Does anyone know of a 18650 flashligiht that does NOT have strobe ?

[ez24]

Do you know a 18650 battery LED flashlight that does not have strobe?  Hardest thing in the world to find.

I have looked through 100's on Aliexpress with no luck.  Why does every company think everyone wants to send an SOS?
My guess is the first engineer designed it and all engineers since then are brain dead.

thanks

[jeffaroo]

Check out Convoy flashlights at FastTech.com.  Here's one, https://www.fasttech.com/products/1653/10002364/4021100-convoy-s2-led-flashlight, that is a single mode flashlight (on-off only  -- who would have thought!) and here's one, https://www.fasttech.com/products/1653/10002364/1826700-convoy-s2-1-cree-xm-l2-u2-1a-1067-lumen-2-group-3, that has two modes, one of which doesn't have strobe (Low-medium-high only).  You can switch between the two modes. I am quite happy with the latter one unless, by mistake, I switch into the mode with the strobe.

[nidlaX]

Only bottom of the barrel lights tend to have the strobe modes activate in a way that clutters the interface. Personally, I would expect any decent light with mode memory to not have such problems.

And you're right, the bottom of the barrel lights all rely on some very basic LED controller that tosses in 2+3 useless modes so marketers can write bigger numbers on the packaging.

[cs.dk]

I've got a couple of these, and use them everyday. Seems to be good quality (they are a couple of years old now); https://www.banggood.com/BLF-A6-XPL-1600LM-7-4modes-EDC-LED-Flashlight-p-991823.html

Mine is configured in the 4-mode operation, and with memory enabled. So I can soft-tap the powerbutton to switch between 4 brightness modes, and it will remember the setting at next turn on.
If I'm not mistaken the firmware is open-source, so if you prefer, you can write your own.

Forum topic; http://budgetlightforum.com/node/36667
Firmware page; http://bazaar.launchpad.net/~toykeeper/flashlight-firmware/trunk/files/200

[amyk]

The "dumbest" ones with a simple on-off switch, no microcontroller or other fanciness, may be what you're after.

[Red Squirrel]

I would LOVE this too. Seems hard to find.   I only want 1 mode.  On, and off.  I don't want to keep cycling through modes every time I turn it on.  Or at very least put the mode stuff on a separate switch.  I wonder if most Ebay/Amazon flashlights just all use the same controller.   They pretty much seem to all have the same modes.

I actually want to look at making my own at some point.  An 18650 fits perfectly inside 3/4" copper pipe, could be a good start.  Guess if you want to run a cob led you need a boost converter though, I guess they may make some premade ones that would fit inside that kind of enclosure?  I have not really looked that deeply into it, was more of a random thought at one point that I never really followed through that far with.   

[mikeselectricstuff]

One I looked at used changed modes if power cycled within a few secs. Removing a cap from the board made it always power up in continuous full-on mode.

[Gregg]

I have two of these: https://www.amazon.com/Rechargeable-Tactical-Flashlight-Zanflare-Waterproof/dp/B01N0UX80W
The rear (easy to find in the dark) switch turns it on and off to whatever setting the other switch was on previously.  They are available in a neutral white as well as the awful bluish color and take standard 18650 cells.  They often are on a lightning deal for about $18.  The lumens rating isn't as outlandish as some flashlights.

[skipjackrc4]

The Streamlight HL-X has high/low with no strobe.  I have one--great light.

Do the ones that have low / medium / high etc. brightness settings actually accomplish that by altering the current in some highly efficient way (PWM or current limit of a LC DCDC converter) or are they just using different resistors for the purpose?

Yes, they use PWM.  You can often notice the flicker at low output levels.

[Alex Eisenhut]

Well, not quite, but I recently upgraded my 20 year old Mini Maglite AA with a LED.

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/TERRALUX-AA-MINI-MAGLITE-TLE-5EX-EXTREME-LED-UPGRADE-BULB-MiniStar2-AA-MAG-LIGHT/352255279176?hash=item52040d0048:g:YVcAAOSwImRYmhyT

Maybe not cost effective, but I like my Maglite. No strobe mode here, plus I can buy AAs anywhere I go, I don't need to worry about charging. (Often useful on bike camping expeditions.)

[Halcyon]

I'm a huge fan of the Wolf Eyes torches (Australian company), I'm pretty sure some of their models don't have any strobe functions, such as the Hawk 2. But it's worthwhile asking.

[helius]

I have a Fenix where clicking the mode button will only cycle through intensity settings. To get into strobe mode you need to hold down the mode button for 1s, which is unlikely to happen accidentally.

[SG-1]

ThorFire VG15S does not have a strobe or SOS mode. It also remembers your last setting & comes back on there. The firefly mode is really nice for setting an alarm clock with out waking your spouse.

[HKJ]

Solarforce, they have some lights where you buy body and lamp/led assembly separately. There you can simply select a module with without strobe.

[ez24]

The prize goes to

... flashlights at FastTech.com

First thing is to know what on-off is called --> 1-mode  (I did not know this before)

Searching on Amazon and Aliexpress failed (too many hits) but here is the search on FashTech:

https://www.fasttech.com/search?18650%201-mode%20flashlight

Most hits are 1-mode

I like this site because of the good English - I did not know it 

This is the first one I bought:

https://www.fasttech.com/products/0/10014229/4475301-3-cree-xm-l2-u2-1-mode-2400lm-diving-led

Because it uses 2 batteries and someday I might get some 26650 batteries

Another great thing about this site is the "Model" drop down menu on the right side.

Great find - thanks everyone and especially thanks to jeffaroo.

Now I can start throwing away my strobes 

[james_s]

On one of mine I removed the 8 pin micrcontroller that created the modes, bypassed the output pin to force it on and now it works just like a standard single mode flashlight.

I've never figured out the purpose behind the useless strobe and SOS modes, all I can think is that someone in China took the term "flashlight" literally and believed that's what people actually want. I don't know anyone who has ever found a use for those modes, they just add a bunch more clicks to turn it on or off.

[ez24]

I've never figured out the purpose behind the useless strobe and SOS modes

I think it is a plot to drive us crazy.

[shakalnokturn]

I have a couple of budget Chinese Boruit RJ-02 from Aliexpress, overall build quality is satisfying for the price, I find it reassuring to have the lithium battery attached to my head enclosed in a solid aluminium can.
There is no stupid SOS/strobe mode, it can be dimmed (and remembers setting) by holding the power button down, it also has a -not so useful to me- IR proximity detector mode (full power only). Also has a µ-USB for charge.

http://budgetlightforum.com/node/48353

[dug5555@hotmail.com]

re:ez24 Engineers,
I am an engineer and I think your comment was a bit crass and unwarranted.
I am also looking for a torch that doesn't have useless features such as strobe and 'SOS'.
I want one to adapt to my RFS fire helmet that has features that might be useful in all torch applications:
Bright enough to see ahead at a reasonable distance, able to run for an operational time say 4 hours on and off over a 12 h shift, rechargable from a USB adapter, simple to turn on and off even with work gloves and hence no strobe, flash or SOS features.

[Ed.Kloonk]

Last week, a youtuber made a video on how to disable this.