Question about my new Surefire L1.

Hi everybody! Bought an L1 from DJKT at the marketplace, and received it yesterday. It's my first Surefire, so i have been pretty excited while waiting for the international delivery... . I really like the design of it, it looks like a real tool!
i am satisfied with everything except the shape of the beam. i wasn't able to take any good picture of the beam so i'll try to explain it. The hotspot is good, but outside of the hotspot there is at least five enoying doughnutrings, or rings, dont know what to call it. In the ring just outside of the hotspot the tint is kind of greenish, and it looks like the hotspot is not perfectly centered,compared to the ring closest to it. Sure, it does its job and lights things up, but i had not expected so many "rings" or layers. All my other lights have smoother beams. 2 HDS lights and four 4sevens lights. Has anyone else experienced this with there L1? It is the newest model and was NIP. One good thing though, My F04 Diffuser really comes to great work now! smooths the beam great!

Thanks/Nero

Thats kinda weird, the L1 uses a TIR optic so it shouldn't really have rings around the hotspot like most reflectors with XR-E leds. The TIR optic is suppose to put the high majority of the light in the hot spot with less "spill" compared to a reflector. I would possible contact surefire and see what they say???.....

Yeah thats a good idea. Just emailed them. Just wanted to here what the good folks here at cpf had to say about it!

I've seen some TIR L1's like this, but once you stop white wall hunting and get it outside, they go away :0).

angelofwar said:

I've seen some TIR L1's like this, but once you stop white wall hunting and get it outside, they go away :0).

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Yeah i know. but i had expected more from a Surefire light.

All of the Surefires I have with TIR optics have some rings around the hot spot. An L1, E2L, E1L, E2LAA. It's just they way they are. You won't notice it in use. With Surefire you're paying for the rock solid reliability and lifetime, no questions, warranty.

btw, that L1 will really light up with an AW IMR cell.

I've got an early model LX2. As I've commented here elsewhere, the beam looks like a polar view of Saturn. I also have a couple of old L1's, they have pretty poor beam quality as well but they are from the first generation of Luxeon SF LED lights.

On the other hand, I've bought five SF U2's and I love the beams, they do benefit from a large head and deep reflector. Maybe I should get one of Craig S.'s mod U2 lights for a little more kick on the high end.

All my other lights have smoother beams. 2 HDS lights and four 4sevens lights.

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Smile when you say that here on CPF, pardner.

I agree, a bad beam would be very disappointing in another brand of light but since it's a SF... You'll hear the CPF chorus reminding you how great the customer service is, how lucky we are SF sells to the public, they are illumination tools, Rambo carries a SF, etc. But some of their lights do have pretty bad beams in my observation. And, others have great beams.

Just took my HDS Rotary out for a nice night walk here in Japan, had a 47's Mini in my jacket for a backup, the LX2 is standing watch in my backpack back in the room.

I just bought a late model L1 from an authorized online dealer, haven't received it yet. Are these Cree XR-E's without a TIR? In other lights with small heads this emitter seemed to have a dark circle around the hotspot.

Deleted cause I'm an Ijut (read: Idiot).

I have an E2L and the hotspot is ever-so-slightly off center but you only notice it when shining it at a white wall. Get outside where it's going to be used 80% of the time and you don't notice it at all. I was a little disappointed at first but I got used to it and now it doesn't bother me at all. I do wish there wasn't such a thing as a "Surefire Lottery" when it comes to consistancy in beams and tint. Everytime I order a Surefire my fingers are crossed before it arrives hoping I got one of the better ones.

My L1 is perfect. I had another one that I sold off which had a great beam but the tint was on the blueish side and I eventually flipped it since I didn't need two L1's.

Brasso said:

All of the Surefires I have with TIR optics have some rings around the hot spot. An L1, E2L, E1L, E2LAA. It's just they way they are. You won't notice it in use. With Surefire you're paying for the rock solid reliability and lifetime, no questions, warranty.

btw, that L1 will really light up with an AW IMR cell.

