Help Choosing A Pure Flood Flashlight

[BlindFarmer]

Hello everyone. I am wanting an EDC flashlight that is pure flood. No hotspot, no rings in the beam. I want a wall of light for close use. My Maglite xl50 spectrum 2700k will do that, but only if you take the bezel off. You can not use the flashlight like that and have it survive. What flaslights are pure flood? Think cellphone but much brighter with high CRI. I have an older Milwaulkie headlamp that is two LED but poor quality,, not water resistant, flickers when on low, etc. It has no focusing lens in it. Thanks for the help. Here is the xl50 and that headlamp at six feet. I want the flood of the headlamp, but in an EDC flashlight that can handle rain, being dropped, etc. Thanks for the help.

 

[jacobd]

You want a "Mule" which is a light with no optic, just bare LEDs protected by the glass.

The McGizmo Mule is a classic option, but expensive and not very bright. I carry one every day though.

FireFlyLite make a few that are considered excellent in terms of brightness and CRI. The UI is Anduril 2, which some love and some hate.

Emisar make some as well

 

[Rodney7583]

Hello everyone. I am wanting an EDC flashlight that is pure flood. No hotspot, no rings in the beam. I want a wall of light for close use. My Maglite xl50 spectrum 2700k will do that, but only if you take the bezel off. You can not use the flashlight like that and have it survive. What flaslights are pure flood? Think cellphone but much brighter with high CRI. I have an older Milwaulkie headlamp that is two LED but poor quality,, not water resistant, flickers when on low, etc. It has no focusing lens in it. Thanks for the help. Here is the xl50 and that headlamp at six feet. I want the flood of the headlamp, but in an EDC flashlight that can handle rain, being dropped, etc. Thanks for the help.

I’ve bought several of Hank’s Emisar flashlights, and probably three or four of them are mules. (All flood/ minimal throw)
Eight, or 16 emitters with no lens – – pure flood!
I’m very pleased with them, you do get to choose your LED type and Kelvin color.
You can choose battery choice of 18650, or 21700.
Even flashlight body color is a choice.
I believe mine were about $70 or so.
Go to INTL – outdoors.
Look at the top left on the webpage at the Red box that says “Emisar/ Noctigon”
Touch on the Redbox, on the drop-down menu, look towards the bottom and click “Mule lights“

 

[Rodney7583]

And hanks very good with replying back to questions!
If you have some thing in mind, just ask him, he will let you know if any other options are available, and you can suggest the LEDs if you want high CRI, or maximum lumens, etc.
Looked on the site , and all mules I see have 8 emitters.
I swear I saw some with 16 emitters previously.
Drop him an email and ask him about the 16 led option, if you’re interested in that.

 

[BlindFarmer]

Thank you for the help. What about the Surefire Stiletto?

 

[troutpool]

Peak LED Solutions makes some excellent, rugged mules. They are AAA size and very well made. Worth considering. Also, any 1 inch diameter flashlight can become a mule by slipping the plastic cap from a water bottle over the bezel. Free diffuser.

 

[PaladinNO]

And hanks very good with replying back to questions!
If you have some thing in mind, just ask him, he will let you know if any other options are available, and you can suggest the LEDs if you want high CRI, or maximum lumens, etc.
Looked on the site , and all mules I see have 8 emitters.
I swear I saw some with 16 emitters previously.
Drop him an email and ask him about the 16 led option, if you’re interested in that.

Hank's 8x mules are the Nichia 519A, 3535 die LEDs. The 16x LED-version have the smaller Nichia E21A, 2121 die. I have one - pictures here.
The E21A 4000K tint (4500K + 3500K mix) and CRI cannot be beaten, but it's a really weak chip. Not much Lumen compared to the 519A. Personally, I still went with the E21A for the 16x LED aesthetic and my intent of using it for detail work - as in, really close-up work.

 

[PaladinNO]

Hello everyone. I am wanting an EDC flashlight that is pure flood. No hotspot, no rings in the beam. I want a wall of light for close use. What flaslights are pure flood? Think cellphone but much brighter with high CRI.

