Novice asks do you recommend the Sunwayman V11R or... ?

[Bentonville]

I am a novice to flashlights an I apologize that my questions ramble. I had no idea how complicated flashlights could be. I am coming from a Rayovac and Maglite background I have an old Surefire tactical model that boasts 60 lumens and lasts less than 1 hour run time. I want/need a light I can use to crawl under the house, walk the dog, see the oil dip stick, and identify and possibly temporarily blind a potential threat in the house. The SunwaymanV11R seems to fill that bill. Selfbuilt has a good review on his site. I wonder about the AA extender. I don't want to get the light too hot but I hate to pay so much for the CR123A batteries. I have read about the Coast and other brands from big box stores. Are these lights totally inferior to the Sunwayman?

 

[jimboutilier]

The V11R has a lot going for it. It's fully variable output and ability to take any flavor of CR123/RCR123/16340 or AA/L91/14500 make it incredibly versatile.

Its downsidesinclude
a) it's quite large for a single cell light and in AA form is as big as some 2xCR123 lights I have.
b) you have to change grip to switch between on/off and adjusting brightness which can be annoying
c) it's ring stiffness depends on grease that will eventually wear off with no good way for your average user to replace

I prefer smaller magnetic ring only lights like the Jetbeam RRT-01 or Niteye Eye10 but lots of folks are very happy with the V11R.

 

[Rosoku Chikara]

I agree that the V11R has "a lot going for it" and it is my favorite AA flashlight. (Despite all the other cells options, to me, an Eneloop with the extender seems to be the most "practical" and economical way to power it.) It is also fairly expensive, but it is very nicely made, and the variable output is extremely elegant.

However, I think you may wish to think a bit more about how you are going to carry, and how you are going to use your flashlight (or flashlights). Walking the dog, and crawling under the house are "planned" activities, so you might not need to carry around the flashlight that you use for those purposes, at all times. You might prefer to keep such a flashlight near your door, or some other similar location, so that it is "ready to go" when you need it. Such a flashlight need not necessarily be small, since it need not be on your person at all times.

But, you probably will want (need?) to carry some kind of flashlight at all times. You always need a light for those little tasks such as "seeing the dipstick" when checking the oil at night, that tend to pop up at unexpected, and unplanned times. For this reason, I carry (and would recommend) a good (not necessarily expensive) keychain light. Many use high output emitters and can be remarkably bright, yet still have extremely long runtimes when set to their lower brightness settings. (For me, the V11R is just a bit too bulky to carry around at all times. So, I carry a $13.00 TANK007 E09 with 3 brightness modes, on my keychain.)

While the V11R is quite bright, it is not as bright on an AA is it can be on a CR123A or RCR123/14500. And, even at its brightest, I am not certain that it would ever be quite enough flashlight to actually "temporarily blind a potential threat in the house." (Although, it would easily "identify" an intruder, of course.)

Selecting a flashlight (or flashlights) is a very personal matter, and everyone has their own preferences. But, if it were me, I would probably purchase a number of very low cost (yet reliable enough flashlights) for walking the dog, etc., and keep them in strategic locations around my home. Others might strongly disagree, but I like the Sipik SK68 or one of their clones (currently available for around $4.00 each, including free shipping) for such purposes. They are surprisingly bright little AA lights with "Zoom" that allows them to be adjusted from flood, to throw. I, and almost everyone else that has ever used one, have found them to be quite reliable, but they are not at all "fancy" and their "optics" are pretty rough (lots of halos and other optical artifacts). But, they make a great little flashlight to grab and slip into your pocket as you are going out the door. Given their extremely low price, you can also safely loan them to friends (or even strangers). And, if you ever misplace one or drop it down a hole, you haven't lost much.

Next, you will need a flashlight to carry at all times. Once again, this is a personal decision, and everyone thinks differently. But, I think the V11R is too large, so I go with an AAA keychain light. (And, once again, I don't need to spend too much money on one.) Almost any model that you select should be bright enough for common tasks, but they will have short runtimes on High, so you generally only want to use them that way for a few minutes at at time. But, if you are ever trapped in a situation where you will be without any light for a long period of time, you can always use the lower modes that are available to find your way through a forest or something. (If it is truly dark, the lowest of modes will still seem quite bright, and many of these little AAA lights can provide 40-50 hours of run time in low modes.)

Finally, we come to the flashlight that you want, that might be able to "temporarily blind a potential threat in the house." This is a flashlight that you would likely want to keep near your bed. Unfortunately, I do not think that the V11R is going to be the best flashlight for this purpose. I think I would recommend something fairly large that you could grope around for and easily find in the darkness. No need to spend a huge amount of money here, but, if it were me, this is probably where I would consider spending the amount "necessary." (So far, the other flashlights I have mentioned have been extremely low cost.)