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well if the beam is supposed to be like this, then im ok with it. Everything about it is great except the shape of the beam. After all, It do lights up great and works great with the F04 diffuser. But i will use it some more and se what i think of it after some real life use. These damn white walls should be banned! :laughing:

Does it work with AW:s rcr123a? or is the result better with IMR cells?

Thanks/Nero

Totally normal. This is how every Surefire with TIR optics I have had have been. This really has nothing to do with the "quality of the beam" in my opinion. I think that is just something that is blown out of proportion. The point of the light is to light things up at a distance. It is a thrower. I haven't actually used my L1 or E1B to light up a wall two feet in front of it. When I go outside and light things up at 40-80 yards away, you really can't tell if there is a ring or not. From anywhere over about 5 feet its impossible to tell. It is the nature of the beast. In order to shape the beam and throw they have to have an appropriate optic. So ask yourself whats more important, shining the light on a wall 2 feet away or lighting something up at 75 yards with a 4 ounce light that is virtually immune to failure. I love my L1 and my E1B and both have gross beams up close. But both also do what they are intended to do better than almost any other light.

However, does the L1 run on an AW RCR? I think I remember reading that it was bad to do this somewhere.

You can unscrew the bezel apart. Its 3 pieces. I use rubber wrenches.

Once it comes apart, you can focus it yourself better and make it somewhat prettier beam but like others said its inherent to these Surefire TIR Optics.

bigC

Thanks everyone for your opinions and knowledge! I was worried that it was something wrong with it, now i know that it is not. And that feels great! I have received bad examples of other lights before. And it is just a pain to return dysfunctional lights to the USA when you live in Sweden. :thumbsdow

Thanks again! :laughing:
/Nero

angelofwar said:

Only the 1st and 2nd gen L1's had reflectors.

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Reflectors? Really?

I've been using an IMR cell for quite a while with no ill effects. There are numerous reports of others using RCR's with no ill effect. Some folks are even direct driving the L1 head, again with no ill effects. It's up to you, but the IMR does add quite a bit of lumens to the output.

I use AW IMR's because I know they will fit. With RCR's, some will fit and some won't.

Size15's said:

Reflectors? Really?

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Ack...no...I'm an idiot...I was looking at a modded L1...All Aboard The :fail: boat. I'm allowed one mistake a year right? I get a little trigger happy talking about Surefires sometimes...I knew you wouldn't let me get away with it Al :duck:.

Brasso said:

I've been using an IMR cell for quite a while with no ill effects.

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Just to confirm, you're running the L1 with an IMR 1634 at 4.2v without it going poof?

Can a 1B handle that voltage, too?

Brasso said:

I've been using an IMR cell for quite a while with no ill effects. There are numerous reports of others using RCR's with no ill effect. Some folks are even direct driving the L1 head, again with no ill effects. It's up to you, but the IMR does add quite a bit of lumens to the output.

I use AW IMR's because I know they will fit. With RCR's, some will fit and some won't.

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I too have been running these AW IMR's and AW RCR123's with no ill effects. (Unless you consider more lumens an ill effect) :rock: I have also been direct driving the L1 head on a VG FB1 body with an AW RCR123 with no ill effects. :devil: I dont let it get overly hot though. I did plenty of research so I am comfortable running this combination. I dont recommend anyone do it without doing their own research as Im not responsible for your poofs.

CallMeDave said:

Just to confirm, you're running the L1 with an IMR 1634 at 4.2v without it going poof?

Can a 1B handle that voltage, too?

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I can also confirm this, no with IMR 16340.

by 1B, if you mean E1B, no it will not run right on 3.7V recahrgeable cells. It will flicker. I run my E1B on 3.0V LiFePO4 rechargeables fine with no flickering however I have seen reports of others getting a flicker still with LiFePO4 cells.



EDIT: almost forgot about the main topic, the beam. My L1 beam was never perfect from the start but it wasnt bad enough to bother with Surefire about it. Like others have said, outside its fine. I also do have an extra lens that I put Shao's diffuser film on that I use on occasion that turned a mildly "cluttered" beam into pure, diffused, beautiful light.

Welcome to the L1 club!

Just read the answer for my email that i sent to Surefire. They basically wrote what you guys said. Thats great! Confirmation from both users and manufacturer!:twothumbs

/Nero