Is the SureFire E1B worth the price????

[Devil26]

I'm looking for a very good EDC light! Seen the Blackhawk Sentinel Pl1 and the Surefire E1B....which is better? I've noticed the price is a bit stacked for the E1B.

I like the body of the Pl1 over the E1B. The E1B looks a bit thick for the pocket. Does anyone have any advise. Also if I did purchase the E1B how can I put one of the "teeth" bezels on it or if I can at all...and how about a different tail cap.

Any comments would be appreciated.

 

[greenLED]

:welcome: Devil26.

Blackhawk lights are rebranded lights made (or redistributed) by Nuwai. They're OK lights, but nothing to write home about compared to other more mainstream companies.

The BH PL1 is a redesigned Nuwai Qiii, IMO. I have one, and an E1B as well. The E1B is a lot sleeker and elegant than the PL1. The E1B is also a whole lot brighter than the PL1.

Lemme ask you something: What are you going to use these lights for? Do you need the 2 levels? How bright do you need your new light to be?

I can't comment on whether one or the other is "worth the price", since that's up to you to decide. I can justify spending a couple of hundred dollars in a piece of gear if I know it'll due exactly what I need it to do (and maybe some more). However, for other stuff, I can settle for less expensive stuff. So, really, value is in the eye of the beholder.

 

[Hitthespot]

I'm a SureFire fan, but not in my opinion. It is my least favorite SureFire light.

Many CPF'rs love this light but here is my take.

Too many pocket lights are brighter.
I hate the E1B clip.
The light is too big for pocket carry.
It is too smooth and hard to hang on to, making it easy to drop. (purposely made this way so not to snag on clothing and such.)
The new $149.00 price tag is steep in my opinion.

If your looking for a small, bright, EDC light there are better choices in my opinion.

EDIT: By the way: WELCOME TO CPF

Bill

 

[Badbeams3]

Welcome. Surefire is one of, if not the top brand. They are a little pricey though. Have you looked at any other Surefires...the L1 for example?

 

[1996alnl]

Being the owner of the L1 and a E1B i would pick the L1 over the E1B anyday.

I think the E1B is $50 over priced.
That's just me.

 

[bullfrog]

When I bought my E1B over the summer for $110 I thought it was a steal - might be a bit harder for me to swallow the current price...

However, in the end, I think I would do it as the light is truly something special

 

[captainKrunch]

you left out a very important detail. What is the price? You said is it worth the price? What price are you taking about?

Are you talking about the $114 I paid for it? Then yes. Is it worth the MSRP of $159 or so...then no.

I like the size. I disagree that it is too big to be pocket carried. I like the clip. I also like the smoothness. I don't understand many people's gripes on here about it slipping out of ones hand. My L1 has slipped out of my hand and it has aggressive knurling. The knurling has frayed my clothing

 

[asdalton]

You can get the E1B on eBay for $120.

You can check out the L1 there, also--but be wary of the old version mixed with the new. I would trust the photo of the packaging rather than the seller's description.

 

[OTJ14430]

The e1b is a great little light. I feel it's plenty bright and easily pocketable. To make it less 'slippery' you can go with the scout or e2dl shrouded tailcaps. I personally went with the flared delrin tailcap guard from jsburley. Take a look over in the marketplace. Members are usually selling e1b for $85 - 100.

 

[greenLED]

Being the owner of the L1 and a E1B i would pick the L1 over the E1B anyday.

BTW, I totally agree with this. I like my L1's a whole lot better than the E1B. The E1B is too small for my hands. I don't find the lack of knurling makes it hard to hold, it's merely a matter of physical size.

I do like the E1B clip better than the L1's. Bezel up carry on the L1 with that short clip is kinda odd, whereas bezel down with the E1B is a thing of beauty.

 

[SUREFIRED]

The Backup is a sleek light, incredibly bright, but what finishes it off is an e2d/scout tailcap (as stated above) for tailstanding and grip. I picked up a backup tuesday for $110, and at that price you can't argue. But at $150, i would rather get an e2dl.

 

[boost_guy]

I like the E1b, it's easily pocketable, I've never had it slip out of my hand even when wet. The clip is very sturdy and doesn't snag on my clothes. It's brighter than the claimed 80 lumens, and it runs on high for approximately 1.5 hours, then it stays in low mode for 30+ hours before the battery is dead.

 

[jp2515]

The E1B is a nice light. To me its a smaller version of its big brother the E2DL. One feature as everyone pointed out that everyone likes is the dual mode clip. Pretty handy if you need to clip it your cap for a temporary headlight. Plus its dual mode with the low still being usable and high is just a click away. E1B also comes in silver if you need it to match your clothing.

 

[StandardBattery]

E1B also comes in silver if you need it to match your clothing.

