Is there an Anduril headlamp that accepts 18650 button tops?
17d 5h ago by lemmy.ml/u/solrize in flashlight
The only 18650 headlamps that I know of, Hank and Firefly, both require flat tops. Other "enthusiast" headlamps like Skilhunt and Zebralight also require them, though that matters less to me since they're non-Anduril anyway.
Anyone know what the deal with this is? Is it just lumenitis? It also occurs to me to call that "lumen bloat", similar to Javascript bloat. I'm an experienced enough user to not care about that any more. I'd rather have fewer lumens and keep the ability to swap 18650's (including button cells) between my various lights and other devices. For a headlamp I prefer a floody beam since if I want to check out something in the distance, I can pull a handheld thrower from my pocket.
Interchangeable battery tubes (18350/18650) would also be a plus.
Thanks.
It it's still available, the Lumintop HL3A meets your requirements. It runs Anduril and will accept flat or button-top 18650s.
The Fireflies PL47 should work too. It's designed for the 21700, but it will take an 18650 with an adapter and it seems to work with both flat and button tops.
Hmm, HL3A is discontinued: https://lumintoplighting.com/lumintop-hl3a-2800-lumens-multifunctional-headlamp-handheld-led-flashlight-p0066.html
Lumintop quality hasn't been so great either, though normaly the stuff is pretty cheap.
I hadn't thought of dropping an 18650 into a 21700 light! I'll look at the PL47. I was interested in the L50 Sol but it's flat top only.
Thanks!
Added: PL47 looks discontinued too, but maybe the same trick can work on other 21700 lights.
Anyone know what the deal with this is? Is it just lumenitis? It also occurs to me to call that “lumen bloat”, similar to Javascript bloat. I’m an experienced enough user to not care about that any more.
What do you mean? Button vs flat top has nothing to do with the performance of the light. The button is just an extra piece of metal spot welded on the positive terminal. Some flashlights require buttons for mechanical reverse polarity protection and some flashlights are built as compact as possible and thus require flat top batteries.
For a headlamp I prefer a floody beam since if I want to check out something in the distance, I can pull a handheld thrower from my pocket.
Beam shape and battery type are unrelated.
Hmm, I saw the requirement of unprotected flat tops as wanting high current batteries for more power = more lumens, but yeah, the button top itself is a separate issue. I had thought maybe flat tops enabled more contact area between the spring and the battery, but looking at some springs it doesn't seem that way.
Still, many "enthusiast" lights are chonkers already, so why insist on flat tops? For that matter, all 21700 lights are chonkers by almost by definition (people wanting compact lights use smaller batteries).
Flood vs throw is because the usual desire for more lumens comes from wanting more reach. Thus the idea of a dedicated thrower, at least for accompanying a floody headlamp.
The standardization of "standardized" battery sizes tbh seems pretty poor. I'd expect all 18650's to be 65mm long, and so on. But they vary considerably.
I had thought maybe flat tops enabled more contact area between the spring and the battery, but looking at some springs it doesn’t seem that way.
The button adds a little bit of resistance, but it's negligible.
Still, many “enthusiast” lights are chonkers already, so why insist on flat tops? For that matter, all 21700 lights are chonkers by almost by definition (people wanting compact lights use smaller batteries).
And many enthusiast lights are built as compact as possible considering their performance. The head has a minimum size to host the emitters and driver, but the battery tube can stay short. 21700 lights allow for more capacity, allowing longer runtime or higher current draw with only slightly larger size.
The standardization of “standardized” battery sizes tbh seems pretty poor. I’d expect all 18650’s to be 65mm long, and so on. But they vary considerably.
All 18650 cells are 65mm in length. But third party manufacturers can add extras like buttons and protection circuits, making them longer.
And many enthusiast lights are built as compact as possible considering their performance
Hard for me to see that. D4v2+flat top 18650: 95mm long. With 18350 it would be 65mm. Sofirn SC13A, 18350, takes button tops AND has a USB charger inside: 64.6mm. Fenix E16: uses 16340, 51mm long(!), unfortunately discontinued. I'd like something like that with Anduril tbh.
