Surefire finish durability.

This weekend I'm finally going to buy a Surefire E2. I'm curious about the wear resistance of the standard anodized finish. Is it going to stand up to pocket carry, or do I need to get the hard anodized finish. Also, is the pyrex lens more scratch resistant than the lexan lens?

Pyrex will not scratch easy at all since it's glass. Lexan is plastic so it will scratch pretty easy. I carry an E2 (HA) and don't worry about scratching the lexan lens, I don't think it's as big a factor as the finish. I would get HA, it looks nicer and holds up better. It's not that much more money, you might as well get HA.

Can you actually still get the E2? I thought they're mostly selling E2e's now.

YC

For EDC, HA is the only way to go in my experience. Having lost an E2 because the clip wasn't strong enough, I only carry an E2e now.

My advice is the E2e-HA for EDC.

That way when you get a KL1, you'll still have a PocketClip, and a PocketClip you can swap for the longer style should you wish.

Al

...and to think that only a few short months ago it would have made no sense to me if someone said "get an E2e-HA for EDC"
You hang around, you learn stuff.
Seriously though, hard anodize does seem to hold up far better to pocket carry than the other finishes.
Gary

With the exception of my ARC AAA Le and Photon II I only belt carry my lights. Even the US can be belt carried though I wouldn't advise it for difficult terrain. Blackhawk makes a superb holster for the M6 which gives surprisingly comfortable carry.

As a result, scratching and damage of any kind has become a non issue. All my lights look new, almost as pristine as the day I bought them.

For belt carry when dressed for work or formally, even a standard sized 2x123 light won't show unless you've got a pot belly that's already straining the buttons on your suit jacket.

That said, I still may slip an E2 or Inova X5 into my back pocket for backup.

Brightnorm

yclo, there are still a number of vendors out there selling the standard E1s and E2s.

SF is still listing both on their website, so there must be a demand for them

Yeah, PK said on SFDB that the E-series and the E-elite series would run alongside each other.

The generally agreed relative toughness of the SureFire HA3's is

First - Millennium Gray (The "natural" green/grey)
Second - Black HA3
Third - Camo HA3

The ordinary, level 2 anodising isn't nearly as tough as HA3. SF still use that for the P-series etc. in either black, or what was Gunmetal (GM), and is now called Satin Gray.

Jahn

Thanks!

I would like to get the KL1 and it didn't occur to me that I would be without the clip if you put it on a standard E2. As far as the finish goes, I like the looks of the gun metal or satin grey and I'm still curious if they would be as wear resistant as my silver X5 which has negligible wear so far. The extra cost of HA is not an issue, just my color preference.

Sean, your MNO2 beamshots on your site are very helpful. I plan on purchasing one for mine.

I would be surprised if the silver X5 had a tougher anodising than the SureFire SG/GM. But I'm also surprised that the X5's finish hasn't worn at all. My Titanium finish X5 scratch-marked after very little use. Maybe the plain Aluminium surface it's anodised onto is concealing the wear ?
Anyway, if you treat the E2 in the same way as your X5, I wouldn't think it would matter too much.

Another issue - Al, does the E2 in the SG finish come with a Lexan lens, and the E2HA with Pyrex ?
(I can't remember if there's an issue there.)
Sorry ......

Jahn

Well, if u want the e2e-HA you know who to look for.

I still have a brand new one for $70 with free shipping. Let me know if interested.

So why are you selling it?

My E2-SG does not have a LOTC, and does have a Lexan lens.
My E1-BK has a LOTC and a Lexan lens.

Al

aznduece,

Dropped you a line on SFDB.

YC

I changed my mind and got an E1 instead of an E2. Got it in HA.