Looking into purchasing a sundrop head

[ilikeguns40]

I currently have a haiku head, AA converter, nichia 119v and AA pak coming in. I have a feeling I'm gonna like it and order another. I'd like to get the sundrop with the hive converter. What would be the best all around LED for the sundrop? I'm looking more towards higher CRI. Thanks

 

[F89]

The light you have coming is what I've EDC'd for years, I'm a big fan.
I would recommend the 119V, again, for your Sundrop.
For me, the Sundrop is a high CRI light. I've experimented with several different LED's in the Sundrop but would only ever stick with high CRI.

 

[ilikeguns40]

The light you have coming is what I've EDC'd for years, I'm a big fan.
I would recommend the 119V, again, for your Sundrop.
For me, the Sundrop is a high CRI light. I've experimented with several different LED's in the Sundrop but would only ever stick with high CRI.

Thanks for info. I currently carry a malkoff MDC AA high CRI SST-20 led and I love the tint. I never knew about the high CRi existed before this. Kind of new to the led formats.

Do you happen to know the max lumens with the HIVE 119 led in a sundrop head?

 

[F89]

The maximum a Hive can be programmed is 1.2A, by default it'll do 1A on liion and maybe ~900mA on lithium CR123A.
I used to have the spec sheet on my old phone, but the 119V is a bit vintage now, although far from obsolete in my opinion. The efficiency bin for the 119V is B10 (from the A series).
A quick Internet search tells me that this series will do about 250-275 lumens @1A. I reckon if you got about 200 lumens? (complete guess and totally arbitrary) out the front of a Haiku that might be about right? Regarding the Sundrop, it would be even less efficient at getting light out the front.
None of this really answers your question but I can tell you that it'll be enough (lumens).
I've happily used the Sundrop with 119V driven by a 3S (660mA max) and AA (300mA max) for years.
I have a 219B Malkoff MDC AA, beautiful tint and reflector but the PWM and UI drive me nuts.
High CRI and nice tints are the way to go.

 

[ilikeguns40]

The maximum a Hive can be programmed is 1.2A, by default it'll do 1A on liion and maybe ~900mA on lithium CR123A.
I used to have the spec sheet on my old phone, but the 119V is a bit vintage now, although far from obsolete in my opinion. The efficiency bin for the 119V is B10 (from the A series).
A quick Internet search tells me that this series will do about 250-275 lumens @1A. I reckon if you got about 200 lumens? (complete guess and totally arbitrary) out the front of a Haiku that might be about right? Regarding the Sundrop, it would be even less efficient at getting light out the front.
None of this really answers your question but I can tell you that it'll be enough (lumens).
I've happily used the Sundrop with 119V driven by a 3S (660mA max) and AA (300mA max) for years.
I have a 219B Malkoff MDC AA, beautiful tint and reflector but the PWM and UI drive me nuts.
High CRI and nice tints are the way to go.

Thanks for info. Yeah the Malkoff UI drives me nuts as well. I'm not a fan of the on time memory. I'm not a huge lumen chaser and I find 100 lumens is substantial for my everyday needs. I'm more into a very nice beam profile and a higher CRI. So I think what your recommending to me will fit my needs just fine, especially if I've been happy carrying my MDC AA neutral. I have a load of cr123 batteries and I'm looking to get the cr123 pak next for the sundrop. Would you recommend the sundrop over the mule? Both look great I'm just stuck between the two.

 

[F89]

I reckon you'll really like the AA 119V Haiku. My guess is around 60 lumens out the front but don't be put off, the beam, tint and CRI are great.
I recommend browsing this McGizmo forum, there's heaps of good old posts. You'll find a lot of info on the Sundrop and Mule.
They are both very different lights so I couldn't really recommend one over the other, generally speaking without specific requirements anyway. Best bet is to browse here so you can get an idea and go with what appeals more.
Either way, if you're asking, I'd go the 119V in both.

 

[ilikeguns40]

I reckon you'll really like the AA 119V Haiku. My guess is around 60 lumens out the front but don't be put off, the beam, tint and CRI are great.
I recommend browsing this McGizmo forum, there's heaps of good old posts. You'll find a lot of info on the Sundrop and Mule.
They are both very different lights so I couldn't really recommend one over the other, generally speaking without specific requirements anyway. Best bet is to browse here so you can get an idea and go with what appeals more.
Either way, if you're asking, I'd go the 119V in both.

Thanks for your help. Much appreciated

 

[nbp]

How far will your given use range be for this light? When I had a SunDrop and a Mule I didn't find the marginally longer throw of the SD to be enough to offset my preference for the perfectly smooth beam of the Mule. I love a good Mule! The original SD was gorgeous. The current XRU is cool since it will take near any emitter but has a slightly more quirky beam that appeals to some and not others. Personally I preferred pairing a Haiku with a Mule over a SD, though I think the design of the SD was really cool and novel. If I got another SD it would be the old one with the Nichia 083 in it.

 

[ilikeguns40]

How far will your given use range be for this light? When I had a SunDrop and a Mule I didn't find the marginally longer throw of the SD to be enough to offset my preference for the perfectly smooth beam of the Mule. I love a good Mule! The original SD was gorgeous. The current XRU is cool since it will take near any emitter but has a slightly more quirky beam that appeals to some and not others. Personally I preferred pairing a Haiku with a Mule over a SD, though I think the design of the SD was really cool and novel. If I got another SD it would be the old one with the Nichia 083 in it.

More for just up close work. Maybe hanging the light from above and lighting an area from below. I just want the best LED option for the sundrop. Say if I put a xp-g2 into a sundrop with a hive converter. Would I be able to swap engines from my AA haiku with a 119v? I basically want something I can swap as well to get the both of best worlds dealing with the batteries

 

[nbp]

If you're talking like basically a task light where you're illuminating items or areas within 10 ft or so I would strongly consider the Mule. The flawless artifact free flood beam of a mule is a thing of beauty.

Yes you can power the AA converter with a CR123 or 16340 but it is optimized for the AA so it won't be any brighter than with an Eneloop or other AA battery. The heads and bodies are all compatible though so you can put the AA body from the Haiku on the SD or Mule head or whatever you want. The Mule or SD will take basically any emitter so you can try different engines, but the Haiku you have to just be a little careful that you have a reflector that has a sufficiently large hole for the emitter you want to use.

 

[ilikeguns40]

If you're talking like basically a task light where you're illuminating items or areas within 10 ft or so I would strongly consider the Mule. The flawless artifact free flood beam of a mule is a thing of beauty.

Yes you can power the AA converter with a CR123 or 16340 but it is optimized for the AA so it won't be any brighter than with an Eneloop or other AA battery. The heads and bodies are all compatible though so you can put the AA body from the Haiku on the SD or Mule head or whatever you want. The Mule or SD will take basically any emitter so you can try different engines, but the Haiku you have to just be a little careful that you have a reflector that has a sufficiently large hole for the emitter you want to use.

Thanks for the info much appreciated

 

[F89]

Nothing beats a mule for area lighting. I would say that I've found the Sundrop better for examining things and have never found the brighter edge or tobacco ring distracting. The Sundrop has a beautiful, even and smooth beam for close to medium observations.
I would also say that the main difference (using the same LED in both) between the original and XR-U is the beam angel with the latter being a tighter beam.
For years I used the 119V in the Sundrop, which is very nice, but recently I'm using a Nichia E21a R9080 5700K which is very nice indeed and likely close to the 083b if not exceeding it in CRI.
Back to the Mule, as far as area lighting or as a general work light, it's hard to beat.

 

[F89]

Some Sundrop lighting pics for whatever they're worth.