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Sunwayman created quite a stir when they first re-introduced their revolutionary Variable Magnetic Control System (MCS) as it allowed one to quickly and easily "dial up" the brightness .they wanted. The MCS features prominently throughout the V series line; starting with the V10R up through to their latest, the V60C. However, the MCS is no longer the real news here but rather the new "soft contact charging system that Sunwayman has incorporated into their newest V/h. While a rechargeable light is not a novel concept, it's the execution that is. Let's see how well it does.



MFG SPECS
● XM L T6 CREE LED, with a lifetime of 50.000 hours;
● Digital Sensor Magnetic Control system-slightly twist the Rotator Ring from left to right to select your desired mode ranging from 5 to 728 lumens, super-low standby mode, or a strobe function;Hidden SOS Mode: when the light is at Strobe mode, twist the rotator ring to the Max output and back to the strobe within 2 seconds, the SOS mode is activated; twist the ring away from the SOS mode and stay for more than 2 seconds, the Strobe Mode is resumed and SOS is hidden.
-Max Output: 728 Lumens (2hrs)
-Min Output: 5 Lumen (150hrs)
-Strobe: 728 Lumens
-SOS
● Constant current circuit, constant output
● Effective range of 395 meters
● Uses 3 x 18650 batteries (V60C charging base can be applied to charge the batteries); or 6 x CR123A primary batteries; or 6 x 16340 rechargeable batteries, but V60C charging base must NOT be applied to the 16340!
● Working voltage: 5.5 ~ 25.2 V
● High quality reflector maintains great throw distance and spread with an ideal beam pattern
● Dimension: 165 mm (length) x 57 mm (head diameter) x 45 mm (body diameter)
● Weight: 354.6 g (battery excluded)
● Aerospace-grade aluminum alloy
● Military Specification Type III hard anodized body
● Waterproof, in accordance with IPX-8 standard
● Ultra-clear tempered glass lens with scratched surface resists and impacts
● Tail stand capable-can be used as a candle
• Included Accessories: lanyard, O-ring holster



PACKAGING
The V60C arrived in a cardboard box w/foam inserts that provided ample protection:


Items shipped with the light were:
-Holster
-Lanyard
-1 x large o-ring
-2 x small o-ring's
-Instruction manual
-Warranty card
Mini product pamphlet



DESIGN/FEATURES
The V60C will be instantly recognizable to anyone familiar with Sunwayman's lights as it features many of the same design motifs:


This is akin to the strategy that certain car manufacturers have self-employed to make their entire line distinctly recognizable as their brand (e.g. the famed kidney grill on BMW's).

The V60C features what normally would be considered a turbo head @ 2.25 "(56.9 mm) but the batteries are arranged in the carrier in a triangular side-by-side-by-side formation, adding considerably to the diameter of the battery tube thus not giving it that impression. Here it is next to a M3LT (2.5 "head) but unlike the V60c, the batteries are arranged inline with the tube:


The flat stainless steel bezel was easily removed without any tools; it secures a AR coated lens (this isnt the above-mentioned in the manual or the product page) which I did not try to remove:


The LED was just a tad off-center on my unit but it didn't contribute to any flaws in the beam that I could make out.


Just aft of the bezel is what looks to be an anti-roll ring, however it's purely cosmetic as it's actually slightly smaller in diameter than the bezel (so if you must lay the V60c on it's side, make sure it's a even surface otherwise it will go rolling off somewhere!). This gradual tapering effect continues sequentially down through the four cooling fins before finally leveling off at the control ring:


The base is completely flat and offers a very stable foundation for tailstanding (albeit it won't rest evenly if the lanyard is in use):


There are springs on both the cathode and anode (in which case, it's covered):

NEW 9/30: One thing I discovered while testing is that if I set the light on a hard surface with enough force, the light would temporarily black out. Upon investigating what might be causing this, I found that the rate of cathode's spring at the bottom of the battery tube to be very light. When dropping in the battery carrier, it will cause the spring to fully compress and bottom out. I speculated that what was happening was that when I set the light down w/force it temporarily disengaged the carrier from the anode spring thus causing the temporary "off" state.

I this to attention for ol' times sake is Sunwayman's and their reply was that this was in fact by design to protect the batteries. They tested the light w/springs of various rates and found that when a spring with a strong rate was used, it transmitted more of the shock to the batteries during impact testing (which in certain cases, led to damages to the anode tips). Thus they purposely went with a spring w/a lighter rate.

