Tag: thrunite flashlight reviews

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Thrunite – TC20 Pro Review (3294 Lumens, 350 meters throw, USB-C, 20%)

Today I am looking at the Thrunite TC20 Pro. This is an updated version of the TC20 V2 that I looked at in the past, and the main difference is that the Pro is using a Cree XHP 70 HI LED and smooth reflector. As a part of this review, I will be comparing it to the Fenix PD36R Pro during my night shots section later on. Thanks to Thrunite for sending this to me to look at and offer an unbias review. Any discounts or deals I have for the TC20 Pro will be in the description below along with links to my social media accounts that I encourage you to go and follow. 

 

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Get the Thrunite TC20 Pro at https://amzn.to/3mU8U6g amd save 20% using code 47C8HFMW through midnight PDT 3/26/23

 

Packaging & Accessories

Standard Thrunite brown cardboard box here with the elastic band, I would call it functional minimalism. Inside is the entire kit with almost everything you need to maintain and use the light for years. You get the light itself, a 5000mAh 26650 Thrunite battery, nylon holster, USB-A to C charging cable, lanyard, a bag of extras including o’rings, button seal, USB port cover, and split ring, a manual, and warranty card.

 

Construction

Visually and construction-wise, the TC20 Pro is pretty much identical to the TC20 V2, with the main differences being the LED and Lens combination. The light is made from Aluminum and hard anodized black. Build quality is always good from Thrunite and this is no exception. The tail cap provides a flat surface that allows for tail standing and has a lanyard hole. The cap is removable and non-magnetic. Inside there is a stout spring on the tail end only.

The body tube has milled blocks in an almost frag pattern for grip. The corners are well-chamfered though so it’s not too aggressive. Square threads on both ends are anodized, smooth, and nonreversible.

The head features the standard Thrunite electronic switch with a metal button on top, and a small battery indicator LED in the middle. Directly opposite the button is the USB-C charging port that’s covered via a silicone rubber flap. It’s decent fitting and does stay out of the way. The light has moderate milling at the top for heat dissipation and weight reduction. The bezel is flat. The lens is AR coated and the reflector is smooth.

 

UI

UI here is Thrunite’s standard. Single press to turn on, long press once on to cycle up between the 3 main modes, double press to go to Turbo, triple press to go to strobe. It’s a very simple interface, and it’s easy to use which is nice but also limiting. A fast ramping interface would work pretty well here too given the limited number of modes and wide range of outputs it must cover. 

 

Retention

Retention options include the included nylon holster. It has elastic sides, plastic dring, and a fixed belt loop. It gets the job done but is just of average quality. The light also comes with a branded lanyard and split ring that can be attached to the tail if you wish.

 

Size & Weight

I measured the length at 118.1mm, the diameter of the body tube at 32.6mm, diameter of the head at 42mm. The weight of the TC20 Pro with the battery is 242.5g. The light is IP68 water-rated to 2 meters. Here are some comparisons with other flashlights, including the Fenix PD36R Pro I will be comparing it to in the night shots coming up soon.

LED & Beam

The TC20 Pro is using a Cree XHP 70 HI LED in cool white. On my Opple meter measured the tint at 6092k and 69 CRI. DUV is fairly neutral with no major tint shifts. When I compare it to my TC20 V2, it has much less tint shift and much less yellow/green, especially at lower outputs. The beam on the TC20 Pro is more spotty and throws a bit further and that makes sense with the smooth emitter and dedomed LED. When I compare it to the Fexnix PD36R Pro the hot spot is of a similar size but has a smoother transition into the spill where as the Fenix is much more pronounced. I would say the tint of the Fenix is more green, especially at lower outputs. There is a small amount of very fast PWM on all modes of the TC20 Pro.

 

Outputs

Heat & Runtime

The light is able to sustain it’s 3500+ lumens for 3:30 before stepping down to around 1800 lumens where it will run for 32 minutes, before stepping down to about 1600 lumens to finish out the remainder of it’s 1:00:00 runtime. Peak heat during this time was about 59C. Running on medium nets an impressive 9:30:00.

Where this light really shines in my opinion is the amount of time it can sustain well over 1000 lumens. This light maintains over 1400 lumens for 1:40:00. I frequently get asked what light can I buy that will stay over 1000 or 2000 lumens for an hour, well here is a good option for you if that’s what you’re looking for. In comparison to the TC20 V2 the Pro here doesn’t have quite a long of runtime but that’s to be expected with this different LED and more overall output.

 

Recharging

The TC20 Pro has onboard USB-C charging that’s protected by a silicone rubber port cover. I charged the light charged the light from LVP to full at 4.17v in 3:17:00. You are able to use the light during charging but only in low and medium modes. It charges via USB-C to C or PD without an issue. While the included battery is officially rated at 5000mAh, I tested mine with my Vapcell S4 Plus at 5437mAh.  

 

Conclusion

The Thruntie TC20 Pro is a worthwhile upgrade to the V2. It takes what was a moderately floody light and increases its ability to throw, while still maintaining the size and form factor we know. The tint here is better on the Pro, and over it’s competitors in my opinion, and I prefer the beam tint and shape on the Pro. You do take some small decreases in overall runtime though due to that higher comparison. 

Compared to the Fenix PD36R Pro, the TC20 Pro is less tactical with it’s UI and a bit more general purpose in my opinion. It’s also generally a better value and a light I can recommend over either the TC20 V2, or the PD36R Pro dollar for dollar in my opinion. 

