Thinking About Getting My First Surefire but Hesitating

[Lone Eagle]

Go ahead and get the SF. I do know very well the feeling, it is an addiction and I do see a cure in my case. It is enjoyable nevertheless. Although a "noobe" to CPF, I have been reading posts for past few years. Knock yourself out and enjoy!!

 

[StandardBattery]

While a 6PL would not do a thing for me, an E2DL might have busted me out of the lowcost lights. The best thing about the 6P is being able to get 3rdParty dropins, so the 6PL is even less exciting than a 6P to me.

There is nothing wrong with the lower cost or budget lights, Fenix got me hooked and that's still on the low end. If your lights produce a nice beam and continue to function they can still be useful. My $6 MicroStream is a very nice light. I have a 4 color LedLenser, and a 15LED $5 light I use for travel.

If you want a nice light get a NovaTac. The SF E1B seems over priced, but I do like it. The ED2L is quite impressive, and I think it's impressive enough to make you appreciate the difference in quality. However everyone is different and if one can be happy with the lower cost options, I'm not sure that's a bad thing. The intangeables in any item or hobby can be quite individualized.

 

[Big_Ed]

Go for the E2DL. Bright when you want it, and a low that'll save the batteries when you just need a little light. You won't regret it. And search around for a good online dealer to buy it from. Many of them offer free batteries with the lights. I bought mine from LAPolicegear and they threw in 10 or 12(can't remember exactly how many) free US-Made Battery Station 123's in addition to the ones installed at the factory.

 

[Ajay]

Ajay, you mentioned the Jetbeam. I've read a lot about them here and I know there are Jetbeam enthusiasts but would you trust it over a Surefire? If not, what flashlights would you trust "as much" as a Surefire?

And to the other poster, you're right, I do like Clickys but I understand the clicky tends to have higher failure... ???

Liquid, I don't own any Jetbeam lights but just from surefire's reputation I would trust their lights over all else. From what I read here at CPF the z41 twisty is just a piece of metal that closes the circuit to light the LED so it's much more reliable than any switch but SF clickies are the best in the business.....so I read on CPF.

Ajay, no offense, but your 6p isn't really a surefire light anymore. It seems like all you have from the original 6p is the head. If you replace the body with an 18650 body and get a cheap chinese dropin, you no longer have a "surefire." If I was going to do that, I would just get the solarforce and save some money. In my opinion, buying a light that you know is not adequate (that will need to be upgraded to a more current dropin, like the 6p) is not a good use of money.

No offense taken. I completely understand your point. I would never buy any surefire lights simply because of the 123A cells they use. I find wasting money on non-rechargeable cells...well.....a waste. Unless I ever work in a very very cold environment or in a military/law enforcement situation I will never need 123A cells. I stick to AA or 18650.
I got the 6p to see/feel the quality of a surefire. I know it is no longer a surefire in terms of reliability but it will exceed SF in performance (my OP). I just needed to know what all the hype was about but I still need to have a practical light for my purposes. I do hate the fact that I have a SF but I will never trust it like a stock SF light. Too bad, but it's a trade off I can live with.

If you want a nice light get a NovaTac..

Now back to the topic at hand. I love the specs/features/reputation/look of the novatac lights so +1 for novatac. But I don't own one.

Liquid as with any outdoors/caving scenario make sure you have at least 2 backup lights. No light is 100% fail proof...not even SF.

Check out the Novatac lights, they are releasing a AA model soon:
http://www.lapolicegear.com/nova-tac-classic-led-flashlight.html

CPF post:
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/209507

 

[TKC]

A wise person once said: "Buy the best you can afford." I say get the SF!!

 

[kramer5150]

My thoughts...

If you are merely looking for an illumination tool, skip the 6P since you already have a solarforce, especially if your solar is an 18650 variety. It is nice to own a surefire just for the fanatical fun of it, but as an illumination tool I don't think it will instantly obsolete a solarforce or AA powered fenix. I do not believe the 6P is all that much superior to the L2. IMHO the 18650 L2 is superior to the 6P, with the right high current drop in module. I think the only superiority the 6P has is its bomb-proof switch design, which I think is more durable and reliable than a click-type switch.

The flip side of it is, you will never really know or understand Surefire ownership until you own one and use one on a daily basis. Perhaps the "mystique", aura and fanaticism is something you favor? You'll never know without first hand ownership.

