rechargable flashlight

makar

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Hi,
I'm preying on a new flashlight. It should be rechargable. I thought about the surefire 9 an.
Is there any alternative that bright like a steamlight?
Has anyone negative/positive/long experiences of the 9 an?
Where to buy it? In Germany the 9an commander (9an435-ha; the one with charger and TWO akkus) costs about 285 €.
I'm amenable to any tip.
Greetings Marc
 

makar

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I just read about problems with the B90 akku. This isn't a specified problem of the 8ax I suppose. Are there the same problems with the 9an?
Has sure-fire solved the problem yet?
Greets Marc
 

this_is_nascar

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I'm not really up to date, but I've been hearing nothing but issues surrounding the SureFire line of rechargables.

I got purchased my 1st rechargable. I picked up a Streamlight UltraStinger from BrightGuy. Great light, with a lot of punch.
 

Rothrandir

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i second the ultra stinger. extremely bright, durable, excellent throw, stylish, easy to charge, and is available with 2 ac/dc 2.5 hour fast chargers. i got mine from brightguy also, about $120. also check out the tigerlight, i don't own one, but people have had very good things to say about them.
 

bmsmith

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I would also recommend the UltraStinger. Some people consider its length a drawback (about 11.5 inches or 29.5 cm), but it produces a pretty far-reaching beam for about 60 minutes.

If a little less light is acceptable, check out the Stinger HP (or Stinger XT/HP if you like tailcap switches for tactical use). It's about 8.5 inches or 22 cm in length. Not quite as bright, but still quite nice.

I wouldn't get a Surefire rechargable right now (except perhaps the 10x) due to the problems they are experiencing with the battery packs and/or chargers.

- Brian
 

Sean

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The Ultrasinger is great but is almost a foot long. If length is no concern then get the Ultrastinger.

If you want a light that's shorter get the Tigerlight. I've been hearing great things about the tigerlight. Very bright, NiMH batteries & compact.

They are both in the same price range.
 

nihraguk

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from what i've read it seems the problems with the surefires are centered around bad battery lots and finicky lamps so i'd advise you to stay away from them until the problems have been fixed.

meanwhile, i would suggest like the rest to check out the streamlight products, as they're reliable and inexpensive. you might want to look at the mag-charger too. its very rugged and has a good track record of reliability
smile.gif
 

makar

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Thanks for your reply..
You convinced me not to buy the surefire 9an.
I'll now focus on the streamlight ultrastinger, other models and the tigerlight.
But I have to add that I like the 9an design best. perhaps I'll wait till they fixed the problem?
smile.gif

I like this forum. many good replies with a lot of information. When I'll go to flashlight dealers in my hometown I know more than them but here I can learn a lot. Thanks to you all!
Greets >Marc
 

nihraguk

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marc:

you're welcome
smile.gif


from what i know the most common problem with the surefires are due to bad batteries that don't hold charges. if you're good with your hands and don't mind spending a bit of extra money and time, you could make your own rechargable battery pack out of aftermarket rechargable cells.

ron (guncollector) has done this, and apparently the surefire now performs as advertised. he had a topic on this but i can't seem to find it now.

in terms of the surefire rechargable flashlight bodies, there's nothing wrong with them. the switches work as specified, and they're as robust as the other surefires. its just the bad batteries that have been giving problems and according to some accounts, the chargers don't work properly and the bulbs are sometimes faulty.

personally, i like the styling of the 8AX and 9AN lights as well, but i think they're way too expensive and the problems you get with them at the moment are not worth it. the surefire website says the rechargables will resume shipping early next year, so if you don't mind the cost and waiting, it might be worth it. (assuming surefire fixes the problems)

if i were you though, i'd go for a streamlight or a magcharger first. those may not look as good or have a beam as good as surefire, but they don't have any problems with reliability and the chargers and batteries work fine. its your call though
smile.gif
 

makar

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Hi nihraguk
I have a couple of mag-lites so I like to try something new. I thought the ultrastinger is as bright as a 9an?
Is surefire trying to solve the problem? Or didn't they even see it?
Greets MArc
 

