old4570
Flashlight Enthusiast
Sent for review by Fasttech.com
Product page @ Jetbeam
A quick note about fasttech.com .. To get the latest greatest price ( if there is a better price than quoted ) 1. Add the product to the cart 2. Point the mouse to the trolley at the top bar and click view cart 3. Click have a coupon code and type – map
Performance :
18650 ( 2600mAh ) > Moon / 10 Lumens - Ultra Low / 60 Lumens - Low / 188 Lumens - Medium / 464 Lumens - High / 976 Lumens
LG ( 3500mAh ) > Moon / 10 - Ultra Low / 60 Lumens - Low / 188 Lumens - Medium / 464 Lumens - High 968 Lumens - Turbo / 1300+ Lumens
Now , the 2600mAh 18650 could not sustain Turbo . The TH15 started just over 1000 Lumens and sagged lower than High , making Turbo a waste of time with the 2600mAh Battery . Using a higher performance battery ( LG 3500mAh 10amp ) the TH15 was easily able to sustain Turbo with little in the way of output sag . I was not able to get any current measurements at as as the TH15 refused to turn on with the Multi Meter connected to take a current measurement . I can only assume some sort of safety feature as the light works fine without the Multi meter connected .
UI ( User Interface ) :
There are two ways of using the TH15 . One can use the side switch to change light levels or use the Triple tail switch . To change between modes of use turn on the light and hold down the side switch until the light flashes . ( One can not change modes with the Tail Clicky - this only turns the light on and off )
Triple tail switch : ( Tactical mode ) Ultra Low - Medium - High and Turbo ( + Strobe )
The triple tail switch consists of the tail clicky , and a dual paddle like clicky either side of the ( on / off ) tail clicky . So to turn on the light you press the middle clicky ( Rubber Boot ) and to change modes you click either paddle on the side .
The TH15 will start in HIGH and when you press one of the side paddles it will go into Ultra LOW , then MEDIUM and back to HIGH . To get into turbo requires a quick triple click from what ever light level you are in . When you exit Turbo you enter medium mode .
Strobe : If you hold down one side of the paddle switch you will enter Momentary Strobe and if you hold long enough you will maintain strobe ( strobe mode ) . It takes about 4 seconds to enter strobe mode , anything less and you have momentary strobe . With the light off , if you press paddle switch ( one side or other ) you get a short cut to strobe . ( Momentary Strobe ) Hold it down for about 4 seconds and the light will maintain strobe .
Side switch : ( Outdoor mode ) Moon - Ultra Low - Low - Medium - High and Turbo ( + Strobe )
Using the side switch to change modes , you turn on the light and simply press the side switch to change modes . What ever light level you turn the light off in is the light level you get when you turn the light back on , in fact you cant change light levels unless you click the side switch .
Strobe - To enter strobe give the side switch a quick double click . If you turn the light off in strobe mode the light will turn on at what ever light level you were on before entering strobe .
Turbo - Once again requires a quick triple click of the side switch from any light level . If you turn the light off in Turbo mode the light will restart in what ever light level you activated Turbo .
Using the TH15 :
Taking the TH15 for a walk in tactical mode offered no real challenges . Even with my gloves on it was easy to use ( Triple Tail Switch ) . What was not so easy was the triple click short cut to Turbo . I would have rather seen STROBE be triple clicked to and the strobe function ( Momentary etc ) be the Turbo function . ( That would have been really nice )
Getting to Turbo can be , challenging ( cumbersome ) and it often takes more than one go to get the clicking speed right . I really think that Strobe should have been the awkward to get to function rather than Turbo . In outdoor mode ( use the side switch to change light levels ) I found the TH15 very easy to use as I went for my nightly walk . The side switch sits flush with the body and can be hard to use with a gloved hand and I found myself quite a few times looking for the side switch . ( Makes tactical mode a better option )
I found the light levels to be surprisingly nice and well chosen . 10 Lumen is just much nicer than 1 Lumen abd I have always wanted a light with a 10 Lumen option . Ultra Low or 60 Lumens , it's really not Ultra Low but 60 Lumens is a really nice light level to walk around with . Low Mode is 188 Lumens and when the heck did 188 Lumens become LOW ? Times change I guess , I can still remember people bragging about 188 Lumens . Medium at 465 and High at around 970 Lumens is just so nice , as the TH15 is able to maintain both light levels with no issue . Having a light that can produce 1300+ Lumens and then maintain it ( with a good battery ) is just so nice . ( Especially from a single cell compact flashlight ) .
Momentary VIA the on of clicky switch . It's a long firm press that's needed and the tail clicky is almost like a two stage clicky ( If you have ever used a two stage trigger on an old military bolt action rifle ) . The cliky on the TH15 is sort of reverse of that , by which I mean it starts firm and then eases up as you enter momentary on . You can either hold momentary or just continue on and turn on the light . ( This is what my sample did ) Now I don't mind this at all but I would really like to have seen the tail caps ears ( Well , just not be there ) .
EDC : ( every day carry )
Is the TH15 EDC ? That would depend on how much flashlight you can tolerate . I carried the TH15 in my jacket pocket easy enough , in my front and back pants pockets and in all fairness it never really vanishes . You will always know its there . You could carry it in a belt holster , which emergency / security / law enforcement would certainly do and in that regard would be no harder to carry than a Surefire P6 .
What would I do different :
First of all I would swap Turbo and strobe functions .. Make Turbo easy to access and strobe hard to access . The TH15 does not tail stand so I really don't see the need for the Ears on the tail cap . Why not just make the clicky switch even easier to access ? Other than that , I think Jetbeam has done an excellent job with the TH15 .
Final word :
I am impressed by the TH15 , the build quality is simply superb . The triple tail switch is fantastic and with the option of using the side switch to lock in a light level to start on makes the light very KISS . Is the TH15 Tactical ? I would say yes , but more so in the outdoor mode than in the Tactical mode simply because the TH15 is more KISS in the outdoor mode . I would have really liked to have seen Turbo and Strobe access reversed ( But that's just me ) and no ears on the tail cap . Other than my personal preferences I simply have nothing to complain about that would be relevant to quality or construction . The TH15 from Jetbeam is a real beauty to behold . The only score I can give the TH15 is 10 out of 10 , it does what it was designed to do .
1*18650 or 2*cr123a
Tactical or Outdoor mode of operation
Momentary on / Momentary Strobe
Digital driver / constant current
Temperature control
Over discharge protection
Low power indicator - Slow blink means low power - Fast blink means very low power
Dual O rings at the tail cap
Gold plated springs
HA3 hard anodizing
Tactical or cigar ring ( Rubber )
XHP35 E2 emitter
Accessories - Two O rings for the tailcap seal - A very nice clip - A very well made holster - Rubber boot for the tail clicky - USB charge cable - (I did how ever not get the USB rechargeable 18650 battery ) as well the Lanyard .
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