u/Serpenteq

watching the sundown with the gf while snapping a few shots of the steiny

So after two years in this hobby, my desire for another light was halted as I found what I liked, and what I needed.

For the long hikes or general nightwalks, I always kept either the M21B SFT-42R 6500K SMO 3v10a buck or the M21A SFT-70 3000K OP 6v5a boost with Molicel P50B's in my jacket, long range, bright, and long lasting.

I always wanted the EDC to be long lasting, and thats when the 18650 came into the picture, So a few S6 SS with SFT-40 3000K or my golden hour S7 B35AM 2700K with S2+ copper pill.

While they are great, the size did come into play after a while, and then I remembered a long lost forgotten T3 Ti that were amongst the first Convoy or even flashlight I got almost two years ago.

I dusted her off and started clicking away, I had forgotten how amazing the T3 Ti button felt (SS button).

Then I started to realize how amazing all colors looked with the Nichia 519a 4000K DD R9080.

I then realized it lasted plenty enough on the Eneloop Pro's, even the 14500's had a decent runtime for my needs, and the brightness and range was sufficient for my everyday use.

What I had been hunting for so long, was here with me since the beginning, after days of research back in the day, trial and error throughout with emitter and host choices, the answer I had been looking for was with me all along.

The T3 Ti 519a 4000K DD reminded me of that.

I was never a fan of the GITD oring or gasket, so switched out to a black oring and non-GITD gasket. Lubed the switch and gaskets, ready to go.

While it's fun to have all these lights, none of them give me the same joy as the T3 Ti.

Went on a long hike and found a spot to rest and take some shots of the Ocean One 42 I have, a 2018 model with the ETA-2824 elabore workhorse movement.

Had this for a while now and it is great all around tbh.

With a bad phone camera, natural light and some manual settings the photos came out really nice.

It's getting close to dive season, looking forward to the ocean dips with this one. 😄

Clasp is aftermarket as the original is just not my cup of tea.

She got really excited until she saw it.

Imagine telling your friends you got an Aston Martin, and they tell you to come pick them up. I don't know why I find it funny, but I would bust out in tears of laughter. It's interesting for sure.

Show me yours if you are!

Here is a WDS003 FKM CTS in black on the Steinhart Ocean One 42 (2018 model) with ETA 2824-2 elabore. It looks great and most importantly, extremely comfortable.

It is the strap that moved me away from two-piece's and bracelets, it has the best of both worlds from both sides.

And it's the only time I've enjoyed wearing rubber. 😉

Thought I'd share some comparisons between some FKM manafacturers.

After getting bitten by the FKM CTS bug I got around to test two different suppliers and the current favourite was not the one I thought it would be.

We have Denique F025 (USD $20) and WatchDives WDS003 (USD $7.50) at the table and while they look similar, they are different in few aspects.

Denique F025 is:

- Slightly more flexible.

- Has a smoother, less textured surface, smoother to the touch.

WatchDives WDS003 is:

- Slightly stiffer.

- Has a more textured surface, more grippy feeling.

And that's about it, molds seem identical in most aspects but the texture and the WDS003 is a millimeter or two longer at the tail. The FKM chemistry does feel different due to Denique being softer and does have a slight smell to it, extremely faint smell however compared to the WDS003 that has absolutely no smell.

And here is where the WDS003 blew my mind, it's not only cheaper but feels more premium to the touch, as well as having a more desired look due to the texture. But don't get me wrong, the Denique feels premium in it's own way, just not the way I thought it would from reading online, in fact I thought it would be the other way around.

However, time will tell how the difference in composition of the FKM holds up.

Hopefully the pictures won't compress too much, hard to get a "feel" of the texture difference if so.