Surefire Aviator 2017 thread

[mk2rocco]

Can some please advise if the aviator Head will work on a Malkoff cr123 body? I purchased a head and I'm trying to find a suitable body for it.

It works. I asked because not all e series bodies are made the same length. I was worried that a Malkoff body would be too short and the aviator Head wouldn't be able to thread on all the way. No issues though.

 

[BugoutBoys]

Does anyone know if the Aviator head will work on an Outdoorsman AA body? I want to have a body that will run the Aviator on AAs. I don't see any reason why it wouldn't work, the voltage should match up perfectly and the head should fit but I just want to make sure before I pull the trigger on a AA body

 

[Dingle1911]

Does anyone know if the Aviator head will work on an Outdoorsman AA body? I want to have a body that will run the Aviator on AAs. I don't see any reason why it wouldn't work, the voltage should match up perfectly and the head should fit but I just want to make sure before I pull the trigger on a AA body

I gave my Outdoorsman to a coworker, but I do have a Vital Gear body that will support AA batteries. I put in 2 AA's and screwed on an amber Aviator head. The setup seemed to function fine.

 

[Dingle1911]

I have had my amber Aviator for several days now. I really like the amber secondary LED. The color does not destroy night adapted, but also makes color identification a little easier when compared to red. I have had good luck using the K2 batteries. The runtime is shorter, but that is expected.

The only thing that would make it better would be a head that locked onto the body. I sometimes unthread the head when switch to white light.

 

[d88]

Like a few on here, I have an original incandescent A2 which I got principally for flying due to it's reliability and robustness. I was looking at the new iteration in anticipation, as maybe due to sentimentality I was looking to see if It was worth getting the new A2. Maybe I'll hold off a bit and see if the QC issues can resolve itself but I am a little disapointed hearing it's not a huge improvement on the original, or am I wrong in that assumption ?

 

[BugoutBoys]

Like a few on here, I have an original incandescent A2 which I got principally for flying due to it's reliability and robustness. I was looking at the new iteration in anticipation, as maybe due to sentimentality I was looking to see if It was worth getting the new A2. Maybe I'll hold off a bit and see if the QC issues can resolve itself but I am a little disapointed hearing it's not a huge improvement on the original, or am I wrong in that assumption ?

Oh gosh, in my mind there is absolutely no questioning it's improvement. I've had an original A2, and A2 LED, and now I have 4 of the 2017 Aviators and all of them work flawlessly. Yes maybe the low mode has a VERY subtle flicker, but think about it practically. The only time you ever see that is if you're staring at it on a white wall. When you're in the cockpit, if you're trying to see flicker in your flashlight, you probably shouldn't be behind the yoke of a plane at that moment. The newest Aviator has vast improvements over the old in my opinion. Starting with size, it fits a lot better into a flight suit or flight bag. Only needs one battery and has MUCH better runtimes than the original, The durability is a huge leap because there's no bulb to break. The output is much, much better. Comparing it to my P2X Fury, the distance visually looks the same. The P2x just has more spread. But the Aviator holds it's own very well. I would rely on this thing for any circumstance which is why I've gotten 4 of them. In my humble opinion, it's the best flashlight I have ever used hands down.

 

[d88]

Oh gosh, in my mind there is absolutely no questioning it's improvement. I've had an original A2, and A2 LED, and now I have 4 of the 2017 Aviators and all of them work flawlessly. Yes maybe the low mode has a VERY subtle flicker, but think about it practically. The only time you ever see that is if you're staring at it on a white wall. When you're in the cockpit, if you're trying to see flicker in your flashlight, you probably shouldn't be behind the yoke of a plane at that moment. The newest Aviator has vast improvements over the old in my opinion. Starting with size, it fits a lot better into a flight suit or flight bag. Only needs one battery and has MUCH better runtimes than the original, The durability is a huge leap because there's no bulb to break. The output is much, much better. Comparing it to my P2X Fury, the distance visually looks the same. The P2x just has more spread. But the Aviator holds it's own very well. I would rely on this thing for any circumstance which is why I've gotten 4 of them. In my humble opinion, it's the best flashlight I have ever used hands down.

Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated. My old A2 is still used as a backup as I know it will work no matter where I use it. That and I also have a few spare bulbs for it, so I'll keep using it till it's unviable. (which I don't expect for at least a good 5-10 years).

The new one's certainly given me food for thought. I want a reliable light that works and the new A2 would certainly compliment my existing one

 

[tokaji]

Could somebody tell me how tight the beam of the new Aviator is compared to the E2L?

