Almost two weeks ago, I presented my "LOUDENER" build. This time, it's the same lens-based design, but in the more powerful Convoy 3X21A host, with the F150R at its core.
Achieved results:
6.37 million candela (~5,050 meters of FL1 ANSI throw) and roughly double the brightness of the LOUDENER V1.
That's roughly the same numbers as the Acebeam W50 2.0 LEP ($3,000).
- The beam looks better, throws farther, is brighter, and has fewer artifacts than before, with only a marginal increase in beam width.
- The host's greater mass and capacity give it obvious advantages over the M21A.
- I ultimately chose the 3X21A over the 3X21D because the D offers no advantages over the A when paired with a large Fresnel lens. The A's head profile was also better suited to the easy-to-adjust, 3D-printed attachment.
For the next and probably final update, I've acquired some ancient 👽 tech from u/gonebrowsing (whom I can't thank enough): the Marinebeam Wavien Collar. When installed and focused correctly, it could increase peak intensity by up to 50%. I'm still in the process of 3D-printing multiple Wavien collar collars to recycle the light just right.
Options: Cyan, NTG35 5000K, RGB button, add stainless steel bezel, add clip and magnetic tailcap
I'm so impressed by its size and the power this light has is just amazing. The knurling is perfect imo. I kinda hoped Hank would have shipped it with the white rubber button instead of this one but it's ok.
I love the slightly rosy/purple tint, it makes the 5000K beautiful.
Last pic is turbo mode, the light instantly get hot but it isn't surprising since the host is so compact and I didn't pick the boost driver option.
Let me know what you guys think of this flashlight !
the MH60R v2.0 (sorry I didnt put before!) has a physical switch for locking out the white LEDs (red light only) a position for only flood, or only projector beam. dedicated red LED chip with two flood brightness settings, projector beam goes way farther than needed with 5 levels. straps are fully adjustable, and have a silicone bead for no slip...solid build quality too
highly recommend. i've tried 6 of the top headlights available up to and around 100 dollars, and they are all VERY distant second+ places.
Out of boredom and curiosity decided to disassemble "china special" rechargeable flashlight. Found 300mah 14500 cell and that it's not designed to be disassembled, bashed out reflector and LED in hopes of using it later with some dead disposable vape battery for DIY ghetto style contraption that would absolutely put me on TSA watchlist. It didn't go very well.
Anyway - this thing somehow works and refuses to die! Desoldered itself two times after direct connection to fully charged 21700 cell(yes it's dumb and kinda dangerous), got dimmer and bluer few times, smoked out residual flux but still alive.
Everybody stay like this little LED - refuse to give up and quit even after life bashes and tries to destroy you!
I spot welded nickel to the battery terminals so I could solder wires to them for my AA holder so I can run it off AAs. The Duraleaks are only for testing, they have already been swapped out so the flashlight is safe from their wrath.
I also swapped the useless incandescent bulbs out for these far brighter LED ones that are warm white and sort of mimic the color temperature of the light put out by the original bulbs. It’s still pretty bad as a flashlight but can dimly illuminate a sizable room now when before it could illuminate about 2 feet in front of it lol. Still more of a signaling flashlight though.
It’s a super simple flashlight with basically nothing that can go wrong with it, no electronics (besides inside my lightbulbs), I like the form factor and way it opens up, so I appreciate it for what it is.
I just received this free review sample from Wurkkos, for which Im very grateful.
I set about taking some photos and output measurements.
It arrived with a big black 2 way clip installed. I took a photo and then promptly pulled it off, which predictably left a couple of marks in the clip groove. The marks would be hidden if I decide to install a clip again. I dont wear a baseball hat, and dont like to have to lift the clip blade to remove the head.. For now Im enjoying it without a clip. I hope Wurkkos will ship the production version without the clip preinstalled.
The little TS10 without a clip feels very nice in hand! ;-)
The diamond texture on the body looks nice, and provides a small amount of texture.
Firmware is 0633-2025-07-07
Battery is a Wurkkos 14500 w USB-C, which arrived at 3.6V so I took it out and plugged it into a USB-Cable to charge it. I then installed a fully charged 14500 to do the following tests.
