Have L1D CE, get L2D body?

[gunga]

OKay, its's a silly question I guess, but I figured I'd ask those who have an L2D their opinions.

I 'm building a nice collection of lights, LOD, LID CE, Jetbeam C-LE, Incoming Lumapower M3, Rexlight etc...

But reality dictates I need to cut down. Thing is, I have an $18 credit at the Fenix store (returned some stuff) so I'm thinking of picking up an L2D body.

I guess I just wanted to see if people thought it was worth it? Kooter is making a nice CR123 body, but that's $35 (and I have no credit of course). THe incoming Lumapower M3 has a AA body extension, but I have not seen it for the size and have not tried the UI yet, so undecided if I will keep it. Rexlight? Well, we'll see when it eventually comes...

I actually find the L1D hard to hold, looks nice, but the body is slippery and bit awkward to use, I've used an L2T before, so know that it is better in the hand. Too bad it's obviously bigger.

Anway, just wanted to ask the L1D/L2D owners what they thought. Is the big increase in turbo mode and battery life etc worth it for the size?

If so, anyone want to trade an L2D body for an L1D...

(Problem is I'm in Canada and shipping costs like $10+ to anywhere, so I guess that limits it to Western Canada people...)

 

[txaggiechl]

I kind of like both body styles myself. You can't beat the L1x size for EDC. The L2x size is great for around the house or during blackouts.
For ~$18, I'd almost rather spend another ~$30 and get another complete light.
I bought a CR123 body for my L2P awhile back and actually never really used it. The allure of using rechargeable AA's was too good and the L1x sized lights are already basically small enough.

 

[Kilohana]

I have the Kooter 123 body with the standard knurling. It feels better to grip IMHO. The $35 is well spent for a custom product that suited my taste and needs.

 

[gunga]

I'm actually EDCing the LOD, love the size in the pocket/keychain.

Pack EDC is a Jetbeam C-LE right now. Like the feel in the hand, will likely try that out with a P1 body for even smaller size (think P1D) and more lumens.

The L1D may rotate in depending on how bright I need it, but I also have the Lumapower and rexlight coming...

Yeah, that kooter body looks ideal. Too bad about the o-rings and the fact it is not anodized... Pretty sweet though.

Get another Fenix light? Well, really don't need/want another...

 

[HarveyRich]

Much brighter on turbo than on high. Easy interface to use to turn on turbo too--just twist the head and click on. You don't have to go through other modes.

 

[TORCH_BOY]

The 2AA body makes a huge difference on Turbo mode,
the other modes are the same, just longer runtimes

 

[bridgman]

I went with an L1D-CE because I needed an EDC light and hoped the L2D bodies would become available separately. Unfortunately it ooks like Fenix is going the other way -- offering L1D bodies to L2D owners.

I'm still hoping to pick up a 2AA body at some point. It does make the L1D a completely different light, both in terms of size/feel and brightness/runtime.

 

[jc28841]

Actually, they're offering both L1D and L2D bodies...

 

[duffman]

i am in the same predicament... I have a L1d and was thinking of get a 2aa body... but i think i might as well just get a whole new light... too bad the L2Ds are out of stock everywhere... =/

 

[Jeff H]

......I actually find the L1D hard to hold, looks nice, but the body is slippery and bit awkward to use,........(Problem is I'm in Canada and shipping costs like $10+ to anywhere, so I guess that limits it to Western Canada people...)

I don't have an LXD but have the L1P/L2P and L1T/L2T (plus CR123A) combos and get along better with the 2AA body. The 1AA bodies make them too big for pocket carry but the CR123A body is OK. It's a small but noticable difference. The 2AA bodies give you something to hold onto. I would keep the 1AA body though because you may find yourself in a situation where you have to conserve cells or are just down to one, last good AA.

