Technology marches on.

I don't keep up with the state of light technology, but I deliver pizza as well as hunt and nightfish and whatnot, so having a good light is paramount for me.

About a year ago I did some research, and decided that an E2e would be about perfect, provided I could come up with a lanyard. I did, and I'm still fairly happy with it.

But I've come to find out that there are 1x123 LEDs out there now that put out just as much fire as my E2e. Something smaller and lighter and easier on batteries would only be better (but batteries really aren't a big issue...E2e lasts forever as it is).

Now there are so many options, I'd just like some pointers on where to look at newer options for me. I'm NOT willing to change the 'form factor' which is hanging around the neck, bezel down, with a pushbutton momentary tailcap. And of course, no bigger than an E2. I might be able to make a lanyard myself like I did with the E2e. I'm especially interested in LED options because my E2 has left me in the dark with a blown bulb before.

Well, you are probably best sticking to the SureFire theme, along the lines of the SureFire Lumamax L4 which puts out 100 lumens. If I were you though, I would hang fire and wait for the Cree versions, which will probably put out up to 160 lumens with the same battery life as the L4.

For your information, when I refer to a Cree, I actually refer specifically to a Cree X-Lamp X-RE part number 7090. This is a new LED that has taken the market by storm due to its ultra-high efficiency, and maximum output figures. Take a look here (http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/fenix_p1d.htm) for a pretty much direct comparison between a Luxeon LED and the Cree LED.

Yep I agree with MikeSalt. Let me just add if you want a pushbutton momentary tailcap, you can forget about those Chinese flashlights, since they DON'T have that feature.

Well, when there is another unecessary post of the Fenix hater, how about one of the Fenix-lover?

A L1D is much smaller and lighter, a L2D about 1/2 an inch longer than an E2E, both have a smaller diameter and feature the MUCH BETTER battery choice.

So when size/wheight is Your primary concern: Fenix L1D-CE,
output, but too large/heavy to be neck worn: Fenix L2D-CE.
Especially if You are really not up to dat, as You mentionned, You will not be disappointed.

The reverse clicky is as good as the other one and much better suitable for switching a multilevel light (having a multilevel mod inside a 6P I can compare those)

PS: imho any CR123 2 batt light sucks.
Bigger and more weight than a 2 AA, and not this smaller (if smaller) than an 18650 light to feature a real advantage.

If you don't need a pushbutton momentary, it will widen your selection a lot more. Almost all newer lights from China use reverse clickes and don;t have a momentary function. The quality has gone up quite a bit. The P1D-CE is great but it is a twistie. The L1D-CE and L2D-CE will meet all your requirements except the momentary mode.

Or you could wait till Surefire comes out with a cree light in a few months OR you could send your E2E to Milkyspit for a Cree mod

Well, I suppose the momentary part could be lived without (though it would be missed), but a twist on is out of the question.

Note I don't primarily need more light, though it would be nice. I would like no less light in a package that is more comfortable hanging around my neck.

That L1D looks very attractive, but the multiple outputs looks fiddly. I'm trying to find a good description of exactly how it works. I don't want to have to cycle through modes or something when I need it, just pick it up, flash, put it down.

I think Fenixes are great, but if you do require a momentary feature, and like the size of the E2e, then wait for the Cree Surefire E2l in June. Predicted specs were 45 lumens (3/4 of the E2e) for 18 hours (14.4 times the E2e)!

45

Click to expand...

Stale. It's just bright enough now. I figure if I go LED I need to go brighter, because I hear that LEDs have less throw (no experience myself, LEDs sucked when I bought the E2e).

There are a few options out there that meet all of your criteria.
Just about all of them are SureFire or Streamlight. They don't have the newest most efficient LEDs yet, but are still good lights and Surefire is supposed to have Cree LEDs in some models (L1, E1L, E2L, L4) this summer.

Some people need to be a little open minded and less negative. There are benefits of every light, for certain people, but your choice may not meet another person's needs. Deal with it. Forwarding extremely biased opinions on a certain switch or a certain battery does not help your cause. There are valid reasons most Chinese (and most more economical lights wherever they are made) use reverse clickies, and good reasons all serious lights (not just Surefire) use CR123 instead of AA's.

While I agree that momentary switch operation is truly best for every operation, single mode or multiple modes (and I have tried them all), sometimes reverse clicky works for some people and fits their budget better.

If your usege is very short flashes, then a G2 or 6P with a Cree module instead of the P60 might be a good option. The G2 would be lighter.

Lightflux LF1 (comes with 1AA and 2AA battery tubes) has momentary with only two levels, but would need to be upgraded to Cree for more efficiency and throw.

The fenix has two main modes General and Burst

General mode is with the bezel slightly loose (about half a turn)
It goes: Low(11Lumen)-Medium(37Lumen)-High(62Lumen)-SOS
Burst mode is with the bezel on tight
It goes: Burst(60lumen with L1D and 120 on L2D) -Strobe

There is not much off a difference between burst and high on the L1D-CE

Have fun choosing

G2 or 6P

Click to expand...

Too big. Even bigger than the E2e.

Burst mode is with the bezel on tight
It goes: Burst(60lumen with L1D and 120 on L2D)

Click to expand...

So this means if I keep the bezel tight, I can just pick it up and click it and it will be 60lumens, and won't go into other modes all the time? I can see this being annoying.

Yes if you have the Bezel tight, you wouldn't have to go through the other modes. The only other mode with the bezel tight is strobe and you only switch to it if you tap the swtich within 1(or was it 2) seconds of turning on.

Video about the User Interface

EDC 120!

I bought a L1D Cree. I heard someone was boring out the bodies so a 123 fits. I might give that a go myself if it's not a supertechnical mod. I guess we'll see when it gets here if it replaces my work light. If I don't like it I'll just give it to my dad for father's day, he'll be stoked. He carries around this little 2aa dime store LED light and loves it (it is in fact decent).

Given your requirements, I suggest you wait for the next generation (Cree LED) E1L. There's nothing else on the market that meets your form factor and switch requirements. There are smaller lights out there, but momentary pushbutton switches are very rare these days.

No Fenix light has a momentary switch. They all use junk half-arsed reverse switches without momentary support.

I'm in the electronics industry and even I can't keep up

The lumapower M3 comes standard with both a 2-stage clicky and a tactical clicky (since that consideration appears important to you). it has all tubes (1xAA, 2xAA, and 1xCR123A) and is very versatile in types of battery inputs it will accept (rechargeables and primaries).

The UI (user interface) with the tactical clicky, is basically shifted from medium to bright by twisting the head. So you set the head to the output you prefer, and are good to go with tactical clicky operation. (personally I prefer the 2-stage clicky, click once get lower output, twice to get the higher output, and again for off - but you can use the light however you personally prefer! isn't versatility great?).

It is on max not as bright as the L2D CE on max (I think, don't have full specs yet) but is plenty bright and has amazing runtime!

on medium it will go on for 11 hrs, with perfect regulation on 1xAA lithium! (don't know yet if it will really do double that on 2xAA's - those runtimes haven't yet been posted).

It's also HA-III anodized right now (may not be later, this is a special offer to early buyers).

On price, it is about $20 more expensive than the L1D CE or L2D CE but the same price as them if you were to buy one extra LxD CE tube (and of course you'd be having the 1xCR123A tube "for free" in that comparison, with the M3!).

flashy bazook said:

The lumapower M3 comes standard with both a 2-stage clicky and a tactical clicky (since that consideration appears important to you).

Click to expand...

I thought the various M3 switches are of the click for momentary, twist for constant on variety?

Amilite T5 on a neck lanyard will do what you want.