Pinnacle Flashlights Blog

The Maelstrom S18 is a veritable hand-held spotlight that features 4Sevens’ unique thermal regulation and a blistering high output of 1200 OTF lumens. The S18 is unlike any flashlight out there, utilizing innovative design technology to provide the versatility and dependability you’ve come to trust in a 4Sevens flashlight.

Features

Current Regulation: Current regulation means that the S18 intelligently controls the power being drawn from your batteries, giving you consistent output while fully using every last drop of energy available. Current regulation provides dependable outputs and runtimes while eliminating needless battery waste.

Thermal Regulation: The 4Sevens Maelstrom S18 features our unique thermal regulation. This means it can take serious abuse and be exposed to harsh conditions, but it will automatically control its output to protect its own guts. That means you don’t worry about your light - you just use it.

SST-90 LED: We only use the absolute latest cutting-edge LED technology in our flashlights, and the Maelstrom S18 is no exception. It features the “SST-90″ LED, a luminous giant of efficiency and output, providing 1200 OTF lumens on high mode.

Smart Circuit for Rechargeable Batteries: Many flashlights are able to use standard single-use 3-volt CR123A batteries, but few can use the more powerful, rechargeable 3.7-volt RCR123A batteries without causing permanent internal damage. The Maelstrom S18 is one of those few - it runs flawlessly even when using six rechargeable 3.7-volt RCR123A batteries.

Reverse-Polarity Protection: The 4Sevens S18’s battery carrier provides reverse-polarity protection, so even if you accidentally put the batteries in reverse, nothing will be damaged. So even if you’re swapping batteries in the dark, you’ve peace of mind that you simply can’t hurt the S18.

Specifications

• Dimensions:
  • Length: 9.3 in
  • Diameter (Body): 1.8 in
  • Diameter (Head): 2.48 in
  • Weight (without batteries): 24.5 oz
• Battery Compatibility: 6x CR123A (single-use) or 6x RCR123A (rechargeable) batteries.
• Operating Voltage Range: 4.5V~8.4V
• Outputs and Runtimes:
  (runtimes are to 50% output)
  • Low: 80 lumens, 17.5 hours
  • Medium: 400 lumens, 3.5 hours
  • High: 1200 lumens, 0.6 hours
  • Strobe: 1200 lumens, 1.5 hours
  • S.O.S.: 2.5 hours
• Body Material: Type-III hard-anodized aircraft-grade aluminum
• Bezel Material: Stainless steel strike-Bezel
• Lens Material: Optical-grade hardened glass lens with external sapphire coating to resist scratches and internal anti-reflective coating to maximize real output
• Reflector: Precision-machined and highly polished smooth reflector
• Water Resistance: IPX-8
• Included Accessories: Holster, instruction manual, 6xCR123A batteries, and spare o-rings

Operation

Operating the Maelstrom S18 flashlight is intuitively simple. First ensure that all six batteries are installed correctly in the battery handle**. To access the battery handle, unscrew the tailcap in front of the red o-ring, where the five mode icons are engraved. The battery handle is permanently attached to the tailcap, so please remove it carefully.

Once you have installed the batteries and tightened the tailcap, press the metal button on the back until it clicks and the light will turn on. You can also press the button lightly for momentary-on. To change modes, simply rotate the back of the tailcap to align the engraved arrow with the icon of the mode you want.

** Note: Please always reload the Maelstrom S18 with brand new CR123As. Never mix-and-match CR123As with different brands or with unknown or different remaining capacities. We recommend that you use high quality 4Sevens CR123A cells in the S18. If you are using RCR123A (rechargeables), please ensure they are all the same brand/type and are all fully charged.

See more information on the 4Sevens Maelstrom S18 as well an extensive selection of the entire 4Sevens LED Flashlight line at Pinnacle Flashlights!

Thinking about using your flashlight for self defense? There are some things to consider before you think that your flashlight has the ability to blind and disorient your attackers. We must first mention that regardless of which flashlight you choose it is generally not recommend that you rely solely on your flashlight for self defense. Unless you have been trained to use the light in a defensive fashion, it may be of little use or even worse, used against you. That being said, in certain conditions the bright beam of a flashlight may be used to temporarily blind or distract a potential attacker for a split second to allow you to get away. This post will demonstrate what were here at Pinnacle Flashlights have coined the “Stun Potential” or SP of a flashlight.

Some basic factors that affect the SP include:
1) Ambient lighting conditions
2) Distance from light to target
3) Lumen output
4) Beam focus

We will break each of these points down into a little more detail:
1) The ambient lighting conditions have a huge impact on the ability of a light to stun an attacker. Attempting to disorient an attacker in broad daylight with a flashlight will obviously be less effective that using the same light in pure darkness after your pupils have accommodated.
2) According to the laws of physics, the brightness of a light versus the distance to its target follows an inverse squared relationship. This means that every time the distance from the source is doubled, the intensity of light drops off to 25% of its initial value.
3) Brighter the better, no doubt about it, however as mentioned in our other article “Lumens vs. Candlepower” you will find that lumens is only a measure of total light output and not a measure of beam focus. Even though the light may put out a lot of lumens, the beam may be very diffuse and not highly effective in this situation.
4) Beam focus is also very important. The tighter the beam, the more the flashlight is able to focus its power and the better it will function to disorient an attacker.

So now that you know a few key factors about stun potential, we have set up a series of photos to simulate each light being directed into the eyes of an attacker. Each photo is taken with the same camera settings (1sec, f7.1, ISO100) at a distance of approximately 35 feet. In assessing each light’s SP, note in each photo the size of the hotspot as well as the amount of the body that is obscured by each beam. The less of the model that you can discern, the more effective the light is for disorienting and the higher its Stun Potential.

The Test Lineup:

From Left to Right:
Minimag AA, Nitecore EX10, Nitecore Extreme, Fenix LD10, Fenix TK10, EagleTac T100C2,
Surefire E2e, Surefire L4, Surefire Z3, EagleTac M2

 

 

 

 

 

See the complete line of Tactical LED flashlights at: www.PinnacleFlashlights.com

The Zebralight line provides an innovative, versatile solution to many difficult lighting needs. Included in the package is a headband for use as a headlamp, a neck strap, and a pocket clip that we will be using in this article. Operating the Zebralight in this fashion is especially useful for healthcare professionals who need some extra lighting while maintaining eye protection. This can be used by Firefighters, Paramedics and EMTs in the field during night extrications or other low-light medical calls. Additionally Emergency Department or Urgent Care professionals may find this useful for tasks in areas with poor lighting and visibility.

We will be using safety glasses that can be found at any hardware store and the Zebralight H30 which runs on a single lithium 123A cell and puts out a broad beam of 80 lumens for over 2.5 hours.

The Zebralight will be fitted in the clip mount in the opposite direction that it is normally mounted. Insert the light into the clip holder so that the button and the opening of the clip are on the same side. The clip should then be able to be secured to the center of the safety glasses.

      

Below are some beamshots of this setup. The H30 illuminates the entire field of view without obstructing the vision of the operator.