Depending on your size preference, take a look at the Convoy S21D.

Convoy S21D 21700 flashlight - Convoy flashlight

Convoy S21D 21700 flashlight

convoylight.com

For most flood, pick the 60° bead.

If you want something bigger, with the same setup, check the 3X21E

Convoy 3X21E 21700 flashlight - Convoy flashlight

Convoy 3X21E 21700 flashlight

convoylight.com

I would also say a mule light, as mentioned earlier, but a mule is not an outdoor light. It gives effective illumination for only up to about 3 meters.

 

[Croquette]

for flood i always prefer a frosted optic over a mule. light is smoother and more even.

 

[Monocrom]

Nitecore P20iX.

One of the absolute best hand-held floody lights currently made.

 

[yeoldoak]

2nd that for the Nitecore P20iX its mental inside a building with light bounce,
just be aware due to its large protruding tail cap switch it can switch on in a pocket
and melt everything, though you can buy a guarded tail cap to avoid this.

 

[iacchus]

Malkoff Wildcat in 18650 is a nice wall of light.
Most triples or quads will do what you want. By their nature, they really have little or no throw (except for some edge case options). W/ a wide Carclo optic, it's really just a wall of light.

 

[PaladinNO]

@Monocrom @yeoldoak The Nitecore "i"-series uses that proprietary 21700 cell though, with both the positive and negative on the same end of the battery.
Can such a cell even be charged in a regular charger?

Slight derail here, but I've been looking at some Nitecore i-models myself, and that battery has always turned off my interest in them.
...Also, "4000 Lumen" is thermally unsustainable in such a small light, something I have always held against Nitecore. That, and their typically cool white, almost blue tint (for maximum perceived brightness, I know) in most of their models.

By all means, it may very well be a good light, but I don't like their marketing.

 

[Monocrom]

@Monocrom @yeoldoak The Nitecore "i"-series uses that proprietary 21700 cell though, with both the positive and negative on the same end of the battery.
Can such a cell even be charged in a regular charger?

I charge the way Nitecore recommends. Normally I strongly dislike proprietary batteries, but if you want a One-trick pony for a specific task; you put up with the minor issues.

Slight derail here, but I've been looking at some Nitecore i-models myself, and that battery has always turned off my interest in them.

If I had to pick one brand that innovates more than any other, it would be Nitecore. Problem is, when you're first, you're not best. But you're usually good enough. Reminds me of when the French invented the first automatic rifle. It was first. It worked.... mostly. Every other nation got their hands on one, and their engineers improved it into something much more useful and reliable. Nitecore isn't THAT bad. But there's room for improvement.

...Also, "4000 Lumen" is thermally unsustainable in such a small light, something I have always held against Nitecore. That, and their typically cool white, almost blue tint (for maximum perceived brightness, I know) in most of their models.

By all means, it may very well be a good light, but I don't like their marketing.

Yup, marketing hype regarding what a flashlight is capable of, with a freshly charged battery.... for a few seconds. With the exception of SureFire, almost every other company in the industry hypes up their lights that way. Nitecore is not the exception. But, even at lower sustained settings, you're still getting an impressive amount of output.

 

[yeoldoak]

PaladinNO​

@Monocrom @yeoldoak The Nitecore "i"-series uses that proprietary 21700 cell though, with both the positive and negative on the same end of the battery.
Can such a cell even be charged in a regular charger?

The Nitecore NL2150HPi battery has both the + & - at both ends of the battery, I charge these batterys in
either the flashlight via the usb or the Nitecore charger which has the conventional + at one end and the - at the other as it charges my other Loop Gear 18650 batterys.

 

[PaladinNO]

The Nitecore NL2150HPi battery has both the + & - at both ends of the battery,

Thanks for the update. Then they have released a newer version of the cell that I saw back then. The older model (discontinued from what I could find) was just flat at the other end (the usual Negative end).

If the I-series batteries can be charged with a regular charger now, then Nitecore has fixed the main problem I had with those cells.

 

[Chauncey Gardener]

My #1 favorite -