The JETBEAM III PRO ST R2 BVC is one of the very best multi-use flashlight on today's market. It fulfills many of the requirements of front line jobs, like the Police, Rescue Services and the Military as well as can double up as very powerful front cycle light (225 lumens). It still retain a classical flashlight "cigar" look in a robust and  a re-assuring  military style and in a very pocket-able size, only 120mm length and 25mm OD. The ST R2 BVC is very versatile, it has 3 independent and fully programmable modes and  has Jetbeam BVC (broad voltage circuit) which has a power input from 3.6 to 12v and can be run by two CR123 or one 18650 lithium batteries, giving a run time on high of up to 3 hours on the 18650 lithium battery.  

The Jetbeam III PRO ST R2 BVC gives you total freedom into your flashlight settings to undertake any task you want. 

This JETBEAM III PRO ST R2 BVC was obtained from www.flashaholics.co.uk, as usual their service was second to none 
with the flashlight arriving by recorded delivery within 24hours of ordering. This was well packed and the display box was unmarked.

Description:
"CLICK ON PHOTOS TO ENLARGE"

The ST R2 BVC is supplied from Jetbeam in a black presentation box with a magnetic catch, 
inside is the light well protected by foam.
 
Supplied with the flashlight are a small bag with 2 O rings, a paracord lanyard, a spare rubber cap for the switch, 
an ID/warranty card and a small instruction booklet.  
Flashaholics also kindly supply 2 high quality Energizer CR123 battery so you light is "good to go" when received.

The light come in a dark putter like colour with a very good finish and split into 3 seperate parts:

The head which is protected by a stainless steel bezel  and  host the R2 led
The reflector on my UK specs one is an OP type which I personally prefer to the smooth ones as it tend 
to give a brighter fuller spill without loosing much throw. 

The body with knuckling and 3 flat sections, this is again is very nicely made with no sharp edges, the thread is a high quality square type 
which prevent cross threading. It has the usual neat engraving on the head and body. 
The flashlight also has as effective but unobtrusive anti-roll system build into the head

The tail host the reverse clicky switch and has two holes to attach the lanyard. The tail has been manufactured so that 
the flashlight is able to tail stand as a candle if needed. The Tail is slightly darker than the rest of the flashlight but this is hardly noticeable. 

The flashlight has 3 separates modes which are fully  programmable to what ever brightness or flash mode you want; 
making it a very versatile light. 
In plain terms you can program and re-program  what ever brightness or strobe/flash settings you like into3 different  "modes" on your flashlight 
which can be activated by a single click. More about the light functions below.

Output Versus Runtime

Flashlight runtime can vary quite a lot according to the quality and age of  its battery, in this case a 3.7v  lithium 18650 battery. 

So I have carried out some some tests to give the reader a better idea of  the operation life expectancy of the ST R2 BVC  
with the 18650 batteries.
The Jetbeam  BVC  was tested with two separate  2400mah 3.7v Grey Ultrafire "budget" batteries and one high  quality AW 2600mah  
courtesy of  Flashaholics.co.uk. 

The light was monitored with a light meter positioned at the center of the beam one meter away, a cooling fan was switched on 
after15mn to keep the flashlight cool 
and to simulate use on  a bicycle, also the heat was monitored occasionally and fluctuated between  15 to 28 degree Celsius.

 The discharge curve  is quite steady with the light output slowly diminishing. This is is quite useful as it does give the user plenty of warning 
before the battery "low voltage cut out" activate and you end up in the dark. 
This is a plus for cyclist, as some of the LED lights on the market 
will suddenly stop working when the voltage is too low!

Results

Please note the lumen is a measure of the total "amount" of visible light in some defined light beam. 
The Lux indicates the intensity of light at a given point which can be easily  measured by a light meter. This is why you will see that my Lumens figures are estimated as I am unable to verify them.

