The torches called "Thrower" are certainly the ones that allow us to amaze a friend when we turn them on in the dark. Owning one is like having a gigantic Star Wars lightsaber with which we can cut through the darkness of the night. These lights are characterized by extremely concentrated and extremely powerful beams generated by latest generation LEDs typically with extremely small surfaces per square millimeter coupled with smooth and deep parabolas of exorbitant dimensions. On the market there are throwers powered by single 18650, 21700 and even 26650 cells but to achieve high power and efficiency characteristics, flashlights are also made with more performing battery packs capable of supplying the necessary power to the LEDs to be able to be pushed up to their limit it is able to guarantee very high usage runtimes. These are multi-cell LED thrower torches, typically powered by 4 or 8 18650/21700 cells in series or in parallel with each other and which form high-performance and powerful battery packs. The fields of application of these lights can be varied: for example they are commonly used by the police for search and rescue operations, but they can also be used in the military or for long-distance hunting. They are often very heavy and bulky torches equipped with a single LED and in some cases with arrays of LEDs. But the characteristic that almost all of them have in common is the enormous head and the deep parable they possess. Among all the multi-cell throwers on sale, some models stand out that stand out both for the power of their light beam but above all for the incredible maximum distance they can reach. These are flashlights with a maximum light intensity exceeding one million candles which translates into maximum ranges of over 1km and which in some cases even exceed 2km. Below is a description of the most powerful in the world:

The Astrolux MF04

Also found in stores under the name of the Mateminco MT35 Plus is one of the cheapest long-range, multi-cell powered flashlights and often sells for under $200. This light was born in 2018 and was the first flashlight to surpass the very powerful BLF GT made by Lumintop by a good margin of difference. Astrolux of the MF04 version also produces a version called MF04S which has an even greater power than the basic MF04 but which reaches a slightly shorter distance. The Astrolux MF04 has a maximum beam distance of 2400 meters /2.4km and a maximum luminous intensity of 1460000 candelas / 1.46Mcd while the maximum luminous flux is 2700 lumens. It is equipped with a CREE XHP35 Hi type LED. This type of LED having an extremely small surface if coupled with deep and smooth reflectors like those of the MF04 produce a beam with proper shooting characteristics. This light is powered by 4 rechargeable 18650 cells which are not included in the package. Bundled with the torch comes a nylon shoulder strap for transport and a wrist lanyard. Care must be taken as to which batteries are used with this light as batteries that are too long may not fit properly. Furthermore, batteries with the positive pole having the button and not flat batteries must be used.

BLF GT94 Lumintop

Torch capable of producing a beam of 2450 meters or 1.5 miles with a maximum luminous intensity of 1500000 candles and a maximum luminous flux at Turbo of 20000 lumens. This light features 4 Luminus SBT90.2 LEDs and uses an open-source NarsilM v1.3 driver adapted by Texas_Ace for its user interface. The power supply is given by 8 18650 button-top cells in 4S2P configuration. The reflector is 118 mm of aluminum and with a smooth finish, while the lens has an anti-reflection treatment and is made of mineral glass. The torch body is made of Type III hard anodized aluminum. There is also a ¼ tripod socket. The dimensions of this light are 135mm Ø head x 318mm length x 56mm Ø tube while the weight is 2.6kg without batteries.

Acebeam K75

This light is equipped with the new SBT90.2 LED capable of producing over 6300 lumens with a maximum light intensity of 1,562,500 cd corresponding to approximately 2.5km of maximum reachable distance. Power is supplied by 4 18650 cells that the company usually supplies bundled with the flashlight. The dimensions of this light are 218 mm in length, 126 mm in the diameter of the head, 4 mm in the thickness of the glass and 50 mm in the diameter of the body, while the weight including battery and carrying handle is 1136 g. The body of this light has dissipation fins both on the head and near the switch. On the body there is a deep knurling which improves the grip and guarantees a perfect grip in any condition. The tail is not flat but with a little attention the light can still be used in tailstanding. The interface management switch is metallic, very responsive and easy to find even if you are in total darkness or if you are using rather thick gloves. On the opposite side of the switch there is an LED indicator that provides the user with information on the status of the remaining capacity of the cells.

