Dual purpose light

[Mikeg23]

I know that the ripoffs holsters are clip on, the nite ize holsters are clip on, and some of the surefire holsters are clip on. Howver these holsters tend to use Velcro flaps which can be kinda loud.

 

[afraidofdark]

Does anyone know how much brighter the E1e is compared to the mini mag?

The E1e is rated by Surefire at 15 lumens for 90 minutes. As another poster said, with the CR123 lithium cell having a flatter discharge, you should see a fairly consistent output over the life of a cell.

An incan mini-mag might be as much as 10 lumens on fresh batteries, but the output drops off so quickly (as you noted) that people usually say the useful output is around 5 lumens.

 

[afraidofdark]

double post, see below

 

[afraidofdark]

Does a bulb exist that could handle the Energizer Lithiums better than the stock bulb that comes with the min-mag? If so, do you know how much they run, brightness level, duration, and most importantly where to get them?

Thanks.

I have no personal experience but from looking at some old CPF threads it seems that there is a xenon bulb called the Brinkman Nexstar that has no problem handling the increased voltage from 2xAA lithium cells in a minimag. Reports were that these upgrades increased the output of a minimag to near-E1e levels.

There was another bulb that some had tried, the Radio Shack 272-1150 Krypton Mini-Flashlight lamp, but this seems to not be available anymore.

Stock minimag bulbs are so cheap, you could also try carrot's suggestion and just see what happens with those.

 

[prof student]

I have no personal experience but from looking at some old CPF threads it seems that there is a xenon bulb called the Brinkman Nexstar that has no problem handling the increased voltage from 2xAA lithium cells in a minimag. Reports were that these upgrades increased the output of a minimag to near-E1e levels.

There was another bulb that some had tried, the Radio Shack 272-1150 Krypton Mini-Flashlight lamp, but this seems to not be available anymore.

Stock minimag bulbs are so cheap, you could also try carrot's suggestion and just see what happens with those.

Great link on those old threads. Thanks.

However, Brinkman used to sell 2 bulbs for 4.99 with shipping inlcuded. Now they want $9 for shipping! Almost 2x's the cost of the bulbs themselves. Any ideas for alternate light bulbs that have the same effect as the Brinkman Nexstar 2AA bulbs?

 

[prof student]

I know that the ripoffs holsters are clip on, the nite ize holsters are clip on, and some of the surefire holsters are clip on. Howver these holsters tend to use Velcro flaps which can be kinda loud.

Hmm...yeah, velcro wears out after a while too. I'd be using it often everyday.

Where does one buy ripoffs? I went to their website, but you can't order them there.

 

[Mikeg23]

I've never owned a rip-offs holster but I've had Surefire, Wilderness tactical, and Nite-Ize. The velco that they use on these holsters is of a higher quality than you would come across on clothing or what have you. Mine have generally lasted well after several years of rolling around in a dirty shop environment.

Still I would like to find something that clips onto a belt and has a button retention for noise. I had gone to carrying my E2e cliped in my pocket and now that I'm back to the 6P holstered the noise is somewhat of a bother in a quite setting.

 

[NE450No2]

I recommend the SureFire E1e. I carry one in my front pocket 100% of the time, and use it several times "daily" as well as nightly.

I have a Lumens Factory bulb in mine, but for your use I think the stock SureFire bulb will be better.

 

[Chrontius]

The only production regulated incandescent light is the A2. Since there are no other regulated incans, there are no AA-based incans that are regulated. You should definitely stick to CR123 in this application. Even the better Xenon-based incans (as compared to Krypton Maglites) as offered by Pelican and UK cannot offer better runtime since the output is directly related to the discharge curve of the battery. CR123's have a discharge curve that is very close to being flat, so they are perfect here.

I know of one regulated AA incan, but it's a big (8AA) battery stick regulated down to 4.5 volts and housed in a 2D light of your choice. Way too big. (check out the Powerstik and OfficerLite)

OP: Buy an E2L-AA and a E1E and swap heads? Mini-mag with NiMH cells and a diffuser? E1E with a diffuser? All are good choices.

That should be the case, however Energizer Lithium AAs are higher voltage than regular alkalines or NiMH so they may actually blow the bulb instead. Give it a shot if you like.

I find that the Nite Ize IQ switch tends to introduce resistance into the circuit, which also helps with flashing minimag bulbs like that. It also works like a slick little clicky/momentary switch, always nice.

Well, I would probably get one though it has the clip. Just to protect it from any major scratches & such.

I am drawing a blank on where to get flashlight holster that clip over the belt, without having to draw the belt through the holder. A specific name/website has been mentioned on here quite a bit before. Anyone know?

