Mag-lite led 2d wow

[Hot Call]

I own a Pelican M10 (mostly kept in trunk) Streamlight Stinger, Fenix PD30 which are all used for work.

At first I had the Streamlight Stinger on my belt for about 5 months. The only reason I had it was because everyone else did. The poor output (rated 125 lumens bud never seemed like it) and yellowish colored beam annoyed me so I eventually switched to our issued Pelican M10. The Pelican M10 was nice with a small focused whiter beam and great throw. The downfall was the unfocusable beam was too small in some situations.

I bought a Fenix PD30 after reading all its great reviews. I along with my coworkers were impressed with the size/ouput ratio. However, it was difficult to deploy/secure, uncomfortable in the hands, and was easily misplaced. Also for one incident, I was worried about dropping the Fenix when I needed to use both my hands which caused me to hesistate which was a big NONO. Batteries were a B****.

And then I bought the Rebel Mag-lite 2d led. Is it brighter than the Fenix PD30? Nope... The Fenix is a bit brighter. The Fenix has a perfect beam and the Maglite, even when focused, has artifacts.

But, the Mag-lite is almost comparable to the spotlights on our cars or the search light we keep in the station. I'm not sure how the throw compares to other throw lights, but there is something about the beam that pierces the night like I have seen no other flashlight do. I use 2 eneloops keeping it light enough to carry all day. And I'm not worried about dropping the Maglite and would rather keep it in my hand if something went sideways, for obvious reasons.

Is there something special about Mag-lites that I don't know about? The reflector? This is now my primary flashlight.

 

[american lockpicker]

I own a Pelican M10 (mostly kept in trunk) Streamlight Stinger, Fenix PD30 which are all used for work.

At first I had the Streamlight Stinger on my belt for about 5 months. The only reason I had it was because everyone else did. The poor output (rated 125 lumens bud never seemed like it) and yellowish colored beam annoyed me so I eventually switched to our issued Pelican M10. The Pelican M10 was nice with a small focused whiter beam and great throw. The downfall was the unfocusable beam was too small in some situations.

I bought a Fenix PD30 after reading all its great reviews. I along with my coworkers were impressed with the size/ouput ratio. However, it was difficult to deploy/secure, uncomfortable in the hands, and was easily misplaced. Also for one incident, I was worried about dropping the Fenix when I needed to use both my hands which caused me to hesistate which was a big NONO. Batteries were a B****.

And then I bought the Rebel Mag-lite 2d led. Is it brighter than the Fenix PD30? Nope... The Fenix is a bit brighter. The Fenix has a perfect beam and the Maglite, even when focused, has artifacts.

But, the Mag-lite is almost comparable to the spotlights on our cars or the search light we keep in the station. I'm not sure how the throw compares to other throw lights, but there is something about the beam that pierces the night like I have seen no other flashlight do. I use 2 eneloops keeping it light enough to carry all day. And I'm not worried about dropping the Maglite and would rather keep it in my hand if something went sideways, for obvious reasons.

Is there something special about Mag-lites that I don't know about? The reflector? This is now my primary flashlight.

Its the new Rebel LED.

 

[scottaw]

The rebel led's are nice, but the real reason it throw so well is the reflector. It's a large, deep reflector with a mirror finish. All of which add up to a better thrower. Now stipple that reflector and you'll lose some throw, but all your artifacts will go away, always a trade off.

 

[adirondackdestroyer]

Does anyone know just how much lux the 2D MagLED rebel has? I've read that it has more lux than the Husky 2D (which has around 16,000+ lux at 1M).

 

[Gunner12]

It's the larger reflector. Compare the different sizes of the reflectors, you'll see that the Fenix has a much smaller reflector then the Maglite.

You can run the Fenix on Rechargeable CR123s, and good CR123s can be had for $1 each online. The lanyard is there so you can let go of the light withouth it dropping to the ground.

If you want a smaller light that throws further, look at lights like the Dereelight DBS and similar. They don't run on normal batteries though (but they work with rechargeable batteries).

:welcome:

 

[Hot Call]

I'm not sure about the lux value, since it doesn't say on the box, but I can light something up two streets away while under city street lights. Probably about 150 yard.

Now my question, does INTELLIGENT POWER SOURCE mean regulated? It seems like it is because after about 45 minutes of continuous use with 2 eneloops (out of the box, not freshly charged), the flashlight suddenly dimmed to about 1/3 brightness.

