4sevens Maelstrom G5 Review (Real OTF Lumen's, Beamshots, Youtube Video)

[ti-force]

Very nice review.

Thanks .

For a beginner in this new and exiting field it is pretty hard to get reliable product information. LED lights are for example advertized as 900 lumens, when they are really more like 200 lumens. I would therefore like to thank you all, and CPF, for your valued input and info.

:welcome: And thanks for the kind words; I'm sure everyone appreciates that.

It would be nice to have a "most read" and "most active" info on the CPF web site in order to know what the buzz is at the moment for those who are not frequent readers.

We encourage you to hang around frequently and get sucked in like the rest of us. Misery loves company you know 😀. j/k, but once you really get sucked in, you'll be hanging out pretty often.

I am looking for a replacement for my trusted Fenix TK11, used mostly as a weapon light. The replacement should hopefully be of similar size but double the output. Size and weight are an issue but so is also the light output. The Maelstrom looks promising, especially the s12.

I think the S12 will be larger in diameter. I don't know if that matters to you or not.

The discussions on CPF can be confusing for beginners.

It can be confusing at first. There's a LOT of info on this forum, and it takes time to learn the ropes (again, this is why we encourage you to hang around more 😀).

Take this discussion as an example, The Tiablo A9 has a higher lux rating than the G5 both at 5 and 1 meter. But it is obvious from the pictures that it has much lower output. It would have been nice to have the lumens for comparison.

Ask and you shall receive 😀:

Tiablo A9 XR-E Q5 SMO (smooth) Reflector OTF lumens:

2- CR123 Lithium Primaries:

1 sec__________186.7
30 sec__________178.2
1 min___________178.2
2 min___________175.8
3 min___________175.8


Lux readings are taken to show the amount of light hitting the area of a surface. My light meter has a sensor that's about 3/4" in diameter, so the light that puts the most light on the sensor will have the highest lux reading. The high lux numbers are mostly due to light being focused tighter (reflector design, size of emitter die, emitter design, aspheric lenses etc. The tighter you focus the light , the more light you have hitting the surface area of the sensor. Think of it like a water hose with a nozzle on it; if you adjust the nozzle to the point where all you have is water spraying out everywhere in front of you, you won't be able to spray water very far because it's not in a tight stream.

If you adjust the nozzle to spray a tight pattern, you have a tight stream of water that can reach 15...20ft or so. Does that make sense? Also, a light that produces more lumens will cause the lux numbers to go up (think spigot barely turned on vs turned all the way on), this is one reason why it's best to take lux readings at 5 meters or greater distance and calculate for 1 meter lux. Another reason is the fact that the beam has spread out more at a distance of 5 meters vs 1 meter, which is more accurate. If I were to take lux readings at 1 meter, the readings would be exaggerated because you have a higher amount of light hitting the surface area of the sensor. If the light puts out a lot of lumens, the lux readings will be exaggerated even more. Does this make sense?

 

[Vernon]

Awesome...thanks. I gave my A9 away and miss it. It's getting good use with it's new owner though. I finally feel like the G5 will truly replace the A9 for me.

 

[guiri]

I'm with ti-force...hang around, there aren't enough of us freaks in here, we need more and besides, the only way we're gonna get the economy straight is to spend a lot on flashlights. That's what you should tell your wife anyway 🙂

George

 

[candle lamp]

Very nice review and good job ! Thank you for your riview. :wave:

 

[ti-force]

Very nice review and good job ! Thank you for your riview. :wave:

 

[snala]

The type of LED used in the G5 has a reputation for lots of lumen spread over a relatively wide area. Most lights using it have less throw then their predecessors.
The G5 changes this, it throws just as good as the older lights on a per lumen base, but with much more light to work with.
And it has got a nice form factor, small enough to have it with you without getting annoying. For example the TK30/40/45 are beyond EDC and to heavy as a weapon light.

"Best of both worlds" instead of "where no man has gone before".

That's all true.
So taking the plus's and minius about the G5 here, what would happen if Fenix bought out a TK13 with the TK12/TK30 interface, the G5's emitter, Fenix's usually good regulation on 18650 or CR123 but for TK12 money.
That would be really worth looking at too and it makes sense it's probaly going to happen based on previous versions?

