Surefire 8ax

[strideredc]

Picked this up a while back for £50 in the UK! direct from a shop that sold surefire lights years ago.....its been in a store or on a shelf for many many years... totally unused!

Too nice to use but you wouldn't belive it? the nicads work fine! charged them up and they were ready to go. Not tested them properly as I have no reason to other than interest.

I think these rechargeable lights are the unforgoten hero's in the surefire line...

I have had the 8xn for ages with a 18650 and now a lumens factory 3 mode dropin.

it's on my wife's bedside table, she said why do I have to have that crap light! she uses the q8 sonfrin for walking the dog 🐕 at night and yes uses the full 5000lm! I am constantly recharging the 18650 cells!

 

[bykfixer]

It seems the rechargeable lineup was not big sellers at all hence the lack of replacement batteries.
Good score!!

 

[thermal guy]

Yes I went to lumens factory and use there 18650 battery adapter for my 9AX. Works great

 

[Olumin]

Cant talk about the AX, but the 9N & 9AN are definitely two of the coolest incandescent flashlights ever made. The battery sticks are pretty easy to build yourself from some sub-c NiMH's and a wrapper. I slide my cells into a paper tube to be able to charge them separately. I did the same with my Ultrastinger, although here you have to reattach the proprietary contact strips. I don't really trust these older fast/smart chargers, as there were set up for NiCad and lower capacity cells.

 

[ampdude]

I use an 18650 adapter for my 9N's made by a forum member here. I wish I had never got rid of my 9AN's. I have a lot of spare bulbs for the 9N/9AN, so the free lumens are fun. The output is nicer on the 18650. The Surefire chargers that came with the lights were good, but I always considered the old Ni-Cad batteries a bit of a joke.

The newer NIMH replacements are even worse IMO. Don't hold a charge for very long of a time and wear out much faster than the old Ni-Cads so you can't depend on them at all. At least the Ni-Cads would still work a couple months after you charged them and lasted for years.

 

[Monocrom]

I actually forgot I still have my old 9AN put away in storage. Never used it though. Had bad luck with rechargeable lights of various types 20 years ago. Thankfully the technology has now gotten to the point where rechargeable batteries and the chargers themselves as just as reliable as primary batteries.

 

[thermal guy]

lumens factory has an adapter for them thats what I use in mine. It is a cool light

 

[Roger Sully]

Lumens Factory LED dropins are great! I use the 3mode drop in on my 8Ax when I walk my dogs.

 

[ampdude]

I actually forgot I still have my old 9AN put away in storage. Never used it though. Had bad luck with rechargeable lights of various types 20 years ago. Thankfully the technology has now gotten to the point where rechargeable batteries and the chargers themselves as just as reliable as primary batteries.

It is pretty much, but for extreme conditions, like extreme cold especially, I still prefer lithium primaries. And actually use them most of the time when I don't even need to. They're not that expensive now and haven't been for awhile. And I like to keep at least a small stock around for emergencies. You never know these days. If you can get a Surefire 72 pack of CR123A's or a couple boxes of Energizer AA lithiums they will last a long time. I know some people will not like this opinion, but I've never been a fan of the 8X/8AX lights. I don't like the spring design.

They look really cool otherwise. And the low incan light on the 9N/9AN is pretty much garbage. It's the high output lamp I'm all about. But they had to do what they had to do back then to make a two level incan light. Pretty amazing if you consider it.

 

[Monocrom]

It is pretty much, but for extreme conditions, like extreme cold especially, I still prefer lithium primaries. And actually use them most of the time when I don't even need to. They're not that expensive now and haven't been for awhile. And I like to keep at least a small stock around for emergencies. You never know these days....

Oh I definitely keep several lithium primaries around as well. Like you said, you never know.

 

[soldonsurefire]

I just found this thread.

The OP was one lucky dude.LOL

 

[NotRegulated]

I will second the Lumens Factory 8X-LED module and 18650 battery adaptor with McClicky Switch to revive the old 8 series Surefire flashlights.

Having used them for years, I am very found of the 8NX's size, feel and operation. I have upgraded my 8NX's with these Lumen Factory products.

The original operation was a momentary tailcap switch and twist the bezel for constant on. Now it is much more reliable with the 18650 in the battery adaptor which also provides a clicky tailcap.