Not really trying to steer you away from the V11R. As I said, it is my favorite. But, I am thinking that you have several different needs, and those different needs may be best served by different flashlights.

Any further advice/recommendations will require knowing whether or not your intend to learn how to safely use Li-Ion cells, such as 18650s. Such cells offer great advantages in energy density, but also require considerably more "attention" to use and recharge safely. AA cells (read: Eneloops) are simple and safe.

 

[mcnair55]

I am a novice to flashlights an I apologize that my questions ramble. I had no idea how complicated flashlights could be. I am coming from a Rayovac and Maglite background I have an old Surefire tactical model that boasts 60 lumens and lasts less than 1 hour run time. I want/need a light I can use to crawl under the house, walk the dog, see the oil dip stick, and identify and possibly temporarily blind a potential threat in the house. The SunwaymanV11R seems to fill that bill. Selfbuilt has a good review on his site. I wonder about the AA extender. I don't want to get the light too hot but I hate to pay so much for the CR123A batteries. I have read about the Coast and other brands from big box stores. Are these lights totally inferior to the Sunwayman?

Welcome and there is nothing complicated about Flashlights other than what you make yourself.If you have a specific task in mind say a small light for your key chain you look at the AAA offerings to start with and AA if size is not an issue.If you need an all dancing super lumens light with strobe,sos etc you look to that part of the market,very much like buying a car really and just like cars you have people who buy posers lights.

 

[Bentonville]

Very thoughtful and thought-provoking replies. I appreciate the input very much. I bought a light with 120 lumens that operates on two AA batteries. It is very bright and has a low lumen setting as well. Then I read on the forum about various lights which regulate the output and avoid a gradual dimming. Then I read about other great lights such as the V11R.I have a couple of cheap Rayovac LED lights that guide me through the house at night. Still, when reading the threads on the CPF, I realize there is so much more to flashlights. I really want a tactical light that won't die quickly. My Surefire is outdated. Jimboutiier definitely opened my eyes to the cons of the V11. I will explore the small lights described so eloquently by Rosoku ( you must be a professional writer). McNair's pragmatic post has me re-evaluating my thinking. Thank you.

 

[reppans]

Infinitely variable magnetic ring lights would solve A LOT of the "Goldilocks" problems that I constantly run into as a low lumen/night vision junkie (lows being too bright/too dim). However, the primary reason I like low lows is for the runtime and the IV magnetic rings can consume more power than the LED itself on low lows. The overhead power draw is not material in relation to the higher modes though, and also may not be an issue if you don't mind carrying spares/changing batts.

 

[mcnair55]

Infinitely variable magnetic ring lights would solve A LOT of the "Goldilocks" problems that I constantly run into as a low lumen/night vision junkie (lows being too bright/too dim). However, the primary reason I like low lows is for the runtime and the IV magnetic rings can consume more power than the LED itself on low lows. The overhead power draw is not material in relation to the higher modes though, and also may not be an issue if you don't mind carrying spares/changing batts.

I think as my first purchase of 2014 i should consider one of these magnetic ring lights.Please point me in the right direction what to consider as i really know nothing much about them.

 

[reppans]

I think as my first purchase of 2014 i should consider one of these magnetic ring lights.Please point me in the right direction what to consider as i really know nothing much about them.

SWM Vs, Jetbeam RRTs, Nitecore SRTs, and Niteye are some popular choices. Sounds like a very cool, perhaps ideal, UI, although I don't own any due to the low-end efficiency, and if there is one other downside, it's that the added complexity/moving part by definition means one more thing that can go wrong.

 

[tm3]

I think as my first purchase of 2014 i should consider one of these magnetic ring lights.Please point me in the right direction what to consider as i really know nothing much about them.

Nitecore SRT3 looks pretty interesting to me and sometimes comes up in V11r discussions.

 

[jimboutilier]

Reppans has already presented the chief drawback of magnetic ring technology - and that is lower effency than many stepped output systems at low output levels. Most of the magnetic ring lights have a max runtime of about 100 hours which would be fine for many folks but it can't match weeks or even months of output from some stepped systems with moonlight modes.

The huge plus side is you can quickly and simply choose the exact output level desired for a given task. This has a distinct advantage for fine tasks where light level is critical and avoids having to choose a fixed setting that's too high or too low. It can also improve battery life by allowing you to choose the exact minimum light setting suitable to a task rather than choosing from three or four fixed settings. If most of your use is in the sub-lumen range, this might not be ideal for you but for typical EDC it's a nice system for many folks.

