etc
Flashlight Enthusiast
The long-expected AA bodies from FiveMega have arrived and what it a perfect time it is to test the M30 Malkoff module that runs on 1 - 5.5V. I've always wanted to do that but never really got a chance until now.
This exactly what I have been waiting for after months of complaing why Surefire doesn't make an AA lite. This is not a Surefire but it's a clone you might say and it works very well. (A clone of the concept, there is no 3xAA Surefire of any kind)
While 2xAA and 1xAA bodies are avaiable, I got the 3xAA body to get the max runtime and power. I figure that with Lithiums (L91) it should be nearly identical to Surefire 9P with M60 module, given that 1xAA L91 has the W-hour as 123 primary.
The first thing that strikes you is that the 3xAA body is much longer than Surefire 9P and certainly 6P. (9P pictured). I can EDC it but in some cases it's harder to do than 9P. It's very similar to the olde MiniM*g 3xAA that came out a few years ago. The quality is of course incomparibly higher.
Why 3xAA FiveMega?
It's a C-head, you can use any C-head you want, better yet, you can drop in any module that will work with the input voltage. Example M30WL or M30F (Not sure of all the configurations Gene makes).
The knurling is very well done. I have other FiveMega and Leef bodies but this one is the best of them all. It will not slip out of your hand. Feels like a solid piece of equipment. The diameter of the body is very slightly larger than MiniM*g so that it won't fit in holsters designed for MiniM*gs. Believe me, I tried. Not sure what holster will work for it. A holster is a good idea as it's just very slightly too large for inside-the-pocket carry. It fits inside my pockets but barely so, a holster might work out better anyway.
The cells are inserted from the LED end. There is no removable tailcap. I am not sure if the tailcap that comes with FM body is waterproof, I didn't test it. From the outside, M30 looks exactly the same as M60.
Initially I was disappointed with M30 as it's a typical LED-ish tint, that has a touch of blue. The color rendition is not as good as it's with M60. I don't know if I lost the LED lottery on this one but OTOH I definitely won the lottery with M60 - it's the most perfect tint I've ever seen, just a touch of "warm" (Not being M60W).
I tried all available AA cells I had and here is my impression.
The shot above is M60 with 2x18500 cells vs M30 on 3xAA L91 Lithium cells, both fully charged. I think you can safely assume that M30 is just as bright as M60 on L91s or maybe a hair brighter even.
I also tried Maha Powerex 2700 mAh cells (about 1.5 years old and at the end of their life) and my impression was they were just very slightly less bright than the aforementioned M60 configuration. If I were to guess, a solid 200 lumens. The hot spot seemed to be just slightly less defined as it is with M60. I could also be wrong with my guesstimate. +/- 30 lumens is not easy to tell.
I also tried Eneloops and got about the same results. Did not rest them for runtime just yet.
The other chemistries I tried were Alkalines. I thought the output was less bright than L91s but at least as bright as with NiMh cells. It did decline more steeply than with NiMH cells.
The biggest surprise I got was when I tried the junk Carbon-Zinc cells (I have a big pile of them laying around) and while they produced a very dim bulb nowhere near the M30 category or even in the 1W category, I got about 1.5 hours of decent lite, enough to navigate with and then about 45 minutes of declining lite. I expected about 20 minutes but M30 seems to get every bit of power out of them.
So this is rather cool. What other Surefire or Surefire clone do you know that can run on Alkalines or Carbon-Zinc AA cells. To reiterate, the best output is realized on Lithium primary cells, L91s.
The 2xAA FiveMega body was very tempting but I knew I wouldn't get the whole lumens output, certainly not 230 lumens. Certainly not the runtime. Here is what Gene said:
I pointed it at myself the mirror and saw stars for the next 2 minutes. It's bright.
The conclusion: A great addition to any collection. Run the M30 module on L91, NiMH, Alkaline or other AA chemistries. That was basically my goal, to have AA compatibility. Li-Ion is an option as long as the total voltage does not exceed 5.5V. Which means 1x18650 + M30 is a good choice.
