SureFire Flashlights?

[J Smith]

The G2 is nice but you can't really judge them on the lums.I have an E2L(best Surefire IMHO) and its light output 30 lums looks brighter to the eye because the human eye sees more of the light it puts out.

[spydermdz]

The G2 is nice but you can't really judge them on the lums.I have an E2L(best Surefire IMHO) and its light output 30 lums looks brighter to the eye because the human eye sees more of the light it puts out.

what do you mean, my brother from down the road in the great state of Tennessee!!!! :cool:

[Joe Talmadge]

I'm a Surefire fan, although I think prices have gone up enough on most models that you have to think twice about them. Price aside, my only real complaint is with the P60 lamps in the 2-cell incandescents (C2-Z2-G2 etc.). So many people have experienced these lamps breaking on very short drops or burning out quickly -- painful at >$15 a pop -- that I don't have much faith in them. I've had a few bad experiences with P60s myself.

That said, rumor had it the G2s didn't see the P60 breakage problems. People on CPF hypothesized that the polymer body had a little "give", enough to absorb some shock.

[J Smith]

From what I have read on it Lums measure to total light out put even the light the human eye can not see.
So it is possable for a 30 lum LED to seem brighter to the eye because it puts out more light visable the the eye.
I had a C2 and my E2L,both with new batteries on a white wall the E2L looked much brighter.

[Mariner]

hey guys, i wanting to get a SureFire light as an addition to my CCW rig... i am looking at this light, can anyone tell me about it? anyone got one of these? how bright are they???


http://www.surefire.com/maxexp/main/co_ ... /sesent/00

The G2 is a decent 2 X CR123A incandescent light, but I think that you might wish to consider a 6P, C2 or Z2 as an alternative. Each utilizes the same P60/61 lamp assemblies as the G2, but will give you more flexibility down the road. For example, you would then have the option to add an A19 or MC123 cell extender to make it a 3 X CR123A light, and utilize the P90/91 lamp assemblies if you wish. The new A19 and MC123 cell extenders will not work with the G2. With the cell extender, you would also have the option to utilize 2 X 17500 (protected) or 2 X Pila 300S rechargeables to enjoy lots of guilt-free lumens.

With or without a cell extender, you could acquire a KL3 (3 Watt) or KL5 (5 Watt) LED conversion head, and use rechargeables in lieu of primaries.

Just my $0.02.

[Mariner]

....rumor had it the G2s didn't see the P60 breakage problems. People on CPF hypothesized that the polymer body had a little "give", enough to absorb some shock.

May or may not be true Joe. I don't think that it's been conclusively shown one way or the other. As you are likely aware, the standard Z44 bezel on the P, C and Z series lights can be replaced by either a Z32 or "M2" shock-isolated bezel by us old farts prone to dropsy .

[JD Spydo]

Nobody here but me has a Surefire rechargable :confused: . Wow! I thought that those were the ones that everyone virtually went bunkers over. Surefire is constantly got all of their rechargables on back order. Which would indicate to me that they must be selling them as soon as they leave the assembly line. I have a friend who has been trying to get a 9an for some time with no luck because of the military back orders.

As far as small flashlights go I don't think I've ever had anything that compares to the Surefire E2d defender. Surefire's booth at the BLADE show was quite an attraction. Their knives are definitely going to be very competitive in the premium production knife arena.

I just can't get over that none of you have gotten one of their rechargables

[Joe Talmadge]

JD, odd thing is, my reading of the overall CPF reaction is that SF's rechargeables aren't all that competitive, especially for the price. I can't give you any more details, in fact people there seem to almost never talk about SF rechargeables anymore.

[Mariner]

I don't think that you should be too surprised JD. Check the relative number of threads on CPF that address, or even mention, SF's rechargeable incadescent lights or the L7. There are comparatively few. (BTW, I noticed your arrival on CPF a while back with your query concerning the short runtimes that you were experiencing with your 9AN using the B90.) SureFire's non-rechargeable lights are far more popular among flashaholics. Having said that, many of us use rechargeable batteries in them (where that is an option) and carry primaries as backup.

I also love my E2D although you don't want to carry that little sucker too frequently in a pocket unless your significant other is a very good seamstress (lol).

[Joe Talmadge]

The G2 is a decent 2 X CR123A incandescent light, but I think that you might wish to consider a 6P, C2 or Z2 as an alternative. Each utilizes the same P60/61 lamp assemblies as the G2, but will give you more flexibility down the road.

As Mariner pointed out in a post above, there are shock-isolated heads available, which I recommend if you plan to run the P60 lamp. Note that the M2 head adds considerable size to the package. I continue to think the P60 is unacceptable, and if I were looking for a 60-lumen 2-cell incandescent, I'd be looking at the G2 or the Z-series shock isolated head (M series shock-isolated head is too big for me), or I'd be looking at non-Surefires. Ironic, because the P60 is the lamp that built Surefire.

Joe

[J Smith]

I never really thought about getting a rechargable because of the run time on my E2L,3 hours max brightness 6 hours total.
I am still on my first set of batteries.The 123s have come down a good bit in price too if you know where to get them.I just got 10 Duracell ultras for 18.00.

