E1E/KL4 - Nice, but............

Just got my E1e+KL4 combo from TW today. Great little light - VERY bright for its size. The clickie tailcap doesn't seem to want to work very well though. Through the entire actuation of the switch, the light flickers. When it's on, if I even touch the boot slightly, it flickers. Do I need to send it back to SF?

You should try cleaning out the spring on the tailcap, or even stretching it out a little bit. Sounds like it's not making a good contact between the battery and the spring.

Hope you like your new TW4!

If ttran97 suggestion does not work, I suggest you call Dan at TW first to see if he can help. If not, he may help sort it with SureFire for you.

Al

I just got mine from TW, and noticed the same thing. If I put the head and tail cap on an E2 body, absolutely no problem. I think that with two cells the regulation circuit has enough headroom to be able to compensate for slight resistance irregularities from the tail cap. Also after a little bit of use, the tail cap seems to have broken in a little (easier action, and less flickering on the E1E body)

I personally think that the KL4 is being starved on 1x123. On 2 cells, the KL4 draws about 1A. It should draw more than 2A from a single cell due to the fact the regulator is less efficient at lower input voltages. 2A from a single 123 is pushing the cell at its limits. As ViciousCycle said, any slight resistance in the path will be greatly magnified by the IR drop which would result in a "touchy" light.

CM

I have the same exact problem running the KL4 off of 1 cell. As already stated by ViciousCycle74, I believe the cause is the resistance of the clickie switch.

Maybe Nascar could comment, he's done a lot of testing with this configuration.

I wonder why this is happening. I've had no problems with mine...Have you guys tried new batteries too? Dan told me that sometimes surefire products don't work because the batteries were unused for such a long time. Please keep us updated with this issue!

For what it's worth,

The KL4 that I tested on a bench supply stopped regulating with full output to the LED above 3 volts. As CM has stated, the regulator would like more power than a single 123 is capable of, pure and simple. I suspect at this overtaxed state things like the Vf of the particular LED might even come into play as well as any slight resistance within the contacts. It's cool that the KL4 can be used on a single 123 in a pinch or as a novelty, IMHO. To intentionally plan on hosting the KL4 on a single 123 as a default is akin to buying a race horse for a petting zoo. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

OK, I've said it and likely pissed some folks off in the process. Sorry. I'll blame it on the morphine and kidney stone. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif

I went so far as replacing the 5W with a 1W hoping that the circuit would drive the 1W at full output on a single cell. No dice. I had to go to a Li-ion 3.7 volt cell for full power out. The KL4 is a masterpiece in design and execution and sees its potential on 2x123.

- Don

Mine dropped out of regulation at 2.8 Volts. 2 amps from a 123 will severely sag the voltage well below that, hence compounding the problem. I was trying to be subtle in trying not to p*** off some, but Don did that for me, so I thanks Don /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif I think the KL4 on an E1e is a very suboptimal platform for an illumination tool, though I totally understand if you want it just for the cool factor.

Don, hope your feeling better soon and on top of things as usual.

I think everyone that has bought a TW4 would agree that they did it knowing that the KL4 would be brightest on a 2x123, as it was intended for. The KL4 on a 1x123 is still brighter than 1-watt LEDs on a 1x123 available out there, and for the price that the TW4 is being sold at, it's a pretty darn good deal. So continuing with McGizmo's analogy...why pay for a pony when you can get a mustang for about the same price? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

ttran97,

Well, I gotta admit I was very tempted to get one if it wasn't for the fact I spent waaay too much on lights the last 2 months. My arc LSH blows away many non-flashaholics so I'd love to see their faces when they see how much light can come out of a tiny package like a TW4. Maybe someday when X binned 1W Luxeons are common I can get such a flashlight at Wally World for $19.99 /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

mmm...$19.99 Arc LSH! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif

" mmm...$19.99 Arc LSH! "

That sounds good to me!!!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/naughty.gif

[ QUOTE ]
McGizmo said:
I'll blame it on the morphine and kidney stone. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif

- Don

[/ QUOTE ]

Yikes! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif been there and past it too..

Hope your pains will pass soon.
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The E1e/KL4 combo wasn't something I would have thought of, but sounds like a great idea!

Now, here's another question. Are all the clickie's as hard as mine to actuate? If I try to click mine about 10 times, my thumb actually cramps up. It probably doesn't help that the light is so small - this seems to make it a bit harder to "click."

Oh ya,.... DAMN this thing is bright for its size.

I have not experienced any of these issues mentioned above. I have 2-seperate KL4 + E2 setups and they both work flawlessly. No clickie issues, no flickering issues and no extended runtime issues.

My clickie was extremely hard to actuate at first. I just cycled it through several hundred cycles and now it takes a much lighter stroke to click. Unfortunately I now have "superthumb"

Just spoke with George at SF customer service. He's sending a new clickie out to me.

Like everyone says, SF customer service is great!!

Yea, what CM said, also after cycling the switch many times the flickering has also subsided some, probably because once the parts loosen up a bit, the contacts engage more consistently