It doesn't seem to me that any enthuisiast Anduril lights have seen real effort to make the lights small. They just don't like button tops.
Added: hmm, this person claims to be using Wurkkos 21700's in an Emisar D4K. All Wurkkos 18650's that I've gotten so far have been button tops, so I expect the 21700's are similar. So maybe there's some hope. I do seem to remember that button top 18650's don't fit in my D4v2 but maybe I'll try again to confirm.
It doesn’t seem to me that any enthuisiast Anduril lights have seen real effort to make the lights small. They just don’t like button tops.
Oh, they do. Maybe you should take a closer look at their construction.
If you want a short light, try the FFL Z1 that is to be released soon.
All Wurkkos 18650’s that I’ve gotten so far have been button tops, so I expect the 21700’s are similar.
Don't assume, it's easy to find photos of the batteries online. What do you see?
I do seem to remember that button top 18650’s don’t fit in my D4v2 but maybe I’ll try again to confirm.
Sure, if you want to crush your driver. The flashlight is made for flat top batteries.
Oh, they do. Maybe you should take a closer look at their construction.
Do you mean they try to make the lights small, or that they like button tops? Which ones like button tops? If you mean small lights, the program doesn't sound successful.
If you want a short light, try the FFL Z1 that is to be released soon.
https://www.firefly-outdoor.com/collections/ffl-flashlights/products/z1-artemis
That light is 92mm long, which is 65mm+27mm (27mm of stuff beyond the battery). Compare to the Fenix E16 that I linked above, which is 51mm=34mm+17mm. The Z1 is 10mm longer than an extended (and thickened) 18650 E16 would be. Plus add a 1mm or 2mm penalty to the Z1 for requiring a flat top which the E16 doesn't (its recommended cell is a protected button top 16340 with USB charging). They aren't making an effort.
Added: I'd say though that if you're willing to use an 18650 or 21700 light, you're really not after a small light (that's why 16340 and other small sizes exist). So trying to minimize an 18650 light's size by limiting battery interoperability is yet more foolishness. I had always thought the purpose of flat tops was to facilitate welding tabs for multi-cell packs, and none of these flashlights make use of that.
Hmm, another reason to require flat tops might be to prevent the use of protected cells, which afaik are all button tops. The protection tends to limit current, which gets in the way of lumenitis. Ugh.
Don’t assume, it’s easy to find photos of the batteries online. What do you see?
Wurkkos 21700 are available in both varieties: https://wurkkos.com/products/21700-rechargeable-battery-5000mah
But, that doesn't say what they actually ship in lights. Photos of that might exist but it's not super obvious where to look. I can say I've bought around 4 Wurkkos 18650 lights, one Fenix 18650 light, and one Wurkkos 18350 light, and ALL came with button tops.
Sure, if you want to crush your driver. The flashlight is made for flat top batteries.
Yeah I'd be a bit careful and gentle in testing. Though come to think of it, my D4v2 has already crushed the terminals of some FLAT TOP 18650's, so maybe I better not even try button tops.
I'm tbh getting tired of "enthusiast" lights, which appears to have become a synonym for lumenitis. I just want a sane non-enthusiast light with Anduril, if that isn't a contradiction in terms. Sane = among other things, no thermally unsustainable modes, no gratuitous battery incompatibility, and no excess mass added to the light just for heat sinking.
I just want a sane non-enthusiast light with Anduril, if that isn’t a contradiction in terms. Sane = among other things, no thermally unsustainable modes, no gratuitous battery incompatibility, and no excess mass added to the light just for heat sinking.
That's why the current generation of "enthusiast lights" uses switching drivers for higher efficiency. The Z1 is only slightly longer than the ZebraLight SC65, which is one of the smallest 18650 lights available.