I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefire!

I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefire!

After the suggestion _Shawn_ gave me for a light using the P60 drop-in by OpticHQ, I checked it out and also bought the Surefire C2 Centurion HA which is hard anodized and has an olive-like finish. The OpticsHQ tail-cap doesn't match up as well as I'd like it to, but SHEEZ!!! The performance from the drop-in, the tail-cap and the user interface is ASTOUNDING!!!

I truly can't believe a light like this exists and I now know I have one solid light that will last me with future P60 modules to be had. My next purchase will be the 6P with a drop-in of some kind.

I have to say though, the user interface is what gets me the most. The momentary on with the side switch that switches between five levels and allows you to strobe instantly with a simultaneous press of both... you have to experience it yourself.

Once I get my Nikon D300 out of repair, I'll get the tripod out and do some beam shots indoors and outdoors in comparison to my P2D CE, Nitecore EX-10 and Zebralight H30. I'm pretty much covered on versatility. My next light with be the Tomahawk by First Light with Green and Red leds around the bezel.

Back to the C2/OpticsHQ mod... wow. Simply amazing. If anyone has runtimes for each of the five modes, let me know (both primary and RCR 900mah).

Any questions, let me know,
RC

P.S. Since I'm getting into the P60 drop-in now, what other competitors are there? Speak from experience...

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

I told myself not to buy Surefire expensive lights as those chinese ones from DX do their job pretty well.

3 weeks ago I went to a local shop to window shop but ended up with a 6P, after 2 weeks I went back there and got myself a C2 HA, man I just love the built of Surefires. A few days back I can't help it bought an E1L from CPFMP.

3 Surefires within 1 mth, my wife gonna kill me if she find out how much I had spent.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

I remember a couple years ago when a wise CPF member posted something to the effect of "Once You Start Down The SureFire Path - Resistance Is Futile."

And boy is that the truth!

The moths have flown from my wallet!

RiverRocks, Dorcys, Taskforces, etc., etc., etc., just don't do it anymore! :laughing:

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

Surefire Sure Does Make Some Great Lights. Albeit Some Are Not Compatible With RCRs, The Overall "Feel" And Quality Make Up For It.

My next light with be the Tomahawk by First Light with Green and Red leds around the bezel.

Click to expand...

May I Suggest The A2 Aviator or the Kroma



This Definitely Wont Be Your Last Surefire Light.

:devil:

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

As Sgt. LED's sigline says, I wish I could back in time and do it all over again. Pay a little more now, or pay a lot more later.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

~Deicide~ said:

Surefire Sure Does Make Some Great Lights. Albeit Some Are Not Compatible With RCRs, The Overall "Feel" And Quality Make Up For It.



May I Suggest The A2 Aviator or the Kroma



This Definitely Wont Be Your Last Surefire Light.

:devil:

Click to expand...

The Aviator is a must have for anyone serious into this hobby.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

I don't know quite how to say this, I'm not a big Surefire fan....but I think they make a good product. I dunno, the lights just don't interest me too much, but they are built like tanks.

Case in point, I carry a 6P LED at work...I've dropped it, soaked it, scratched it, bashed it, it's even been thrown across a gravel parking lot. While the finish looks like crap, the light itself works just fine. You probably couldn't say that about a lot of companies.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

Outdoors Fanatic said:

The Aviator is a must have for anyone serious into this hobby.

Click to expand...

Thats What I Keep Telling Everyone. I Guess People Just Dont Realize How Useful A Regulated Incandescent Light Is, Until They Actually Use One.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

The more I read into this forum, the more I realise that there is more to read.

Three questions.

What is a drop in?
Does a surefire has a strobe / sos mode?
I kind of like the 6P Led but I see that there is no clip on it?

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

FliGuyRyan said:

After the suggestion _Shawn_ gave me for a light using the P60 drop-in by OpticHQ, I checked it out and also bought the Surefire C2 Centurion HA which is hard anodized and has an olive-like finish. The OpticsHQ tail-cap doesn't match up as well as I'd like it to, but SHEEZ!!! The performance from the drop-in, the tail-cap and the user interface is ASTOUNDING!!!

I truly can't believe a light like this exists and I now know I have one solid light that will last me with future P60 modules to be had.

Click to expand...

Congratulations FliGuyRyan, On putting together your ideal light. Hope you will enjoy it in the years to come.

After replacing the stock SF LA & SF tailcap switch with 3rd party components, your ideal light is no longer a Surefire flashlight.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

avicenne13 said:

Three questions.

What is a drop in?
Does a surefire has a strobe / sos mode?
I kind of like the 6P Led but I see that there is no clip on it?

Click to expand...

A drop in is an LED or incandescent lamp assembly that "drops in" to a C or P series Surefire to replace the stock assembly.

Not yet. Either the UA2 or the UB2 will have a strobe mode. I forget which one.

The 6P does not come with a clip, but you can buy this clip and put it on at the tailcap end using this o ring to make sure it doesn't rattle.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

Why the need to change the lamp? For extra lumens?