2400mah Grey Ultrafire "budget" batteries A/B
5370/5210 Lux,  (Manufacturer lumen ratting of 225 lumens, but the higher lux reading would indicate an estimated 240 lumens as advertised by some retailers)
retaining 75% of it output after 1h30mn (4030/4100 lux) (around 180/168 lumens estimated )
50% of its ouput by 2h23mn (2685/2650 lux) (around 120/112 lumen estimated )
and about 20% after 3 hours (1010/1030 lux) (around 48/45 lumen estimated )

2600mah AW high quality battery
5450 Lux,  (Manufacturer lumen ratting of 225 lumens, but the higher lux reading would indicate an estimated 240+ lumens as advertised by some retailers)
Retaining 75% of its output after 2h30 (4270 lux) (around 180 lumens estimated )
50% of its output by 2h57mn (2725 lux) (around 120 lumen estimated)

Please note Lux reading have been taken at the beam centre  a meter away.

Output dropping very quickly after 3 hours and started flashing by 3h 14mn, 
ie the low voltage protection circuit was kicking in, the battery did show 2.8v on my volt meter.

You will note from the recorded data below that the R2 BVC like all "high output LED" lights, do produce quickly 
a lot of heat when run on full power, if held some of the heat will be absorbed by your hand, if cycling the flow of air will lower the temperature
 but if used as a candle light, I would advise to run it for short periods or at reduced outputs like 75%. 

So, the 3 hours runtime on high advertised by the manufacturer 
is achievable with an high quality 2600mah AW 3.7v Battery and the output will be higher for longer.

AW 2600mah Please note this is not a conventional button type battery, this type has a flat top on the positive side and 3 raised dots on the minus, so one must be careful when inserting the battery in the dark so not to reverse polarity, ie  the 3 dots must be facing the switch. (neg side) Battery supplied by www.flashaholics.co.uk

Using the flashlight

The battery (ies) are inserted by removing the tail cap, positive towards the head, the light switched on by a full press of the tail switch and the three preset modes by half pressing the switch again. 

Now unfortunately the set of operating instructions supplied by Jetbeam are  not correct, and will confuse the user has to the programming of the flashlight. 

After some very careful monitoring and testing of the flashlight programming, I have written the correct set of instruction for the ST R2 BVC  
and it works 100% every time with mine.

The ST R2 BVC has 3 modes : Mode A > Mode B > Mode C as in the instructions manual.

Now you can navigate between the 3 modes in two different ways by either half or full press of the rear clicky!

1) In off  mode >full press to get into <Mode A > half press < Mode B > half press <Mode C>full press Off

or

2) In off mode >full press to get into <Mode A > full press to switch off and if switch back on within 7 seconds you will enter the next mode (B) in this case. Follow the same process to access <Mode C> 

Please note, if the light is switch back on after 8 second, it will start automatically in mode A with what ever setting you have programmed in it.

Brightness setting;
Once in any of the 3 modes, you can access the IBS Infinitely variable Brightness Setting feature by a series of two steady half press, this will activate the ramping process which will start at 5% brightness increasing  to 100% brightness. The light will  blink twice at 50% brightness, and thrice at 100% brightness and then will start the sequence again. If you  turn the light off (full press) and leave it off for more than 8 seconds, the light will  memorise the  desired brightness levels. 

Special modes settings:
Once you are in the brightness ramping programming  mode (see above) by half  pressing the tail switch you will access the flash/strobe programming mode which will ramps from various speed flashes, beacon,  double blink to S.O.S then  will start the sequence again, to program one of the setting in your flashlight all you need to do is turn the light off (full press) and leave it off for more than 8 seconds.
Please note, the ramping time take a lot longer than the 8 seconds quoted in the instructions: mine take 20s from low to medium and 18s from medium to high. By counting the seconds between the two level of ramping you can accurately program your light to 25,50 or 75% brightness. 

Factory reset:
From the Special modes/ flashing programming (see above) you also have the option of a factory mode reset, to "low, high and strobe". To do this, you will need to half press the tail switch (the light will appear off) wait a couple of seconds then switch off by fully pressing the switch again and to leave it off for more than 8 seconds. 

So Next time you switch it on, you will be back to the factory settings: Mode A : low, Mode B: high, Mode C: flash.

Please note you can also enter the programming mode when the light is on by a series of six full clicks  (information thanks to "Curious character", flashaholic)

I have found the Jetbeam Instruction booklet in English not correct for mine  (# UK23101400026), and the Jetbeam statement of waiting for 2 seconds before switching back on, to allow for the chosen setting to be memorised by the flashlight is incorrect. 
You will have to wait a minimum of 8 seconds otherwise the Jetbeam will enter the next programming mode.  