 

[sfca]

That's all true.
So taking the plus's and minius about the G5 here, what would happen if Fenix bought out a TK13 with the TK12/TK30 interface, the G5's emitter, Fenix's usually good regulation on 18650 or CR123 but for TK12 money.
That would be really worth looking at too and it makes sense it's probaly going to happen based on previous versions?

Wouldn't that be the TK11/TK12 R5 models?

I'm not well versed in Fenix's UI but I recall it to be one of those multi sets of 2 modes, twist/untwist to access modes, twist/untwist multiple times, etc to access different sets.

 

[snala]

Wouldn't that be the TK11/TK12 R5 models?

I'm not well versed in Fenix's UI but I recall it to be one of those multi sets of 2 modes, twist/untwist to access modes, twist/untwist multiple times, etc to access different sets.

Yes you are right but if they decided to push it a bit more to get the higher output as per the G5 etc. TK12 is 3 sets of multi modes but with a true Max output and low and the tactical max and strobe option seperate also which is what the main concern seems to be about the G5's UI.
A G5 with just one set of 4 options UI: Max, Hi, Med, and Low and with 18650 flat regulation for $100 would sell like crazy to the consumer market. Give it an optional MCE head for spill as well.
Just making a comparison as far as the cost is concerned as some have queried it here. The G5 is just about twice the price of a TK12 so......

PS has anybody got a TK30 and a G5 to compare? I would really be interested in seeing beamshots (TK30 in the the 1 battery configuration on max specifically, 370 L) as the outputs are similar but the beams are spilly spot vs spot so like outside at say 100m. Asking as I have an Tiablo A9 and TK30 and using these outside it's not as one sided as you would think. Since the G5 is really a newer A9 with a bit more light everywhere.......

 

[Chevy-SS]

I used the discount late last night and it worked perfectly..............

Yep, me too. Looking forward to trying out this light! 🙂 I'm buying it mainly for the defensive strobe, which I hope is extra-bright (see pic below)........ :devil:

-

 

[ti-force]

Yep, me too. Looking forward to trying out this light! 🙂 I'm buying it mainly for the defensive strobe, which I hope is extra-bright (see pic below)........ :devil:

-

The strobe is pretty darn bright :thumbsup:.

 

[Elmer Fudd]

I just got the light today. I've had a number of lower end LEDs over the years - Brinkmann 🙂party🙂, the (not so) new Maglite LEDs 🙂party:), several Fenix lights, and a couple Surefire G2LEDs with the TNVC dropin for carbine mounted weaponlights.

Everything about the light seems solid, definitely the brightest LED I've owned (how's that for a technical review :wave🙂. However, the one knock I have against it is the UI, like that of every 'tactical' LED out there I know of. To me, a true 'tactical' military/LEO LED light would allow easy, flexible mode switching one handed, preferably with the thumb used to activate the switch. The other hand most probably has a weapon in it, so two handed mode switching becomes awkward and dangerous.

I guess that would mean moving the control circuitry back to the switch and using some kind of clicky ring switch (or perhaps switches interrupted by steel nubs) around the raised center clicky switch on the back of the tailcap. That would allow mode and on/off switching via the thumb only, which is all you might get in a high stress, dynamic situation.

 

[guiri]

I don't know a thing about tactical lights but really, if it's ON the gun, don't you just need it to be full speed or you mean switch to strobe?

George

 

[ti-force]

I don't know a thing about tactical lights but really, if it's ON the gun, don't you just need it to be full speed

George

This is pretty much what this light was designed for. Basically, it's meant for the tactical user to set it and forget it.

 

[guiri]

Well, that's what I thought but then, I'm tactically challenged I guess 🙂

 

[Elmer Fudd]

I don't know a thing about tactical lights but really, if it's ON the gun, don't you just need it to be full speed or you mean switch to strobe?