 

Get the Thrunite TC20 Pro at https://amzn.to/3mU8U6g amd save 20% using code 47C8HFMW through midnight PDT 3/26/23

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Thrunite Catapult Pro Review (2713 Lumens, 1005 Meters Throw)

Today I have the latest and greatest version of the Thrunite Catapult Pro. This is a long-distance handheld thrower flashlight. It uses an SFT70 LED, which results in an improved throw of over 300 meters out to 1005 meters, and a 132,500 candela improvement. On throwers, it’s that candela number that you are looking for not lumens. Thanks to Thrunite for sending this to me. 

 

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Buy the Catapult Pro from Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SQkURn

Buy the Catapult Pro from Thrunite at https://thrunite.com/catapult-pro/#tab-description

 

LED & Beamshots

The Catapult Pro is using a Luminis SFT70 LED, this is a flat top LED and well known for its throwing capabilities. On my Opple meter, I measured about 6000k when in low, and it gets slightly cooler up to 6100k when in infinity high mode. CRI (Ra) measured at 68. The DUV showed it was just slightly green in person this is hard to notice. There is very fast PWM when using the infinity UI as you would expect, but high and turbo are free of it. 

As you show from the night shots section the beam is what you expect out of throw, a very small, very intense hot spot, this has a small spill around it that’s about half as bright, and then the wider spill is very minimal. Compared with older versions the beam here is more intense and has a tighter more defined spot. This is reflected in the greater distance and improvement of 132,400 candela. 

 

Output Testing

Turbo – 2450 out of Rated 2713 = 90%

Infinity High – 1620 out of Rated 1482 = 102%

Infinity Low – 50 out of Rated 42 = 119%

 

Heat and Runtime

Quickly let’s go through the heat and runtime here of the Catapult Pro. The light is able to sustain 1500 lumens or more for 9 minutes and it reaches 48C during this. The first minute and a half are good for at least another 1000-1500 lumens. In high mode the lights able to sustain the 1500 lumens for an impressive 14 minutes. Total runtime in Turbo and High are right at 1:50:00. I also tested by ramping to 1000 lumens and seeing how long it could hold this and that got me out to 2:17:00.

 

Packaging & Included Accessories

The packaging is the same as Thrunite’s standard brown cardboard box, with line drawings on the outside, and minimal info. Inside the light is well protected with foam. The accessories are the light itself, with a preinstalled 5000mAh 26650 protected battery, USB-A to C charging cable, nylon holster, branded lanyard, split ring, 2 spare O-rings, spare port cover, inner button material, and the manual. 

 

Construction & Design

The Catapult Pro is a step away from the design we have known on the Catapult V6 and V6 SST70 versions. While the tail sections are the same, the body tube is where the difference shows. Gone are the milled diamond grip pattern which was one of my favorite things, and they have been replaced with more traditional rectangle milling that Thrunite uses on other lights like the TN series. Here the blocks are a little larger and deeper, it makes for an aggressive grip on the black anodized aluminum. Interestingly all 3 versions of the Catapult have interchangeable heads and bodies, and they all work with each other. Anodizing here is good quality and matches very well with other black Thrunite flashlights I have. 

The light only separates at the top of the body tube right before the switch. Inside there is a beefy double spring in the tail and threads at the top are square cut, and nicely greased. The button is the same one that Thrunite uses on most of their models. It’s low profile and is a decent click for an electronic switch. Reverse the switch is the USB-C recharging port, with a good silicone cover that stays in place nicely.

The head design is similar to the TN42 V2 that I reviewed last year, where it’s a smooth cone on the exterior, silver bezel, large glass lens, smooth reflector, and a nicely centered LED.

 

Size, Weight, and Retention

With each revision of the Catapult, they seem to grow a little in size, and that’s no different here with the Catapult Pro. Length is 5.92” (150.5mm) long, 1.3” (33.5mm) in diameter at the body and 2.55” (65mm) at the head. Weight with the battery installed is 10.89oz or 308.6g. Weight increases only slightly 0.19oz over the outgoing Catapult V6 SST70 version. 

Retention options are the same as previous models, there is a place for the lanyard attachment at the rear with or without the use of a split ring using the branded lanyard. Your other option is by use of the nylon holster. This holster has a very minimal amount of padding inside, it features a fixed belt loop and plastic Dring. 

 

UI

The Catapult Pro has a change in UI, from Thrunites normal stepped modes to a ramping interface we have seen on a few other Thrunite lights. I don’t mind this because it allows for the user to dial in exactly how bright they need the light and optimize battery life. However here it’s just a touch slower than I would prefer. 

The ramping interface works logically and has memory mode. It’s infinity ramping, so if you press the button and hold it the light will ramp up, flash twice at the top of normal brightness, and then start ramping down, where it will then flash twice and start ramping up again. Long press from off to get to firefly, Double Press in any mode to get to Turbo, and triple press from any mode to get to strobe. One interesting note here about strobe is that it doesn’t produce anywhere near peak output. It’s only rated to 776 lumens whereas the light is capable of producing 2700 lumens in Turbo.

 

Recharging

Recharging here is accomplished with the onboard USB-C. The port cover here is good, it stays in place easily. I had no issues charging the ligh with USB-C to C or with chargers capable of PD. I tested the included 5000mAh Thrunite button top protected battery at 5543mAh. From LVP at 3.159v to full at 4.156v in 3:20:00 with a maximum charge rate of just under 2A for about 70% of the charging time. Let me know how you like the graph here, I got some new equipment that gives a more detailed output. 