FWIW... I have a 6P and M2 and neither have made my Romisen lights obsolete. I just bought an ultrafire WF-503B and prefer it to my 6P, on the job inspecting Cisco ISP equipment. Despite the overwhelming fan-fare, I have always believed Surefire designs are good at what they do well, and bad at what they don't. I don't think any light, surefire or otherwise is perfect and without flaws... at least I have yet to find one.

 

[PetaBread]

No light is 100% fail proof...not even SF.

Are you 100% sure or just guessing?


EDIT: You have no facts to backup your claim, so why say it?

 

[kland1234]

Do it.

Buy the Surefire and use your other lights as emergency lights. Put them in your car, in different rooms of your house, and in your emergency kits (at least until they are also replaced with more expensive lights :duh2.

I agree, I was the same way, I wasn't sure what the SF hype was about, now I have waay to many Surefires! Love them all, now I toss the cheapies in the car and tool bag, and use the heck out of my SF's! Great lights!

 

[kramer5150]

Are you 100% sure or just guessing?


EDIT: You have no facts to backup your claim, so why say it?

I describe the SFZ41 as being bomb proof in my post above, and I do believe the switch mechanics would require quite a bit of impact or crush force to induce failure... but that's mere speculation on my part.

I had a bunch of lube gunked up inside my Z41-M2 and it made the light flicker. So I think there are certain things that can get them to fail, hence they are not 100%.

 

[Strauss]

I say go for the E2DL. Out of all the lights I have owned, it's one of my favorites because of it's output-size-runtime characteristics. I think you would feel the same way, and it would be ~$150 well spent.

I have many other 2-cell lights that compare with the E2DL, but the Surefire is the one I carry most of the time. One of the main reasons is due to it's small size for being a 2xCR123 light. Couple that with the fact that it throws a county mile, AND has a nicely placed low mode makes it end up in my pocket.

Grab an F04 diffuser for a nice floody option thats easily removed to unleash the beast.

 

[Mjolnir]

Nothing can be 100% failproof. No matter who makes something, there is always a chance it can fail. If you compiled the statistics about switch failures of surefire lights and that of another brand (like fenix or jetbeam), the surefire rates would probably not be all that much lower than the other brand. It would be interesting to see a study like this, but it probably isn't practical.

 

[PetaBread]

I just don't believe alot of what people say until the research is done.

Anyways, to me thinking about when or how a light will fail before making

a purchase is not the right mind set.

I go camping a lot and hiking in the woods so I'd need a good amount of flood with longer runtimes (hope for 4 hours minimum).

If your willing to sacrifice some lumens for extra runtime, the E1L would be

a good choice.


Just my .02 :tired:

 

[fairway1]

Skip the Surefire and get a RA Clicky. The EDC-E can be had for $99.00.

 

[PetaBread]

Skip the Surefire and get a RA Clicky. The EDC-E can be had for $99.00.

I was going to suggest the same thing, but :tinfoil:. I recommend looking

through the "New Ra Lights products" thread, if the OP hasn't already.

Again, just my .02 :duh2:

 

[Ajay]

Are you 100% sure or just guessing?


EDIT: You have no facts to backup your claim, so why say it?

You can't be serious....everything will fail....eventually. Even our Sun will fail one day much less a mechanical part made by man.

I don't think further explanation is needed.:duh2:

 

[Mjolnir]

I think he needs to read a little about "entropy" in wikipedia...
Or, possibly Murphy's law.

 

[GPB]

I've only got 2 surefires, so I'm no expert, but I still like a lot of my "cheap" lights. Some have sentimental value, some are useful just because they're cheap. I'm not giving my 7 year old a $150 flashlight to run around the yard with....but I love that he's excited about lights....and to him an Engergizer light is great. Around the house I always use an AA light so I can use rechargeables. You'll find different lights for different uses, or just feel like rotating them from time to time.

The G2L doesn't get a lot of love around here, but performance-wise it's similar to the 6PL and would give you a different look/feel than your Solarforce. It's also lighter, easier to hold in the cold weather, and less expensive.

 

[PetaBread]

You can't be serious....everything will fail....eventually. Even our Sun will fail one day much less a mechanical part made by man.

I am serious, and I'm sure we'll both be dead before that happens.

I think he needs to read a little about "entropy" in wikipedia...
Or, possibly Murphy's law.

:sigh:

Agree to disagree, let's move on.

Back to topic:

OP, Which Surefire are you most interested in? Updates?

 

[270winchester]

seeing how the reputable import lights are getting to be around 70 to 100 dollars, there is even less incentive to not buy a domestically made one.

 

[Liquidspaceman]

E2DL looks good to me.

Not sure if I'm going to get it but that's where I'm leaning towards.