I tried to do factory reset with 13H, but nothing happened. I then completely removed the head and while holding the button screwed the head back on. This produced a factory reset (LEDs ramping up, a flash, and then off). After that the Aux came on at Dim output. Battery check did just one cycle and stopped. This tells me the light is now in Simple UI.
Simple UI turns on in Stepped Ramping, there are 5 steps.
Floor is 2.4 lm
Ceiling is 920 lm (very briefly, it immediately starts going lower)
Turbo is 905 lm (due to normal variation in output when the battery has been used already)
I notice Simple UI Ceiling is set to Turbo, iow, level 150 of 150. Since there is no FET, there is no risk of burning the LED on Turbo.
Simple UI Smooth Ramping outputs are the same as Simple UI Stepped Ramping.
There is no access to strobe from Simple UI, using 3H from off.
Next I switched to Advanced UI and took some Default output readings:
Advanced Stepped Ramping has 7 steps
Low 5 lm
Ceiling 715 lm (by experimenting with changing the ceiling to different levels I determined it corresponds to level 130/150)
Turbo 910 lm
Advanced Smooth Ramp
Low 1.2 lm
Ceiling 906 lm
Turbo 901 lm
Here again we see Ceiling is set to Turbo.
Without knowing the results of the Tint DUV test yet, my impression of the 519a is that it looks very nice and white, without any obvious green tint. Im looking at it during a sunny afternoon, when my brain is adapted to daylight. Im guessing it is a 5000K CCT.
The beam shape on a wall looks nice to me, with a diffused hotspot plus spill. I did not notice any obvious artifacts in the spill.
Here is a pic of the beam shape on my ceiling:
On bright Aux, in this next photo we can see the expected dots from the beaded outer edge of the optic.
I can feel a slight texture when I touch the optic. This tells me there is no glass. I like that there is no glass to break if the light is dropped.
I switched to Advanced UI and did 3H to test strobe, the light turned on in Candle mode. There are a few other blinkies, Bike Strobe, two different fast strobes, and a lightning mode, notably absent is Police Strobe (I expected red and blue aux to alternate, for novelty purposes only.. but that is not an option).
I went back to Simple UI to do some Opple tests. I did another Factory Reset to determine the default startup ouput. The light turned on at 36 lumens, which turned out to be step 2 of 5 in Simple UI. I went to step 3, which gave 190 lumens on my homebrew meter.
I used that 190 lumen output to test the CCT, CRI, Tint DUV and Flicker Index on my Opple 3. The results are in the composite first photo above
Next I wanted to see the Opple Flicker Index results on the lowest output, so I went to Advanced UI, switched to Smooth Ramping and turned on the lowest low of 1.2 lumens.. here are the results:
I do see some flashing pads on the driver, but I have no reason to reflash the firmware atm.
The first options changes Im making for my personal preferences are to set all 4 ceilings to level 100/150 = 368 lm. I also disabled Turbo in both Advanced and Simple UI. This means I dont have to worry about excess heat nor pocket burns.
This TS10V3 weighs only 52g with battery and no clip. The switch feels good to me, it actuates at 550g.
My conclusion is this new TS10V3 with Buck driver is a very nice little Anduril light. Thanks to the included USB-C battery, it is a Total Package.
I have no hesitation recommending this TS10V3 as a handy little High CRI Anduril light.
Note: I had to use a 20mm 1010 MCPCB for this build, as I don't have a 25mm one that fits 1010 emitters. It doesn't seem to affect performance or beam profile, since the TIR optic holds the emitter in place itself.
Test Parameters: 30 min logging | Mode: 4/4 | Ambient Temp: 24°C | Battery: Reliance RS50 4.2V
Runtime Notes:
Step-down: Opens at ~2,540lm and eases down slowly to ~2,400lm over the first ~5:30. It then drops to ~1,680lm by around 6:10, holds there with a very slight sag until ~7:45, and steps down once more to ~1,555lm.
Sustained Output: After the last step-down, output drifts down very gradually, reaching ~1,540lm by around 13:20 and settling at ~1,520lm for the rest of the 30-minute run.
Thermal Performance: The light reached 71°C after the 30 minutes.