Lumintop GT90

Flashlight equipped with a single Luminus SBT-90 gen2 LED capable of delivering a beam of 5500 lumens with a maximum distance reached of 2700 meters / 2.7 km and a maximum light intensity of 1,850,000 / 1.85Mcd. It can be powered by 4 or 8 18650 batteries according to the extender tube that is used (in 4S1P or 8S1P configuration). The user interface has 3 different groups of modes: By default the GT90 is set to use the very intuitive Narsil smooth RAMPING UI. Instant access to a 2.5 A TURBO mode is also provided, A more conventional discrete level MODE-SET UI is available as an alternative. Anyone of 12 pre-defined mode-sets can be selected, MOMENTARY mode is useful for signaling purposes or rapidly/briefly lighting up targets. The dimensions of the reflector are 118 mm, the dimensions of the flashlight are 135 mm Ø diameter head x 315 mm length while the weight is 1.8 kg without cells.

Astrolux MF05

Torch with an incredible range, in fact its beam reaches a maximum distance of 3162 meters with a maximum luminous intensity of 2,500,000 candles and a luminous power of 7500 lumens. The Astrolux MF05 has a gigantic head with a maximum diameter of about 16 cm. On the head there are a multitude of dissipation fins which allow the heat produced to be effectively dispersed. This light uses the small and powerful Luminus SBT-90 gen2 LED as an emitter while power is supplied by 8 18650 cells. The reflector is made of aluminum, smooth mirror polished and very deep. The perfect combination of deep reflector and LED with a very small surface, produces a highly directional and highly focused beam that allows lighting from a great distance as if it were a LASER beam.

There are 6 output modes to satisfy any need and the user interface is simple and intuitive. The Astrolux MF05 is also sold as Mateminco MT90 Plus. With this torch, a particular carrying handle is also sold which has a powerful fan powered by a 21700 cell inside capable of forcibly pushing a powerful flow of air against the head of the light thus managing to effectively dissipate the heat produced by the LED when it is switched on at the highest output level. This flashlight is really very heavy in fact its weight is 3.4kg. However, the package includes a practical carrying strap with which it is possible to keep the torch resting on one shoulder, making its use even more comfortable. Its length is 42.6cm while the diameter of the head is 16cm.

Thrunite TN42 v2:

This light mounts the SBT90.2 LED therefore an emitter with a very small surface and ideal for producing a shooting beam. Its dimensions are 190 mm in length by 105 mm in diameter of the head and 57 mm in diameter of the body while the weight is 648 grams excluding battery. This light is powered by 4 21700 lithium ion cells which allow it to release a light beam of 4848 lumens at the Turbo and able to reach a distance of 1860 m with a maximum light intensity of 864000 candles. This light is water resistant to IPX8 standard so it is submersible up to 2 meters deep and is impact resistant up to 1.5 meters high. The user interface is very simple and managed entirely by the single side switch on the torch. Below the switch there is also an LED indicator that provides the user with information on the remaining battery status. Supplied with the light comes 4 x 4000mAh rechargeable 21700 Li-ion cells, a Type-C charging cable, charging power supply, spare o-rings, spare rubber caps for the type-c port, spare for the switch, nylon strap for carrying.

Thrower torches are lights born and made to reach great distances. There are dozens on the market but those with multi batteries are certainly the most interesting because they allow you to reach very high powers but above all they allow really high runtimes. In fact, they are usually powered by battery packs made up of 3 or 4 cells of the 21700 or 18650 type, which can be configured either in series or in parallel with each other. The LEDs used on these lights are often very small in terms of surface area and the head of the light is usually very large because it has to accommodate a large and deep reflector. As we have seen from the article, multi-battery throwers are very large and very heavy but extremely powerful and efficient: they can reach very long distances that were unthinkable until a few years ago.