Funny about the shipping cost, I ordered lights from a Canadian store (Serious Lights) just before Christmas and shipping was under $6 USD, shipped to a US address. I about crapped when he said it could be up to six (I think) weeks in transit but it actually took less than two. Very nice guy to deal with and he carries Fenix lights. Maybe he can get your part. I thought Fenix's prices included shipping. Maybe not on parts?

www.seriouslights.com

 

[cerbie]

The L2D, using NIMH, is much heavier than the L1D. The tube does have a nice feel, and isn't prone to slipping, despite being smooth most of the length. You also get the near 2x as bright turbo .

However, having now gone to the L1D body, the reduced weight is quite nice, and even though I don't plan on EDCing it, I think I'll keep it as a single cell light.

 

[not2bright]

I purchased the L1D-CE and after a few weeks decided to order the L2D body.

I'm glad I did. Now when I need a small easy to carry light I go with the single cell. Around the house I prefer the 2 cell with the brighter turbo mode and longer runtime.

I did find that the threads on the L2D body were a little rough when switching between "standard" and "turbo/stobe" modes. Some lube and cleaning took care of this.

Having both tubes makes this a great all purpose light.

 

[TenPin]

I was considering getting an L2D body for my L1D but in the meantime I bought some AW 14500 li-ons and a charger so I now have the same brightness with the small size. Sure the low modes don't work but on high you get 1 hour of declining brightness from max and then another hour of regulated brightness at the high level. The strobe and SOS modes work fine.

 

[cerbie]

Some more thoughts: I've been using my light to help treat some NIMH cells that have been sitting unused for several months, and am using a cup of water for heat, just in case.

The L1D body is very slippery when wet! I think it's just due to being so straight (the knurling on the tail and L2D body is decoarative). Some nice knurling would be handy. This type of thing is why I'll have to qualify it as my, "Chinese light." A Minimag has decent knurling, and it's only $12.

 

[gunga]

I wouldn't say that about all "chinese lights". I have a lumapower at the moment, and the anodizing is quite grippy, with not too much knurling. My Jetbeam is all knurled and feels very nice in the hands. The finish on Fenix's is just very slippery by nature. It looks nice, but is a bit hard to hold at times....

 

[cerbie]

It's a Chinese light. I don't have a good enough flame suit to put the word all in front! In the little touches, it still exemplifies some of what we've become accustomed to expect from such tools. Without exception, all generalizations have exceptions.

Emitter: off center. Luckily not by enough to do anything nasty to the beam. But QC in this area clearly lacks.

Reflector: it needed to be adjusted out of the box.

Reverse clickie: there are enough threads on this, right?

Threads/machining: I've worked the threads, especially on the rear, quite a bit, added lube, etc., and they just aren't smoothing out. Thinking the spring could be it, I've tried twisting on/off with no batteries in, and it's only slightly easier. With such a small thing, I'm used to replacing batteries one-handed, and messing with the head (I've done both with one hand for years on a now on the AA Mag). If I remove the O-ring, the tail wobbles a good bit until it is fully seated. The head wobbles less on both tubes than the tail, but I still go to turbo then low accidentally when turning the head with the hand I'm holding it with (I need two hands to go from high to turbo).

I don't regret purchasing it (I mostly knew what I was getting, for one thing), and this is becoming fairly expensive for me (L1D tube, new lens+LDF on the way, and some other stuff I'm planning right now) due to liking it and wanting to make it as good as possible to hold me over until I can get something that I feel is as good of an overall tool as my Arc, but with white light, more light, bells and whistles .

I think it's great that we're seeing some Chinese companies pop up and offer us what our own folks aren't, and not making crap...but this from a manufacturer based in the US, Canada, Japan, Australia, or most of Europe, at this price (up to $25 or so I think they'd get by), would be enough to raise some Hell from customers about the quality. However, while this product is good, the little things being off like they are is par as far as what most folks expect from something made in China.

 

[Supernam]

I just ordered a CR123 body for my L1D-CE. Stainless steel, knurling, shorter than regular body, brighter than P1D-CE. Check the MOD Buy/sell/trade forum, or pm Kooter.