FYI: Pelican M1 & M3 On Sale at Sierra Trading Post

Sierra Trading Post sells goods at a discount due to closeouts, overstocks or seconds. They sometimes have LED flashlights. Right now they have Pelican M1s [ 1 watt using 1xCR123a] for $27.50 and M3s [ 3 watt using 3xCR123a] for $40 as Closeouts.

Shipping is reasonable & customer service is very good.
SierraTradingPost.com is the website.

I ordered one of the M1s, which seems similar to the Dorcy Super 1 Watt in output & throw according to Flashlight Reviews. The M3 seems like a good deal, but I have a 3xcr123 light already.

I've heard good things about Pelican build quality, and according to the Flashlight Reviews runtime graph, the regulation of these lights looks great.

sierra trading post are good folks to deal with!

shipping and handling is pretty high

I had an M1 for a while and really liked it. The walls are extremely thick and build and machining quality were both very good. I had trouble with the o-ring between the bezel and the head when I was putting the light back together after I disassembled it to look at it's parts, but that was it. It has great throw!

Thanks for the review jsr. I ordered one because it was inexpensive and because Pelican has a good reputation. Since it only has a four star [4*] rating from Flashlight Reviews, I'm wasn't sure what to expect because the 4* rating is what I feel is the minimum for a light I'll consider buying.

I plan to use rechargeable 3.7v lithiums in it, but only after I burn off some of their power in another light.

They also have the cyclops spotlight on sale for $30 if anyone is interested...

LED_Thrift - I don't think you'll be disappointed with the PM1. It's a very good light and I found the machining much better than the PM6 xenon. It has a good heft to it and feels very solid. I ran it on 3.7V R123As also, but only for short bursts...about 10-20 seconds each. I called Pelican and the customer service there doesn't really know much about the technical aspects of the lights. I think they're more accustomed to questions about what's in stock, pricing, colors, etc. I love FLR.com and Doug does great reviews, but I use his reviews and ratings as information for my decision, but not the decision maker/breaker. I've purchased lights that FLR only gave 3 or 3.5 stars to and love them. The hotspot on the PM1 is quite good and makes it look as bright as some 3W lights (hotspot intensity looked the same as my then stock Q3, which according to FLR, puts out more overall light). The throw is great because of the large reflector and the concentrated hotspot. The overall beam is a bit strange in that it has some rings in the corona. The corona isn't as bright as lights such as the Q3, but still usable for dark navigation. The rings didn't bother me in real world usage, just when looking at white walls. I only sold mine in anticipation of the new PM1 LED. It will be pricier than the old PM1 tho.

jsr said:

.... I only sold mine [PM1] in anticipation of the new PM1 LED. It will be pricier than the old PM1 tho.

Click to expand...

How will the new Pelican M1 LED differ from the version on sale now? Thanks.

According to the Shot Show pic/review I read, it will look identical to the new M1 3310 xenon light which is a bit shorter, uses the same head and tail as the M6 and new M3, and has a tactical tail cap (push momentary, twist constant, LOTC). That's what I've read, but I haven't been able to confirm with Pelican by calling them (their CS really aren't very helpful).

jsr,

Thanks for the info on the next generation Pelican M1 LED.

If you dont mind a side switch and weird beam quality, then you shouldnt have a problem with this light.

-David

FYI, The old Pelican M1 is now only $19.95 at Sierra Trading Post. I am very tempted to buy one...

Wow, that's cheap! My dad loves the M1 I got for him. Amazing throw for it's size and output, something he needs to light up the backyard at night.
I wish they sold the new M1 for a similar price...that's very nice looking too.

My neighbor/flashlight convert ordered the M3 from Sierra Trading Post about 3 or 4 weeks ago for $27.95 or so. They must have raised the price due to interest in it.

I told him after researching here that it might have some weird beam characteristics but he brought it over the other night and I thought it was fine. I didn't notice anything that would bother me and it had pretty good throw. I'd say it is very comparable to my BOG 3 watt. Since his was the 9 volt version I threw my 17500s in there and it worked fine. I'd say it was a steal for the price he paid. I liked it a lot.

The only thing is if I have a three cell size light I'd rather have it put out three cell size light. You can get the same three watt performance in a smaller light. But again, for the money I think it's great.

How low will they go? Sierra now has the M1 for $15.96, which if you buy 2 and use Google Checkout for $10 off a $30 order comes to 2 for $21.92 + shipping.