Which SureFire?

[George1]

I am new to this forum and would like some help from the experts. I do not currently own a SF and am trying to decide which to buy first. I am thinking about two options - feel free to suggest more.

The 2E2 and the new KL1 head. That way I can have both an incan and a LED option right away.

Then later get a C3 with a clickie tailcap and HOLA.

Does this make sense? I have also heard good things about the L2 although I sense that it is more of a flood than a spot.

My goal is a good all purpose light with good throw and some spill that is modular for future expansion.

Is the C3 going to be noticeably better (throw) than a G2Z with HOLA?

Thank you for your suggestions.

 

[thesurefire]

If I were you I would go with the E2e and KL1, this way you be off to a good start. Then later you can decide if you want an KL4 (Lux V flood head) and/or a E1e to go with it. with an E1e you could put the KL1 or KL4 head on to have a smaller light with less runtime.

To me If you want an flood light i would go with the L4 over the L2, because its smaller and can use rechargables, however it dosent have 2 different output levels right out the box, you need a McE2s for that /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Is the C3 going to be noticeably better (throw) than a G2Z with HOLA?

Noticeably is the keyword, the P61 is rated at 120 lumens and the C3 runs 105 or 200 lumen lamps. I dont have a C3 so I cant really tell you, but I would guess that the stock C3 throws slightly better then the HOLA G2, due to a bigger reflector.

 

[deranged_coder]

Hey, welcome to CPF!

The Executive series lights are quite modular. I made a post a while ago likening them to LEGO blocks. Surefire sells the following combinations at the moment:

<ul type="square">[*]E1e - 1x123 body, 15 lumen incandescent (MN01)
[*]E1L - 1x123 body, 25 lumen LED (KL1 head)
[*]E2e - 2x123 body, 60 lumen incandescent (MN03; can get an MN02 lamp assembly for lower output (25 lumens) but longer runtime)
[*]E2L - 2x123 body, 30 lumen LED (KL1 head)
[*]L4 - 2x123 body, 65 lumen LED (KL4 head)
[/list]
If you think you may want to get the KL4 head down the line, it may be more economical in the long run to start with the L4 and then pick up an incan bezel (either here on the B/S/T forums or through eBay). Same with the KL1 head; it may be more economical to pick up an E2L and then pick up the incan bezel and lamp assembly later.

The latest generation KL1 heads are all about throw; the sidespill they create is minimal. The KL4 heads create a wall of light; lots of sidespill but it does not throw very far.

The parts for the Executive series lights are also interchangeable with the Aleph lights, which are custom lights created by McGizmo. McGizmo has his own forum here on CPF. Their interchangeability really adds a lot of modularity to the Executive lights.

Here is a pic of my Executive series LEGO blocks /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif :

From L-R: SF123A battery (included for size reference), old KL1 head, E1L, E2e-HA, E2W-BY (basically an E2e with a different finish and comes standard with the lower output MN02 lamp assembly), KL4 head, SF123A battery. You can see the SC3 spares carrier (holds a spare lamp assembly and 4 batteries) in the background.

I cannot comment much on the modularity of the C3 since I have not tried playing around with interchanging parts for it. However, I do own one and I think it is an excellent light.

 

[Topper]

Hi and Welcome, not sure why you posted. It looks like you got a game plan all ready lined up. Good for you; I like the E2E and KL1. I like my C3 add a Turbo head later and you got a sorta M3T slap on a A19 change the lamp and you got a sorta M4. Sounds like you got a real good grip on things. Oh I need to point out I do own all of the above but not an expert. You will go broke here I am an expert on that. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif
Topper /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[rikvee]

"My goal is a good all purpose light with good throw and some spill that is modular for future expansion."

that sounds like a spot-on description of Don McLeish (McGizmo)'s Aleph range....

all of it compatible with Surefire as well!