Thursday, June 26, 2014

SKILHUNT DS10, 1xCR123A/16340, 300Lm, REVIEW

The Skilhunt DS10 is a small flashlight designed for everyday use.
Compact size. CR123A/16340 battery compatible. 4 well spaced modes.
Strong magnet in the tail cap(removable) for hands free use.
Reversible pocket clip.
A small flashlight suitable for EDC.
Very well made knurling provides stable grip.
The switch is easy to find by touching.



Black finish. Excellent type III hard anodizing.
Precisely made knurling. Very smooth cooling fins with well rounded edges.

Reversible pocket clip.

Attractive design. Deep cooling fins for good heat dissipating.
Stainless steel bezel. Stable tail standing.

Features(taken from Skilhunt's website,not written by me)
1.Super bright & latest CREE XM-L2 LED,High-performance,High-efficiency and energy conservation.
2.Durable aluminum vacuum plating reflector
3.Toughened ultra-clear glass lens with 99% light transmittance,anti-reflective coating.
4.Rugged indestructible aluminum body with anti-scratching type III hard anodization.
5.Multi-level dissipating heat design, excellent heat dissipation.
6.Side switch button to transferring mode user-friendly interface to adjust output.
7.Four output levels and strobe, suitable for different environment.
8.Wide input range provides more choices of batteries.
9.Automatic memory function,remember last used setting and can be preset to specific output mode for instant access.
10.Reverse polarity protection, to protect from improper battery installation.
11.Low-voltage prompts function,the light will flash when the battery is low, remind user replace the battery on time.
12.Engineered anti-slip knurling for a tightly firm grip.
13.Dual recoil absorbing springs,battery impact resistance.
14.Tail stand as a candle-light.
15.Tail hand hole design for lanyard use, to prevent accidental dropping.

Max output: 300Lumens
Max runtime:140hours
Max beam distance:98m
Max peak beam intensity:2400cd
Waterproof: IPX-8
Impact resistant: 1.5 Meter
Battery: 1x16340 or 1x CR123A
Rated Range: 2V ~ 4.2V

Dimension:
Length 76mm/2.99inch
Head diameter 24mm/0.94inch
Body diameter 22mm/0.86inch
Weight: 47g / 1.65oz (without battery


Nice compact package.

Pocket clip,Lanyard,Spare O-rings,Magnet replacing rubber adapter,Warranty card and User manual.

UI
The user interface is similar to the UI of the Olight S10.
Electronic side switch.
4 brightness levels Low-Mid-High-Turbo(in this order)+ Strobe mode.
The difference from Olight's UI is that here a short click changes the mode(when the light is ON) instead of deactivating the light.
Short click to turn ON,press and hold for 1.5sec to turn OFF.
Fast access to Low and Turbo mode.
Fast double click activates Turbo mode(from OFF).
Press and hold for 0.5sec to activate Low mode(from OFF).
When the light is ON,fast double click will activate Strobe mode.


Stainless steel bezel. The white dot is a low voltage warning indicator.

Cree XM-L2 LED. Aluminum smooth reflector.
Perfectly centered LED. Ultra clear glass lens with excellent anti-reflective coating.

Protected 16340(RCR123A) batteries fit well.
There is enough space in width and length.

The DS10 can be disassembled on three main parts.

The battery tube has sufficient thickness. There is a spring at both sides.

As usual for Skilhunt,machining is excellent.
Thick square cut threads. No scratches or chips.
Thick O-rings. A little thicker than needed,imo. It is not quite easy to unscrew the tail-cap.

The tail-cap magnet could be removed easily after unscrewing the two screws.
There is a rubber adapter in the accessories to replace it.

Flat tail cap for stable tail-standing.
The switch boot is easy to press and easy to find in the dark.Has a loud click sound.
Looks easy to press accidentally.Actually it requires more force to press it.
The switch is much harder to press compared to the Olight S10's switch.
It is very hard to press it accidentally.

Run time test on Turbo mode 300Lm using a Keeppower 16340 battery.
A rechargeable battery provides enough energy for easy maintaining constant Turbo mode for ~47 minutes.
When the voltage is low the flashlight decreases its brightness to Mid mode,allowing you to use it for ~30 more minutes.
The low voltage indicator will blink in RED twice every second in this period.
There's a memory for the last used mode excluding Strobe mode.
No PWM on any of the brightness modes.
I turbo=610mA
Stand by current draw ~0.025mA

The light from the DS10 is warmer than most cool white lights.
Similar to the light from Olight S10. Yellowish tint.
Good beam angle. Smaller hotspot than the Olight S10L2 with orange peel reflector.
Quite bright for an EDC light.


Skilhunt DS10 Low-Mid-High-Turbo
1m, 1/20sec

1m , 1/20sec

1m , 1/250sec

5m , 1/6sec

5m , 1/50sec


Comparison the Olight S10L2(currently produced with a smooth reflector) and the Skilhunt DS10.

The pocket clip of the Skilhunt DS10 is made of thinner material.
More flexible than the Olight's clip.
It's easier to clip on and easier to attach and detach to the flashlight.

The pocket clip has almost the same shape.
The loop for a lanyard is made on a better place.


Thanks to the reversible clip the flashlight can be attached in head-down position.

The Skilhunt DS10 is a very good addition in the EDC class flashlights.
Very bright,constant output,excellent heat dissipating.
Beautiful design. Useful features as a tail cap magnet,quick access to Low and Turbo output.
Low voltage indicator. Excellent machining and build quality.
Quite enough space for protected 16340 batteries(I had a problem finding a battery for the Olight S10).

The pocket clip could be a little firmer for more secure attaching.
I'm used to the UI of Olight S10 and holding the switch for 1.5sec to turn OFF is a little problematic to me.
Short click to turn ON/OFF is more intuitive imo,especially when using the light in short periods.
The short click ON/mode change UI might be convenient for people that like to switch between modes frequently.

Thanks for reading!

Skilhunt DS10 was provided by Skilhunt for test and review.