Surefire A2 Aviator (Green) photos and some beamshots

Surefire A2 Aviator (Green) photos and some beamshots - YG added

Some images of the A2 Green version I'd like to share with the rest of the class.


The package shot. Boxed items look better than the blister packs.

Below are beamshots taken through a cheap magnifer onto a wall to show both incan and LEDs in action. The left image is the incan dropping out of regulation, the "dimming" mode.

The regulated soft start incan, low level LEDs and the rechargeable option satisfied my requirements for a quality flashlight. Not to mention SureFire's rock solid construction and cool "tactical" look and feel.

Just a quick size chart inspired/borrowed from SureFire's spec sheet.


The throw is awesome coming out of such a small light. Slightly longer than the G2 but the A2 is a bit slimmer- very pocketable indeed.

In the high mode, not only do the LEDs stay lit but the output is increased as well. The green LED glow is visible around the edge of the hotspot. The outdoor beamshots show a bit of green in the foreground, but barely visible to the naked eye. The long exposure on the camera exaggerated the green glow.
Outdoor beamshots are tougher to shoot than I thought. This is an old logging road through the woods. No ambient light is visible here. The A2's beam is whiter than the P60.

Distance to edge of path uphill is about 40 feet.

Distance to trees in beam's hotspot about 100 feet.

Zoomed to hotspot area.

My night-adapted eyes seem to be less bothered by the warmer green, which is closer to the incan color on the visual spectrum than the purplish tint of the white LED version. The green one seems to be just right for me. I have plenty of "white" LEDs but no green ones. The ringy pattern doesn't bother me much. Sanding or frosting them is an option.

The Yellow Green (YG) version is my favorite. The tint is a bit warmer with less green in it. The description of Yellow Green is pretty accurate. Picture an amber colored LED with a touch of green in it and you have the color of the YG version.

If you are a fan of yellow LEDs, you'll love the SureFire A2 Aviator Yellow Green.



If your A2 is DOA, here are some quick tips other A2 owners have passed along the way that I've found useful.

- If the Incan does not light, open it up and wipe off the excess lube on the threads on both bezel and tailcap then tighten down the bezel.

- If still no Incan joy, open the head and make sure the three springs are not stuck under the small screws, if so, just loosen the screws and pop them out and retighten. Rotating the lamp slightly in the reflector may also light the lamp as well.

These seem to be the most common steps on "activating" your new A2 if not already done so at the factory. LOL


The A2 is the closest answer to the Incan vs. LED debate.


Here are some links that come to the top of my head for further reading on the A2 written by very knowledgeable CPF members that know a lot more about the A2 than I ever will.

GreenLED- SF A2: greenLED's comparison of LED colors (with pics)
js - The SF A2
leukos – A2 tune up thread

Excellent photography, EV_007! Nice write up as well. Welcome to the A2 cult....er....club!

wow excellent review! and nice photos...they look oh so clean, that should be in the sf catalog!

Thanks for the nice comments. Wait till I get a new Digital SLR. I'm using a 3 year old cheap 4MP one now.

Nice review!

[font=&quot]Thanks Carrot, your enthusiasm for the A2 was one of the factors which brought me around to the ways of the A2.[/font]

Very nice review.
I was thinking "I should add a link to this thread in my review", and then I noticed you linked my thread.

Great review, nice closeups. I didnt know the LEDs stay lit with the high beam, thats interesting. Love the whiter tint and it looks like the throw is as good as a P60 if not better! Now I really cant wait to get my hands on a green A2, its definitely going to be my next purchase. I hear many A2 users quit using like half of their other lights because the A2 is so versatile.
BTW what is the rechargeable option for it?

boy you sure can see the green leds a lot more than i expected

great shots through

[font=&quot]I just tried running a par of 3v Powerizer RCR123a batteries. [/font] Make sure to take them out as soon as the incan goes out of reg and charge them at the same time.

Others have used similar setups with no problems. But you have to pay attention more to your light. Don't leave them in your light too long if not being used.

Bit risky, but if you keep on top of things you'll save a bunch of dough.

The colors LED's definitely give a slight tint to the incan beam, but even so, the beam is whiter than any other incan you'll ever see.

benchmade_boy said:

boy you sure can see the green leds a lot more than i expected

great shots through

Click to expand...

Wall hunting reveals more green to the naked eye, but in outdoor dark woods,not noticeable.

The slow shutter speed allows more light to "burn" into the image, even faint light sources over a long expsure time will eventually make their presence known.

I used to have a green aviator but sold it because I wanted a U2. That was a mistake The aviator was the best light I have ever had. I have now sold the U2 and am in the market for another aviator. Just two things I would like them to do differently: I would like to have the option of a Luxeon III LED instead of an incandescent lamp assembly, and it would be nice to have replacement heads available so you could change them out and have different color LED options without having to buy a whole new light. This would make an already excellent light even better!

kudu said:

I used to have a green aviator but sold it because I wanted a U2. That was a mistake The aviator was the best light I have ever had. I have now sold the U2 and am in the market for another aviator. Just two things I would like them to do differently: I would like to have the option of a Luxeon III LED instead of an incandescent lamp assembly, and it would be nice to have replacement heads available so you could change them out and have different color LED options without having to buy a whole new light. This would make an already excellent light even better!

Click to expand...

I agree. Maybe someone might start offering the LED arrays as stand alone items? I bet that would kick up A2 sales ten fold?

I love playing SureFire legos.

I think I'm going to buy one as a pocket light.
That trail looks like something out of a boogey man movie.

kudu said:

The aviator was the best light I have ever had. I have now sold the U2 and am in the market for another aviator. Just two things I would like them to do differently...

Click to expand...

I only want two things in MY Aviator (which I do not yet own). I want the red LEDs, which I could have today. I also want it to somehow run on a single 17670 li-ion cell, which as far as I know is impossible. I think the cell may be too fat to fit in the tube, and even if it did I doubt it would have enough volts to light the incandescent.

Sure, I could run a pair of R123A cells, but I'm not too keen on running unprotected li-ions in series. Besides, a single 17670 has more capacity than a pair of R123A.

Oh well. :sigh:

My first A2 was a red one which I gave to my brother who is a pilot.

The red outdoors didn't seem to render depth perception as well as the green does. For close up stuff or indoors, red worked best for me but outdoors, even under night adapted eyes, it seemed too weak, especially in the woods.

However, I stil want to get another red and YG and the blue intrigues me as well. Then the whole family will be together. :rock:


I just tried installing the 17670 into the A2 after your post, but you're correct in that it is too fat. No amount of sanding or sticker removal trick will work here folks.

One Li-ion is not enough voltage to power the A2. AW sells a cell that fits in the L2 and I presume would fit in the A2, but the A2 does not have a boost circuit, it bucks the voltage down to 4.5 volts or so. So two unprotected RCR123 or primaries are the current choices.

On a side note, I'm glad EV_007 that you featured a green A2 in this review. Of my three A2's, that's the one I've cycled li-ions through so many times (140+)that I've gotten to use it in a lot of environments. It is a very versatile color. The ringy beam didn't last long on mine, as I sanded them almost immediately and as a perfectly smooth flood, the green light is very useful especially for navigation. The green light has much of the same contrast that the YG owners rave about, but much much brighter. It is probably one of the better choices for navigation indoors and outdoors. I still think the white LEDs have the most uses, but the green isn't far behind.

EXCELLENT REVIEW! :thumbsup: :wave: :rock:

your A2 xenon beam looks awesome, mines more eliptical than a football, I rarely use it...gotta love the led feature

EV, there's someone over on EDCF selling a blue LED A2. Check the BST section there.