Newbie to LED, E2L or TL-2, need advice

Hello everybody, this is my first post at cpf, and i am from HongKong
i am a newbie to flashlights, already own a SL jr. 2 gen, SL TL-2 wth. 9V bulb and inova X1(optics)

I am going to get a LED for general use, hiking(not EDC), i like the 2x123a size, do not need to be very small, just not too big is OKAY, and the light need to have a good throw

I am considering the Surefire E2L & Streamlight TL-2 Led gen2, refer to the FLR's review, the SL is brighter overall, but Surefire got a HAIII, better build quality and many others reasons.

Need comments on these two lights, Thx!

Welcome to the addiction, and the forum

I can only speak for the E2L, and aslong as you already undertand it is a tightly focused beam to make it throw so nicely, that is has no spill beam. I used mine on a 4 hour hike last clipped to my hat with others in hand and with family using thier own lights.

On level terrain it is ok,otherwise you have to tilt now an then to watch for uneven slopes,not a great solo hiking light, makes a great look down the path light however.

Now,bonus, i run mine on rechargeable r123's, yes the protected 4.2 volt version ones, The head will handle the extra juice and produce a few more lumens doing so.Run time till blackness 2.5 hours,no gradual sloping or dimming,just off when the protection circuit kicks in on the batteries,use back up light and install fresh R123's and away i go till i got home.

Downside, no spill beam other then a distant ring that is useless.
Sorry for long winded post, i just wanted to explain why i find the light so handy, its guilt free lumens for me, and i do not mind the tight focus and squarish beam it puts out.(So i bought the E1L at the same time for EDC, And it uses a R123 aswell)


So other lights may be better suited for your task needed, otherwise, An E2L would not hurt to have in your collection.

IF

Edited

Greetings and Welcome to CPF!

One certainly cannot go wrong with the SureFire E2L and pretty much what IonFire stated above. Another one to look at could be the SureFire L2 LumaMax.

Hope you find what you're looking for and Enjoy!

I'll throw in a vote for the SL TL-2 gen2. For walking, especially on uneven terrain, I prefer something with good sidespill so I don't follow the hotspot and don't need to swing the hotspot around to see what's around me. As already mentioned, the E2L has a very focused spot beam. The TL-2 has a good tight hotspot, good throw (not as good as E2L, but still quite good), and very good usable side spill. It doesn't have HA3, but the build and machining quality is still very nice. It also has very good runtime, which is a nice feature. Even after 3hrs, it still produces very usable light for night walking and navigation.

To IonFire,

i can imagine what you say, but still i don't have any idea with the beam size, the diameter when it is 3/5 meters ? need outdoor photos with background, but i can't find it, only some meaningless beamshots

i believe that the E2L is a good/fun light, just need more confident to grab it into my pocket!

about the rechargeable r123's, do you mean the KL1 can use 2x r123, 8.4V when full charge?

CHC, i have read the FLR's review of the L2:
"regulation is seems to be absent on the high setting"
and the graph shows it, horrible!
actually, i am not quite interest with flood light

Hi ARRI

Um the beam i would hazard a guess spreads out to 3-4 feet roughly at its further reaching.

Yes it happily runs off the higher voltage Li-Ions, it is said that it also puts out more lumens roughly 5 more on these, and i would tend to agree while my E1L on Li-Ions puts out what the E2L does on regular batteries. They both can run on them easily.I bought 4 R123's for my E2L, and 2 for E1L,so i always have a back up ready an charged.

Another nice bonus of the E-Series is slim'ish form factor, they slip in pocket easily,like a back pocket for the E2L.(My E1L rides in my coin pocket)

I would say,you will be happy with E2L on either power source, regular or rechargeable.

Last note, the Clip on these surefire lights, is a Clip for mounting on a hat, and not meant or designed for pocket retention.Handy on a ballcap, less then stellar on a pocket,probably a candidate for lost and found used this way.

Go ahead, get it, if you dont like it, i am sure you can sell it for very little loss as they hold thier value really well for a flashlight.


Let us know what you grab and how it works out too please, we live off of this stuff aswell as the lights.

IF

I believe the discussion of Flashlightreviews on the SF.L2 has been mentioned a number of times here and that there is going to be another updated review, because somehow it simply does not "add up" right. :thinking:

Anyways, so "horrible" is out of the question in regards to the SureFire L2. But of course, Your Methods May Vary accordingly.

I really like my new TL-2 LED, and think it would be hard for another light to beat it by much. Plus how many of the TL-2's can you buy for the price of one SF?

Granted, if a person has the cash for the SF, by all means they should buy what they want.

Then, i think i will go to the surefire
the price of these two lights in HongKong is about $500 & $7XX, not very big price difference.

One more thing, how many versions of a E2L till now?
"two edges cut", "three edges cut", what's the difference??

thx so much

I hate to throw a wrench into the works here so late in the discussion, but compare the Inova T3 output to the SL TL-2 and they are almost exactly the same on FLR. The Inova is rock solid, adds HA, and costs less most places than the TL-2 LED, and much less than the E2L. They are $50 at Botac.com, and $53 at Batteryjunction.com. See which one ships to you cheaper. I got mine at BatteryJunction before I found Botac, but have since bought 3 StreamLights at Botac (best SL prices). The T3 is one of my favorite lights, and though some say it has little spill, it has enough to navigate (prob more than or same as the E2L judging by reviews) and a good solid beam for throw.
3.0V RCR123 work in it and you can get them from Batteryjunction too. That is what I use in mine.

yes, i think the T3 is a good light, very nice building quality, but when compare
in size, there is no adventage, i will compare lights in size instaed of brightness.

$5X plus shipping to Hong Kong may not be cheapper than buy in shop, T3 is about 5XX in HK dollars.

IonFire,
finally i got the e2l today, mine one has a grey body, but a bit golden color for the tail, and the LED is a bit greenish. but the another one has a grey tail and a yellowish LED, seems dimmer also. Funny QC:huh2:

the output didn't make me feel suprise when i was in the shop, but i bring it to have a hiking tonight with me. Wow, amazing throw and output, the beam didn't shows too narrow, just fit when i am standing and light up my step, and very useful when lighting up the path, i don't think i can find the way home easily tonight with a SL jr. on that rocky, slippy mountain. e2l helps a LOT:goodjob:

ARRI: Good choice. I really like my E2l.

IonFire: Where did you get your R123s? I only get about 1 hr. 47 min. on R123s in my E2l.