Malkoff 3D Drop In vs. Malkoff 3D Conversion

Got a pair of Gene's drop ins last night and put one into a 3D carried in my car.
Installation was easy- just a little compression of the the copper outer ring and it slid neatly into place with a good fit.

I also own one of Gene's 3D conversions that are no longer listed on his site.
Because both are supposed to run the SSC at about 1A, a simple comparison seemed reasonable.

Tailcap current measures were 1.06A on the conversion and 1.18 for the drop in.
Beam comparisons are more about differences in the leds and reflectors than obvious power differences. In my case, the drop in is slightly whiter than the conversion that focuses to a slightly tighter beam. There is no obvious output intensity difference and both have the long reach expected. They handily dispatch the Terralux drop in running in a 4D mag (tailcap current measures at 0.55A for the Terralux which could probably be rengineered by the maker to run at somewhat higher current with a little bit of effort directed to heatsinking and the use of a cutoff reflector)


Summary- Gene's drop in works as advertised and isn't any sort of performance drop from his prior conversion light when used in a 3D.
Mine fit perfectly but variations in MagLites combined with the design of the drop in may make some easier to fit than others.

Dang.

The thing I hate about posts like this is that by the time you realize how good the product is, it's sold out AND has a waiting list.

Time to join the legions hovering around waiting for "taking orders" posts...

I was shining some deer with mine last light and comparing to mt 6P, 9P (with KL3 head) and new jet beam MKIIx. Pretty interesting...they all lit up the their eyes at about 100 or more yards. Only the Malkoff device lit them up so you could see thier bodies. I could not be happier with Genes product. Sure a bit pricey, but what isn't these days, especially in regards to quality handmade products. BUT this is offset by very convinient and relatively inexpensive batteries and the device should last a very long time, so amortizing this over your lifespan makes this a bargain.

racer7 said:

Summary- Gene's drop in works as advertised and isn't any sort of performance drop from his prior conversion light when used in a 3D.
Mine fit perfectly but variations in MagLites combined with the design of the drop in may make some easier to fit than others.

Click to expand...

I had to resort to a few taps with a small hammer and short length of pipe to fully seat the the drop-in. At least I know it won't shift under duress.

sysadmn said:

Dang.

The thing I hate about posts like this is that by the time you realize how good the product is, it's sold out AND has a waiting list.

Time to join the legions hovering around waiting for "taking orders" posts...

Click to expand...

Yeah those who hesitate are lost... in the dark :candle:
I was the one who started the first Malkoff thread, having found on ebay Gene's auction for a 3D magmod for $80... I dithered around and second guessed so long now it's all over. And now he won't ship anything to Canada either.