 

Final Thoughts

I have been a fan of previous versions of the Catapult and the new Catapult Pro earns that spot and recommendation too. It’s a pretty big upgrade in performance over the previous version. It’s a significantly more focused, intense beam, and the result is 300 meters more throw than the previous version. 

The UI here will be a hit-and-miss thing for you depending on if you like ramping UIs. For me it’s a touch on the slow side but good. It would be nice if they would allow you to switch between a Ramping and Stepped UI, but that’s not a thing here. I do wish they would have kept the diamond milling on the body, while the rectangles on the Pro here are more aggressive they just look like most other Thrunite models, and the diamonds of the previous Catapults I thought elevated the look of the light and made them stand out. Fear not, the body tubes are interchangeable if you have previous models and want to make a switch you can.

This is the biggest upgrade Thrunight has done to the Catapult line, not only visually but also for performance. If  you want a handheld thrower that uses a single larger battery this one won’t disappoint especially with its fairly long duration on higher outputs. 

 

Buy the Catapult Pro from Amazon at https://amzn.to/3SQkURn

Buy the Catapult Pro from Thrunite at https://thrunite.com/catapult-pro/#tab-description

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Thrunite TC15 V3 Review (2403 Lumens, 18650, USB-C Charging)

Today I have one of Thrunite’s newest models and an update to one of my favorites the TV15 V3. It’s a 18650 powered, Cree XHP35.2 general purpose EDC flashlight with onboard charging. Thanks to Thrunite for sending this to me to review. If they have provided me a discount that will be in the description below along with all my social media links to check out.

Pickup the Thrunite TC15 V3 at Amazon https://amzn.to/3uZY8xh (Be careful to select the V3) Use code LBJQKH2I to save an additional 5% until 3/10 on top of the existing 10% click coupon on the page.

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Packaging & Accessories

Standard Thrunite packaging here that I will let the photos do the descriptive work. While the box does note that a NW emitter is available, it’s not out at the time of review. Accessories that come with the light are the flashlight itself, a Thrunite branded standard 3100mAh 18650 IMR battery, branded lanyard, USB-A to USB-C cable, 2 extra orings, spare USB port cover, pocket clip, nylon holster and assorted paperwork. 

 

Construction and Design

The TC15 V3 looks a lot like the previous TC15 V2. Starting at the tail cap it is mostly flat with a small indent, and non magnetic. Your lanyard attachment point is on the rear. There is no knurling on the light, with only flat areas milled in the tail cap for grip to remove the battery. The body tube has flutes milled into it for style and a bit of grip. As mentioned in the retention section the clip only attaches in the middle of the light and the body tube is not reversible. 

Internally there is a spring at the tail, and a solid post in the head. Threads on both ends are square cut, lubricated and anodized. The head has a anti roll ring where the button sits. It’s the same e-button Thrunite has used on many other lights and tolerances are good, no side to side movement. It makes a nice click and requires slightly more force than normal to push. The charging port here is 90 degrees to the right of the button, in a very slim silicone cover that stays out of the way.

The front is one piece, no extra bezel, what bezel is there is smooth. The glass lens is slightly recessed and has AR coating. The reflector has an orange peel and is deep. 

 

Retention

Retention options on the TC15 V3 are pretty typical with one asterisk. Thrunite does include nice branded lanyard that attaches on the tail cap. You also get a branded holster, it’s ok, mine had lots of loose strings and felt kind of thin. 

Lastly is the clip on the TC15 V3. It’s changed from being mounted near the tail, to mounting in the middle of the body. It’s a dual direction clip but backwards from how I would carry this light, head down. That means to carry it head down you have to lift your pocket over the rather large bend of the clip. Once you do that it carries pretty well but it’s just not easy to put in the pocket like pretty much every other knife or light with a clip. Oh and for those suggesting you rotate tube so the pocket clip carries more traditionally you can’t. The thread line up but it doesn’t make electrical contact due to a 1mm difference on the head side. Not a fan of this design personally. 

Size and Weight

I measured the length of the TC15 V3 at 122.5mm (4.82”), minimum diameter at 23.5mm (0.925”), and maximum diameter at 25.6mm (1”). Weight with the included battery and clip was 134.5g or 4.74oz. The light is IPX8 water rated and 1.5M impact resistant. Here are some comparison shots with similar sized lights you might have. Branding is pretty minimal on this light which is great. 

LED & Beam

The TC15 V3 is using a Cree XHP35.2 LED. As of the creation of this video it’s only available in cool white. My unscientific Opple Meter registered this at 7000k in turbo with a CRI of 72 in the center. The beam has tint rainbow, with the beam getting green around the spill. The beam shape is a medium sized hotspot in the center and large amount of spill. This light does have PWM, but I don’t notice it with my eye. I will throw up what the meter shows in medium mode. I measured parasitic drain at an acceptable 47uA. 

 

Thrunite lists the official outputs as the following.

 

Heat and Runtime

For my runtime tests I measured the % of relative output at the 30 second mark to set what 100% relative output is according to the FL1 Standard then let them run. I did this with the supplied 3100mAh battery fully charged. 

Turbo ran for 3 minutes stepping down gradually as heat increased. From here it ran for 1:20:00 before 2 final step downs for a somewhat short total runtime at 1:35:00. Maximum heat was recorded at 1:20:00 at 46C. I then compared Turbo, High, and Medium runtimes and there really is not much difference between Turbo and High runtimes, less than 5 minutes. However medium ran out to 4:10:00. I did test low but didn’t graph it, it clicked in an impressive 58 hours and 17 minutes which is longer than The United claimed runtime. 