George

If mounted on a carbine, it would be nice to be able to switch between max and strobe easily. When transitioning from outdoor to indoor use (think LEO checking out a disturbance or burglary call, initially outdoors, then moving inside to check things out), you might want to dial down from max to high, so you don't blind yourself indoors against white walls. 350 lumens is well above what some very experienced pros think is appropriate for indoor use. At times you might want to go to the moonlight mode as a navigational aid (although red would obviously be preferred). With a short barreled carbine, the front of the light might be near the muzzle, you start reaching forward twisting the head of the light, that's not real safe. It also takes you out of a firing grip with your support hand.

For an LEO with light in one hand, pistol in the other, having one handed mode/intermode control would be nice, I would think - max to strobe outdoors to high when entering a building, to moonlight for a navigation aid perhaps, to low for paperwork when back in admin mode. All that two-handed twisting with the light on is not really elegant or efficient, to say the least.

I just use weaponlights for fun, not for a living, but pros make the same comments about the head twisting UI.

 

[guiri]

Gotcha! So, what's a good interface for these people? Clicking multiple times or what?

How about if they have a pressure button...?

 

[Elmer Fudd]

Gotcha! So, what's a good interface for these people? Clicking multiple times or what?

How about if they have a pressure button...?

Posting my thoughts over on a tactical forum, someone a lot more experienced suggested the Olight M20S. The side button on the tailcap looks nice and the UI logic sounds good, but not enough useful modes IMHO.

I would want:

Outdoor - Max 300+ lumens, strobe, very low (moonlight type) for stealthy navigation (perhaps with removable red filter)
Indoor - 200 lumens or maybe a little less, strobe (possibly at lower level than outdoor), medium for more admin/low threat searching, very low (moonlight type) for stealthy navigation
Admin - moonlight, low, medium
Survival - SOS, beacon

That's what comes to mind after reading some pro comments, doing a limited amount of low light shooting myself, and most especially reading "The Strategies of Low-Light Engagements" by Ken J. Good, an excellent read and one of the very few on the subject. His comments over on the Low Light forum at lightfighter.net are very informative.

I think as LED lumen levels keep increasing designers are going to have to take into account the different requirements for tactical indoor and tactical outdoor use.

 

[guiri]

Ok but that's a hell of a lot of modes to have and hard to make a simple enough interface for all that, don't you think?

I mean, it's a bit like having the cake and eating it isn't it?

 

[Elmer Fudd]

The Olight two-button tailcap would seem to work well for that:

1. Press and hold side side switch and use main clicky to cycle through modes without turning light on - one click = outdoor, two clicks = indoor, 3 clicks = admin, 4 clicks = survival. That way you don't get 'lost' vis a continuous loop of modes. Light stays in mode until switched to another mode by user.

2. Main clicky cycles through states within mode. Pressing and releasing side switch turns on second state within mode (strobes for indoor, outdoor, low for admin, beacon for survival).

3. Make the modes programmable - you assign whatever states you want in your own sequence.

How about if they have a pressure button...?

I would think a two button pressure switch using the same logic would work - probably more expensive since it needs the same chip in the tailcap you are replacing ...

Either tailcap or switch would require two fingers to change mode, but a lot easier than the head twist.

 

[MrGman]

A wise man once said "if you have 8 modes in a flashlight, then in reality you only have a 1 in 8 chance of turning on in the mode you actually wanted, when you want it". This is not the ideal set up for a "tactical" flashlight. Talking about mounting it on a rifle and having the on/off pressure switch and now a second pressure switch to change modes and making it all that more complicated and having to go through training scenarios just to cycle your flashlight into the right mode before you "come through the door" or "burst onto whatever the scene" is along with all the other things your suppose to remember to do starts to become ridiculous.

I like the idea of a limited function selector ring that you simply preset to the mode you want and then the pressure switch for on and off. Having to do the back and forth multiple twisties to change mode sets or a special second button to get certain modes is too much, not going to really be used on a rifle mounted light. Presetting to High, Strobe (not that I agree with having strobe), or a low mode on the selector ring and then just turning it on when its show time seems to be far more logical. This is a cool flashlight, but it would never by my #1, 2, or 3 choice on my rifle.