Question on Surefire Lumens Ratings

[Talldog77656]

Can someone enlighten me on the Lumens ratings from SF. I recently bought a 6PDL and on the SF website it is rated at 120 Lumens Max. So, I thought it was 120 Lumens. When I got it though, the package said 80 Lumens?

http://www.surefire.com/6PDL

I was thinking of buying one of the new SF KXD4 replacement heads. They are supposed to up the Lumens from 80 to 120, but on their description page it also says 120 Lumens (max).

http://www.surefire.com/KX4D-LED-Conversion-Head

So I'm confused, does SF mean 120 Lumens under ideal conditions, or with certain batteries, or if the wind happens to be blowing the right way that day??

I don't get it.

 

[emac]

80 lumens is the rated output for the "old version" p60l lamp assembly. recently they updated to a new sealed head (iirc) which appears to be the same thing as the (SF KXD4) outputting 120 lumens.

It appears as though you just received the "older version"
you should be able to tell if the lamp assembly is removable.

regarding surefire's rated lumens they are very conservative and what you can expect once the LED is warmed up and output drops a bit. They only recommend CR 123 primaries personally I wouldnt use RCR 123s in any of my stock surefires. I have only used the SF band and Titanium Innovations and I can see no difference between the two.

There are alot more knowledgeable people on this forum so if i have misspoke anywhere they will correct but to the best of my knowledge this appears to be right.

 

[JCD]

It has only been very recently that SureFire upgraded its 6P series LED flashlights from 80 lumens to 120 lumens. They accomplished that increase via a switch from the P60L LED/reflector assembly that fits into the standard Z44 C series head to the KX4/KX4D head, which integrates the bezel, LED & associated electronics, and reflector into one single item.

It sounds like you received the old version 6PLD (with the 80 lumen P60L assembly) from the dealer.

 

[Talldog77656]

OK, I guess I should have waited a little longer to get the newer version, figures :sigh:

 

[Let It Bleed]

This may be obvious, but does this mean drop-ins are a no go in the new 120 lumen 6PL lights? If so, I wouldn't consider an extra 40 lumens to be worth the trade. I like SF and there is something to be said for keeping it stock, which is why I want a 200 lumen SF E2DL. But I just put a M61 in a P6, so I'm happy.

 

[JCD]

This may be obvious, but does this mean drop-ins are a no go in the new 120 lumen 6PL lights? If so, I wouldn't consider an extra 40 lumens to be worth the trade. I like SF and there is something to be said for keeping it stock, which is why I want a 200 lumen SF E2DL. But I just put a M61 in a P6, so I'm happy.

It appears that the new LED versions of the C/G/P/Z lights can accept drop-ins only after swapping the KX4 head for a Z44 bezel.

 

[Alberta-Blue]

If you want to use a surefire host with a drop-in (assuming you dont already have a host) you will need to purchase the surefire incan hosts from now on. While SF has openly said that it will not be researching anymore advance in incan tech, they will undoubtedly be around for a while... get em while you can.

 

[jhc37013]

Bummer where did you get it from like JCD said the 120 lumen is very new I think within the past week or two. Next time be sure and ask your dealer via e-mail or better yet give them a call. If you bought it from SF website send it back and tell them you got a different model than advertised, same thing if you got it somewhere else that advertised it as 120 lumen.

 

[Niconical]

Unless there is a significant price difference, I'd say keep the one you have

You won't notice the 40 lumens difference in real use, but you will at some time in the future want to swap the LED for something new.

Having the older 6PL, with the changeable drop-in, makes that as simple as pie.

I see you've only just joined the forum, and you might be thinking "Nah, that Niconical is wrong, I'd rather just have the light as it is, I certainly won't be poking around with new parts".

Dude, yeah ya will, just take my word for it :naughty:

 

[Talldog77656]

Unless there is a significant price difference, I'd say keep the one you have

You won't notice the 40 lumens difference in real use, but you will at some time in the future want to swap the LED for something new.

Having the older 6PL, with the changeable drop-in, makes that as simple as pie.

I see you've only just joined the forum, and you might be thinking "Nah, that Niconical is wrong, I'd rather just have the light as it is, I certainly won't be poking around with new parts".

Dude, yeah ya will, just take my word for it :naughty:

I've already got the bug. I've recently bought 4-Surefires, a 6PL with an M61 for the rifle, and three 6PDL's for myself and my wife and daughter. I was planning on replacing the optic in the 6PL for the rifle anyway, but it would have been nice to get the new 120 Lumen versions for the other three.

I got a good price though, so I can't complain too much.

Here's a pic of my 6PDL with extender and OD Green Lanyard. Waiting on a pocket clip and I'll probably replace the optic with an M60 when Elzetta starts selling them.

The other two 6PDL's will remain stock except for maybe replacing the optics with M60's or m61's.