cratz2
Flashlight Enthusiast
OK. I was pretty happy with my light selections for a while but after seeing that a rechargeable version of the Maxfire - which is in turn very similar performance-wise to the excellent value Legend LX - I had to have one. After looking at four Walmarts to see if any had the Rechargeable Maxfire in stock, I ordered it from microcenter.com at 2:30 and it arrived on Saturday (SATURDAY!) before 11:00am via FedEx. I didn't pay for extra shipping. By the way, for Indianapolis area residents, the Walmart at 86th and Michigan Rd has the 2L Maxfire. The other three stores I checked all had Legend LXs, but no Maxfires at all. I did pick up a gunmetal gray 4D MagL for $16 though.
First impression is that it is quite a bit longer than the Legend LX or Surefire G2. Focus is very good... about 95% as good as my focusable LX but as I shine it on a white wall at a distance of less than 1 foot, the bulb projection is offset to one side. My Legend has no such offset. A closer look reveals that the bulb is not centered quite perfectly but shining on the wall at about 2 feet, this is not detectable at all.
Also, comparing it to the Legend LX, the LX is slightly whiter and the hotspot is slightly larger at pretty much any distance.
I played with it for a while, inside and out. Very good throw for the price... I think maybe slightly better throw than the LX though I believe that in an enclosed room, the LX has slightly more overall output. In general use, it is the equal of the LX but in a larger and rechargeable package. Any non-candlepowerforum member would likely be impressed by the light overall.
Also, as an aside, I had probably used the light off and on for about two hours prior to today. Hadn't run it down very far, as I was recharging in between uses just to keep it at the ready. This is not something I will continue to do in the future as it is a dumb charger and you can over charge it if you don't time yourself. The manual recommends charging the battery over 8 hours, but not more than 12 hours.
Anyway, today I wanted to see how long it would run with continuous use. I started with a completely fresh charged battery in the Maxfire Rechargeable and two brand new Surefire 123As in the LX. I turned on the Maxfire and started my stopwatch. Test setup was being in an enclosed bathroom with the Maxfire constantly on. Every two minutes, I'd turn on the LX and check the difference between them. What follows are my notes.
2 Minutes: very similar, lens/bezel cool
4 Minutes: very similar, lens/bezel warmer
6 Minutes: LX is brighter than Maxfire when shined at the same time, but can't tell a difference going from one to the other. Lens/bezel pretty warm.
8 Minutes: Same as after 6 min but lens too hot to constantly touch with skin.
10 Minutes: Slightly more pronounced difference than at 6/8 minutes
12 Minutes: Hotspot on Maxfire starting to shrink, but still quite white.
14 Minutes: Hotspot smaller still, starting to yellow. Bezel cooler.
16 Minutes: Still roughly comparable lights, but any flashaholic would point out the difference in total output and throw.
18 Minutes: Larger difference now. Bezel only slightly warm, lens can be touched for multiple seconds with very little pain.
20 Minutes: Hotspot twice as large on LX as Maxfire. Still, impressive light. Someone who only owned a 2D MagL would still be impressed with the Maxfire
21 Minutes: visibly dulling. Much less output now. I'd be disappointed if this is what the light looked like with a fresh charge.
22 Minutes: LX blows the Maxfire away.
23 Minutes: Maxfire looks like a very well focused MiniMag with large hotspot.
24 Minutes: Pitiful little light... still good enough to navigate with in a completely enclosed bathroom. Can easily read by it. This is when I would say the light is basically unusable.
25 Minutes: I just looked straight into the light and didn't really hurt my ability to look outside.
26 Minutes: Still barely on. Only one person could read by the light at this point.
27 Minutes: About the same as 26 minutes
28 Minutes: Still about the same.
29 Minutes: A little bit duller.
30 Minutes: Barely on. Big difference. Looks as if you completely ran the batteries down on a MiniMagL then left the light turned off for a few hours, then rechecked.
31 Minutes: At this point, looking directly into the light, the reflector is brighter than the bulb itself.
32 Minutes: Barely, barely on. Can only read about three words at a time in a book.
33 Minutes: Equally effective as a laser pointer at reading a book in darkness.
34 Minutes: All but totally unusable.
First impression is that it is quite a bit longer than the Legend LX or Surefire G2. Focus is very good... about 95% as good as my focusable LX but as I shine it on a white wall at a distance of less than 1 foot, the bulb projection is offset to one side. My Legend has no such offset. A closer look reveals that the bulb is not centered quite perfectly but shining on the wall at about 2 feet, this is not detectable at all.
Also, comparing it to the Legend LX, the LX is slightly whiter and the hotspot is slightly larger at pretty much any distance.
I played with it for a while, inside and out. Very good throw for the price... I think maybe slightly better throw than the LX though I believe that in an enclosed room, the LX has slightly more overall output. In general use, it is the equal of the LX but in a larger and rechargeable package. Any non-candlepowerforum member would likely be impressed by the light overall.
Also, as an aside, I had probably used the light off and on for about two hours prior to today. Hadn't run it down very far, as I was recharging in between uses just to keep it at the ready. This is not something I will continue to do in the future as it is a dumb charger and you can over charge it if you don't time yourself. The manual recommends charging the battery over 8 hours, but not more than 12 hours.
Anyway, today I wanted to see how long it would run with continuous use. I started with a completely fresh charged battery in the Maxfire Rechargeable and two brand new Surefire 123As in the LX. I turned on the Maxfire and started my stopwatch. Test setup was being in an enclosed bathroom with the Maxfire constantly on. Every two minutes, I'd turn on the LX and check the difference between them. What follows are my notes.
2 Minutes: very similar, lens/bezel cool
4 Minutes: very similar, lens/bezel warmer
6 Minutes: LX is brighter than Maxfire when shined at the same time, but can't tell a difference going from one to the other. Lens/bezel pretty warm.
8 Minutes: Same as after 6 min but lens too hot to constantly touch with skin.
10 Minutes: Slightly more pronounced difference than at 6/8 minutes
12 Minutes: Hotspot on Maxfire starting to shrink, but still quite white.
14 Minutes: Hotspot smaller still, starting to yellow. Bezel cooler.
16 Minutes: Still roughly comparable lights, but any flashaholic would point out the difference in total output and throw.
18 Minutes: Larger difference now. Bezel only slightly warm, lens can be touched for multiple seconds with very little pain.
20 Minutes: Hotspot twice as large on LX as Maxfire. Still, impressive light. Someone who only owned a 2D MagL would still be impressed with the Maxfire
21 Minutes: visibly dulling. Much less output now. I'd be disappointed if this is what the light looked like with a fresh charge.
22 Minutes: LX blows the Maxfire away.
23 Minutes: Maxfire looks like a very well focused MiniMag with large hotspot.
24 Minutes: Pitiful little light... still good enough to navigate with in a completely enclosed bathroom. Can easily read by it. This is when I would say the light is basically unusable.
25 Minutes: I just looked straight into the light and didn't really hurt my ability to look outside.
26 Minutes: Still barely on. Only one person could read by the light at this point.
27 Minutes: About the same as 26 minutes
28 Minutes: Still about the same.
29 Minutes: A little bit duller.
30 Minutes: Barely on. Big difference. Looks as if you completely ran the batteries down on a MiniMagL then left the light turned off for a few hours, then rechecked.
31 Minutes: At this point, looking directly into the light, the reflector is brighter than the bulb itself.
32 Minutes: Barely, barely on. Can only read about three words at a time in a book.
33 Minutes: Equally effective as a laser pointer at reading a book in darkness.
34 Minutes: All but totally unusable.
