SureFire G3L and P91 lamp?

[Germ]

I just got a SureFire G3L for a cousin and will probably give it to him in a couple of hours.

Has anyone tried swapping in a P91 in a G3L? I checked the SureFire website and it didn't mention the P91 as an option for the G3L, I wonder why?

http://www.surefire.com/maxexp/main/co_disp/displ/prrfnbr/24505/sesent/00

This was a spur of the moment gift idea. I haven't seen the cousin in years. It was getting dark yesterday and I found an excuse to pull out my Fenix P1D CE Q5. He liked that light and I mentioned CPF and modded MagLites and such. He's not really into lights, yet , but he does have a Streamlight Scorpion. He asked what would be good for a little more reach and I thought the G3 with a P91 would be a good, affordable light for that. I immediatly was thinking Christmas gift and coaxing another member into our flock.

I have a G3 (not with me now though) and I like it a lot. I wanted to get him a G3, but a local brick and mortar store only had G3L's and for $45 I couldn't resist. I also got the P91 bulb, but I figured I'd check with you guys first before trying the swap.

 

[USM0083]

You can use the P91 in a G3 with no problems, other than short run time. :thumbsup:

 

[jugg2]

The Surefire website specifically mentions the Pyrex window in the G3, but it doesn't say anything about that with the G3L. I don't have either light, so I don't know, but I would think you could as long as the lens is Pyrex.

 

[Paladin]

It's better to give than recieve?!

My recently arrived Black G3L packaging says lexan lens. It has the new aluminum bezel, and by the finger tapping test it appears the lens really IS lexan. Considering the run time advantage which will be greatly appreciated by a non-flashoholic you should give your cousin the G3L, AND BUY YOUR OWN P60L!:candle:

I originally stole the P60L from my wifes Yellow G2L, and would have never heard the end of it unless I got her a replacement module. So when I called Mike at OpticsHq to get the G3L I also had him send a pair of P60L's to reestablish peace in the household.:thumbsup:

Paladin

 

[Germ]

Thanks jugg2 and Paladin. Luckily, it occurred to me before I gave him the light that the lens could be plastic. Why would they do that with the G3L and prevent you from using the 9V incan lamp assemblies?

Paladin, I didn't look at the package enough to see where it said lexan lens. Brightguy mentions the Lexan window:

http://www.brightguy.com/products/SureFire_G3L.php

My Streamlight Sidewinder showed me that a properly hard coated plastic lens is pretty darn scratch resistant, but I still prefer a glass lens and consider that one of the defining criteria for a "quality" light.

We tried the P91 lamp assembly and it worked fine. We tried getting the lens out, but couldn't loosen the retaining ring using just a thumbnail. I told him no more than 30 second bursts with the P91 until we were certain about the lens. My cousin liked the light when using the LED lamp assembly, but he really liked the P91 lamp I told him about the 20 minute runtime to 1/2 brightness and how he might use his Streamlight Scorpion as a primary light and the G3L with the P91 for distance or short term use. I also gave him a 12 pack of Streamlight 123's.

Using the LED lamp assembly the G3L is a very good light. The tint is a little blue with a fairly big hotspot. The SureFire LED is about the same brightness as the SL Scorpion. I also brought a 2 year old 4AA Streamlight ProPoly Luxeon and it held its own against the SureFire and the new Scorpion. The Fenix P1D CE Q5 kicked all their butts. The situation was less than ideal though for testing as his neighborhood was well lit with Christmas lights.

He is a bit of a flashlight nut I suppose. He showed me 4 MagLites and he probably had more. They were in various states of battery exhaustion or dead from leaked alkalines. All were pathetic compared to the LED lights and especially the G3L with the P91. When I visit again in the summer I will have to bring my ROP.

Who can recommend where to get him a glass lens and a wrench or a way to get the lens retainer out without marking it?

 

[Paladin]

It's probably easier to just get a standard 6P or 9P bezel with pyrex lens. Try posting a WTB request, I'm sure someone has an extra bezel lying around.

Paladin

 

[Size15's]

Note that if you want to use incandescent lamps in the G3L then I recommend you get a Z44-BK bezel (standard 6P/Z2 etc bezel with Pyrex window) as the heat generated by the P90/P91 lamps can overwhelm the Lexan window of the G2L/G3L bezel if allowed to build-up through constant-on use.

 

[Germ]

Note that if you want to use incandescent lamps in the G3L then I recommend you get a Z44-BK bezel (standard 6P/Z2 etc bezel with Pyrex window) as the heat generated by the P90/P91 lamps can overwhelm the Lexan window of the G2L/G3L bezel if allowed to build-up through constant-on use.

Size15's, why do you recommend getting a new bezel over replacing the lens?

I hope I did the right thing. I ordered the UCL lens for the G2 from Lighthound:

http://www.lighthound.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1071

I did some research on removing the lens lock ring. I would try gently to remove the ring without heat first, but the consensus was that you heat the bezel to loosen up the Loctite holding it in. Then you use a pair of snap ring pliers, a watch case opener, or a pair of needle nose pliers to engage two opposing notches in the ring and turn it counter clockwise (the usual lefty loosey). I suppose you could also use some thick sheetmetal and make a tool that just fit inside two notches that you would use like a big screwdriver to turn the ring out.

 

[Size15's]

Size15's, why do you recommend getting a new bezel over replacing the lens?

By modifying the bezel you are voiding the warranty, and risk compromising the 'waterproofness' of the window seal.

 

[Germ]

By modifying the bezel you are voiding the warranty, and risk compromising the 'waterproofness' of the window seal.

Thanks Size15's.

Well, I bought another G3L for myself and removed the retaining ring on it. This turned out to be a pain in the butt.

The ring was glued in pretty good. I tried heating up the bezel with a hairdrier, but that didn't seem to phase the glue. I then boiled the bezel in a water filled Ziploc bag for 30 minutes. The ring budged then. Boiling longer would probably have been better.

I'd recommend making matching marks on the ring and the bezel before taking off the ring. That way when you put the ring back on you can tighten it back to the same place (assuming your old and new lens are similar in thickness).

I used a pair of snap ring pliers to turn the ring. I didn't really like the snap ring pliers for this. They seemed kind of awkward for this application. You have to force them open and they slipped out of the notches in the ring a couple of times. The ring is easy to scratch or ding at the notches, so now I want a new ring. A watch case opener or a tool made to just fit in two opposing notches might be better than the snap ring pliers as they wouldn't put outward pressure on the notches.

The advice to just get another bezel with a glass lens sounds like a better idea now I always have to learn the hard way.