[Mariner]

As Mariner pointed out in a post above, there are shock-isolated heads available, which I recommend if you plan to run the P60 lamp. Note that the M2 head adds considerable size to the package. I continue to think the P60 is unacceptable, and if I were looking for a 60-lumen 2-cell incandescent, I'd be looking at the G2 or the Z-series shock isolated head (M series shock-isolated head is too big for me), or I'd be looking at non-Surefires. Ironic, because the P60 is the lamp that built Surefire.

Joe

Personally, I don't run the P60 at all any more. You can essentially get the same output from an MN03 in an E2E or E2D which are much smaller lights as you know. In spydermdz's position, I would either go with a two-cell E-series light or make the jump to a three-cell light like the 9P, C3 or M3.

[Chucula]

I own an E2e and an M6. In case you didnt know, they are both fantastic lights. :p

The M6 really spews the light everywhere :D I will need to get a rechargeable pack on of these days though. 6 123A's for 20 minutes...woof

EDIT to Mariner: Nope didnt get the mn20 yet. The website i plan to buy from (tactical supply) does not have them in stock.

[Mariner]

....6 123A's for 20 minutes...woof

Did you not get your MN20 LOLA for the M6 yet?

[jimbo@stn24]

Forgive me if it has been mentioned, but to my knowledge the Surefire rechargables come with NiCad battery sticks which is somewhat old technology when compared to the nickle metal hydride and newer Li-ion batteries. Perhaps that explains why the Surefire rechargeables are not as popular as they could be. There are some models that Surefire has that take the newer tech and better performing rechargeable cells as well.

I don't think it will be much longer and you will see Surefire upgrade their own rechargeables to the newer types of cells.

[jimbo@stn24]

Forgive me if it has been mentioned, but to my knowledge the Surefire rechargables come with NiCad battery sticks which is somewhat old technology when compared to the nickle metal hydride and newer Li-ion batteries. Perhaps that explains why the Surefire rechargeables are not as popular as they could be. There are some models that Surefire has that take the newer tech and better performing rechargeable cells as well as Mariner has mentioned.

I don't think it will be much longer and you will see Surefire upgrade their own rechargeables to the newer types of cells.

[JD Spydo]

I don't think that you should be too surprised JD. Check the relative number of threads on CPF that address, or even mention, SF's rechargeable incadescent lights or the L7. There are comparatively few. (BTW, I noticed your arrival on CPF a while back with your query concerning the short runtimes that you were experiencing with your 9AN using the B90.) SureFire's non-rechargeable lights are far more popular among flashaholics. Having said that, many of us use rechargeable batteries in them (where that is an option) and carry primaries as backup.

I also love my E2D although you don't want to carry that little sucker too frequently in a pocket unless your significant other is a very good seamstress (lol).

Well I got some newer battery sticks which helped that problem out immensely that I spoke on CPF. And as far as what I put on CPF I don't remember having any other gripe other than that and that problem got remedied. Wow that has been quite a while back too :rolleyes: . But that L7 with the LED set up is great. When I am in a camp out situation up in the wetlands I can stay up for 3 to 4 hours reading without going through my batteries. Those LED lights seem to be very good at not draining batteries so quickly.

Also as much as I use my flashlights and with the recent price spike in the 123A batteries I would spending $20 to $30 a week in batteries if I only used the hrow away battery units. But that 9P with the high lumen bulb is really nice. With a 3 battery unit you can get 200 lumens for about 30 minutes which ain't bad. There probably are better flashlights to be had but the Customer Service I've gotten from Surefire along with all the stuff they have replaced for me for free and coupled with the fact that they are made here in the USA I will stick to Surefire for the time being. Albeit I can see why someone wouldn't want a rechargable because all of us have different needs in that area. I would like to know a good source for Duracell ULTRA 123A batteries because they are the very best I've ever used. JD

[Jimd]

I own an E2e with KL-1 LED head, and it throws a decent amount of light and the batteries last a looong time. Also have a Z3 Combatlight, which, as Hannibal pointed out, totally ruins your vision at night for several minutes. Good for impact striking devices, too!

Surefires are pricey, but they do one thing better than any flashlight I've used...they last! I've carried both these lights on duty for the past several years, banged them around, dropped them, even been tackled by over a dozen people during a fight, and no breakage at all! Never even broke a light bulb.

If you're looking for a light that your life will depend on, then get a Surefire.

I also received a light recently that a friend sent to me. It's made by Civictor (V1, 1W LED) that has a Luxeon LED, and is powered by one AA battery. I've had this light for 3 or 4 weeks now, and use it every day. It's as bright as when I got it, and I'm still on the same battery! It's small and made from aluminum, and seems pretty durable. Also, it throws out an impressive amount of light for such a little thing.
They can be had here: http://www.lighthound.com

[Jimd]

Surefire sells a dozen 123 batteries for $15. Kinda hard to beat the price, that's only about $1.25 per battery. Considering their very long shelf life (I've tested this out, it's true), that's not bad.

[Vincent]

Battery station has Duracell Ultras for like $2 a piece, with a cpf discount which is a super good deal.

not that the surefires are not good, I just have no idea who makes them which in turn makes me reluctant.

How are your experiences