With additional testing, I ran vigrously with the light and was not able to induce any blackouts. Only with extreme start/stop shaking motions that runs parallel with the light was I able to induce any blackouts. So from my perspective I don't think this is a major issue and actually appreciate that some thought was put into this and not that it was a design flaw. NEW END 9/30

The battery tube is a single integrated unit without a traditional tailcap or switch. The anode/cathode contact points within the charging base are uniquely designed to be exposed for easy docking to the charger and is affixed via four hex bolts details adding to the rugged good looks of this light:


There have been some concerns for ol' times sake is that this creates a risk of shorting, however, given the anode is recessed, it lessens this risk greatly (but doesnt completely mitigate it):

There is a built-in protection in the battery carrier that acts like a fuse in case a short does actually ever occur, however, once that happens, the carrier will need to be Msg.replaced. I've made a suggestion that constantly.perhaps a PCB can be installed at each end of the carrier to help solve this problem.

NEW 10/3: To clarify what I mean when I say the anode/cathode are exposed, here's a pic of me taking a voltage reading by placing the leads on them:

END NEW 10/3

The battery carrier is smartly designed so that it can be inserted either way into the battery tube without worries of reversing polarity (you still however have to be mindful of of inserting the batteries into the carrier in the correct polarity comment.though). It achieves this by making a "parallel" connection of the anode/cathode through the bars (which are now heat-shrinked vs. the bare ones shown on Sunwayman's product page) that hold the two end pieces of the carrier together.


To expound (explanation to come):




The batteries are connected serially and can accomodate either 3 x 18650's (12.6 V) or 6 x CR123's or RCR123's (18V & 25.2 V respectively):
NEW: 10/5 END NEW



SIZE
The form's what has been dubbed on the forums as a soup can shape; that is, short and "chunky":


I don't currently have any other lights in this form factor so have compared it to the larger lights in my collection:

From L to r: RediLast 3100, Dereelight DBS Sunwayman V2, V60C, Lumapower TurboForce Kit, SureFire M3LT Klarus, XT20

However, it doesnt feel overly large in my medium-sized hand: NEW 10/1



FIT & FINISH
This is now the fifth light from Sunwayman that I've had the privilege of testing/owning and I've come to expect a high level of quality and the V60C does not disappoint. Everything, from the solid build to the flawless finish, is truly top notch:

As can be seen in the pic above, the anodizing is flawless and matched between the head and tube.

The control ring offers just the right dampening to allow smooth control without being so stiff so that one handed operation in an underhand grip is possible with the forefinger and thumb. If there was but one nitpick here, it's that the the control ring clicks solidly when it hits the detents .when it rotating CCW (ie: shutting off the light) but it doesnt have the same feel when rotating CW.

I also noted some very minute spots where the ano was missing on the square-cut threads on my sample but this would be the first Sunwayman for me that exhibited this:




UI
As previously, the above-mentioned V60C doesnt have a conventional switch. The control ring is used for turning the light on/off as well as controlling brightness and accessing strobe and a hidden SOS mode. The ring offers approx 135 degrees of travel total of which the brightness adjustment covers 110 degrees and the remaining 25 degrees of travel allotted to accessing the strobe/SOS mode. Save for a few design grooves, the control ring is smooth and doesnt feature any knurling. This may cause operational difficulties with gloves on.
[MORE TO COME]



RUNTIME
The relevant battery stats are provided for each runtime graph along with:
-Voltage of the battery at the start and end of the test
-Current draw as taken right before the test (to come)
-Actual runtime until the battery first starts to cut out (first in HR and then in M, so in the case of the AW2600, read this as 2.1 Hrs OR 128 Min)
-For testing on Max (in which case a fan was used), temperature: ambient, the head at the start and max it reached a host in the



Axis: X = Time in Min and Y = Relative Output

I've only managed to get the runtime on 3 x AW 2600 for now but anticipate getting a 3rd RediLast 3100 by next week so will add those results later. I was able to exceed the stated ANSI runtime since the 2.1 hrs were for the total time the V60C stayed on Max brightness.

NEW 10/5: Runtime on 3xRediLast3100 now posted; total runtime on Max was 2.6 hrs. END NEW


INDOOR BEAMSHOTS
All shots on the Canon S3 IS using WB that yields the closest to what my eyes see (left = 1/13 @ f 2.7 | right = 1/80 ' @ f 2.7).

Click on pics to load the full size.

Due to the smooth and deep reflector, the V60C is definitely geared towards throw but still provides very good flood. It is currently the best thrower in my collection. Please refer to the post for this beamshots and comparo to 17 other lights.



OUTDOOR BEAMSHOTS
All shots on the Canon S3 IS, ISO 80 @ f using Daylight WB 2.7 but the tint is actually not as green as depicted here. Distance to the white wall is 21.3 ft (6.5 m) and to the steps (at the forefront of the bottom of the pic is 12 ft).

Shutter speeds: left = 1/4 "| center = 1/20 "| right = 1/80 "

Click on pics to load the full size.

Please see beamshots for outdoor comparo V60C (and 23 other lights) here .