 

UI

The UI here is pretty simple. When the light is off, a quick press turns it on in the last mode used (memory), a press and hold lets you cycle through the 3 main modes (Low, Medium, High). When on double press to go to Turbo or Triple Press to go to strobe. When going to turbo or strobe the light does blink to off for a second which isn’t my favorite thing. From off long press to get to firefly mode, to lock/unlock from firefly press and hold to lock. 

 

Battery and Recharging

The TC15 V3 comes with a Thrunite branded 3100mAh IMR battery. This is a standard button top battery which is great to see. The light charges via the USB-C port on the side of the light. It is USB-C to C compatible and USB-C PD compatible. I charged from LVP at 2.94v to full at 4.1v in 2:17:04. It’s worth noting that charging speed here hit 2A almost immediately and continued at this rate for the first hour. Not a ton of light actually hit and hold 2A charging. Make sure you have a high quality power supply though to hit this. 

Final Thoughts

The TC15 V3 is mostly a win for me. It’s a nice size, easy user interface, and uses standard batteries with onboard USB-C charging. The pocket clip is what doesn’t make a ton of sense to me, it really should be flipped to the tail for deep carry, or mill the body so you can mount it in either direction. Both would be great solutions and improve the carryability of this light. As is to carry it head down it’s basically a 2 hand operation to put it back into your pocket. Not idea in my opinion.

I do hope we see a NW emitter for the TC15 V3 some day, it’s a personal preference of mine and something Thrunite has been good at in the past. I hope this isn’t a situation of slower sales of NW emitters causing the company to choose not to come out with that option. 

 

So if your looking for a good quality general purpose, non complicated 18650 flashlight with an easy UI and good customer service, look no further than the TC15 V3.

Pickup the Thrunite TC15 V3 at Amazon https://amzn.to/3uZY8xh (Be careful to select the V3) Use code LBJQKH2I to save an additional 5% until 3/10 on top of the existing 10% click coupon on the page.

 

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Thrunite TS2 Review (Emergency Survival Lantern & Powerbank)

Thrunite has a new product on the market with the TS2, they are calling it a self-rescue light. I am going to call it a mini lantern. It’s a simple product but well thought out and I think it has a wider appeal then just the flashaholic market. Thanks to Thrunite for sending this to me to look at.

 

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Packaging and accessories 

Packaging here is a step up from what Thrunite has done in the past, it’s a white cardboard box with color photos and info, upscale a bit. I will show a picture of everything that comes with this package, but let’s talk in depth about each piece in the next section.

Construction and Details

So the light part of this kit is the small plastic piece with the dome at the top. This plugs in via USB-C on the side of the 21700 battery, and doesn’t use the contact at the top of the cell at all. All power comes from the USB-C connector, the positive terminal isn’t used. The “light” part has a single protruding side where the single power button can be found. I did find the head works on other batteries, I tried a Acebeam 21700 I had with a USB-C on the side and it fit perfectly. Presumably if you had a Female USB-C cable you could plug this in and run indefinitely. 

The battery is a standard button top 21700, 5000mah cell coming in at 77.3mm long. Not much to write home here about other then it has a neat power indicator on top that I haven’t seen before. 4 LED lights with a tiny button that you press for 3 seconds to show you the power level. When recharging the battery these go solid green too.

 

Case and Hanger

The battery and light assembly slide into the plastic tube that it comes with. It stays in place via a magnet at the bottom of the tube. The helps to protect the battery, and server as an attachment point. You can attach a lanyard here, or attach it via the magnet. It’s enough strength to hold on a painted metal surface. Your last mounting option is a magnetic hook that’s magnetic and pretty strong. This would be great for attaching to a bag, clipping to a wire or branch, etc. 

 

Cables

The cable here deserves some attention. It’s a bidirectional cable, with multiple connection types. So you can use it to recharge the cell, just take the light off the battery to expose the USB-C port. Then use the cable via USB-A or remove the cap to expose the USB-C and charge via C to C. You can also use the cable to charge your phone or other device via the USB-C, Apple Lightning, or MicroUSB connections. Total charge time from when the battery was empty to full was 2:07:00. 

 

Size & Weight

Weight with the battery and light comes in at 3.00oz, add in the plastic case for a total of 3.65oz, and then the hook and everything else 4oz.  

 

LED, Beam, and Runtime

No data is given on what LED is inside of this light, but I can tell you it’s 4 warm LEDs under the diffuser which is nice. Official outputs are High at 118 Lumens, for 11 hrs, medium for 40 lumens for 30 hours, low at 5 lumens for 180 hours, and SOS at 118 lumens for 20 hours. I will insert my runtime graphs that show this. 

UI

UI here is very simple, the light has 3 modes, and one button. Push for about one second and the light will come on in the low mode. Press and hold to cycle up to medium or high. Double press to go to SOS mode. Single press to shut off. 

 

Conclusion

I like the TS2, while it doesn’t put out a ton of light, it’s a very functional small/light weight lantern of sorts. Like the box says, good for an emergency or rescue situation. I can see putting this in a glovebox in your car, in a go bag for natural disasters, in home or work desk for power outages, or to take camping to hang in a tent. The addition of the plastic sleeve makes it safer but I am not sure it’s quite kid proof since it’s only held in place with a magnet. Speaking of which the magnetic hanger is strong but I could see it coming loose if brushed up hard. 

