Surefire Cree 6P 9P

I see that there is an incandescent and an LED version of the 6P.
Is the LED version of the 6P a Cree LED?

The 6P original can last for 60 minutes (battery life).
Does anyone know how the battery life will be affected if I were to use a Cree Drop-in from LightHound http://www.lighthound.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=2605

Would it be as near the 11hours of the 6P LED version?
Would a 9P with a Cree dropin (3X CR123:9.0V) be significantly brighter than a 6P with Cree dropin (2XCR123:6.0V)?
Would the 9P with a Cree dropin last significantly longer than 60 minutes (Original incandescent 9P says 60 minutes battery life)
Thanks.
edit: Does anyone know what the difference is between a 6P and a G2? They seem the same. Which would you rather have, given the price difference, 6P or G2?

OK, you might benefit from reading some of the other current threads on this topic. Here's one:

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/170143

I'll try to answer some of your questions based on what I've read.

1) The New 6P LED has a Seoul emitter.

2) Just about any LED drop-in (Cree or otherwise) will beat the P60 incan bulb in the original 6P in terms of runtime (and of course brightness) as far as I know. The exact runtime and discharge curve depend on the combination of battery and drop-in.

3) The 6P LED will probably run only a few hours at full, constant brightness and then 9 or so hours at diminishing brightness. At this point nobody's tested this though because the light is so new.

4) I think the advantage of a 9P over a 6P is runtime only *with respect to your LED drop-in.* A given drop-in will be no brighter in a 9P than in a 6P, assuming it can run in both (not all can).

5) It's probably safe to assume that a 9P running the SF LED drop-in that comes with the 6P LED would last significantly longer than 60 minutes. I'm guessing it would run 3 hours at full brightness.

6) The G2 is just the plastic (nitrolon) version of the 6P. I prefer the G2 because it's cheaper and more durable, but you might go with the metal 6P if you're going to be running the light for a long time continuously. Metal gets rid of heat better.

Hope that helps...

One thing is that the new P60LED module is a drop in LED replacement for the incandescent P60 and it will eventually become available. This LED drop out according to surefire's ratings will run 12 hours in the 6P and 11 in the G2.

Thanks for the helpful information.

Can anyone confirm that the 9P with 3xCR123(9.0V) will be the SAME brightness as the 6P with a Cree dropin using 2xCR123(6.0V), except have longer runtime.

Or whether it will be BRIGHTER than the 6P?

On the SureFire website, the 9P-original is brighter (105lumens/60minutes) than the 6P-original(65lumens/60minutes), and has the same run time.

This is really bugging my mind. Help appreciated.
Am I obsessed with flashlights? :sick2::thinking::thinking::thinking:

Grun said:

Thanks for the helpful information.

On the SureFire website, the 9P-original is brighter (105lumens/60minutes) than the 6P-original(65lumens/60minutes), and has the same run time.

This is really bugging my mind. Help appreciated.
Am I obsessed with flashlights? :sick2::thinking::thinking::thinking:

Click to expand...

Well one source of confusion might be that the 6P is sold with a P60 bulb (or P61 for high output) while the 9P is sold with a P90 bulb (or P91 for high output). It's the different bulb in the 9P--rather than the extra battery alone--that's responsible for the 9P's relative brightness.

Grun said:

Thanks for the helpful information.

Can anyone confirm that the 9P with 3xCR123(9.0V) will be the SAME brightness as the 6P with a Cree dropin using 2xCR123(6.0V), except have longer runtime.

Or whether it will be BRIGHTER than the 6P?

On the SureFire website, the 9P-original is brighter (105lumens/60minutes) than the 6P-original(65lumens/60minutes), and has the same run time.

This is really bugging my mind. Help appreciated.
Am I obsessed with flashlights? :sick2::thinking::thinking::thinking:

Click to expand...

Because the same drop-in is used in both the 6P and the 9P, having an extra cell in the 9P will not make it brighter. This is because there is a regulator board that controls the voltage (and thereby the current) that flows through the led to allow it to work at its optimum level.

This is unlike the incandescent versions where the bulbs are direct-driven and a higher voltage bulb is used to take advantage of the higher voltage of 3 cells instead of 2.

So if there is such a thing as a direct drive Cree dropin, then 9.0V would make it brighter?
Does such a thing exist?

Direct drive would kill a Cree with even 2x123. There has to be a current regulator for these LEDs when you get past a single Li-ion rechargeable, and even that can overdrive an LED if it has a low forward voltage(which the Seouls I've seen advertised do-haven't read up on the Crees).
You could certainly up the current to the LED, and still have the same or better runtime with 3 cells vs. 2, but it would require a different circuit.

I just ordered a Wolf Eyes Cree 3.7-6V D26 with 4 modes today, for use in a bored out C2 w/1x18650.
I'd be interested in seeing how the SF P60LED compares to its high mode, and how both compare to various incandescents, as I've been wondering if the newer LEDs available would give me enough output to use at work in place of an incan...

Grun said:

So if there is such a thing as a direct drive Cree dropin, then 9.0V would make it brighter?
Does such a thing exist?

Click to expand...

Crees come in different bins with different voltage ratings, typically ranging from 3.2v to 3.8v - so, yes, you can certainly direct drive a Cree if it's the correct rating. Since the range is quite restricted, you can only direct drive a Cree with a single LiIon. In fact, many of the cheapest Cree lights are often direct-driven to save on the cost of a regulator board. While direct driving is more efficient, you will not have the benefit of a constant level of light.