💭 Final Impressions
Beam Profile: The M21K with the 3° TIR is a lot better with the NV1010 than it was with the FFL909A. The NV1010 gives a much cleaner beam profile. The FFL909A had a very noticeable dark spot in the middle of the hotspot. The NV1010 has it too, but it's so faint that it isn't visible in actual use, only if you really look for it on a white wall. It's a very pleasant beam profile with a huge flood spot and a lot of spill, and it gives the perfect beam profile for walking. Basically a floodier version of the M21K with the LHP73B, with far better tint and CRI of course.
(Just noticed the typo & can't change it. Of course it should be F45R) Shown beside my S8 SFT40 3kk 8amp SMO reflector on the right, both on 10% & 5k locked. It's amazing that this little light can put out about 3000 lumens using the M11 16350 & 10 amp driver and the OP reflector makes it better for EDC general use. If anyone is interested in a nice shorty setup then I definitely recommend giving this a try. It does get hot on max but surprisingly not crazy fast and 10% level is already a good amount of light output so that's where I will mostly be using it anyhow. BTW the SFT40 3kk in my S8 heats up much faster on max.
I got this the other day and tested it. It was a bit smaller than I thought so that means it gets hot pretty fast. Other than that I like it. Its bright, you can keep the heat down and still keep it bright enough on the lower settings which is enough. This is my 8th in the M21 series but im sure not my last.
NEXTORCH sent me their TA21 to review. It's a compact tactical EDC flashlight with a few interesting features, and after spending some time with it, there are a few things I really like.
The flashlight has a nice soft matte texture and feels good in the hand. I particularly like the tactical ring and the ceramic glass-breaking balls. The plastic ring feels fairly sturdy, especially the reinforced middle section. The only thing I find slightly annoying is the pocket clip, as you can feel it against your hand when using the tactical ring. Luckily, you can remove it.
I really like the tail switch. It somehow feels soft and solid at the same time. It's a two-stage switch, so you can half-press it for quick momentary activation and to change brightness, or fully press it to keep the light on or turn it off.
After using the switch for a while, it actually feels quite premium compared to some of the simple, cheap switches out there. This one really has its own character, and I enjoy using it.
The red light is another thing that surprised me. It's really bright, actually the brightest red light out of all the torches I own. Of course, you can also use it in low mode.
The battery is a USB-C rechargeable 16340, which is a slightly unusual choice, but I guess NEXTORCH went with this size to also accommodate CR123A batteries, which will work in the flashlight too.
The main beam is powered by two SST20 LEDs, giving it a tight hotspot with good throw at the same time. This is clearly a flashlight designed with tactical use in mind, something NEXTORCH is known for and does really well.
Overall, the TA21 definitely doesn't feel like a cheap flashlight. From the first moment I picked it up, I could tell it was well made. NEXTORCH seems to be in a league of its own when it comes to these tactical designs, and the TA21 certainly gives that impression.
Disclosure: NEXTORCH provided this flashlight to me free of charge for testing and review. I wasn't paid for the review, and the opinions and test results above are my own.
In case you're not aware, the TIRs for the H4 fit the FC11C perfectly. The gasket and glass need to be removed. I just figured it out and thought I would share.
I'm looking to stock up on a couple of flashlights for power outages and looking for suggestions.
During a long power cut I wouldn't be able to recharge a flashlight with a built-in or unusual battery, so I would like one that takes 14500 (AA) batteries because I always have plenty of those fully charged. Happy for it to take multiple AA batteries if that achieves longer usage times.
With the Pro version, Wurkkos has responded to user feedback and addressed some of the criticisms of its predecessor. The fold-out wings on the Wurkkos HD02 Pro can now also be rotated, allowing the light to be directed in almost any desired direction. Another new feature is a 660 nm red light that helps preserve the eyes’ dark adaptation. The powerful spotlight, UV light and green laser remain largely unchanged.
However, there are problems with the charging function, which has been unreliable for both me and other users. It is currently impossible to determine conclusively whether these are isolated cases or a fundamental issue. The manufacturer was informed of the problems but was unable to provide any concrete information even after several weeks. Another issue is that the plastic diffusers in the wings can come loose when the light is used at high brightness.
I had specifically criticized the non-rotatable floodlight wings on the previous model. Wurkkos has done an excellent job of addressing this issue in the new Pro version. The red light is also a useful addition. The charging problems are all the more disappointing. Otherwise, the Wurkkos HD02 Pro would be nearly perfect.