 

I really like that nothing here is proprietary, I was able to get this working on an Acebeam 21700 battery I have with USB-C on the side. Remember it doesn’t use the batteries traditional contacts like all other flashlights use, it uses the USB-C port for power. 

 

As far as value it may not be the best value on the market, but it’s a unique product that I think a lot of people who watch my videos would find useful. The cable alone is really handy especially when travling to charge a variety of devices or lights. So I can recommend it without reservations. It would make a great stocking stuffer too for the holidays.

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Thrunite Catapult Mini Review (680 Lumens, 89,000 Candela, 18350)

Today I have a shortened review of the new Thrunite Catapult Mini, a handheld thrower running an Osram LED and a 18350 battery. While not super bright in number off lumens, the light really throws well for its very small size. Thanks to Thrunite for sending this to me to take a quick look at and review.

 

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Accessories

Packaging is the standard Thrunite box. Here is a photo of all the accessories the light comes with. It’s nice to see them include the spare button and port covers still, that’s not something every manufacture is still doing in 2021. 

 

Short overview of construction

The Catapult mini is available in 2 colors black and gray, and I have gray here. It’s made from 6061 T6 aluminum and nicely anodized. Despite it’s small size, they didn’t skimp out on machining quality. The light separates into 3 pieces easily, and it does stand on it’s flat, non magnetic tail. The body tube has the squares milled into it like we saw on the Thrunite TT20 but deeper, and it’s non reversible. 

The body head section uses the standard Thrunite button with LED indicator in the center, and USB-C charging port opposite with a silicone cover. The head itself is the largest part of the light, with a small flat bezel. The bezel does unscrew easily to remove the lens and optic, which should make this light fairly easy to mod if you wish. 

The Lens itself is covered by glass, with a plastic TIR style optic below. This optic reminds me of some of them I have seen on some of my larger Acebeams as well, it helps diffuse the beam a bit but still create that nice hot center and throw. 

 

Comparison with other lights

LED & Beam

The light is using an Osram KW.CSLNM1.TG in Cool white, but to my eyes it’s definitely more neutral than cold. The beam is extremely focused, it has the slightest amount of spill that fades very smoothly without artifacts. It’s a great beam profile for a mini thrower. No PWM was observed on any of the 5 modes.

 

Outputs are listed officially at 

  • Turbo – 680 Lumens
  • High – 235 Lumens
  • Medium – 96 Lumens
  • Low – 21 Lumens
  • Firefly – 0.5 Lumens
  • Strobe – 680 Lumens
  • 89,600 Candela

Night Shots

Heat and Runtime

Turbo on this light lasted for 1 minute before step down, maximum temp was reached at 1:30 at 35C so it gets warm pretty quickly but not in the danger zone. From there the light steps down to about 35% relative output where it will run for 2 hours before running in firefly mode for another 30 minutes or so. Total runtime was 2:30:00. Nothing here surprising. 

 

UI & Recharge

The UI here is standard Thrunite, 3 main modes with firefly at the bottom, and turbo at the top with memory for the main modes. Long press from off to access firefly, double click to access turbo, triple click to access strobe. 

Recharging is accomplished with the onboard USB-C port. It is incompatible with C to C charging or PD charging and requires an A to C charging cable that’s supplied. This is disappointing in 2021. Charging is on the conservative time, it took 2 hours even to charge the included 1100mAh 18350 battery from LVP at 3.035V to full at 4.145v. Total charge rate was about 0.6A. While charging you can use all modes on the light.

One quick note about the battery, it has the positive and negative terminal on the one end of the battery like you see with many brands these days. However in this case you don’t actually need it to use or charge the battery in the light. That’s great news. I tested with a flat top unprotected Keeppower battery and had no issues.

Conclusion

Pocket thrower flashlights seem to be the popular type this year. I found the Thrunite Catapult Mini to be a good performer, especially for it’s size. While not the brightest in terms of lumens it really does throw impressively. I seem to say this a lot but non flashlight people will be impressed with how far you can reach with such a small light. I remember using a 6D Cell Maglight as a kid because it could go so far, it was huge and weighed a ton. This little light outperforms it in all ways, at a pretty affordable price. 

 

I do wish Thrunite would go back to offering more Neutral and even Warm LED tints when they launch new products. They were one of the only manufactures doing this but have seemed to get away from it recently. That said I would call the tint here pretty neutral, so about perfect despite the box saying cool white. 

 

I like the Thrunite Catapult Mini and can recommend it. Everyone needs a pocket thrower, and this is a good choice thats a lot of fun, and comes in a color other then black, if you want that. Thrunite has good customer support too should you ever need it, and best yet it’s on sale for around the $40 price point at the time of filming this video. So if your interested please check the link in the description to see where you can purchase it at. 

 

Get the Thrunite Catapult Mini on Amazon (Save 20% by clicking the coupon on the page)

Gray https://amzn.to/3ma0JAD

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Thrunite Catapult V6 SST70 Review & Comparison (2836 Lumens, USB-C, 26650)

Today I have the newest Thrunite Catapult V6 with an interesting LED choice, the SST70 LED. Other updates include USB-C charging and it’s slightly longer in length. Thanks to Thrunite for sending this to me as well as providing a discount code which will be in the description below. Let’s get into that review.

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Packaging & Accessories

Packaging is like similar Thrunite products I have reviewed, it comes in a sturdy brown paper box with minimal information on the outside with only the company name, address, model number and LED designator. In my case it was hand checked Cool White. Inside the light was encased in egg crate foam. Accessory wise the light includes a Thrunite branded 5000mAh button top 26650 battery,  2 extra Orings, an extra USB cover, extra inner button rubber, split ring, Thrunite branded Lanyard with split ring, a Holster, a USB-A to C charging cable and a holster. 

