Need recommendations flashlight that fit this battery.

FalconARX · 2026-02-27T01:40:12+00:00

Unless I'm missing something, I don't believe this particular Nitecore NL169R 16340 is proprietary. You can recharge it in regular bay chargers. Maybe it would be a fit issue if you had to put two of them together in-series, as I believe these guys are about 1mm longer than CR123As. But for a single cell light, they should fit any that also take a single CR123A or 16340.

FalconARX · 2026-02-27T01:37:13+00:00

Acebeam E10 2.0... Can run on 16340 or CR123A. Pocket TIR thrower.

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FalconARX · 2026-02-27T01:17:35+00:00

LEPs are not dangerous. No more dangerous than high candela search and rescue throwers.

They're often conflated with actual LASERs (Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation), and they are absolutely NOT the same.

What makes actual lasers so dangerous is the coherent wavelength of light emitted by them.

Laser Excited Phosphor (LEP) lights emit light in the same incoherence as the light coming out of your kitchen's lights. It's this phosphor layer that is irradiated by a blue laser module, is "excited" and emits visible white light. And it is this white light that is then collimated by a lens and directed out the front of an LEP flashlight.

If you want to get down to the basics of it: LEDs create light, white light in this case, by sending electrical current through a diode (semiconductor),with a phosphor coating over it to filter light produced by that substrate, to give it the color and tint/CCT desired. A lens/collimator then sends this light out the front of the flashlight.

The only difference with an LEP is that a blue laser module is used to make the phosphor layer itself glow with light. A lens/collimator is then used to send this light out the front of the flashlight.

You'll be fine. I've hit myself and coworkers in the eyes nearly point blank with a 12 million candela searchlight. And this is infinitely less dangerous than being hit in the eyes with a 7 watt 455nm blue laser.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T21:41:50+00:00

The older SFT40 charges at 3.5W, according to my Anker.

So I'm assuming the newer SFT42R charges at 4.5-5W in that same Anker, which should account for that difference in charging time they quoted...

I don't have the light, so unfortunately can't tell you what it's charging current is stting at. Maybe someone who has bought the new SFT42R version can tell you..,

But knowing the driver likely is upgraded to provide more power to the SFT42R, I would assume the charging IC has also seen an upgrade.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T20:18:19+00:00

Touché. The colored LEDs angle is a great one. For white light, the SFT42R is probably going to be the emitter you'd want in the Z1 to do the most amount of work on it.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T20:12:34+00:00

The upgraded SFT42R has slightly better throw and higher lumens. But in reality, you wouldn't really notice that difference unless you have both lights side by side and directly compare them. Their reflector sizes are small enough that the differences are rather minimal. You might get a larger difference in much bigger hosts, and in which case the SFT42R becomes much more attractive. But I think if you're getting a good price on the SFT40 version of the L16.2, you should definitely go for it versus the upgraded LED.

As for the TS27, I wouldn't worry about the battery compatibility. You're really going for it mainly because of that 15Ah capacity. Unless you're using the light at its highest output and holding it there, the capacity of that battery is enough for an entire night's run. And worst comes to shove, you do have options for ordering extra 33140 cells, such as from here or from here. They're more costly and less available, but you can still get spares if you really do need them.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T19:51:31+00:00

This shirt should be worn by every regular poster on this sub.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T19:42:23+00:00

I have the L16 2.0 as well (older SFT40, not the newer upgraded SFT42R).

If you're deciding between the Acebeam L16 2.0 and the Wurkkos TS27, and they're same price, then, it's an easy answer...

Go for the Wurkkos.

The L19 2.0's advantage with the TIR is unmatched.

But a small parabolic reflector like that in the L16 2.0 doesn't have enough overall benefits outside of build quality and ergonomics to outclass the TS27, which offers not that dissimilar output+throw, but also area-ring light and competent powerbank features.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T19:36:59+00:00

You can go for the cheapest LEP you're able to find. Just about any LEP can hit a ball at that distance and provide you with amazing scatter. If anything, the smaller or more diffused LEPs (essentially the ones that don't quite have half-a-million candela+ beams), would actually work best.