Well actually Black would match a sane person's clothing better, but I am curious on what the silver one will look like in reality. The small Silver P1D that was available for some time looks great.

I'm not a huge fan of really shiny lights or black lights even though I have too many of both.

At MSRP the E1B is over priced, and is insane if one needs to add a fluted tail-cap at MSRP. So I won't buy a silver one unless the discount is large.

I'm very happy with mine though, I'm glad I got it early and discounted price. SF should be able to offer this light with either tail-cap for around $85, if they can't do that I see them eventually going the way of the Dodo bird. Which would be a shame.

 

[chaoss]

Being the owner of the L1 and a E1B i would pick the L1 over the E1B anyday.

I think the E1B is $50 over priced.
That's just me.

I think just the opposite, my newer L1 had a hideous beam profile on high and on low it was spewing pea green soup :sick2:.
My E1B however, has a nice even white high beam and a very useful white low :twothumbs.
Granted, the UI's are different but if it were a choice between the two i will go E1B every time.

Also, with a little patience, both of these lights can be had for a song right now over in the marketplace.

 

[herrgurka]

Ah, the question of a commoditie's value, that's a tricky one. Once upon a time people believed that value was a commodities inherent quality, but these days are long past. Talk to an economist and she will tell you that it's worth what you are willing to pay. Talk to a flashaholic and the answer is yes, of course it's worth it .

Comparing my E1B to other single cell cr123 lights in my possession (unfortunately I don't have the L1) I certainly think the actual retail price ($149) is OK, and in my country the retail price is more like $180 (which I paid since it's difficult to buy from the US). I've replaced the body and switch with a black E1E body and an E2DL switch and the new combination provides the perfect grip and UI for my needs.

Are there other, cheaper single cell cr123 lights in the market? Yes! Do they perform at the same level and are as reliable as the E1B? No, at least none I know of. Maybe the new Ra:s clickies for $99 will meet the bill, but none of them comes close to the beam profile of the E1B.

 

[Devil26]

Thanks for all the suggestions! Yeah i'm new to the EDC way of life, which is rather odd since I'm a cop and carry a Glock 23 with a crimson laser and 14 rounds of Federal Hydrashock ( melon poppers ) on my ankle every time i'm in civies. Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.

I got to thinking what I would do if the situation called for me to use my weapon in a dark environment. Thats why I need a good light to depend on. I seen a few of the reviews of flashlights on SureFires websites and a few people told stories of how their light helped them while at the movies, changing a tire and so on. I'm the type of person that if it don't go in my pockets i don't think about it.

I did notice on one website the E1B was $129.00 and it came with 24 free cr123a batteries, that seemed like a good deal. I was a bit concerned with the body style and clip but the run time and duel lights modes seemed awesome. The fact that it has a activation switch on the back of the flashlight is great. My duty flashlight is a streamlight stinger which in my book I'd rather use a zippo to clear a warehouse ( which I have in fact ). Trying to pursuade the chief into ordering new tactical flashlights is like trying to talk to a brick wall. Whatever light I choose would probably find itself in my uniform pocket shirt as well. If anyone could provide me with a few names of flashlights thats right at the three or four inch mark that they would trust if they were in a situation please let me know. Thanks again for the welcome.


Also before I forget I have a streamlight nightfighter thats not a LED light, if I put two brand new cr123 batteries in it and store it....two days later the light won't work, very annoying to have to put the lights batteries in every time i want to use, (but bright man its like the sun in a pipe). Anyone know why it does this or all cr123 battery powered lights the same?

 

[hightime]

I've had the E1B as my EDC for about 4 months now. I like the beam and the overall size, but there are a lot of things I don't like.

Surefire says its 'Sleek, "melted" body has no knurling or sharp edges to catch on or wear out clothing.' Right. Except for the rather sharp bezel which has already worn a hole in a pair of jeans. I don't know how they can say 'no sharp edges' and keep a straight face.

Anodizing has worn off the sharp edge of the bezel already.

Quite often the second switch press turns the light back on in the same mode instead of the opposite one. Very annoying.

I find it to be an unpleasant light to use. Hard to get a good grip on it. The clip tends to gouge the hand unless you hold it just right. With the cigar grip you have to make sure the clip is under the index finger so it doesn't cut into the middle finger. If you hold it in a fist it's hard to get a firm grip without the clip digging into your palm. If you grip more around the head there's that sharp bezel.

 

[warpdrive]

I like my E1B a lot but I really doubt I would buy it for $150 if I had to do it again. At the $100 I paid for it, I think it's a great light, but the new price is just too hard to swallow. I would probably pick a Novatac or Ra light instead.

 

[Eye See]

The E1B would be my choice EDC, because of it's size and simple UI,
but mine has a green tint I hate, so I EDC a Nitecore Extreme.
Worth the Money ? Yes.

Note: I paid $115, $159 might have something to do with it..