There are some hybrid systems that have stepped and magnet ring output like the Nitecore SRT series and the HDS Rotary series that you can kind of get the best of both worlds from. But at the cost of a more comples UI and a somewhat larger light. I love the HDS Rotary and returned an SRT3.

There are smooth ring lights like the RRT-01 with detents at only max and min and ranging from a level so low you can barely see it looking directly at the LED with dark adapted eyes to 600 lumens (or more for Vinh modified models).

You have click stop lights like the Niteye Eye10 that have about 10 click stops plus off and max which in theory are as infinite as the smooth rings but in practice are limited to 10 output levels (you can hold the ring between detents but when you let go its likely going to slip into a detent).

And you have combination lights like the V11R which add a tail clicky for on/off and just use the ring bor brightness.

I'm sure there are other combinations and hybrids I haven't encountered. Of the lights above I like the RRT-01 the best but they all have pluses and minuses that can make one better or worse for a given individual. The down side for the RRT-01 is a very light ring that can be inadvertently activated in ones pocket. I've never had it happen but have heard of it. I have a Vinh modified version that has the ring stiffened, output boosted to about 900 LED lumens, and a 5000K XML2 LED that's my favorite.

 

[tm3]

Two questions re the magnetic ring lights

1 can the battery drain be eliminated by leaving the tailcap loosened?

2 do any of these lights have preflash? I find this annoying on my Quark and need to make it a standard question on my checklist ........

 

[jimboutilier]

Two questions re the magnetic ring lights

1 can the battery drain be eliminated by leaving the tailcap loosened?

2 do any of these lights have preflash? I find this annoying on my Quark and need to make it a standard question on my checklist ........

All of the lights I've mentioned can be locked out by slightly loosening the head or tail (most don't have a tail cap, you replace cells, lockout etc by unscrewing the head). But most also have a parasitic drain almost as low as the batteries self discharge rate when "off" so it's really not necessary except for long term storage.


There is no preflash with any pure magnetic ring light I mentioned. There isn't with the HDS either. I don't remember if the SRT had it on its presets but it did not on the variable part of its ring.

 

[Bentonville]

I have dismissed the V11R as my first flashlight and have been looking at the Zebralight SC52W. It seems to have the characteristics I would use such as a strong light to use when walking the dog ( or the wife), low light for checking thermostat in the house or checking the oil at night,and a medium to use if reading or crawling under the house for whatever reason ( and there are several). I would appreciate any input before I purchase.

 

[ChrisGarrett]

I've had the V10R until it broke and I was sent a V11R. Over the TG weekend, I bought a M11R. I've used these three light exclusively with ICR/IMR 16340 rechargeable cells from AW.

They're very nice and compact lights. The V11R is slightly longer than the V10R and the M11R. I like the variable magnetic control ring for scrolling up/down and they're generally easy to use. If you're a big guy, with big fat fingers, you might have an issue, but I have girlie hands, so no problem gripping the light for me.

On the V11R, I think that they want you to step down after 5, or 10, minutes on HIGH, but that is heat dependent and you might be able to go longer. Runtimes on HIGH, for the V10R/V11R, with one of those AW cells mentioned above, are about 40+ minutes, so not a lot, but carrying a spare in a little plastic case is easy enough and you get better times if you crank the volume down a little bit, lol.

I wish I still had my TAN V10R, as I really liked the light and the tan finish. That's the reason I bought the tan M11R, even though it's a step down in performance compared to either of the Rs that I had/have.

Chris

 

[Lou Minescence]

The Zebra lights are very good and well liked around CPF. I have a couple. Neither one sit on my night stand. If I'm half asleep and don't push the button long enough the light comes on in high. It was a real problem with my S6330 @ 2300 or so lumens. Ouch. My V11R is my favorite.
As long as your half asleep motor control is better than mine, the SC52 should be a good choice.

 

[reppans]

....I would appreciate any input before I purchase.

Green tint lottery, if there is an issue with the light, you won't be impressed with its warranty or customer service, spec are quite exaggerated vs it's direct competitors in the sub-lumen class, but it's a very good light otherwise .

 

[Bentonville]

Thanks for the input. I am amazed at how much there is to know about flashlights. I have read more about lights on CPF than I even could have imagined. I am still confused and I want a light...bad. I like my Surefire 6Z but it isn't even as bright as a Lenser twenty dollar light that my son owns. It seems the ZL SC52w is not the best choice. The V11R is back in my mind though I felt discouraged about I due to the lubricant issue. I know...I know...I am like a congressman at this point; my decision depends on which way the wind blows. If someone would just take charge and tell me what to buy it would be so much easier. The old adage about opinions applies double to opinions about flashlights. Throw in all the reviews by Selfbuilt and I change my mind every time I read about another light.
I really want to avoid a lot of maintenance and I want simple batteries. I already have Enloopes for my Canon camera. HELP!