 

[paulrobi01]

Oh gosh, in my mind there is absolutely no questioning it's improvement. I've had an original A2, and A2 LED, and now I have 4 of the 2017 Aviators and all of them work flawlessly. Yes maybe the low mode has a VERY subtle flicker, but think about it practically. The only time you ever see that is if you're staring at it on a white wall. When you're in the cockpit, if you're trying to see flicker in your flashlight, you probably shouldn't be behind the yoke of a plane at that moment. The newest Aviator has vast improvements over the old in my opinion. Starting with size, it fits a lot better into a flight suit or flight bag. Only needs one battery and has MUCH better runtimes than the original, The durability is a huge leap because there's no bulb to break. The output is much, much better. Comparing it to my P2X Fury, the distance visually looks the same. The P2x just has more spread. But the Aviator holds it's own very well. I would rely on this thing for any circumstance which is why I've gotten 4 of them. In my humble opinion, it's the best flashlight I have ever used hands down.

I just purchased the newer one in red (not received). I own the Kroma (my first SureFire) and absolutely use it every day. It's my goto light for astronomy. I'm hoping the new Aviator will be a new favourite. I'm just a little concerned about the flicker issue. None of my SureFires have ever had this issue. I was glad to read your enthusiastic response.

 

[tokaji]

I always heard the rods in our eyes are very insensitive to red light, so you need a too bright red light to actually see the light, so it destroys your night vision. On the other hand, the rods are very sensitive to green light and blue-green, so it is very easy to overpower the rods with it, causing destroyed night vision again. The best colour to preserve night vision is amber, because the rods can see it (they are sensitive to it somewhat) even when it is projected with very low intensity, but it is not so overpowering to destroy night vision.

I just purchased the newer one in red (not received). I own the Kroma (my first SureFire) and absolutely use it every day. It's my goto light for astronomy.

 

[DayofReckoning]

It seems to me that the new Aviator is much better suited for it's job than the previous A2L Aviator, which was really floody and would be less than ideal for lighting up an aircraft.

I am very disappointed though to hear of the issues with the Aviator in this thread. I was eyeballing the red version as a compliment to my original A2 aviators, but all this talk of issues has me spooked.


As far as the issues with PWM, I found a review that states the following.

"The low white light level is realized with all copies without PWM , and is therefore absolutely flicker-free. Interestingly, however, the low colored levels use all PWM . However, the PWM frequency is very high, so that one does not perceive flicker with the naked eye. Only in digital camera displays you can see it. The highest luminous levels all come without PWM ; also the colored ones."

https://www.lilahand.de/2017/05/13/review-surefire-aviator-serie/


If I'm not mistaken that seems to contradict what others have said in this thread. I wonder what gives?

Does anyone think enough time has passed that these early QA issues have been worked out?
​

 

[Vox Clamatis in Deserto]

I just purchased the newer one in red (not received). I own the Kroma (my first SureFire) and absolutely use it every day. It's my goto light for astronomy.

I live in a rural area and do occasional DSLR astrophotography. I've got a couple of those funky sidereal tracking devices with analog setup dials that conjure up memories of the circular slide rule and faint reticles for polar alignment.

My favorite dim LED light when taking star photos is the old SureFire T1A Titan. You can dial up just enough power to keep from tripping over the tripod while keeping your night vision and if you have to, crank it up more to see if that rustling in the brush is a bear or a possum. The HDS Rotary is another great light for low level illumination.

I see SureFire has the venerable Kroma-Milspec on closeout on the Spring Cleaning page.

 

[achindoon]

Has anyone tried to run the Aviator with 3.7V rechargeable batteries over a longer period of time? How are your experiences? Thanks! :thumbsup:

 

[vegassig]

Just to update, I bought an amber Aviator on Tuesday, it had the flicker issue, I called Surefire and they gave me an RMA the same day. So... looks like they still have issues, I'll update when I get it back. Anyone gotten one back from Surefire yet?

 

[danpass]

Where does one go for the best price on a white/green Aviator?

 

[Vox Clamatis in Deserto]

Where does one go for the best price on a white/green Aviator?

B&H is offering a significant discount off the surefire.com price of $299 when you put the light in the cart. Also, free shipping and no sales tax outside New York and New Jersey.

 

[vegassig]

I got my aviator back today, so it took right about 2 weeks from the time I contacted Surefire. The PWM effect is gone, but now on both low modes it has a soft-start effect. It starts out dim and ramps up, it happens really quick, but it's detectable. They must have switched the method of dimming.

It's an improvement and much more usable now and I was impressed with Surefire's customer service.

 

[nimdabew]

I got my aviator back today, so it took right about 2 weeks from the time I contacted Surefire. The PWM effect is gone, but now on both low modes it has a soft-start effect. It starts out dim and ramps up, it happens really quick, but it's detectable. They must have switched the method of dimming.

It's an improvement and much more usable now and I was impressed with Surefire's customer service.

I am fine with a ramp up. The flickering has definitely caused me to shy away from this light, but a white/YG is on my radar.

 

[vegassig]

Yeah, it's not bad at all, I love the light now.. it's just weird for an LED, I don't think I've seen a slow ramp up like that before.

 

[Lumen83]

Yeah, it's not bad at all, I love the light now.. it's just weird for an LED, I don't think I've seen a slow ramp up like that before.

I have an older surefire U2 that does it. It's really quick and usually not noticeable. It doesn't bother me but it's interesting that it does it.