 

Construction

Construction of the Catapult V6 is on par with other recent Thrunite lights I have looked at such as the T2. It’s made of nicely machined aluminum and anodized in a black hard semi gloss coating. The tail caps on the Catapult V6 and TC20 look similar. Both are non magnetic and allow the light to tail stand. Each has a small hole for the included lanyard. Its one area where some will want a larger hole for paracord. There isn’t any knurling on the tail cap but I was able to get it off easily. Threads are square cut and lightly lubricated along with an Oring.

The body tube has a large diamond pattern milled around it. This is less deeply milled then the original V6 I have, and that’s not an improvement in my opinion. I prefer the deeper more grippy milling. The body tube is directional but doesn’t have any polarity markings on it for the battery. This light does come into 3 pieces the tail cap, body tube, and head. 

The head is fairly large. The light has a flat aluminum bezel that can be unscrewed with considerable effort according to others on budget light forums. The lens is large and anti reflective coated glass. The reflector is smooth and deep with the LED nicely centered on a large white PCB. It’s a slightly different reflector than what the original V6 had. The head has minimal milled out areas and is slightly shorter then the original V6.

The button is metal feeling and has a hole for an indicator LED underneath for charging status. It’s an electric switch and requires medium effort to use.The PSB charging port cover is the same as the previous V6, but the port inside is different. 

 

Size and Weight

I measured the length of the new Catapult at 137.3mm in length, 33mm on the body and 58mm at the head. Weight with the battery is 303.2g. 

In comparison to the old V6 Catapult the new light is 19.3g heavier, and 6.3mm longer. Diameters are the same. 

 

Retention

The new Catapult V6 comes with the same holster as before. It’s a pretty good holster, with minimal padding and a small Thrunite branding sewn in. It has a fixed belt strap on the back and Dring. 

 

Here is what it looks like in my hand as well.

 

LED & Beam

The previous V6 model of the Thrunite Catapult used the Cree XHP35 HI LED, but Cree discontinued this LED in the first half of 2020, in favor of the XHP35.2 LED series. Instead of going with this LED, Thrunite has chosen to go with the SST70 LED. On paper this is a little of an odd choice on a thrower style light. The SST70 is a domed LED which usually are usually better for more floody applications. So let’s see how it works here. 

 

The SST70 is in cool white only at the moment, but to my eye it’s not an obnoxiously cold cool white. Officially lumens are up, from 1700 in Turbo to 2836 on the new model. In practice this is kind of hard to see I notice it more in the spill with it being more intense then the older light. Candela is down from 140,650cd to 120,000cd and this is hard to see as well. The biggest difference is the hot spot size between the two lights. The new catapults hotspot is slightly larger when I compare the two. There is no PWM visible to the eye here, but my oscilloscope did detect a little bit in low mode only.

 

Heat & Runtime

Turbo on this light appears to have a timed step down at the 3 minute mark, where it steps down to 50% relative output for the next 30 minutes before stepping down to about 45% for most of the remaining 1:28:00 before rounding off and shutting off with LVP at 3.034V. Max heat I saw was at 26 minutes at 50.5C. 

When I compared this to the previous model Catapult V6 with the Cree XHP35 HI I can say the SST70 while making more light is a bit less efficient. They both have the same timed turbo step down at 3 minutes, while the previous model is able to sustain this a little better but remember it’s producing a bit less light. The result is about 30 minutes more runtime with the previous model and during this it’s producing a higher percentage of relative output, but keep in mind the new model light produces more light in all modes, so it’s actually brighter. 

 

UI

UI is clear and simple to follow. From off a short press starts the light off in low, and short presses will cycle up in modes to medium and high. When the light is on in any mode double click to shortcut to turbo, double click again takes you to strobe. To access firefly long press from off. The light also has memory and will turn on in the last mode accessed except for firefly, turbo and strobe modes. This is unchanged from the previous model.

 

Recharging

The 2021 Catapult V6 has onboard recharging via USB-C which is nice to see. However it requires the use of a USB-A to USB-C cable (included). I did not have any luck with this light charging via USB-C to C cable or via USB-C PD. 

The total charge time from LVP at 3.034V to fully charged at 4.158V took 3:04:09 of the included 5000mAh 26650 battery. Max charge rate I saw was near 2A. The curve does look a little atypical, with a sudden drop to lower charging point as the battery reaches a certain capacity. 

 

Pro’s

  • A bit more general purpose with the increased spill and more lumens then the outgoing model
  • Good build quality from Thrunite
  • Complete packaged light.

 

Con’s

  • Only available with cool white right now.
  • A bit longer and heavier then the previous design
  • Milling in the body isn’t as deep or grippy.
  • USB-C charging requires a A to C cable, C to C or PD doesn’t work.

 

Conclusion

I am not ready to call the Catapult V6 SST70 an all new light. It’s largely the same light as the original V6 but with a different LED and other small tweaks to better optimize the design for this new LED, as well as update the light to USB-C charging while they are at it. 

 

As I mentioned before the LED that was being used in the C6 Catapult was discontinued and the SST70 was chosen in its place. I do commend Thrunite for doing a good job at optimizing the design with a slightly different reflector, slightly longer head design to adapt an LED that traditionally isn’t used for a thrower to a thrower light. The result is pretty close to the old V6 design in terms of throwing performance in the real world even though it doesn’t test quite as well via official numbers. The new light does have a bit more spill and slightly less throw distance but it’s not enough to really notice in my tests. Mode spacing could be a little closer in the lower modes but I have certainly seen worse. 

