Thrunite Catapult Mini Flashlight Review
I never thought I would be the type to geek out over a flashlight. But these days, I feel a little flurry of excitement and anticipation each time the mailman arrives. Today he brought my latest purchase, the Thrunite Catapult Mini Flashlight, which I’ve been excited to try out for some time.
The Thrunite Catapult Mini is a great little light for tactical and outdoor use. It’s tough, beautifully designed and powerful, not to mention user-friendly. It’s just what I want in a flashlight.
Thrunite Catapult Mini: First Impressions
The Catapult Mini comes in two colors: black and metal grey. I got the metal grey, and it has a pleasantly smooth anodized finish to its aero-grade aluminum alloy casing. It has a Osram KW.CSLNM1.TG LED, which throws a beautifully clean, flat white light.
The Thrunite Catapult Mini is a bit too big for what I would consider an EDC flashlight. It’s something I foresee using more for camping and hiking trips, and it’s a favorite of law enforcement and emergency responders for good reason.
I could see keeping one of these in my hiking pack, or in the glove box of my car. My wife mentioned that it would be the perfect size to carry in her purse in case she ever needed it. The flashlight is about 3.2 inches long and 1.3 inches wide, which is quite petite even if it’s a tad large to be comfortably pocketable.
Specs and Stats
The Thrunite Catapult Mini operates by use of a thumb button, allowing easy one-handed use. The button also includes a battery indicator light, letting you know how much juice is left in the tank.
Speaking of batteries, the Catapult mini runs on a single high capacity 18350 rechargeable lithium-ion battery, which comes included with the flashlight. A USB port is built into the collar of the flashlight opposite the thumb button, allowing you to plug and charge the Catapult without removing the battery (the USB charging cable is also included).
I go back and forth between preferring rechargeable batteries and traditional alkaline batteries in my flashlights. I tend to lean toward the former for outdoor use, simply because a place to plug in isn’t always handy in the backcountry. But I’ll make an exception for this one, largely because of the impressive runtime a charge gives you on each of the Thrunite’s six output modes:
- Turbo (680 Lumens): 70 minutes
- High (235 Lumens): 80 minutes
- Medium (96 lumens): 4 hours
- Low (21 Lumens): 12 hours
- Firefly (0.5 Lumens): 106 hours
- Strobe (680 Lumens): 30 minutes
The anodized aluminum alloy used to make the Thrunite is clearly top quality, and all the moving parts of the flashlight screw and un-screw smoothly. The spring inside the tail cap is adequately “springy,” and the threading is finely detailed enough that I can’t imagine cross-threading and damaging it. I love the attention to detail.
O-rings are also provided at each of the three separation points, making the Thrunite adequately waterproof (it has an IPX-8 rating, which indicates waterproofness at a depth of 2 meters). In addition to the USB cable, a couple extra O-rings and a lanyard are included.
The Thrunite in Use
I tend to favor flashlights with just one or two light modes, but I found clicking through the Thrunite’s numerous output modes surprisingly intuitive. Holding the button down with your thumb will cycle it through Low, Medium and High, making it easy to choose the right mode for the task at hand. Firefly, Turbo and Strobe are equally easy to access.
This thing has fantastic throw, reaching a max of nearly 600 meters on Turbo. It’s great to have handy at your campsite, or even for finding your way around the basement or your yard after dark. I took it hiking and found it to be an able trail guide at night.
At first I was concerned that the light could easily be turned on by mistake inside my backpack, wearing out the battery. But it has a handy lock mode to keep that from happening. Simply click the thumb button four times from the Off position, and the light will be locked out until you click it an additional four times.
Final Thoughts on the Thrunite Catapult Mini
The Thrunite Catapult Mini is a really top-notch mini flashlight, with a brilliant flat white light courtesy of its Osram LED. It offers great battery life, and is quick and easy to recharge via the included USB cable.
And it’s hard to explain, but this flashlight just feels good. It has that indefinable quality that lets you know you’re working with a great piece of equipment.
Although the Thrunite Catapult Mini is, for me at least, a little bulky for everyday carry, it’s a great flashlight for a host of other uses. It’s great for hiking, camping and hunting trips, and it’s a perfect little light to keep in your basement, garage or car in case you ever need it. The Catapult Mini will, inevitably, come in handy.
Blair Witkowski is an avid watch nut, loves pocket knives and flashlights, and when he is not trying to be a good dad to his nine kids, you will find him running or posting pics on Instagram. Besides writing articles for Tech Writer EDC he is also the founder of Lowcountry Style & Living. In addition to writing, he is focused on improving his client’s websites for his other passion, Search Engine Optimization. His wife Jennifer and he live in coastal South Carolina.
