Thinking of buying NITECORE P10 (18650) Flashlight. Seeking opinions/suggestions.

Hi all,

It's been a while since I've last posted. The MAIN reason I'm drawn to the Nitecore P10 (aside from wanting another 18650 Flashlight) is due in part to the nearly identical DUAL rear Clicky Tail Cap switches (as found on my KLARUS XT-11). I quickly discovered that I do NOT like SIDE switches on Flashlights (such as found on my Klarus ST-20 2xAA) as I find it difficult to locate/control switch (especially here in Maine) where I'll soon be wearing gloves as the Winter weather is fast approaching. That being said......might any members here at CPF own the NITECORE P10 ? Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Ooooh......I'm also......I'm seriously looking at buying the XTAR VC4 Charger and (as far as Batteries).....I'm leaning towards the OLIGHT 18650 2600mAh 3.7V Protected as the price seems decent and the good reviews of the Olight 18650's. Would the OLIGHT's 2600mAh work OK for my KLARUS XT-11 and NITECORE P10 ? Thank you for any help and/or suggestions.


SixCats!

for the Klarus XT11GT you need a cell without PCB for good performance
without PCB doesnt mean the cell is unprotected they got physical protection as a bimetal switch which disconnects at too high drain/temperatur

in 3A draining flashlights with up to 1000 lumens a PCB cell may be working OK but not at best performance
Just to make you clewar that its not too bad to use a cell without PCB is that good flashlights and chargers perform most of the PCBs protection functions

This are 2 cells the Samsung 30Q is one of the best high drain cells capable of way more than 10A continous discharge than the LG 1860 MJ1


Then a really common good low drain Cell with PCB but it cant compete to a high drain cell especially above 2A

Hi Lexel,

Thanks for responding to my inquiry. I must admit however, your response is over my Head.

SixCats!

I don't have a P10 but I've got a P20. Same light with a slightly bigger head. I love the dual switch in the tail cap. The light feel nice in hand. Ceiling bounce test it's not as bright as my other lights that are rated at around the same lumens.
I use a Olight 3400 in it. So I'm guessing 2600 should work fine. 3400 are cheap as now

Hi Doomsday,

Thanks for replying to my thread. I'm happy to hear you like/enjoy the "dual tail cap switch". I've been researching all things (18650) batteries all weekend. I'm thinking now I'm going to go with ORBTRONICS 3400 mAh or perhaps even give the 3500 mAh a try. I hope to get better performance from my XT-11 and my future Nitecore P10. Thanks.

SixCats!

Sixcats! my post about batteries maybe over your head, but in fact capacity is pretty useless if the battery voltage drops and the real capacity suffers as well
a lot of the performance of a high Lumens light depends on a good battery

batteries with the panasonic 18650B 3400mAh inside and PCB wont get your light in Turbo mode to a good performance
- you will get 0,3V less voltage that the driver receives than a Samsung 18650-30Q cell
- you can also see that the real capacity at 5A drain of the 3400mAh Panasonic cell drops to the same rate as the 3000mAh Samsung cell

With the voltage drop plus the reduced capacity you end up with less Wh (energy) utilized even if the nominal battery capacity is higher on paper

there is one battery which got low voltage drop and still got 3500mAh that is the LG18650 MJ1

the more amperes the flashlight sucks out of the battery the internal resistance and chemistry of the cell gets important and the XT11GT drains quite some on Turbo

if you buy a cell that is relabeled by Orbtronics, Nitecore, Olight, Fenix, Xtar and so on you dont know what you get below the new colourful wrap on it
even worse those cells usually come with the double price than the original cells cost

Awwww.....Lexel! I wish this response came earlier. Oooh well. Earlier today, I placed an ordered for two ORBTRONIC 3500 mAh 18650's. I hope that I'll get decent performance from these Panasonic/Orbtronic. I will for sure look into both the Samsung 30Q and LG MJ1 in the future. Lexel, might you recommend a good "Smart" charger ? I'm leaning towards the new Nitecore i4 as it has a more conventional plug system as opposed to the XTAR 4 which is only UBC plug. Thanks again for all your help Lexel.

SixCats!

Yeah in the P10 its not that dramatic

Just the Panasonic 18650B cell is quite long on market and there are newer ones like the LG MJ1


in the Klarus XT11GT you are better with a high drain cell without PCB
The best high drain cells got still a good capacity of 3000mAh and the higher voltage gives you energy as well

No PCB doesnt mean no protection
With a good light that uses only 1 cell and good charger you are safe

https://batterybro.com/blogs/18650-...-battery-safety-101-anatomy-ptc-vs-pcb-vs-cid

I got a fake Nitecore charger delivered lately, so I can only advise you get another brand
Many here use the Xtar chargers

The VC2 is nice for 3.7V cells and can monitor the capacity charged
https://www.xtardirect.com/products/xtar-vc2-charger
the VP2 can also charge batteries with other chemistry 3.2 and 3.8V

I use the Klarus CH4S
http://lygte-info.dk/review/Review Charger Klarus CH4s UK.html
it charges NiMh as well
also the Xtar VC4 can charge NiMh
http://lygte-info.dk/review/Review Charger Xtar VC4 UK.html
and the VC4 has very good test result

For the Xtar you need a good USB power supply and a quality cable, the shorter the cable the better


Test of a lot brands of chargers you can find here on HKJ's website
http://lygte-info.dk/

I love my P10! It is really awesome and it would definitely be my 2nd or 3rd choice for EDC. It's fantastic! I only wish it had a lower "Low" mode but other than that it's pretty much perfect!

Hi BugoutBoys,

I'm happy to hear you like your P10. I was really leaning towards the P10 but.....now I'm thinking I might be better served by the KLARUS XT2C. I'm still on the fence.....

SixCats!