The Catapult V6 has been a permanent member of my collection and gets used a decent amount because I like the size, feel in my hand and performance despite being cool white. The revised model I reviewed here retains most of that despite growing in length slight and having a less aggressive milling on the body. The increase in lumens isn’t drastic but the increase in spill is kind of nice when using for general purpose tasks. If you don’t have a Catapult V6 in you collection I can recommend whichever model you can get you hands on.

Don’t forget Thrunite has offered an additional 10% discount for about a week after this video is published and you can find that in the description below as well as links to my Social Media profiles. 

 

Pickup the Catapult V6 SST70 at https://amzn.to/3kYpBIL

Get 10% off with the coupon code catapultv6 until 3/13/2021 11:59pm PST.

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Thrunite TT20 Review (2526 Lumens, SST70 LED, USB-C, 21700, Tactical?)

Today I have Thrunite’s newest model, the TT20. It produces 2526 lumens from a Luminus SST70 LED, a 21700 battery. It has onboard USB-C charging and has a rear tactical switch. It’s available in 2 color bodies too. Thanks to Thrunite for sending this to me to look at and review. 

 

Get the Thrunite TT20 for $55.96 (20% off) until October 31st by clicking coupon checkbox on the product page at Amazon.

Red TT20 https://amzn.to/2T2DHvx

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Packaging & Accessories

The TT20 is using Thrunites standard heavy but minimal cardboard box. It’s lacking information like normal but that’s fine since it’s designed for online direct to consumer sales. Inside you get the flashlight itself, along with the proprietary 5000mAh 21700 battery, a basic holster, and a USB-A to C cable. The extras bag includes 2 Orings, a spare rubber tail boot, extra orings, 2 spare USB Charging port covers, and a branded lanyard. 

Construction

The Thrunite TT20 is available in 2 colors currently, a standard black and a Red “Outsider” edition that I have here. It’s a really nice rich vibrant red, I always like seeing lights in different colors. This version replaces the TT20 model number engraving with the Outsider’s logo. (Youtuber).

Thrunite added a large mechanical tail switch on this light making it “tactical” It’s cover is grippy and you can connect the lanyard at either side of the tail switch. It has some straight knurling for trip to help remove the tail cap. Inside the center contact is slightly spring loaded.

Threads are anodized and square cut. The battery compartment has very tight tolerances with the battery, when inserting the battery it’s cushioned by a layer of air escaping, normally you don’t see these types of tolerances in production lights. It doesn’t suffer the problem of the USB port cover popping off either which you sometimes see when inserting batteries in lights. The surface of the light has a fairly tame grip level for a tactical light, it’s a similar milled pattern to what the TC15 and T2 have. The 2 way clip is reversible on either end of the light, I have switched mine from where it came preinstalled. 

The head of the light is pretty plain, and glued to the body of the light at the front. You have an anti roll ring at the front. The e-switchis similar in shape and design to other Thrunites but this time black anodized and seems to stick out slightly more.It’s still got the LED indicator underneath for battery power levels. The battery charging port is opposite, and it has a fairly large silicon cover. The little pull tab can get in the way causing the flap to open unintentionally. The front of the light has a scalloped bezel that’s non tactical but allows light to escape when standing on the head. The lens is anti reflective coated, and underneath is a deep smooth reflector and the LED is nicely centered. The light is IPX8 water rated and had no issues with time in a bucket of water.

 

Size & Weight

I measured the length at 136mm, max diameter at 29mm, minimum diameter at 26.5mm. Weight with the battery and clip installed is 181.1g. For me I find it fits in the hand pretty well and it’s a decent size for a 21700. Not the smallest light in it’s class but not the largest either. 

 

Comparison

The Olight M2R Pro is the most obvious light I have as a competitor. It also is a 21700 battery, tactical tail switch with front button, and a similar overall size. Weight wise it’s within 1 gram. I think the Olight is a bit more tactical, with the more aggressive bezel, more aggressive body section grip, it’s more focused beam, and the 2 stage tail switch. Clip wise I have to give the advantage to Olight but the TT20 is good too. See the pictures below for how it compares to the Thrunite T2 and TC15.

 

Retention

The TT20 comes with a lanyard that you can attach onto the tail cap if you wish. This is approaching the size of light where I start to use lanyards, but for now I will leave it off. It also comes with a holster, it does the job but is fairly basic, with just a D-ring and belt loop. This is one area where the Olight M2R Pro’s holster is clearly better.

 

The pocket clip on the TT20 is dual direction and pretty good. It allows for a fairly deep carry in the pocket with only about 10mm of the light sticking out of the pocket. The clip is mountable on the front of the body tube or the rear. I suspect most people will rear mount it like I have it here. It’s a non captured clip so it does rotate around the body of the light. The TT20 will fit on a hat if you want it to but with the 21700 battery it’s heavier then I normally want to do with a strap on clip.

LED & Beamshots

The TT20 is using the Luminus SST70 LED in cool white. This is my first light with this LED as it’s fairly new and new to the flashlight market as well. It’s an XM Size LED, Quad die LED so it would be a replacement for a Cree XHP50, but it’s physically smaller, more like and XHP35. With it installed here in the TT20 there is a small donut in the beam at distances less then 3”. At low powers, I get a bit of green/yellow in the beam, but these go away at moderate power levels and the beam is a cool but not cold tint. There is a moderate hot center and the spill is moderate. There is a small ring at the outer edges of the spill.