BTW another example of me worshiping the wisdom in this forum; regarding to your message about the clips.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

Nice!! What "side switch" is this? AFIAK the C2 has a twisty cap with momentary..???

Hard to beat the 6P for value. $42 is the cheapest I have seen on ebay. I'm happy with my cheap DX drop ins, but theres plenty of room for me to improve. Don't automatically rule out the stock P60 Xenon lamp, I use it just as much as my LED modules. It has a warm glow thats super easy on the eyes. I switch modules in and out all the time, depending on my mood and what I want to see.

I'm happy with my TOP stryker P60 host. $25 local B&M availability (Frys). Its very well made for a Chinese product. Its on par with the best DX hosts, but it has a twisty cap for better reliability. It has a good Xenon lamp thats a little brighter than the P60, with a bigger rounder hot spot. Its light is whiter tint too. Its bezel flairs open more than the 6P, so it floods farther to the sides.

I don't own one (yet) but the Pelican M6 is a very well made light. They had an open box unit at Frys, the O-rings were bone dry and messed up from other people playing with it. A little O-ring grease would solve that. IMHO its one of the best P60 hosts, that doesn't get a lot of mention on CPF.

About the only thing a P60 can't (yet) do is a low-low output (5-10L). I don't think it would be too difficult to DIY a direct drive Nichia drop in though.

I have an M2 in coming.... can't wait for that.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

avicenne13 said:

Why the need to change the lamp? For extra lumens?

Click to expand...

In some cases. It's mainly about customizing the light to the individual user's needs and taste. Many people buy incandescent lamp assemblies that can be used with a specific rechargeable battery. Some people prefer a multi-level LED drop in over the stock single level drop in. The great part about this system is that it allows you to update the light as technology progresses.

And the "side switch" is referring to a secondary button on the side of the tailcap itself. like this.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

So when you were all done, the only thing left that is Sure Fire was the shell and yet you give it all the credit in your title??? The light module and the switch to control it are not SF, the Aluminum housing holding it is, you could have bought a Solarforce or Spider fire shell for a lot less money and done the same thing.

If your a true believer in the original concept of modularity brought by Surefire, that I would understand, but I wouldn't call your light a Sure Fire.

I put a Malkoff M60 in the Sure Fire host and call it a Malkoff M60 in a SF host. With the M60F in a Solarforce Host I still call it my Malkoff M60F.

Some people will read this the wrong way and thinking I am disparaging Surefire. I am not. Just the opposite. An Aluminum tube with good anodizing does not a Sure Fire "Flashlight" make, when all the working guts have some one elses name on it.

When you buy a Sure Fire flashlight that you keep all the Sure Fire parts in because you love it just the way Sure Fire made it, then will you be one with the Force. IMNSHO.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

MrGman,

That's the point though. The reason I bought a Surefire was its undeniable quality as a host. I didn't just buy a Surefire body tube on Ebay, as I still have the tail-cap and original P60 incandescent module. Also, the red-lens adaptor is amazing for military work...

The thing is though, as good as the incandescent looks, I don't think I could bring myself to get over the fact that it's so much less efficient. I really love the idea of the A2, but I can't stand the fact that they put the incandescent in the middle and don't have an LED option. Come on...

I realize I now have a FrankenFire light, but that doesn't mean I don't own a Surefire and love the Surefire for what it is, I have just breathed new life into its old ways.

As for kramer5150, the OpticHQ DOES GO DOWN LOW... and I mean LOW-LOW, somewhere between 2-5 lumens is my guess. The low is REALLY impressive and I forgot to mention this in my OP that it makes the light so much more useful. The way the interface works in conjunction with the momentary tail-cap is GENIUS!!! PURE GENIUS!!!

It goes from like 5, 15-20, 50, 80-100, and then max brightness at 250 lumens (all estimates). It truly is phenomenal how it works.

Check this thread out for lots of links from _Shawn_ about the OpticsHQ module and tail-cap. There's a video somewhere.

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/posts/2647532#post2647532

The five step increase side-switch along with the momentary work together like best friends.

Lastly... does anyone have runtimes and lumens for the OpticsHQ five-step drop-in?


Thanks guys,
RC

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

i tried looking and searching, my apologies if im blind

but are there runtime charts for the OpticsHQ mod (TLS LED Drop-In and Multi-Function (Reverse) Tailcap Kit) on high, with est. lumens, and more importantly on low, again with est. lumens?

was going to get an E2DL but might go for a 6PD with this instead, if the runtime on low is greater than or equal to 75 hours...

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

FliGuyRyan I understand. It is a great platform to work with. I already have the Unique Continuousy Variable Tail cap and that Detonator cell extendor to use and its very nice combo to put on the Sure Fires or Solarforce hosts.

Once you get a Malkoff M60F as an option you will really love all this modularity even more.

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

Question...

Does the OpticsHQ tail-cap work with other drop-in modules like the Malkoff?

Thanks,
RC

Re: I caved and bought a Surefire. I'm now a true believer and say "Bravo" to Surefir

Surefires are made by people that speak English. To me that means something. Excellent customer sevice as well. They are a bit pricey but I think they're worth it.