 

[Gunner12]

It probably means that the light is regulated, just worded to nab customers.

As for the dimming, that can be either be the batteries dieing or, if the mag still has the heat sensor, the LED overheating (and the driver cutting back to prevent the LED from frying).

 

[rmteo]

The 2D Rebel MAGLED is regulated to constant power - in other words, the current draw goes up as the battery voltage falls. This gives constant brightness down to about 2.0V when it drops out of regulation and the current starts to fall as well and the LED starts dimming. At under 1.4V, the LED shuts out completely.

With 2x 10000mAH NiMH cells, you can get almost 12 hours of nearly constant brightness before dimming.

 

[neal71]

two questions:

1.) Is there a really good reflector that would be just a drop in for the new rebel m@g (don't know why but I always see it typed with a * or an @ symbol) that would give it a better quality throw?

2.) Is it bad that I put one in my 6D and my 5D? Will it hurt the LED?

 

[Gunner12]

two questions:

1.) Is there a really good reflector that would be just a drop in for the new rebel m@g (don't know why but I always see it typed with a * or an @ symbol) that would give it a better quality throw?

2.) Is it bad that I put one in my 6D and my 5D? Will it hurt the LED?

1) The Maglite reflector is pretty good already, you won't gain much with a new reflector. A new window could help though. A UCL one would be an improvement from the plastic one.

2) Did you put a 2 cell MagLED in a 6 cell light? If it still works, I'm surprised. White LEDs run at 3.3-3.7v depending on drive current and forward voltage of the LED, so 2 batteries for 3v total won't be enough to drive the LED at a good output so there is a boost circuit to raise the voltage. 6 and 5 cells on the other hand require a buck circuit to lower the voltage. Considering that the MagLED drop-ins don't have any heatsinking for the LED anyways, you will definitely damage the LED and probably fry the driver.

 

[berry580]

not much to 'wow' about.
Mags are so big, something like a Jetbeam RRT-1, half its size will eat it for breakfast in every way including throw, OK, except for weighting you down.

 

[outersquare]

for inexpensive retail store products that use garbage batteries, the rebel mags are quite good products.

 

[gswitter]

Mags are so big, something like a Jetbeam RRT-1, half its size will eat it for breakfast in every way including throw, OK, except for weighting you down.

...and price, and availability, and...

 

[kramer5150]

for inexpensive retail store products that use garbage batteries, the rebel mags are quite good products.

x2... considering the overall picture I was pretty impressed with my brothers 3D/rebel mag.

 

[kramer5150]

...and price, and availability, and...

... skull fracture-abilities.

 

[neal71]

1) The Maglite reflector is pretty good already, you won't gain much with a new reflector. A new window could help though. A UCL one would be an improvement from the plastic one.

2) Did you put a 2 cell MagLED in a 6 cell light? If it still works, I'm surprised. White LEDs run at 3.3-3.7v depending on drive current and forward voltage of the LED, so 2 batteries for 3v total won't be enough to drive the LED at a good output so there is a boost circuit to raise the voltage. 6 and 5 cells on the other hand require a buck circuit to lower the voltage. Considering that the MagLED drop-ins don't have any heatsinking for the LED anyways, you will definitely damage the LED and probably fry the driver.

Technically I put a new 3D led in a 6D, and I put a 2D led in a 5D light. The new leds are not drop-ins I had to actually disassemble to light and switch the internals of the light, if the new leds come out by themselves I am was unaware. The 6D makes a very very faint high pitched noise when it is first turned on, but goes away after a second or two. The performance of the new led is just awesome.

 

[KiwiMark]

...and price, and availability, and...

and monster mods that would kick the backside of pretty much any other light out there (I have a 210W regulated one that is quite bright and a 180W 4D and a 77W 3D).

 

[jp2515]

for inexpensive retail store products that use garbage batteries, the rebel mags are quite good products.

Low cost + cheap batteries = more sales.

...and price, and availability, and...

Right on that front too. M@g are available just about everywhere.

 

[BlueBeam22]

The throw that the new Maglite Rebels produce is quite impressive... I have the 3D Rebel, and it does throw just as well as some halogen spotlights..

Glad to hear you are happy with it, Hot Call. I love mine.