I am however not going to be selling my M60 anytime soon as I can run it in a "real" Surefire plus the tint is about as good as it gets
You can buy the FiveMega AA-based bodies in the CPF's Custom & Mod B/S/T
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=221687
Malkoff M30 is available on the Malkoff web site:
http://www.malkoffdevices.com/shop2/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_14_16&products_id=29
This exactly what I have been waiting for after months of complaing why Surefire doesn't make an AA lite. This is not a Surefire but it's a clone you might say and it works very well. (A clone of the concept, there is no 3xAA Surefire of any kind)
While 2xAA and 1xAA bodies are avaiable, I got the 3xAA body to get the max runtime and power. I figure that with Lithiums (L91) it should be nearly identical to Surefire 9P with M60 module, given that 1xAA L91 has the W-hour as 123 primary.
The first thing that strikes you is that the 3xAA body is much longer than Surefire 9P and certainly 6P. (9P pictured). I can EDC it but in some cases it's harder to do than 9P. It's very similar to the olde MiniM*g 3xAA that came out a few years ago. The quality is of course incomparibly higher.
Why 3xAA FiveMega?
It's a C-head, you can use any C-head you want, better yet, you can drop in any module that will work with the input voltage. Example M30WL or M30F (Not sure of all the configurations Gene makes).
The knurling is very well done. I have other FiveMega and Leef bodies but this one is the best of them all. It will not slip out of your hand. Feels like a solid piece of equipment. The diameter of the body is very slightly larger than MiniM*g so that it won't fit in holsters designed for MiniM*gs. Believe me, I tried. Not sure what holster will work for it. A holster is a good idea as it's just very slightly too large for inside-the-pocket carry. It fits inside my pockets but barely so, a holster might work out better anyway.
The cells are inserted from the LED end. There is no removable tailcap. I am not sure if the tailcap that comes with FM body is waterproof, I didn't test it. From the outside, M30 looks exactly the same as M60.
Initially I was disappointed with M30 as it's a typical LED-ish tint, that has a touch of blue. The color rendition is not as good as it's with M60. I don't know if I lost the LED lottery on this one but OTOH I definitely won the lottery with M60 - it's the most perfect tint I've ever seen, just a touch of "warm" (Not being M60W).
I tried all available AA cells I had and here is my impression.
The shot above is M60 with 2x18500 cells vs M30 on 3xAA L91 Lithium cells, both fully charged. I think you can safely assume that M30 is just as bright as M60 on L91s or maybe a hair brighter even.
I also tried Maha Powerex 2700 mAh cells (about 1.5 years old and at the end of their life) and my impression was they were just very slightly less bright than the aforementioned M60 configuration. If I were to guess, a solid 200 lumens. The hot spot seemed to be just slightly less defined as it is with M60. I could also be wrong with my guesstimate. +/- 30 lumens is not easy to tell.
I also tried Eneloops and got about the same results. Did not rest them for runtime just yet.
The other chemistries I tried were Alkalines. I thought the output was less bright than L91s but at least as bright as with NiMh cells. It did decline more steeply than with NiMH cells.
The biggest surprise I got was when I tried the junk Carbon-Zinc cells (I have a big pile of them laying around) and while they produced a very dim bulb nowhere near the M30 category or even in the 1W category, I got about 1.5 hours of decent lite, enough to navigate with and then about 45 minutes of declining lite. I expected about 20 minutes but M30 seems to get every bit of power out of them.
So this is rather cool. What other Surefire or Surefire clone do you know that can run on Alkalines or Carbon-Zinc AA cells. To reiterate, the best output is realized on Lithium primary cells, L91s.
The 2xAA FiveMega body was very tempting but I knew I wouldn't get the whole lumens output, certainly not 230 lumens. Certainly not the runtime. Here is what Gene said:
I pointed it at myself the mirror and saw stars for the next 2 minutes. It's bright.
The conclusion: A great addition to any collection. Run the M30 module on L91, NiMH, Alkaline or other AA chemistries. That was basically my goal, to have AA compatibility. Li-Ion is an option as long as the total voltage does not exceed 5.5V. Which means 1x18650 + M30 is a good choice.
I am however not going to be selling my M60 anytime soon as I can run it in a "real" Surefire plus the tint is about as good as it gets
You can buy the FiveMega AA-based bodies in the CPF's Custom & Mod B/S/T
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=221687
Malkoff M30 is available on the Malkoff web site:
http://www.malkoffdevices.com/shop2/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_14_16&products_id=29
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