Surefire L4...I LOVE it. (w/Beamshots)

[Bullzeyebill]

My L4 was one of my first lights and long one of my favorites, although it has gotten much dimmer over the years.

Prime posted some great photos. The differences between 30 and 45 lumens or 45 and 60 or 60 and 80, etc., are large and easy to see. I thought lumens had to double before the eye would pick up the difference. What's up with that?

That's what some people here on CPF say. I have been hearing it for years, but when I had my first KL4 and compared it to the newer KL4's the difference was quite pronounced. I think that our eyes, tied in with our computer like brain, do well discerning light.

Bill

 

[applevision]

I EDC an SF L2 for the same reason you are EDCing the L4...great flood. However the 2-mode L2 suits me perfectly on the job and I will keep on using it until an updated L2 comes out or the Invictus.

Invictus!! The mere mention of its name is salt in my wounds!

 

[1996alnl]

Invictus!! The mere mention of its name is salt in my wounds!

Yeah,i think when this light comes out everyone else will be scrambling to come out with something just as bad @ss
I think 2009 is going to be a good year for us flashoholics.

 

[Big_Ed]

I carry my L4 every day at work. I couldn't be happier. It lights up a crawl space, attic or dark basement like no other light I have. Outstanding light.

 

[prime77]

I got the new L4 today and took some shots tonight to compare the new one to the old one. Is it still a wall of light? I'm not to sure. It has a much tighter hot spot and throws much better. But to me the new one seems to have less spill. I was worried about the tint on the new one has I have seen that the Soul LED lights lean towards the cool tint. I'm happy with the tint on it. It's definitely cool but not has blue has the shots make it out to be. Or maybe it's just looking at it side buy side with the warm Lux 5 L4. I took some shots again of the E2DL to get a new up to date comparison of 120 lumens through a TIR and reflector.

A few side notes. My new KL4 head won't run on one primary cell. It doesn't get has hot as the old L4 during the same amount use between the two. I can take some longer distance shots later tonight if anyone wants them.

 

[1996alnl]

Thanks for the beamshots prime77

That beam from the new L4 looks like the best of both worlds.
Throw and flood,nice..
The only reason i won't get one is because it won't run on a 17670 cell.

 

[Chao]

Prime77, thanks for the nice outdoor shots :thumbsup:

 

[Unclemonkey]

Great Beam Shots! Still my choice for EDC, 3 years strong. LOVE IT!

It warms my heart to still see cpfer's rockin the L4 baby. Yeahlovecpf

 

[prime77]

Prime77, thanks for the nice outdoor shots :thumbsup:

Thanks Chao. It was your review and beamshots of the new L4 that put me over the edge and got me to purchase one. I have to say that I just spent the last 30 mins outside playing with it and I have to come to really like the new beam. Like 1996alnl said it has the best of both worlds, nice throw and good flood.

 

[prime77]

Three more shots of the three for the night. A little longer distance than the other three ones. I tried to aim the lights right when the road starts it's curve.

 

[Fooboy]

I wish someone would make an animated gif using all the pictures you took in this thread.

 

[Size15's]

Three more shots of the three for the night. A little longer distance than the other three ones. I tried to aim the lights right when the road starts it's curve.

I guess I must be too used to the TIR optic because for me, whilst the reflector-based beams are often better looking, the likes of the KX2C/X300/E2DL beam is more useful in my experience.

One of things I found annoying with the L2 was the beam was too floody for some applications. If SureFire decide to replace the L2 it may be that they give it the new L4 treatment to continue to users the choice between the TIR optic beam and the reflector beam profiles.

 

[Bullzeyebill]

I like the color rendition of your Lux V L4 in those longer outdoor shoots. Not really much to gain using the colder Seoul P4 LED. One of the warmer P4's might tell a different story.

Bill

 

[bavarianblucandy]

Is it just me, or are those beamshots on steroids? My LX2, which has a similar beam output of that of the E2D does not generate that much light.

 

[WadeF]

Is it just me, or are those beamshots on steroids? My LX2, which has a similar beam output of that of the E2D does not generate that much light.

You can't judge output from the pictures people post. If they post multiple pictures, all taken with the same exposure, you can compare the output between different lights, but it may not be an accurate representation of what you'd see in real life. If you set your camera to take a long exposure it can make the beam look way brighter than it would in person. Or you could set a shorter exposure and make the beam look less bright than it would in person.

Beam shots are useful to show the characteristics of a beam, which was the main point of this thread. A floody beam versus a throwy beam.

 

[desert.snake]

Friends, it is sad that photos of the beamshots are not saved. I bought one old L4,
while he is on the road, I think how many lumens this can be?

 

[Bullzeyebill]

KL4, incandescent model, has about 100 lumens.

Bill

 

[desert.snake]

Bill,
Thank you very much!

 

[kelmo]

More like 120 lumens for the KL4! The original L4 was rated at 100 lumens.

 

[Modernflame]

I remember that light fondly...