nihraguk

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i'm not sure about the brightness of an ultrastinger relative to a 9AN...someone else will have to help with you that
smile.gif


surefire is aware of the problem, which is why they've halted delivery of the rechargables at the moment. from most accounts, the battery seems to be the problem. if you wish to wait for the surefires, it'd be best if you waited for surefire to resume delivery and sales of the lights, and see if anyone reports any problems. if not, i'd say its a pretty safe albeit expensive choice to go with the surefire rechargables
smile.gif


right now, i guess a streamlight would be most ideal. either the ultra stinger if you want a really bright and long-throwing light, or a stinger if you want something smaller.

hope this helps
smile.gif
 

makar

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I think you are right. I want a bright light for my car so it should be left in the charger for trickle charging.
So because it's for the car and the size doesn't matter:) the UltraStinger seems to be perfect. Is the UltraStinger the size of a 3-4d Maglite?
Greets marc
 

nihraguk

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marc:

yes, if you're leaving it in the car for emergencies, then the ultrastinger is perfect. not only is it very bright, it makes a better club than the surefire if needed
smile.gif


as for the size, its smaller than the 3D maglite actually. the thickness of the tube is roughly that of a C-cell maglite, and its shorter than the 3D maglite. here's a picture of the ultrastinger and 3D maglite side by side posted by bmsmith:

PA300560.JPG


if you want more in-depth info on the ultrastinger vs the magcharger, look here:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=000610#000000

regards,
winston
 

makar

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Thanks for your reply!
I'll get more in depth.
Do you (or anyone else) know any amazing flashlights from Japan? In style like a ultrastinger chargeable.
A friend of mine is in Japan and could possibly bring me a "gift"
smile.gif

Greets Marc
 

Rothrandir

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the ultrastinger is truly an amazing light, and i consider it to be very small (for the light it puts out) previously to it, my brightest flashlight was a mag 3d...and when i saw the us for the first time, i said to myself...this thing can't be all that bright...but it is. the us and the magcharger are about the same price, but the us is 75,000cp and the mag is 35,000 (i think). also, the 2.5 hour ac/dc fast chargers are a nice feature but i don't know what magcharger usus.

well, i suppose i am a little biased, but once again, i will suggest the us.

the us (and probably the magcharger) are brighter than the 9an, and they throw much farther. the 9an is more of an indoor close up flood type, where as the others are long range.
 

Albany Tom

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I probably won't make friends with this one...

Surefire customers have known about the rechargable problem for at least 3 or 4 years. One would presume that Surefire has known about the problem for at least that long. The catch is that most customers, unfortunately, do not have access to the wealth of information we have here. I knew about Surefire's problems myself, and assumed that all rechargables were unreliable. Sounds very much like people who love Maglites, because they don't know that other lights have a far better beam, doesn't it?

I think it's great that Maglite had it's day as "the best". I think it's great that Surefire had their day, too. Now I think it's time for everybody to take a deep breath, say goodbye, and move on to something better. It's time for a company that can produce a decent rechargable, can produce a nice LED light, that can do something new, instead of rehashing the same old, well, OLD stuff. Oh, and if their prices were in some way reflective of something reasonable, that would be nice, too.
smile.gif
 

Rothrandir

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albany tom, i agree with you. i still think surefire has a lot to offer, but i think it is time for competition to step up. their products are great (at least the lithiums) but they could make the prices a little more affordable, at least on the secure products such as the e series and others. i understand trying to recoup cost for r&d, but there is a point where they just need to lower prices. i still plan on buying a couple surefires, but i would also like to see some other companies trying to compete whith similar products.
 

nihraguk

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marc:

glad i could help
smile.gif
i don't know much about japanese manufactured lights though...so someone else will have to help you with that.

albany tom:

i agree...surefire still makes the best lithium lights, but the electronics of their rechargables leave a lot to be desired. the prices are rather steep too, and it gets worse with the exchange rate here.
 
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