 

[jimboutilier]

Thanks for the input. I am amazed at how much there is to know about flashlights. I have read more about lights on CPF than I even could have imagined. I am still confused and I want a light...bad. I like my Surefire 6Z but it isn't even as bright as a Lenser twenty dollar light that my son owns. It seems the ZL SC52w is not the best choice. The V11R is back in my mind though I felt discouraged about I due to the lubricant issue. I know...I know...I am like a congressman at this point; my decision depends on which way the wind blows. If someone would just take charge and tell me what to buy it would be so much easier. The old adage about opinions applies double to opinions about flashlights. Throw in all the reviews by Selfbuilt and I change my mind every time I read about another light.
I really want to avoid a lot of maintenance and I want simple batteries. I already have Enloopes for my Canon camera. HELP!

It's just that there are a lot of excellent (yet not perfect) lights on the market and it's often only your set of personal preferences and usage patterns that would make one light more suitable than another. You can get a lot of help narrowing down your list but at some point you are just going to have to start trying them to find out what works best for you. You may be lucky and find something you love the first time or more likely you will try quite a number of lights over time with different strengths and weaknesses and you'll return, or use, or gift, or resell, each light as your needs dictate.

If the only thing holding you back from the V11R, try one. I've only lightly used mine but I've had it for a year and there is no difference in the ring feel. But I don't leave it in hot places like a car. As to the SC52's, they are great lights. There has been a green tint issue that many have found objectionable. Mine both have a slightly greenish tint but it's not terrible and really doesn't bother me. If you get a bad one return it. If you get another bad one, maybe consider something else.

At at some point you gotta just jump in.

 

[ChrisGarrett]

Thanks for the input. I am amazed at how much there is to know about flashlights. I have read more about lights on CPF than I even could have imagined. I am still confused and I want a light...bad. I like my Surefire 6Z but it isn't even as bright as a Lenser twenty dollar light that my son owns. It seems the ZL SC52w is not the best choice. The V11R is back in my mind though I felt discouraged about I due to the lubricant issue. I know...I know...I am like a congressman at this point; my decision depends on which way the wind blows. If someone would just take charge and tell me what to buy it would be so much easier. The old adage about opinions applies double to opinions about flashlights. Throw in all the reviews by Selfbuilt and I change my mind every time I read about another light.
I really want to avoid a lot of maintenance and I want simple batteries. I already have Enloopes for my Canon camera. HELP!

I'm going back and forth in a thread on this page, regarding medium sized 'throwers,' so I understand that there is a lot to absorb.

You already use Eneloops. If you're not going to run lithium-ion rechargeable cells in your particular light, whether a 14500 AA size, or a 16340/RCR123 CR123A size, then just stick with lights that run AA/AAA NiMH cells and be done with it.

If, however, you want to turn to the dark side of batteries--Li-Ions, then I'd suggest something that can run a 3.7v 16340, or even a 3.7v 14500, as well as their analogue primaries.

Face it, if you have two nickels to scrape together, you're not going to buy just 'one' light, so start mapping out a course which captures a variety of lights.

I like having the smaller, easily hidden, pocket lights and ones that can run the higher voltage Li-Ion cells.

Chris

 

[Rosoku Chikara]

...The V11R is back in my mind though I felt discouraged about I due to the lubricant issue...

As I said, the V11R with AA Extender is my personal favorite. I wouldn't feel "discouraged" by "the lubricant issue." If you take reasonable care of it (water OK, solvents bad) I don't think you will ever have a problem. Sad to say, but I think you are much more likely to lose, or have the light stolen from you, before the lubricant ever becomes an problem.

In the event that, some years from now, you decided that you would like to re-lubricate the ring, you can either learn how to do it yourself, or I am sure you can find someone on this forum that might be willing to do it for you. In any case, I think that it is going to be many years from now. (Not something to worry about today.)

I say, if you liked the V11R at "first sight," then go with your instincts. It is a great little flashlight. And, as Chris points out above, it is unlikely to be your last flashlight. (Much more likely: "The first of many.")

I wrote my long post early in this thread to encourage you to think in terms of different flashlights for different purposes. And, to also point out the fact that not all flashlights need be expensive. But, if you want a very nice little flashlight, the V11R is an excellent choice.