Test – Flashlight “Ultrafire” Cree XM-L “1800 lumen”
Hi all,
I received the torch (Ebay purchase) and proceeded to test.
The torch is maked Ultrafire but the seller is Banggood.com… black-listed in Ultrafire website as a seller of counterfeit Ultrafire products. Check this www.ultrafire-shop.net/page3.php.
The first thing i did was to open the torch to visual check the mechanical finish level and o-ring placement:
– Mechanical: Finish of threading is not the best but is what you expect on a 150 kr torch.. I will have to be careful when close it again to avoid nasty threading-jump.
– O-rings: One of the o-ring at the tube-head joint was cut in three points by bad workmanship: the o-ring was pinched on the threading and damaged. Watertightness is surely compromised especially if you open it and close it again (which you do as you need to replace battery..)
– Switch Magnet: It is mounted on the rotating plastic ring and is just clipped-in without any protection. It will rust very quickly when in contact with salt water and very likely will make the switching operation difficult until will eventually stop working. It is already rusted on the surface.
Electronic check:
Battery installed is a Li-Ion rechargeable 18650 2600mAh (no need to check battery time right now)
– Measured forward current @ 100% output = 2020 mA
– Forward voltage 3,24 V
– LED is a Cree XM-L assumed to be type T6
From the Cree datasheet, the XM-L, with a forward current of 2000 mA have a luminous flux of 692 lumen… not even close to the advertised 1800 lumen… 
(This is a nominal data without considering optical loss and LED efficiency decrease for overheating… with that we are probably on 400 lumen level)
The LED apcb (that is the aluminium plate on which the LED is fixed) was installed on the internal coolhead with just a smear of heat-conductive paste, not enough to guarantee the proper heat-transfer that enhance LED performances and protect it from roasting. The coolhead is also not touching the external body, with the result of reducing the efficiency of the radiator wings on the external coolhead part.
After replacing the damaged o-ring, added silicone grease and removing the electronic/LED/battery i have made a pressure test @ 5 and 80 m and it passed, unsurprisingly as not-rechargeable torches are quite tough to flood if the o-ring is in good shape and clean.
Beam quality: The reflector is flat-sided with a parabolic bottom. The center-spot is around 2 degree half angle and much more intense of the surrounding corona. At a first glance it is a regular all-round ligh for outdoor but i fear that the beam will be too narrow for spearfishing and the corona too weak to be of any use if not giving reflection… Will probably be quite cool with that light-saber feeling but i don’t think that the trouts will appreciate that! I will dive-test is next weekend in Langeland and post some picture/video/description of it.
Cheers
Awesome ! and now with Pictures, what more to ask^^
This kind of torches can be found all over the internet… one get what one pay for…
By the way, this was watertight because, working as operations manager in WiseDive I have learned a few things about diving torches… Out of the box it would have been flooded in 5 minutes… Better i add this to the review because I don’t want be responsible for one’s loss of 180 kr! 🙁
hej
Har en lygte magen til… også købt derude i kina… da batteriet var ladet op… sat i lygten skruet på plads … viste det sig at den havde en periodisk løs forbindelse… oplevede at lygten blev svagere eller helt satte ud… fandt ud af hvis jeg skruede på bundstykket kunne jeg finde forbindelsen igen… Men for pengene lyser den godt hvis man skal sige noget positivt… kan sagten bruges som primær lygte synes jeg hvis den ellers virker
Fandt ud af det med den periodiske løse forbindelse… Når man køber batterier til lygten så skal det være af mærket trustfire 18650 da ultrafire 18650 er 1-2 mm kortere og det er dem der giver den periodiske løse forbindelse….. Siden batteriskiftet har den fungeret upåklageligt…. Synes det er en udmærket lygte til pengene og absolut en god backup