EverLED for Maglite 2/4D. Worth it?

[tolksee]

Hi,

I'm quite new to the world of light-lovers - this is my first post.

I've got a Maglite 4D & 2D. I see that there is an EverLED replacement bulb that I can get for them. Question:
Is it worth getting the EverLED bulb? What would happen?

At the end of the day, I'm only after MORE LIGHT /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif, and I want to keep the ability to go from flood to spot.

Is it worth it? Are there other simple alternatives that you'd recommend over the EverLED? (I'm not a modder!!)

 

[Aloft]

I've got a couple white ones and the blow away the stock bulb. I've had a few bulbs burn out on me too, and that problem should go away with the EverLED. The light is a bit brighter, much whiter and uses batteries more sparingly. I think it's worth it. I also have a red EverLED and that is really impressive. . . a very bright red in a 2D Mag. OK, the price is fairly high, but they should last forever.

 

[Amonra]

I would recommend a Diamond replacement bulb found here web page you can choose between 1W, 3W or 5W regulated or non regulated. i have both the 1W Diamond (high dome) and the Everled (side emitting) and the Diamond is visibly brighter. the hot spot is also much tighter with a very smooth wide side spill.
Now since you have a 2D/4D Mag you could either choose the regulated 1W on the 2D or the unregulated 3W on the 4D and remove one battery and put a dummy instead. you could also go for the 5W adapter for the 2D but you would loose the focusability.

 

[3rd_shift]

www.inretech.com has something for that 4D that will impress for sure.
It's thier Trilight3 kit. 9-12 watts of led glory and about 200+ lumens of light with most batteries.
A bit expensive, but flashoholic grade. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
edit:
Oops, it won't focus though.

 

[scudinc]

I love my Diamond regulated bulb. It gets warm, but the output it impressive (equal to or better than that of a Surefire G2).

 

[wquiles]

I have an EverLED that I have used/tried on a 2D, 3D, and a 6V lantern-style. The EverLED is brighter than stock, regulated, and will run much longer the more cells you have.

I would get one if you want something sturdier that would run a long time, and that you can use with either 2,3,4,or 5 cells (I think 5 is the max). Just remember that it is not the brightest LED mod out there for the Mag.

Will

 

[Phaserburn]

If it's more light you're after, ditch the led idea and do an incandescent upgrade. Get either a 2D to 8AA battery holder or 2 x "3 to D" holders from BST and Elektrolumens, respectively. Load them with Nimh AA cells. Now, you're ready to cook. You can use a readily available Mag 6 cell bulb, which will have approx 2 hours steady brightness runtime. Or, you can get a "superbulb", and get 30-60 minutes (per charge) of eye-frying power. The Mag 6 cell bulb will add 500+% your output (over 2D bulb); the superbulb will typically increase output by 20 times or so.

Using the Mag bulb will allow your 2D to be fine as is; a superbulb mod will require a glass lens and AL reflector.

Bottom line: Everled or 3W Lux mod: 30-60 lumens or thereabouts. Incan mod: 114 - 500 lumens (or more).

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[cratz2]

The EverLED in a 2D light is definately a bit brighter than the stock bulb on 2D cells. And of course the runtime is better and more consistant.

In a 4D light... well... you're mostly looking at better runtime and whiteness. And of course longevity of the LED vs the bulb. I personally couldn't recommend the EverLED in a 4 Cell light. The easiest way to upgrade a 4 cell Mag is to run a 3 cell krypton (NOT Xenon) bulb in it. Definately brighter and whiter. That's how my 4D is configured and I'm only on my second 3 cell bulb. I'd hate to guess at bulb runtime but it's definately over 2 to 3 hours. The bulb is overdriven so I would be sure to ALWAYS have a spare in the tailcap in ca.

You might want to have a peak over in the modified lights forum. If you like the general Mag form factor, there are plenty of things you can do... A particularly easy and rewarding builb is putting 3 123a batteries in a 3C light along with a KPR112 or KPR113 bulb. You need a PVC spacer (that you'll need to sand down the outside of so it will fit in the Mag body. Very bright. A bit brighter than the 4 D cells running the 3 cell bulb but in a 2C form factor.

 

[Lightbringer]

phaserburn...i have a 3D mag i want to make crazy bright. will using the 3toD holder from elektrolumens with nimh and a mag 6 cell bulb work or is that just for the 2D?

 

[Hookd_On_Photons]

In addition to what Phaserburn recommended, consider using a Reflectalite GH24 bulb with the 6AA NiMH cells. I don't know if you'd need to get a metal reflector, though.

Reflectalite GH24

For an even brighter option, consider purchasing an unregulated 8AA-to-2D adapter (there's a groupbuy going on right now). That will generate 9.6 volts, which will overdrive a KPR-20 bulb quite nicely. (I've found the KPR-20 bulb at Ace Hardware and Sears Hardware. It's the generic equivalent of a Mag 7-cell bulb).

Specs for KPR-20 bulb

An alternative to the KPR-20 is the Pelican Big D Rechargeable bulb. Phaserburn posted a thread about it here:

Pelican Big D Rechargeable (SLA) bulbs

Lightbringer: 9AAs in a Mag 3-D would flash any standard Mag bulb. The Mag 3-D is an excellent platform to build a MagBP-85, though. Read about it here:

BiPin Mag: The First Mag-MagCharger Hybrid

fivemega is going to release his 9AA-to-3D adapters and another run of aluminum reflectors soon. Keep your eyes peeled in the Groupbuy forum!

To get back to the original topic of this thread, I think the EverLED is a decent choice if you value runtime and shock resistance. Its brightness will not blow you away. I don't have a lux meter, but I'd estimate the brightness is comparable to a 3-D Maglite. It can be used with any 2 to 6 cell PR base flashlight. The brightness doesn't improve with using more than 3 cells, though runtime is better.

I use an EverLED in a Dorcy 4AA tool light for an emergency glove compartment light. I don't need it to be super bright, but I don't want to worry about the bulb breaking if I drop it, and I want it to have a long runtime. The EverLED fits the bill nicely. Of course, I bought the EverLED two years ago when there weren't many Luxeon lights available. If I needed an LED emergency flashlight today, I'd probably get a UK eLed 4AA ($20) instead of an EverLED.

If you want a modestly bright, reliable light with good runtime, get the EverLED. If you want crazy bright, go with an incandescent mod.

 

[Hockeymoose]

Worth it or not, good question.

A few month ago, I had the same problem and bought an Everled...in my 2D Ontario style it was a small improvement to the standard bulb. If you are looking for useable light with very good runtime, go for the Everled. If you want to squeeze out more light, you will automatically think about modding your flashlight to a Lux V or Lux III mod. Please refer to the pages of Mr. Bulk or the varius "Cookbooks" for that----You will see it's worth going for the Lux V-- I did... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[tolksee]

Excelent, thanks for all your replies and reccomendations. It really is most appreciated. I think I'm going to go with the Luxeon Diamond bulbs, and I might buy a 3Cell bulb for my 4-cell Mag too.

 

[CroMAGnet]

I heard somwhere that the Diamond 3w or 5w run too hot and that they decrease the bulb life and output over time. I have a Diamond L3 in a 3D which I like but was wondering if it was brighter when it was new. Anyone have more details on this?