Surefire Upgrade or New Fenix

Hi Guys,

Just wanted your valuable opinions on a little predicament I have at this point in time.

I am thinking, should I upgrade my Surefire E2e with a KX2 module or should I just go out and buy a whole new Fenix TK10.

I really like my Surefire it's a quality piece of gear but the xenon bulb is a battery killer. The KX2 head seems like the logical upgrade.

I have chosen the Fenix TK10 because it has a regular output of 60 lumens and maximum output of 225 lumens (wow!!) vs the KX2s' 60 lumens maximum output.

Is it fair to compare the two? Sell the Surefire and get the Fenix? What should I do? Help me out here.

syme6079 said:

.... Is it fair to compare the two? Sell the Surefire and get the Fenix? What should I do? Help me out here.

Click to expand...

Answers to all three questions in the order received....

No.

Only if you don't plan on clip-carrying your light.

Buy both.

(Reasons are as follows: This thread could degrade horribly into yet another Surefire vs. Fenix thread.... As the owner of both an E2e and a TK10, I can tell you that the clip on the TK10 is bad. The one on the E2e is far better. Unless you plan on using a holster, stick with the E2e for EDC purposes.... Buy both).

You can also get an OpticsHQ head for the E2e to get 200+ lumens. Then if you also want a low mode (approx 10X reduced lux value for the hot spot at 1 meter), get a 2-stage McE2S tailcap switch with a 60 ohm resistor from the Sandwich Shoppe.

syme6079 said:

Hi Guys,

Just wanted your valuable opinions on a little predicament I have at this point in time.

I am thinking, should I upgrade my Surefire E2e with a KX2 module or should I just go out and buy a whole new Fenix TK10.

I really like my Surefire it's a quality piece of gear but the xenon bulb is a battery killer. The KX2 head seems like the logical upgrade.

I have chosen the Fenix TK10 because it has a regular output of 60 lumens and maximum output of 225 lumens (wow!!) vs the KX2s' 60 lumens maximum output.

Is it fair to compare the two? Sell the Surefire and get the Fenix? What should I do? Help me out here.

Click to expand...

SureFire uses its own measure system that's even lower than torch lumens. Fenix uses emmiter lumens, which is a theoretical measure (under ideal conditions inside a lab). You can bet that those "only" 60 lumens coming from a SureFire it will not be dim. Having said that, the TK10 is a mamoth-sized beast next to a SureFire E series, which is pocket light. So they are different animals.

Outdoors Fanatic said:

SureFire uses its own measure system that's even lower than torch lumens. Fenix uses emmiter lumens, which is a theoretical measure (under ideal conditions inside a lab). You can bet that those "only" 60 lumens coming from a SureFire it will not be dim. Having said that, the TK10 is a mamoth-sized beast next to a SureFire E series, which is pocket light. So they are different animals.

Click to expand...

Surefire uses minimum torch lumens. Fenix seems to have changed their system, as some CPFers are reporting that the T1/TK10 put out 225 torch lumens.

SureFire upgrade, hands down.

Thanks for the replies. It is a bit tricky when trying to compare outputs between two companies. I'll have a look at the Optics HQ head. For the record I have both Fenix and Surefire lights so I am not biased either way. Hence my predicament.

As an owner of 8 or so Fenix lights and many more SureFires, I would recommend the SureFire due to their interchangeability and solid, high quality machining. Oh, and you can convert many Surefire incans to LEDs as well.

+ 1 on the OpticsHQ E2 TLS head. I put one of their first single stage high level heads on my e2e and it is brighter than my high end P60 LED dropins.
If you are just a bit patient, OpticsHQ is releasing their two-stage TLS E2 head. Very low and high levels. I am very pleased with mine and am looking forward to buying the two-stage model.
I will vouch for their customer service. My experiences have been if you are not satisfied or there is a problem they will make good on the product. They have for me.
I would be less than forthcoming unless I told you that the head alone costs as much as a TK10, but then again, the Surefire KX heads cost nearly as much. You may better served by keeping the e2e and getting a TK10. The e2e is a benchmark light.

syme6079 said:

.... I'll have a look at the Optics HQ head.

Click to expand...

You're going to want to click on the link below.

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/198353

Jeez a two stage TLS E2 head the plot thickens......

My personal preference in a 2-stage light is for a user interface such as used in the SureFire L1, not the UI such as in the SureFire E1B.

I would like a soft press to access the Low mode, with High mode immediately accessible via a harder press (what I call pressing "straight through"). For constant-on, I'd like the same sort of interface behavior. Screw down the tailcap for constant-on Low mode. If you need High mode suddenly, just press straight through. Screw down the tailcap further to get to constant-on High mode. This is how the electromechanical McE2S replacement switch works.

I dislike interfaces that depend upon cyclical button pressing to access the various modes, with some sort of time delay before the flashlight mode access resets itself to the default mode.