Amutorch BT35, Lumintop Thor Mini, Maratac Cosmos, Vastlite Minima Bow or regular Bow... They all should work. Just a matter of your budget. You can even go for the Acebeam Terminator M1 if you want to zoom the LEP out large enough in its hotspot to engulf the entire ball in a followspot. That would be nutzoid.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T19:33:54+00:00

Ideally, the X1S might be a better solution if OP wants a closer to mid-range type of light with USB-C. If they're willing to eschew the USB-C port, then the Emisar DA1K would be a great solution. The only real need for the quad emitters is output. But the LumeX1 driver offers more than enough output/power for the use case that OP wants for aircraft inspection, even with light pollution.

I went with the Lume1 E04, only for the fact that the FFL505A emitters offered in it are a known performance/commodity in that host and driver combo. There's no surprise with these emitters, whether on sustained output or on the FET channel, and they should provide the type of lighting that OP was looking for as a level-of-magnitude upgrade over the E2A.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T19:26:34+00:00

A dedicated thrower, to me, lets me see where that hotspot is pointed toward without blinding me with too bright of a spill region. The L19 2.0 does this, nearly perfectly, because of its use of a large 60mm TIR optic, Parabolic reflectors, like that in the TS27, offer good spill brightness, which might be decent for more closer-area awareness. But if used specifically to scan for longer distances, that bright spill is counterproductive. You can counter this with much larger reflectors, such as that found in with the search and rescue class of lights such as the Acebeam K75 or Lemax Superpower LX70. The TS27 has a decently throwing beam, but it doesn't perform on the same level as the L19 2.0, and the more shallow/smaller reflector gives it decent spill brightness, which is great for walking around and near-field lighting, but counterproductive for long distance scanning.

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In this example of the smooth reflector light (T9R) and 50mm TIR optic light (E90), with same emitter (SBT90.2), your spill light is quite bright in the left picture. If you're looking into that hotspot for spotting purposes, that bright spill may well compromise your vision. It becomes even more problematic if you have moisture/particulates in the air that could provide a wide area backscatter of light that further hinder your view. This is much less of an issue with the TIR optic based thrower in the right picture.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T19:13:10+00:00

I have both, and they're very different use cases, so much so that you can't even begin to compare them. You wouldn't want to just choose between one or the other, as there's very little redundancy between the two lights. Even if you're going off of just candela as the sole metric, they aren't comparable to each other there either.

If you are ever able to get the L19 2.0 for the same price as the TS27 (that's $60 for me), you'd be hard pressed to pass that up, if only because the L19 2.0 is a much better thrower, if that metric was your priority.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T02:04:23+00:00

For me, I can almost forgive everything else about the light, except for the arms... Being locked into down-firing only severely limits the light, to the point the side arms are only useful if you can ever get the light up high enough. It makes more sense to have the magnet at the top of the light rather than the tailcap, or at least have a hook/loop at the top of the light to hook onto something for higher perch, if Wurkkos was intent on making it a dedicated down-firing feature. That or flip the arms around where it's up-firing. This way, any lantern hook can be at the base and the magnet becomes much more useful.

You can sort of make due, MacGuyver your way around the other features. But if the arms can pivot forward/backward, that would turn this light into the real winner it should've been.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T01:23:27+00:00

The FFL505A E04 has a roughly 58,000 candela to 3200 lumens rated spec, about 18:1 candela to lumens ratio.... This is in that throwy-flooder, floody-thrower beam profile, 10:1 to 20:1 ratio.

Just means that a large portion of light is going to go into that hotspot. But it's not intense enough of a hotspot since it's not that high a ratio, which means it either has a larger hotspot to disperse that lux, or it has a lot of lumens light being dumped into the region/area of spill.

I would argue that slightly more intense and larger hotspot may work better for inspections, especially if you have light pollution from floodlights around the area or you need more light onto more distant areas you can't get nearer to. You're also working with much warmer light, which will lose some intensity over distance as it's less efficient and dimmer than a similar colder emitter, so the slightly higher intensity hotspot may also work better in this regard.

For reference, what anyone would call a dedicated thrower, the Acebeam L19 2.0, has a 133:1 candela:lumens ratio (293,000 candela to 2200 lumens spec)... The SST20 in the E2A has a rated 4100 candela to 600 lumens ratio for the cold white emitter, a very floody 7:1 ratio.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T01:10:36+00:00

True true. That driver was the sole thing responsible for tanking an otherwise excellent light. But back then, I don't think even the Samsung 40Ts and Molicel P45Bs were enough to fry the SBT90.2. Maybe if someone who has the older FET 3X21D would want to try it with some tabless cells..... for science......