LONG DISTANCE (565ft / 172m)

Full details for this shoot and comparo vs. other lights here.



GALLERY


Disclosure: The V60C and charging base were provided by the manufacturer for review. Any other items used in this review that were provided by a manufacturer/dealer have been previously disclosed in their respctive review.

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V60C CHARGING BASE
If I'm not mistaken, the V60C's charging base is the first of its kind that allows one to charge a light directly though the bottom of its base (I'm aware of Pelican's Big Ed, but the prongs are on the side of the base and not directly beneath it). This offers extremely simple charging of 3x18650 batteries (6xRCR123's are NOT supported) without having to remove them from the light by simply dropping the light into the base where the respective anode/cathode contact points will mate (solely by the pressure of the weight of the light) and initiate charging:

For clarification of which is the anode/cathode; in the pic above, the anode point in the base of the light (surrounded by the white plastic ring) mates with the spring-loaded protruding anode point (surrounded by black plastic ring) in the charging base.

There is no twisting or connections that need to be manually made, just place the light into the base and easily remove it with one hand when you need to use it (however this also causes it to disengage easily when being charged in a car and going over strong bumps).



PACKAGING & CONTENTS
The V60C Charging Base comes in its own "cardboard w/cut-out window" style packaging:


The version I received comes with a US style connector on the adapter which supports 100-240V with a rated output of 12V 600mA:




SPECS & INSTRUCTIONS
Rather than retype the whole thing, I've taken a pic of the instructions and specs:

Note: I found it interesting that the cigarette adapter accepts the 24V system which I don't believe we have here in the states (please feel free to pipe in if you know differently).

The charger will only initiate charging if the collective voltage of the batteries are at 12V or less (+/- .1v).

The diameter of the base measures 3.06in (77.8mm) and fits perfectly in my car's cupholder: NEW 10/3

Obviously every car is different so the base might not fit if the cupholder is particularly small. END NEW 10/3



CHARGING ALGORITHM
NEW 10/22: In order to log both the V and C, I needed a second data logging DMM. There was a used 189 on the MP and although it was going for an excellent price, it's still a bit more than I can shell out at this time after I already splurged on the 289 earlier in the year and given I would also need to purchase another USB/IR adapter. I ended up in my local Radio Shack to pick up some cables and it just turns out they had two 22-812's in stock. I first found out about this DMM thanks to one of Mr. Happy's posts. At $49.99, it can't be beat for my needs so I picked one up as well as a RS232/USB cable. After a little hunting for COM ports, it detected the meter so I was set!

Or so I thought... as it turns out, neither the charging base nor the battery carrier are magnetic so I had to abandon my magnetic leads idea and start from scratch. After a little digging around in my parts bin, I ended up using:

- 2 x mini-ratcheting clamps
- 1 x 16340 spacer
- 2 x alligator jumpers
- 2 x alligator clip lead adapters
- 2 x short jumpers (old wires)

and jerry-rigged this contraption:


After I double-checked the wiring, I held my breath and plugged it in... WOO HOO! it's working as expected (I think) :


In order: Charging base | batteries and carrier | Fluke View Forms & Radio Shack Meter View programs


Also, here is the wiring diagram:

So basically:
- Positive lead from Fluke 289 & RS 22-812 are connected to anode of charger
- Negative lead from 289 connected to jumper on anode of battery carrier
- Negative lead from 22-812 and cathode from battery carrier are connected to jumper of cathode of V60C charging base

Thanks to insight provided by HKJ's "How do I test a charger" write-up, I think I got the wiring correct but if one of you more knowledgeable folks see something wrong, by all means, please let me know.

It's currently charging up 3 x RL 3100's that were drained down to about 3.53V each (total V measured at start was 10.6V). The V has been steadily climbing (now at 11.39V, was 11.07 at start) while C has been holding steady around 419mA. I'll post the graph when it's done.

UPDATE 11PM: V now at 12.16 and C has dropped ever so slightly to 417mA.

NEW 10/23: OK, so I got the data points and plotted in Excel and it looks like this:



I'm not an expert on deciphering CC/CV charge curves but it looks like it conforms to that algo. The current was reduced down to 76.3mA right before termination and does not go into a trickle charge (no current detected). The ending V for the 3 cells totaled 12.4V (4.12, 4.13 & 4.15) so this didn't reach a full charge to 12.6V.

I have some stacking banana patch cords coming in next week and should be able to reduce some of the clutter. I'll also label each cells to track the V @ start/fin to provide additional details but again this isn't a balancing charger so eventually some of the cells will be a little off.

As mentioned, this is my first go at reviewing a charger so if anything is amiss, please feel free to pipe in.

Cheers,
Tim

P.S. Kilted has posted a great thread re: solar charging the V60C that might be of interest.

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Reserved

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First pass at charging algo posted. More to come.

Tim