Skilhunt E3A High CRI Flashlight Review

The twisty Skilhunt E3A High CRI flashlight is now available! What a great little AAA-sized light! Just one mode – very simple! Read on for some testing!

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Official Specs and Features

Here’s a link to the Skilhunt E3A High CRI flashlight product page.

Versions

I think all the versions of this light use Samsung LH351B emitters. Three CCTs are available, though, including this 4000K High CRI edition. It looks like there are also six color bodies, too!

Price

MSRP on the Skilhunt E3A High CRI flashlight is around $10.

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What’s Included

• Skilhunt E3A High CRI flashlight
• Primary AAA cell
• Split ring (large)
• Split ring (small)
• Spare o-rings (2)
• Manual

Package and Manual

Build Quality and Disassembly

Build quality is good. One nice feature of the spirals is that they’re also very lightly textured. This adds a bit of grip and also breaks up the spiralness.

Here’s a better view of the spirals having some texture.

The threads are anodized and square-cut and appropriately long – it’s a twisty, so of course, you need some length in the threads. They’re very smooth, too.

The tailcap has a broad not-very-stiff spring. The head doesn’t have a spring. There’s a little brass (?) button, and a plastic surround that should prevent flat-top cells (not that there are any flat-top AAA cells, not sure about that one).

The internals unscrew easily, and the optic comes out too.

Size and Comps

Length 59.5 mm / 2.34 inch
Head diameter 14.0 mm / 0.59 inch

Weight: 7.5 g / 0.26 oz (without battery)

If the flashlight will headstand, I’ll show it here (usually the third photo). If the flashlight will tailstand, I’ll also show that (usually in the fourth photo).

Here’s the test light with the venerable Convoy S2+. The version you see below is a custom Convoy S2+ host that’s been laser engraved by GadgetConnections.com. I did a full post on an engraved orange host right here! Or go straight to GadgetConnections.com to buy your Convoy S2+ now!

Also above is the light beside a TorchLAB BOSS 35, an 18350 light. I reviewed the aluminum version of that light in both 35 and 70 formats. I also reviewed that specific edition, the “Oveready BOSS FT Collector Vintage Brass” 35. I love it!

Retention and Carry

There is no pocket clip included, though there does look to be a spot on the tail area for one to connect. There is, however, a lanyard loop. A lanyard is not included, so roll your own!

The light will technically tailstand, but it’s not a reliable way to use the light.

Power and Runtime

The E3A is powered by a single AAA-sized cell, and only up to the 1.5V range. No 10440 support here.  But it does support NiMH, Primary, and “Lithium” (but not lithium-ion @3.7V nominal – this is the lithium 1.5V variety!!)

The cell goes into the light in the normal orientation – positive toward the head.

Here’s a runtime. There’s just one mode, so this is all in the runtime section.

I didn’t test this runtime with a brand new NiMH cell – probably as a result, we’re only seeing around 12 minutes at 75 lumens. With a fresh cell, I imagine you’d get the claimed 75 minutes.

As I said in the intro, I’d rather there be two modes (at least) and one of them be much lower. Even if there was just one mode, I would rather it be lower. Unfortunately, discussions with Skilhunt indicate it’s very unlikely.

Modes and Currents

Mode	Mode Claimed Output (lm)	Claimed Runtime	Measured Lumens	Tailcap Amps
On	100	75m (NiMH, as tested)	77

Pulse Width Modulation

The one mode does not utilize PWM.

Here you can see a “baseline” – a chart with almost no light hitting the sensor. Then there’s the Ultrafire WF-602C flashlight, which has some of the worst PWM I’ve seen. It’s so bad that I used a post about it to explain PWM! Here are multiple timescales (10ms, 5ms, 2ms, 1ms, 0.5ms, 0.2ms) to make comparing this “worst” PWM light to the test light easier. That post also explains why I didn’t test the WF-602C at the usual 50us scale.

User Interface and Operation

The Skilhunt E3A High CRI flashlight is a twisty. The spirals on the body (specifically on the head) help with the action. The twist is very smooth, too.

No UI table is necessary:  tighten for on. Loosen for off. That’s it!

LED and Beam

The emitter in the E3A is a Samsung LH351b. My review copy is the 4000K, High CRI option. The emitter is behind a TIR optic, which gives a nice beam profile.

LED Color Report (CRI and CCT)

The claim of 4000K is met, with a reading of around 3900K. CRI is also high (also as claimed) at 93. Both these numbers are great! You can see that the Duv being positive (0.0047) lends itself to being on the greener side of things.

Beamshots

These beamshots always have the following settings:  f8, ISO100, 0.3s shutter, and manual 5000K exposure. These photos are taken at floor level, and the beam hits the ceiling around 9 feet away.

Tint vs BLF-348 (KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b version) (affiliate link)

I keep the test flashlight on the left and the BLF-348 reference flashlight on the right.

I compare everything to the KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b BLF-348 because it’s inexpensive and has the best tint!

Summary and Conclusion

There’s a lot to love about this little light! The build quality is good, the emitter is good, size is good.  But it’s just one mode, and that mode isn’t really “low” – the light needs a lower mode (even if it’s the only mode). And this one is orange, which is very nice!

The Big Table

Skilhunt E3A High CRI flashlight
Emitter:	Samsung LH351B (High CRI)
Price in USD at publication time:	$10.80
Cell:	1xAAA
Runtime Graph
LVP?	?
Switch Type:	Twisty
On-Board Charging?	No
Claimed Lumens (lm)	100
Measured Lumens (at 30s)	77 (77% of claim)^
Candela per Lumen	4.26
Claimed Throw (m)	37
Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s)	24lux @ 3.734m = 335cd
Throw (Calculated) (m)	36.6 (98.9% of claim)^
Claimed CCT	4000K
Measured CCT Range (K)	3900 Kelvin
Item provided for review by:	Skilhunt
All my Skilhunt reviews!

^ Measurement disclaimer:  Testing flashlights is my hobby. I use hobbyist-level equipment for testing, including some I made myself. Try not to get buried in the details of manufacturer specifications versus measurements recorded here; A certain amount of difference (say, 10 or 15%) is perfectly reasonable.

What I like

• Simple UI
• High CRI
• 4000K
• Good twist action
• Very small
• No PWM
• Low cost

What I don’t like

• Only one mode
• CCT report shows it’s a bit greenish

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Notes

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