Also their instruction of "lightly press on the tail cap button three times or more continuously within a second)" to access the programming mode does not appear to work correctly and will lead you to program not the mode you are into but the next mode. So would advise you to use my instructions above.  
Also, once switch on, you must make sure that you do not  navigate between the mode A, B and C too quickly, if you do, you may enter the programming mode inadvertently. 

Running time can vary a lot from one battery make to an other and are well illustrated by the differences achieved  with the two different Ultrafire 2400mah grey and the one AW 2600mah, all protected batteries.
I would recommend for safety, to only use fully protected 18650 cells and to avoid the non-protected one. Lithium battery should only be charged with lithium type battery charger and should be handle with care.

Charging
I have been using  the Ultrafire WF-139 2 cells/2 channels charger for over a year now with no problems  This type of charger can also 
recharge the Lithium 14500 3.7V AA type batteries if you invest later on in some of the little "Pocket Rockets" like the Nitecore D10 or others.
(Warning: remove batteries as soon as charged (green light) and do not charge standard 1.5v AA rechargeable batteries with this charger)

Is the Jetbeam III PRO ST R2 BVC,  the new light weight high power light that cyclist have been waiting for?  The answer could well be yes!  This winter (09), I have been looking for a high power/ long run time light to use on my bike as well as at home or while camping on holiday. I had a look at dedicated cycling lights like the "Hope 1 led" or the "Exposure Joystick",  both are very capable lights but too expensive and not versatile enough for my needs.  I came across the Jetbeam III PRO ST R2 BVC and it ticked all my boxes

High power:  225 lumens Various modes:  3 separates modes fully programmable with what ever brightness or flashing level required ideal for cycling Good run time:  3h approx on high, much longer time on reduced output Runs on batteries:   So that I can carry spares and not run out of light at the wrong time on an extended run Low battery warning:  The light will not stop working suddenly but the brightness will diminish gradually, giving plenty of time to change the battery Light and slim shape:  Only 148gr with a battery and small enough to be mounted on a cycle helmet or carried in a coat pocket Can tail stand:  So that I can use it as a candle light while camping Affordable:  This is not a cheap light by any means but this is cheaper that the "Hope 1" led or the "Exposure Joystick" This is a high quality and great looking light which will last you years!  Jetbeam has forged itself a name synonymous to quality and durability in the world of flashlight, this may be made in China, but this is top stuff. I have been using a small Jetbeam AA flashlights for over 3 years, it has many knocks and dents after being dropped many times, but it still works and is as good as on the first day. I use the Jetbeam  as a main light fitted to the handle bar by a "Twofish lockblocks" fitting  (also available from Flashaholics.co.uk) or has a helmet light see photos (this time using the parallel lockblocks).  In my mind the Jetbeam III PRO ST R2 BVC is a serious contender and a cheaper alternative to the " Hope 1" led or the "Exposure Joystick" both dedicated cycle lights  and both a more expensive that the Jetbeam.   This also make great helmet light due to it size, shape and weight  (lest than 150gr with an 18650 battery)  and you can also use it as an every day  carry light or camping flashlight.

Beam shots

	The camera has been position at about  25 foot away and about 3 foot high. The ST R2 BVC was put on my test rig and was showing 5250 lux when I got back,
Same shots of 50% and 100% taken at different camera speed, the SR R2 BVC is mounted on my cycle handle bar,  this is a very bright light and as you can see, if pointed towards the ground, it leaves a raw light patch.
Photos taken with Canon PowerShot 110IS to show beam pattern on the left at 1.6 second and on the right at 1/6 of a second

Please note that Jetbeam has released in the past various models of Jetbeam III ST PRO, 
they all look the same but do not operate or run for the same length of time as the ST R2 BVC in this review. 
Some of these models will only run on one 18650 battery with a max input voltage of 4.2v and due to LED internal regulation, 
they will switch off without prior warning when the battery voltage drop under a specific level, now for some users this will not be
 a problem but for a cyclist this can be potentially dangerous, so make sure you are getting a ST R2 BVC (UK specs), 
mine was obtained from www.flashaholics.co.uk

Copyrights 01/03/2010 None of the content on this review page should be copied in whole or in part without prior permission.