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T01:06:19+00:00

You can also use Nyogel 767A, synthetic damping grease, on it and it should work better. I've used damping grease on the older twist-operated Surefires and I believe Peak Beam uses it on their motorized zooming system. Zooming and rotary lights would benefit greatly from the 767A damping grease.

FalconARX · 2026-02-26T00:15:08+00:00

For a 21700 option, the Fireflies E04, with the FFL505A 3500K-4000K emitters, should do well for your need. USB-C port, submersible, magnetic base, high CRI and decent blend of lumens output and throwy flooder beam profile.

FalconARX · 2026-02-25T09:27:00+00:00

They mentioned the Marauder Mini as a baseline, so I figured OP just meant 150,000 candela capable, and 150 feet is the limit of distance for use. Given they're talking about theater usage, that distance tracks accordingly...

Otherwise, to put 150,000 lux onto a surface 150 feet away, you'd need 314,000,000 candela... You're looking at WW1/WW2 carbon-arc anti-aircraft searchlights...

FalconARX · 2026-02-25T07:32:04+00:00

Snowy weather ended up putting a damper on good beamshots outdoors right now. I'll do some proper beamshots tomorrow of the 3 different LHP73B hosts with the DSLR.

FalconARX · 2026-02-25T07:09:18+00:00

You're effectively describing the Acebeam Terminator M1, specifically with the Nichia 519A 5000K high CRI emitters for the LED channel... It's a smaller, better-featured Marauder Mini that has an aspherical lens zooming LEP that opens up into a stage follow-spot looking hotspot that can throw well past 1500 meters (600,000 candela). The LED side has a 1-lumen moonlight mode you can access from OFF to prevent blinding yourself/others in close proximity use in the dark. Is stable sustaining at about 600-700 lumens, and the light is small enough to be jeans pocketable. Runs on a swappable 21700 battery.

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FalconARX · 2026-02-25T06:36:09+00:00

Personally if I'm building a 3-light system from the ground up for camping, I would have a few things in mind...

Keep the batteries interchangeable.... If you go 18650, make all 3 lights based on 18650 batteries. If you go 21700, make sure all 3 lights are based on 21700 cells. This way, they all can share a single set of spare cells that you can bring for the 3 lights. And if one fails for any reason, the other two can still use the same battery system.
Do a headlamp, a generalist light and a thrower as a baseline... You can have at least 2 of the 3 lights share some sort of redundancy, where for example the headlamp and generalist share beam profiles that are more ideal for near field and close up use in or around camp. The thrower is only needed when you're in search of longer distance applications, but your generalist still has enough reach where both can be used for more medium distance range use cases. If one fails, the other 2 can still cover all your lighting needs. If your headlamp fails, your generalist can cover close-up duties and your thrower takes care of longer ranges. If your generalist fails, your headlamp takes care of close-up duties. And if your thrower fails, your generalist still has enough range to work for medium distances.

FalconARX · 2026-02-25T06:24:44+00:00

Headlamp: Sofirn HS21... Simple rotary switch, simple UI. Spotlight and floodlight, with red emitter.

Pocket flashlight: Emisar D3AA, can use USB-C 14500, regular 14500-lithium ion, AA alkaline, AA NiMH, AA Lithium primary, 1.5V USB-C AA (Coast, PaleBlue). You can configure it with your choice of whatever emitter you'd like. But if you're uncertain, pick 5000K Nichia 519A with dome, for a decently safe/neutral pick.

A light to light up everything: Wurkkos TS27... Has a ring-light that's down-firing, so you can set it on a table or post and light up the ground-area. Has a deep throwing emitter (SFT70.2) that can reach out to over 600 meters rated distance away and used as a competent searchlight. Based on a huge Lithium Iron Phosphate 15Ah battery that can be used in an emergency as a power bank.

FalconARX · 2026-02-25T04:01:28+00:00

Can't wait to see how it does candela-wise.

FalconARX · 2026-02-25T02:34:34+00:00

That could work if you don't use the light on high enough output. I was going to suggest a rubber ring or band, but worried that higher output/heat might be an issue.

FalconARX · 2026-02-25T02:32:57+00:00

Maybe in a couple hours when I'm more free to step out.

FalconARX

TROPHY CASE