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

[MrGman]

I looked at the 4 7 link on this light and their link to other reviews. It would appear your lumens readings are very close to that of light reviews dot com. I think yours are more accurate especially since you show the instand on and decay over the first 3 minutes with the battery configurations. This is pretty good confirmation on what this light really puts out.

I expect the production unit to be very close to what they say it will put out.

 

[ti-force]

I looked at the 4 7 link on this light and their link to other reviews. It would appear your lumens readings are very close to that of light reviews dot com. I think yours are more accurate especially since you show the instand on and decay over the first 3 minutes with the battery configurations. This is pretty good confirmation on what this light really puts out.

I expect the production unit to be very close to what they say it will put out.

I'm hoping they will send me one of the production units so I can test it too, but like you, I expect it to be very close to their claim. BTW, I ordered some UCL glass to try out in this light; just to see . I'm guessing the gain probably won't be any greater than 4%, if it's even that much (they have pretty good glass), but I thought I'd try it just to see.

 

[subiedriver1990]

I have a Fenix TK-40 and was wondering how the G5 would compare in terms of throw? It took owning one light with a floody beam for me to figure out that I am a throwy light kinda guy. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
lovecpf

 

[PayBack]

It would be nice if they would offer GITD in the future. That would be a nice touch, and I've always wanted one for my Quarks, but haven't found one that would work correctly. Mostly, I like a loud colored button on a light; it's just appealing to me.

Yes, you need a light cos it's dark, which makes it hard to see black switches. And while you can know where it is in your hand, mounted on a weapon or sitting on a shelf, that's not so easy.

 

[ACHË]

Released!

$149.95

Before the discount :naughty:

 

[ti-force]

I have a Fenix TK-40 and was wondering how the G5 would compare in terms of throw? It took owning one light with a floody beam for me to figure out that I am a throwy light kinda guy. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
lovecpf

Sorry, I don't have a TK-40, so I can't give you a fair opinion. If I had one I'd take comparison beamshots for you, but I don't.

 

[subiedriver1990]

Thats ok. I'll just have to buy a G5 and compare them myself

 

[ti-force]

Thats ok. I'll just have to buy a G5 and compare them myself

If you plan to buy pretty soon, don't forget to follow the discount rules in the thread linked below.

http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=231921

 

[guiri]

I tried to do that but the database is down so I ordered one this morning without the discount

 

[subiedriver1990]

Thanks for the link. I shall use it. I have been very impressed with 4 7's since I got my first light (Quark RGB) and can't wait to get the mack daddy of the line!

 

[Lawliet]

I have a Fenix TK-40 and was wondering how the G5 would compare in terms of throw?

Just looking at the lux numbers they shouldn't be that far apart.
But the G5 will cause less self blinding, thus have more effective throw.

Choose your interpretation.

 

[Machete God]

ti-force, thank you for your hard work and this review, your pictures of the light and nifty animated beamshot comparison gifs were very useful.

I tried to do that but the database is down so I ordered one this morning without the discount

Drop 4sevens an e-mail and see if they can't help you.

For everybody else, there's an introductory (next 2 weeks) offer of 22.49 off the price of the light, you'll need to enter 'G5INTRO' as the coupon and include your CPF/CPFMP username in the order (the only place I could do this was the 'special instructions' box, not sure if I did this right?)

(I hope it's ok to post the offer here, seeing as CPFMP is down)

 

[icehunter]

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.

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.

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.

The discussions on CPF can be confusing for beginners. 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.

Which brings me to the point. Why are people so exited over the G5 at 350 lumens when you can have either the Fenix TK30 at 370 lumens using 1x18650 (and option of 630 lumens with 2x18650) or Olight M21 at 500 lumens (according to 4sevens web) with 1x18650? Both the TK30 and the M21 are cheaper than the G5. Or am i completely missing the point?

 

[Vernon]

I used the discount late last night and it worked perfectly. With the $22 discount, I went ahead and paid $25 extra for overnight shipping. Wow, I can justify about anything these days.

 

[Thujone]

Why are people so exited over the G5 at 350 lumens when you can have either the Fenix TK30 at 370 lumens using 1x18650 (and option of 630 lumens with 2x18650) or Olight M21 at 500 lumens (according to 4sevens web) with 1x18650? Both the TK30 and the M21 are cheaper than the G5. Or am i completely missing the point?

4Sevens lists OTF or out the front lumens. Many manufacturers just list the bulb lumens. Of which you get only ~60% out the front.

 

[guiri]

Drop 4sevens an e-mail and see if they can't help you.

Thank you God....and they say God isn't listening...

 

[Erich1B]

Very nice review.

 

[Lawliet]

Which brings me to the point. Why are people so exited over the G5 at 350 lumens when you can have either the Fenix TK30 at 370 lumens using 1x18650 (and option of 630 lumens with 2x18650) or Olight M21 at 500 lumens (according to 4sevens web) with 1x18650? Both the TK30 and the M21 are cheaper than the G5. Or am i completely missing the point?

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".

 

[Vernon]

Which brings me to the point. Why are people so exited over the G5 at 350 lumens when you can have either the Fenix TK30 at 370 lumens using 1x18650 (and option of 630 lumens with 2x18650) or Olight M21 at 500 lumens (according to 4sevens web) with 1x18650? Both the TK30 and the M21 are cheaper than the G5. Or am i completely missing the point?

Really good point made here - I'll give you my take. One of the differences in something like the TK30 versus the G5 is simply how easy/hard it is to carry on me. With the larger bezel on the TK30, I'm not apt to pick it up when I go on walks and rides. Don't get me wrong, I like the big lumens on the TK30 but not at the expense of the size (in most cases).

The M21 got mediocre reviews. It's rated at 500 lumens but most reviews rate it at 300 to 350 OTF lumens. In addition, there have been documented quality issues as well. For example, here's a blurb from a review on CPF:

"Two weeks ago I bought a "Olight M21". I had "Fenix TK10" (275 Lumens) and I bought the "Olight" because they are 500 Lumens. My first disappointment comes in when compared with the "Eagletac T20C2" of my brother. The "Eagletac" 300 lumens, illuminates more than the "Olight" 500 lumens. My second disappointment, a week after buying it, I drop a table 1 m in height, and stops working. Incredible. My "Fenix TK10" I fell from a ladder of four meters high, and continued working."

I seriously hope this doesn't sound like I'm bashing the TK30 nor the M21 - I'm sure they're great lights in their own right. However, I think it paints the picture as to why so many of us are pumped about the new 4Sevens G5: quality products from a quality company, great customer service, 350 OTF lumens, solid warranty, a smooth reflector with no flaws/rings in the beam profile, a true XP-G "thrower," unique interface, great size, cr123 and 18650 compatible...the list goes on.

 

[guiri]

You're right and yeah, it should be kinda obvious that people wouldn't be happy if they bought a 500 lumen light and it only gave them half that. I know stuff like that pi$$es me off!

George