# Solarforce L2 + Solarforce XM-L 3 mode drop in



## old4570 (Nov 3, 2011)

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﻿My new Solarforce L2 + Solarforce XM-L 3 mode drop in . 



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﻿I really like the new L2 , its just a little better than the old one , though I still like the older ones , these new ones are a one piece body and can no longer be turned into a L2micro , you will have to source a older light [ pre 2011 ] . These bodies are just so well machined , and Solarforce has really lifted there game in producing the 2011 model . I really cant fault the light [ body or host ] at all , so I think its time to move onto the Solarforce 3 mode P60 XM-L drop in . 



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The modes are set out as High - Medium - Low , and there is mode memory , and it takes a good 2 seconds to activate once the light is turned of , switch back on earlier and you change modes . Beam quality is typical XM-L where in the projected beam onto a white wall , will have several different shades of white [ Pure white , warm white , some purple or bluish white = Cool White ] , all of which vanish once you take it outside , as opposed to staring at white walls inside . 


Lets check some performance figures : [ Sanyo 2600 ] 


High = 1.6A - 530L [ sags a little to around 511 after a minute ] 
Med = 0.71A - 250L
Low = 0.15A - 55L 


﻿Im sure a lot of folks were expecting 3A + from the drop in , but this is not the case , looks like Solarforce has gone the conservative rout , offering a junk free [ junk modes ] drop in with good current VS performance . Wasn't so long ago folks were bragging about there XR-E R2 lights pulling 1.6A and doing 250L , well , that's doubled now , and I like this level of performance in a P60 host , to me its quite sane , and reasonable . 


Beams tonight 


http://img401.imageshack.us/img401/7497/screenshot013s.jpg





Low - Med - High / 3 different angles .....


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## Blitzwing (Nov 4, 2011)

Nice review. Much love for SF lights in my house. Though I think they should offer a 2.5 - 3A XM-L dropin.


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## Black Rose (Nov 6, 2011)

I have one of the new Solarforce L2 bodies as well and am really impressed with the changes they have made.

I like the fact I can now use Lumens Factory incan drop-ins in a Solarforce body without needing to put a washer in the head or play around with the spring to keep the drop-in from "falling" into the battery tube.


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## AmperSand (Nov 6, 2011)

Does it have super horrible/noticeable PWM flicker on low/med modes like all the other 3 mode solarforce dropin's?


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## old4570 (Nov 6, 2011)

AmperSand said:


> Does it have super horrible/noticeable PWM flicker on low/med modes like all the other 3 mode solarforce dropin's?



Yes .... [ But I dont notice it , and it does not bother me , I can only see it when following the cat outside and as she runs along, her legs strobe ]


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## kreisler (Nov 6, 2011)

old4570 said:


> Lets check some performance figures : [ Sanyo 2600 ]
> 
> High = 1.6A - 530L [ sags a little to around 511 after a minute ]
> Med = 0.71A - 250L
> ...


Nice fotos. Well, is it safe to operate it in High mode until the battery is drained out or would this (i.e. the heat dissipation) harm the LED? And for how long would it be running on High mode until the battery's dead?
And is there any kind of constant brightness/current regulation integrated in the drop-in circuit board, or will the brightness (High mode) continue to sag/dim? I cant find any detailed test of the 2011 Solarforce models where the brightness was measured against battery life time. Maybe i should give selfbuilt a call *ggg*


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## old4570 (Nov 7, 2011)

Currently draining a battery , but its close to the end of the School year , so time is at a premium ...


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## ^Gurthang (Nov 7, 2011)

Good looking host. OTOH, it sort of competes w/ the L2T finish-wise. Is it Type II or Type III anodizing??


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## jake25 (Nov 7, 2011)

Type II


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## old4570 (Nov 7, 2011)

So far , it seems to be maintaining regulation / output , battery is down to 4.05v ... I will run this cell down and see where it begins to fall of


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## jamesmhunt (Nov 7, 2011)

old4570 said:


> High = 1.6A - 530L [ sags a little to around 511 after a minute ]
> Med = 0.71A - 250L
> Low = 0.15A - 55L
> 
> ﻿Im sure a lot of folks were expecting 3A + from the drop in , but this is not the case , looks like Solarforce has gone the conservative rout , offering a junk free [ junk modes ] drop in with good current VS performance . Wasn't so long ago folks were bragging about there XR-E R2 lights pulling 1.6A and doing 250L , well , that's doubled now , and I like this level of performance in a P60 host , to me its quite sane , and reasonable .



I tried mine out properly for the first time over the weekend at a bonfire/firework party. I am pleased enough with the output on high, even though it doesn't seem to be driving the XM-L so hard.

It gets a little toasty anyway when run on high for an extended period (at least the shim seems to be transferring the heat from the drop-in into the body), so I wouldn't like to be holding it for too long if it was pulling >3A.


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## old4570 (Nov 7, 2011)

its warm here ATM [ start of summer ] , so mine runs a little warm , but not really hot ..
1.6A VS 3A , its like chalk and cheese .. , 3A really tends to heat up a flashlight


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## old4570 (Nov 8, 2011)

Ok , ran the light some more , and looks like it falls out of regulation around 4v , @ 3.9v it was doing 460L


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## RI Chevy (Nov 15, 2011)

How did this drop in compare to the Manafont drop in? What exactly is the Manafont XM-L drop in driven at, 2.8A? What do all of these numbers mean? 