This gets a bit into the UI of the light but during ramping it’s not a smooth ramp. It seems as if there are a ton of small fixed steps as it’s increasing or decreasing in brightness instead of a nice and smooth ramp like you have on most lights with ramping. Once you stop it’s even and I don’t notice any PWM to my eyes or camera. My scope says there is a tiny bit, so no concerns. 

Working voltage is 2.7V-4.2V which means you are only using the “proprietary” 21700 that the light comes with. FIrefly is measured at 0.5 lumens, infinity low starts at 31 lumens up to 1468. Strobe is 1294 lumens and Turbo is 2526.

 

Heat & Runtime

I did my runtime tests with the included battery at room temps of around 73F, non cooled. Turbo on the light lasts for 1:15 before it starts stepping down and it’s stable again at the 3 minute mark at around 23% relative output. I saw peak temps at 1:30 of 52C. The light was able to hold this 23% relative output for a long time, 3:30:00, total runtime was 3:36:00. LVP was measured at 2.849V. The standout for me is if you just skip turbo and run the light in infinite high, it’s around 1300 lumens and the light is able to hold this for a little over an hour (75 min).

When I compare the runtimes to the Olight M2R Pro, the Olight is able to withstand it’s turbo output slightly longer at about 5 minutes (while stepping down), and it’s bulk of the runtime was closer to 38% but for a shorter 2:33:00 and a total runtime of 3:15:00. 

 

UI

The UI on the TT20 is different for a tactical light. It’s ramping with the use of the front button. It starts on low and if you long press from off the light comes on in firefly mode. Once on in normal mode you can press and hold and the light will begin it’s ramp up, as mentioned the ramp isn’t very smooth or fast. A full ramp from low to high takes 5.44 seconds which is a long time in my opinion. The light flashes at both ends 3 times and you can ramp in a loop low to high then ramping back down to low. It’s harder to start the light out in low especially if coming from moonlight mode. Double click on the front switch to jump to Turbo or use the tail switch to go to turbo at any time. Triple click the front button to get into strobe. There is memory as well for modes other than Turbo. When using turbo from the tail switch you can’t adjust the mode.

 

The light does have electronic lockout mode, if you are a subscriber here you know I rarely if ever use lockout through the UI. Thankfully mechanical lockout is an option by just breaking contact with the tail. This will prevent the tail from working but the E-Switch will still work thanks to that proprietary battery. The light basically has 2 physical paths for current to flow. I find myself sometimes turning on electronic lockout accidentally here if I press to long to get to firefly mode.

 

Charging

The TT20 has a onboard USB-C port for charging. It’s only compatible with USB-A to C, and not full C-C or USB-C PD unfortunately. Total charge time was 3:03 which is pretty good. Max charge speed I saw was 2.1A. The curve here is different from I typically see but it did decline as the battery charged. The battery measured as full at 4.199V.

The battery will charge in some external chargers too if you have a large or pointy contact to make it over the plastic spacer on the battery. Alternatively if you have a charger that accepts long cells like the VapCell S4 Plus I recently reviewed, then a 1mm rare earth magnet will work as a spacer if needed. With the S4 I don’t need a spacer it turns out.

As mentioned before the 5000mAh 21700 battery here is proprietary since it has both the positive and negative contact on the traditional positive end of the light, and it has small plastic spacer here. The battery is interchangeable with the Thrunite T2 and Olight 21700’s like what’s on the M2R Pro. The Olight battery will run in the Thrunite TT20, but not the other way around. This is done to reduce the lights diameter, so it can run without an inner tube, so the E switch and tail switch can both operate. 

 

Pro’s

  • Body Color options, but I wish these were not cobranded. 
  • Better value and longer overall runtime then the main competition.
  • It can sustain a high percentage of infinite high for quite a while.
  • New SST70 LED that I think we will be seeing a lot more from manufactures, hopefully in Neutral white soon. 

 

Con’s

  • The red anodizing is a great color but doesn’t seem to be as durable as black.
  • Ramping isn’t steady and suffers noticeable PWM during the ramp. It’s also slow.
  • The UI here isn’t my favorite, it’s a clumsy mix of what I will call Everyday tactical.

 

Conclusion

My conclusion I come away with this light is, is it really tactical? The inclusion of the ramping suggests to me it’s more for general everyday use, with the tail cap being the more tactical feature since it allows you to go to full turbo instantly, but when using the tail option you can’t adjust the mode and it’s only turbo. I like how with the Olight M2R Pro, the tail switch is 2 mode, so it’s easy to get to but you have the option of if you want full power or not. 

To me the TT20  more everyday tactical than full on tactical. The beam to me is more everyday than tactical too with it being less focused and more flood then the M2R Pro. That said the TT20 is a nice value compared to many othe the other 21700 lights in the price category. It’s nicely made and carries better than I expected in the pocket. The runtime on infinite high is great too, It’s easily able to sustain over 1000 lumens for over an hour. In my opinion I can recommend the TT20 for general use if you’re OK with the UI and slow ramps but I probably wouldn’t recommend it for a true tactical operator type situation.

Get the Thrunite TT20 for $55.96 (20% off) until October 31st by clicking coupon checkbox on the product page at Amazon.

Red TT20 https://amzn.to/2T2DHvx

Black TT20 https://amzn.to/356sIa6