S&W Delta Force 2 cell clone

I noticed a local sporting good chain is having a sale on the Smith & Wesson Delta Force light. It's under $30 and is supposedly a 93 lumens 2 cell (CR123), 2 hour runtime. Comes complete with batteries, holster and an extra xenon bulb.. It's not a bad price for what it is. I was just wondering if anyone has any deal killer info on them like poor QC, etc. I know surefire has a cheap plastic 2 cell model for not much more.

Here's some general info:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000I4JG7Q/?tag=cpf0b6-20

for the money get the surefire
a few reasons,
you can find replacement bulbs for the sf
the S&W does not put out 90+ lumens for 2 hours, maybe 55-60 for an hour (maybe)
the surefire has a awesome warranty.
surefire has a proven rep, S&W on the other hand is a great gun maker but not so great at anytihng else (watches, lights, knives) they'll put their name n anything to make a buck i guess.

I agree with mossyoak.
the runtime is probably 2 hours, starting with 1 minute of about 90, then dropping to about 60 for 40 minutes, then in 20 minutes to about 10 lumens, and going from there to 0 in the following 60 minutes.
and i too don't want to rely on a gun maker to make a flashlight, just like i don't want to buy cars from electronics makers (deawoo, mitsubishy, etc...), or sunglasses for anything else then as a fashion statements from someone that is supposed to make clothing.

I've been googling up what I can find on this thing. Turns out they're made by a company called PowerTech,Inc. They list a TN address, and even have some UL listed hazardous area heavy rubber models. Hard to say what the quality of the design and manufacturing is. It could be a good cheap flashlight or a waste of time. The bulb is listed as: SW700SB - Delta Force Replacement Bulb, 4.8v, 0.85 Amps.
S&W in addition to making guns, markets a lot of police equipment such as handcuffs. Flashlights are a reasonable product line for them to be distributing. They've even got a two switch LED based flashlight with white and ultraviolet LEDs.

defusion said:

...just like i don't want to buy cars from electronics makers (deawoo, mitsubishy, etc...)

Click to expand...

LOL. "mitsubishy" is a bigger company than you suspect. Long before they were making your electronics, they were filling the skies with the likes of the Mitsubishi A6M fighter aircraft, commonly known as the Japanese Zero. I'm sure their cars are adequate.

Thanks for the 2hr runtime breakdown. How does the Surefire runtime compare ? Same curve or do they regulate the current flow somehow ?

Here is a review of the G2.

The Brinkmann Maxfire LX is similar at a cheaper price($17 at my local Target). 100 lumen and runs for 44 minutes to 50%(FLR info).

the maxfire is a great light for the cash, its peak output is a good bit higher than the G2, but time is a bit shorter.

Well, I went to the sale and saw one. I was lucky in that the salesman said to go ahead and open one up and try it out. Liked the fit and feel of the model. Mechanical quality is better than a mini mag. Checkering on the tube is very nice. Both ends screw smoothly. The switch mechanism is the opposite of a mini mag. You unscrew the head of a mini mag to turn it on. With the deltaforce, you unscrew the tail to turn it off. Cheap, simple design, but in theory, it should be pretty reliable. If you want momentary, you unscrew the tail just until it goes off, then push the rear button to light. Lockout mode is just unscrewing the tail further. I'd prefer a real click on/off with press momentary and twist lock out.
The light was bright. Stupid me looked at it. Ouch. I could feel the metal warming up in my hand. Probably gets pretty warm after awhile. I didn't run it long enough to find out how warm. The box specs say it runs for 90 minutes, not 2 hours. That seems a little more realistic. How reliable it is is still a mystery, but it's a nice little metal flashlight for the price. Not a shelf queen. Ultimately I passed on it. Not the rear switch style I prefer, too many questions; plus those Cree LED lights are looking way too good. You don't have to worry about finding the replacement bulbs either.

Gunner12 said:

The Brinkmann Maxfire LX is similar at a cheaper price($17 at my local Target). 100 lumen and runs for 44 minutes to 50%(FLR info).

Click to expand...

Update. Picked up the Maxfire. Good call.

Had the kind of tail switch I was looking for.

The Fenix L3D-CE compares well,

Thinking about the P2D-CE-Q2, but a little voice in the back of my head says "wait for the higher bins".

The Delta Force DOES INDEED run for 2 hours. I'm the one that put the claim in the advertising. It actually ran for 2 hours and 10 minutes. Now, as to the % of maximum brightness, obviously that's not going to be 100%. It does, however, run above approximately 50% for at least an hour, then tapers from there. The 90 minute run time advertised on the packaging was due to the Vice President of PowerTech deciding to under promise, over deliver. It IS certified at 93 Lumens as well.

The SureFires do, honestly, have a better beam quality and a different (patented) lock out tail cap. We are also working on a new line of lights right now that's expected to retail from $50-$100 next year. Hard Anodized, Orange peel reflectors, Cree P4, etc...

Any chance of a click on/off with momentary tail switch ?

It's coming...Probably won't be in the Delta Force but will be in our new line of lights coming out in the Spring of 2008...jP

The Delta Force would be sweet with a click on/off tail switch and an LED upgrade. The tail switch on there now is funky. You don't need to press the rubber switch, you can just lean anywhere on the switch section and it turns on (momentary). The rest of the light was a LOT better than I expected for the money. Thanks for your feedback.