Lumintop L1C: First Impressions

Z

z_roadkill1109

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Hello Everyone!



I am now a proud owner of a Lumintop L1C which I was able to purchase through fellow CPF'er Crossliner67. This uses a Cree XP-G R5 LED which im sure most of you here know is one of the better LED that Cree has come up with.



After receiving the light this morning, I immediately popped in a Surefire Lithium 3 volt primary and noticed how bright the high mode is at 230 lumens. Not bad for an EDC that uses one 123 battery.



Build Quality:



- So far the anodized aluminum case is perfect and no rough edges.

- The LED is centered and no visible smudges on the LED. Care was really taken in the installation of the LED. A+ for Lumintop!

- The 123 tube (which can be swapped out with a 1AA or 2AA tube) is a bit snug for an RCR 123 but i'm hopeful the Trustfires I purchased will fit in the 123 tube. The L1C is rated to support the 16340 battery. (3.7 norm, 4.2v newly charged)

- The mode switching is easy to activate by simply twisting then tightening the head. The memory mode enables it to maintain the last setting it was on prior to turning it off.

- There is no turn on pre-flash when you leave it on moonlight mode (5 lumens), unlike the other brand which starts with a q and made by a company with two numbers. :naughty:

- There is a momentary on with a slight press, full press clicks leaves the light on.

- The lanyard's a bit too long, i'd prefer a lanyard which you could put your hand in and let it hang from the wrist instead of having it hang from the neck due to the long lanyard. The quality of the lanyard is good though. No worries about it suddenly breaking and you end up dropping or (much worse) losing your light.

- The stainless steel bezel tip is a good touch to the light, makes it look tough yet classy. The rear button is also held in place by a stainless steel plate.

- The button is a bit soft IMHO, could be a source of water ingress if you ask me. Fortunately they ship the light with a spare cap and two o-rings(red colored).

- The carry case that comes with the light is well built, there's a velcro at the back that enables you to easily slip it on your belt or your backpack without any problems.





All things considered, the Lumintop L1C is a good EDC, its not much of a thrower, but it will light up quite well with a good enough spill for objects to about 50 meters or so, 100 meters would be pushing it, but maybe in total darkness, yes it could. I tried testing it with my other light, the Led Lenser P14 which is also rated at 200 lumens. The LL P14 still throws better than the L1C, though of course, you get the rings of Saturn along with the Spot. As for the LL's flood, well there's no comparison to the spill of the L1C. But the trade off is the size, and that makes the L1C an EDC winner! This Lumintop L1C now replaces my Led Lenser P3 as my new EDC for now. Future plans for EDC is the Jetbeam E3S (fantastic light!) that runs off 1 AA battery, 155 lumens, not to shabby!



Rating the Lumintop L1C: it'd give it a 9 out of 10



Recommend to buy: Absolutely! If you want a small EDC that runs on a 123 battery with decent enough throw and spill, this is the light for you.



:hitit:
 
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