Rip-Offs makes them. (I think I use the CO-32) I have one for my Ra Twisty with the Surefire diffuser. It's clip-on, and it fits pretty darn well. The Surefire holsters all have a velcro-on loop - a bit more hassle than the clip, but more comfortable to wear in my experience. But given the velcro-wears-out thing, the CO62 may be a better option - open top, and two slots. Carry the minimag in one, and the Strion next to it?

Also, I think Gerber makes a decent looking little E1E knockoff. Used to see them at Sports Authority, but even on clearance they're horribly overpriced, so I quit looking there a while back.

 

[Locoboy5150]

In my experience with Velcro on light holsters and in general clothing and wallet use, anything less than 1 inch wide will wear out in no time. I've had best results with 1.25 inch wide or more. I don't even bother with holsters with 0.75 inch wide Velcro anymore since they wear out very quicky.

 

[M@elstrom]

Whilst I think a Surefire E1e would be a great solution... would a Mini maglite's bulb be able to "handle" the output of a 14500 (used with an AA dummy cell? :thinking:

 

[Mikeg23]

Whilst I think a Surefire E1e would be a great solution... would a Mini maglite's bulb be able to "handle" the output of a 14500 (used with an AA dummy cell? :thinking:

No you would have to replace the bulb with something like a strion bulb and then it would be a great deal brighter. There used to be a ceramic socket that could be purshased to create such a ligh but it's long since been sold out.

 

[sappyg]

So, bascially, one that on low is like a mini maglight, but regulated. Prefer with a high. LED may be a possible choice, IF the color rendition is as good as incand (crucial so the color of the steak is true & not off).

Thanks for your help.

i've been playing with the preon II warm tint for the past two days and believe me...... this is the closest an LED has come to incan that i personally have ever witnessed. low and medium are just right. high is truly phenominal!

 

[mbw_151]

2 questions: Do you think a diffuser on a SL Strion would bring it down quite a bit to be used for such applications?

Do you know where to get a cheap diffuser that stays on either the E1e or the SL Strion?

Thanks.

The SL Strion puts out a lot of lumens, the diffuser will spread them out some, but at close range it's still going to be bright.

There are two ways to get good diffusion; a diffusion lense/lense coating or a removable accessory. For a diffusion lense you can use a new lense (flashlightlens.com), Scotch tape, gel films, and lots of other materials, but these tend to be tacky on the outside of the lense and permanent or impossible on the inside of the lense. Accessories run from real expensive like Surefire flip up diffusers, to moderate like the F04, to inexpensive but with flaws. There's a kit for mini-Mags that's $5 for a bezel cover, clip and lanyard. It will fit the Ra lights and Surefire E series with a little modification. Apply one of the films or lightly sand the plastic lense cover with 400 or 320 grit silicon carbide paper. After you've messed with this for a while you'll understand the F04 isn't that much more money for way better performance.

 

[prof student]

No you would have to replace the bulb with something like a strion bulb and then it would be a great deal brighter. There used to be a ceramic socket that could be purshased to create such a ligh but it's long since been sold out.

So, would a Strion or Stinger/Polystinger bulb work? With Energizer Lithiums would it be brighter?

The Brinkman Nexstar bulbs are recomended, but cost way too much too ship for my wallet - bulb $5, shipping $9!

 

[Mikeg23]

The Strion bulb is meant to be diven by a single lithium ion battery which is like 4.2 volts when fresh plus the lithium ion battery has a much greater ability to support a current draw... I don't know what two lithium AA would do but if it worked it would probably be an ugly yellow beam due to the battery not driving the strion bulb properly.

The stinger bulb I believe runs at a higher voltage.

Honestly I am a huge incandescent fan but they don't make for a great dual purpose light unless you get something like an AW softstart. I'm sure someone else has suggested this already but you could probably look into a warm tint foursevens tactical for $60 a be very happy.

Other than that have you tried sticking a couple lithium batteries in your mini mag yet?

 

[mleaky]

I have an SF A2, I think it would be too bright for your intended purposes. It's hard to enjoy your meal after seeing sunspots in the dark.

I would try something smaller that uses AA's to keep the cost down.

 

[carrot]

A Strion bulb would need a bi-pin adapter for E-series lights to be used in the E1e with an RCR123.

It will be significantly brighter.

I would recommend getting a Lumensfactory E-series 3.7v bulb instead. You will not need the adapter. High quality bulbs do not burn out as quickly as Maglite bulbs. 30 hours per bulb is considered the norm.

Personally I think you should bite the bullet and buy a bunch of CR123 primaries. Looking at what it costs to buy two RCR123's, a charger, and a bulb, you can just buy more than 20 primaries for more than 20 hours of runtime, which will be more than sufficient for your needs.

 

[Mark Mck]

It was mentioned by an earlier poster, but I, too, would suggest a HDS Ra Clicky high CRI LED. The red color spectrum would be enhanced and would highlight the flesh tones that are of interest to the OP.