is anything out there?

Help is hotly appreciated
Thanks in advance

old4570 · Jan 7, 2010

Custom mod .
I did a SSC P7 mod on a Ultrafire A20 .
If you get the J bin Emitter it will keep the current draw down bellow 2A , and you want a warm tint , head over to the market place for the LED .

Mine ran 1.6A to just under 2A current drain [ depending on battery ] on high , and put out plenty of light , even on low and medium modes .

You might consider = A XP-G R4/5 mod , or Luxeon TFFC or SSC P4 rather than a SSC P7 ..

My A20 with the SSC P7 emitter was stolen from me , so when I got a second A20 to replace it , I put in a XP-G R3 and it puts out over 250 Lumen on High and has good flood just like a SSC P7 but without the high current drain .

I would recommend a A20 , + a XP-G R5 emitter swap , and you could see 300 Lumen on high and around 1.4A current draw on the original driver .

Or buy a Quark ! there XP-G R5 now .

member 6142 · Jan 7, 2010

old4570 said:
Custom mod .
I did a SSC P7 mod on a Ultrafire A20 .
If you get the J bin Emitter it will keep the current draw down bellow 2A , and you want a warm tint , head over to the market place for the LED .

Mine ran 1.6A to just under 2A current drain [ depending on battery ] on high , and put out plenty of light , even on low and medium modes .

You might consider = A XP-G R4/5 mod , or Luxeon TFFC or SSC P4 rather than a SSC P7 ..

My A20 with the SSC P7 emitter was stolen from me , so when I got a second A20 to replace it , I put in a XP-G R3 and it puts out over 250 Lumen on High and has good flood just like a SSC P7 but without the high current drain .

I would recommend a A20 , + a XP-G R5 emitter swap , and you could see 300 Lumen on high and around 1.4A current draw on the original driver .

Or buy a Quark ! there XP-G R5 now .

Thanks for your guidelines.
I've already XP-G R5 Quarks . 1x123 and 2x123. They're both quite nice with one major (to my eyes) failure: to much cool white.
Another issue (IMHO): locator flash is ok, but for an EDC (as both are Regulars) maybe 1Hz flash would have been better.
Thus in 1x123 form factor I'll stay with my custom 170 Ra-Clicky.

May I ask you what options are out there with P7/MC-E (with above mentioned requisites: multi-output, tailstanding, flood) in 2x123 18650 form factor?

TIA

LEDninja · Jan 7, 2010

A P7 or MC-E requires 2.8A for maximum brightness.
RCR123A max safe current is 1.4A, CR123A is a bit more but still less than the requirements of the LEDs.
The risk of a P7,MC-E/1*CR123A,1*RCR123A torch exploding is high, so you won't find manufacturers making them.
The minimum battery is 18650. Even 2*123A is not good enough.

A powerful LED by itself is no guarantee of brightness.
One of the semi-custom P7/RCR123A torches I came across uses a 1.4A driver (not 2.8A) to prevent exploding batteries. That means it is not much brighter than a XR-E run at 1.4A.

For a single 123A size the most powerful LED that can be used safely is the Cree XP-G.
As the LED is new the torches are just showing up. If you can wait a couple of months the selection will be much better.

At this time the closest to your requirements (other than with a '900 lumen' P7) is Quark MiNi 123 with an XP-G R5 gives 189 OTF lumens. (My guess 230 LED lumens). It is also one of the very few lights I know with a beacon (your 1 Hz) mode.
This should give Quark 123*2 performance with only 1 battery.

-----

EDIT
Updated re post #3

Most P7/MC-E lights are also cool white.

Check out this thread for warm white lights:
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/255556

member 6142 · Jan 7, 2010

LEDninja said:
A P7 or MC-E requires 2.8A for maximum brightness.
RCR123A max safe current is 1.4A, CR123A is a bit more but still less than the requirements of the LEDs.
The risk of a P7,MC-E/1*CR123A,1*RCR123A torch exploding is high, so you won't find manufacturers making them.
The minimum battery is 18650. Even 2*123A is not good enough.

A powerful LED by itself is no guarantee of brightness.
One of the semi-custom P7/RCR123A torches I came across uses a 1.4A driver (not 2.8A) to prevent exploding batteries. That means it is not much brighter than a XR-E run at 1.4A.

For a single 123A size the most powerful LED that can be used safely is the Cree XP-G.
As the LED is new the torches are just showing up. If you can wait a couple of months the selection will be much better.

At this time the closest to your requirements (other than with a '900 lumen' P7) is Quark MiNi 123 with an XP-G R5 gives 189 OTF lumens. (My guess 230 LED lumens). It is also one of the very few lights I know with a beacon (your 1 Hz) mode.
This should give Quark 123*2 performance with only 1 battery.

-----

EDIT
Updated re post #3

Most P7/MC-E lights are also cool white.

Check out this thread for warm white lights:
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/255556

Quite clear. Just a nuance: the beacon on 47s lights is useless to me.
It blinks once every ten seconds or so. I just wish something that blinks once every second (1Hz) just in case of an emergency with my car (and its direction lights.
TK40 has (bulky to EDC in a pocket, though

)
Ra-Clickyes have (along with 4 preset outputs, perfect beam and tint) but 170Lm for a 10seconds burst is not enough for me.
47s have lumens but don't have once every second (even 2 seconds would do) blink and they're a tad bit on the cool-white side.

If only Jet I Pro w/IBS V3 would go the XP-G R5 way.....

What else around here?

old4570 · Jan 7, 2010

Programmable Akoray might be what you want .

But there XR-E Q5 , and I did pop in a XP-G R5 but the driver has thermal protection which cuts in and lowers the output , annoying .

When making a powerful small light , heat becomes an issue .

In 18650 there is plenty to chose from , but SSC P7 and MC-E become a little more limited in choice , especially for the functions you want .

Now you could combine a 1A Buck boost driver from KD with a XP-G emitter and it would offer different strobe and beacon functions .
I use several myself : This one

Thisis the one I have used

Problem is your being very specific with what you want .
To combine the modes / driver - with a SSC P7 or MC-E ?

You can do a custom build , but to get a warm tint , you might need to consider SSC P4 - Cree Q5, if you really want a P7 , then you may need to give up on the modes you want .

supasizefries · Jan 7, 2010

You could try this build:

bluecrow76 · Jan 7, 2010

I think the majority of the well made small flood monsters have been custom mods. I did a Novatac P7 that is my most used EDC now.

EDIT:
Here's a REALLY nice one on the Custom BST.

member 6142 · Jan 9, 2010

bluecrow76 said:
I think the majority of the well made small flood monsters have been custom mods. I did a Novatac P7 that is my most used EDC now.

EDIT:
Here's a REALLY nice one on the Custom BST.

Thanks to you all

I've been out of this forum due to my own provider's DNS change (not advertised to its customers).
So..bluecrow76 solved my issue/search with the link he posted!

Thanks again

P7 (or MC-E) in 1x123 or 1xRCR123 form factor: which

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