High = 1.6A - 530L [ sags a little to around 511 after a minute ] 
Med = 0.71A - 250L
Low = 0.15A - 55L

Will the Solarforce XM-L driven at 1.6A last longer on a 18650? How much less light do you get from 1.6A vs. 2.8A? Is one more durable than the other? Thank you in advance for your help.


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## old4570 (Nov 16, 2011)

RI Chevy said:


> How did this drop in compare to the Manafont drop in? What exactly is the Manafont XM-L drop in driven at, 2.8A? What do all of these numbers mean?
> 
> High = 1.6A - 530L [ sags a little to around 511 after a minute ]
> Med = 0.71A - 250L
> ...



Compare how ? 
You ask many questions ...

Well current draw does not always equal output , especially at higher current draw ..
I love people quoting current draw , what is better ? 
Its highly personal , 

Butt , I dare suggest around 2 to 2.5Amp current draw with the XM-L 

As for L part = its Lumen , which can be converted to Lux - Candlepower etc [ A form of Measure ] 
Higher usually is better ... 

Manafont Drop in .. Is a Ultrafire 3 mode [ No strobe or SOS ] XM-L drop in from a online store , that often pulls more than 3Amp from a decent cell . [ Mine has done 3.8A = thats a lot , and it does not = output ..] 

XM-L T6 [ Cree ] rated at 280L per 700mA 

280 @ 700
560 @ 1.4A
840 @ 2.1A
1120 @ 2.8A 
1300 @ 3.5A
1580 @ 4.2A
Ok its getting out of hand ... You wont see this , not at least until some time in the future ...


Now in reality it does not work this way at all , because at a certain point heat will become a limiting factor ...
The higher the current , the more heat ...
The more heat , the more heat related output sag [ energy is converted to heat rather than light ] 
There are also other variables involved [ battery - driver efficiency - lens loss - bezel block to name some ] 

So the question is , how hard do you want to run your battery ? 

Because after 2A , with the XM-L , your not going to gain much , unless you have an exception to the rule [ light - drop in ] 

Comparing AMP draw , is a little like comparing RPM , when you should be comparing HP or KW [ output ] 

I hope this helped ..


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## RI Chevy (Nov 16, 2011)

That helps a lot. Thank you for taking the time to explain. So for us leyman, which XM-L 3 mode drop in is brighter? The Ultrafire or the Solarforce? And which one do you prefer? Which is better for longevity?


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## old4570 (Nov 21, 2011)

The Higher current will be brighter - but it will also sag more - the longer you run it on high - the more heat sag [ yes this will stress the LED ] ... the closer it will come to the drop in running @ lower current 

I would and do , use my lower current XM-L lights far more than the high current ones ... Simply because they do the job just as well .. 

Its all very personal , and folks want what they want , if there was a P60 XM-L drop in that pulled 5A , it would probably sell like it was made out of cocaine . [ Never mind that after 1 minute it was putting out 50L on High ] [ Thermal runaway ] 

Thermal Runaway or Overload = Emitter can not release the heat generated fast enough and goes into meltdown as the heat simply builds up ever higher 


From my REVIEW of the Manafont 3 mode drop in 

Measuring the sag on high .


Start = 1100+ sags to 900+ within 2 seconds 
15 seconds = 915L
30 seconds = 860L
60 seconds = 845L
2 minutes = 815L 


Holly smoke , 1100+ on start @ 3.4A [ and possibly more ] , Im going to have to see about possibly re-mounting the emitter , and see if I cant stabilize the output a bit higher .. Still , an awful lot of sag , some 300L of sag , thats more output lost than most XR-E flashlights are capable of producing . I love the fact its 3 mode , blinky modes @ 800L are just annoying , so if you have to buy a XM-L drop in , well , look at this one .


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## Black Rose (Nov 22, 2011)

WOW, that definitely needs a better heatsink!!!


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## old4570 (Nov 22, 2011)

Its simply too much current , the difference in output from say 2.2A to 3.2A might only be 100 or so Lumen , once the higher current Light/Drop in , has sagged . In fact the lower current light may end up producing more output after a few minutes on high . 
The XM-L was originally rated 2A , this was latter upgraded to 3A , but I feel 3A is optimistic ... The emitter would need to be mounted on a much larger base , and even then , Im not sure its worth while pushing much past 2.5A 

There would certainly be a need for a better thermal solution , can the XM-L be mounted on Copper ? / a copper base rather than a aluminum one .... Might help ... [ P60 drop in - in regards too ]


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## adam38654 (Dec 16, 2011)

Is this the 900L one from solarforce-sales? The hong kong website only list the XM-L as 500L .


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## naked2 (Dec 16, 2011)

I assume from the plain silver and black label, this drop is their 3~6V model? If so, could you take some readings with 2x CR123A? 

My recent drop-in purchases (as well as some flashlights, especially weapon mounted) have been 3~6V instead of 4.2V max, so I can use primaries (stored in my disaster preparedness kit) after my 18650s have died.


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