Is the quality of surefire lights on the decline???

I remember when I received my first surefire light. It was a L2 (circa 2006) with high and low settings. I was impressed with the quality of the whole light. I was literally stunned by the quality of the knurling and how well it gripped my hand.

Well I just got a new LX2 and noticed some differences. First of all it came really dry. My other 4 surefires came well lubed. Second, the twisty tail was very stiff. I am not sure if that is bad or not but it was a departure from my L2 which was easy to turn with one hand. Third, it seems that there is no coating on the threads as with my others (L2, L4) lights. It seems to be bare metal. I have heard that surefire has changed coatings from a copper color to silver coating but I am just not sure.


L2 head with copper coating


L4 head with green anodizing


LX2 tail


LX2 head

Welcome to CPF!

I am not sure what to make out of the pictures you posted since I couldn't see them clearly. No offense but it does look like black gunk and grease to me more than anodizing that you claimed was there.

Unfortunately, I have never owned an L4 or L2 and couldn't comment on that, but I have owned many other Surefire lights including all the incandescent range except the M4, and most of the LED models, but have never seen one which is anodized on the thread. The copper coating which you claimed was there appears to be the early version of chemkote which was discontinued due to it's environmentally hazardous nature. Surefire opted to use a different coating to it which appears to be clear. Even my very old E2e, which is about as old as your L2, does not have any anodizing on the threads.

Perhaps I should have cleaned them off a bit. I know there are other pics out there that show the copper color. This link shows both the anodized and copper threads on the L4.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...urefire-REALLY-saw-through-another-flashlight

To answer the question you ask in your thread title - No. Not in my experience.

The finish on the LX2 threads is normal - it's the clear Chemfilm that meets "Mil-C-5541", and meets RoHS requirements.
This is an advance in quality and environmental performance/governance/stewardship.

The E-Series body in that thread has the old 'golden' chromium Chemfilm. Dangerous, bad, Boo! Hiss! Nasty!
SureFire have at times masked off different parts of bodies for anodising / chemfilm.
I believe I have one body that is anodised inside and out. The threads can be anodised/chemfilmed because they are not used to make electrical contact.
Since it takes effort to mask off parts SureFire must have considered that chemfilming both the tail and bezel threads to be worth it.

Question:
What does it feel like if you swap the L2 and LX2 TailCaps.

I have quite a few two-stage TailCap models (several L2, various A2, and an LX2 & A2L).
There is some variation in the ease of rotation with some body/TailCap pairings having more play/slop than others.
In fact I had the LX2 TailCap replaced because it wasn't tight enough (the first batch of LX2/A2L TailCaps were too sloppy in many cases).

Size15's said:

To answer the question you ask in your thread title - No. Not in my experience.

The finish on the LX2 threads is normal - it's the clear Chemfilm that meets "Mil-C-5541", and meets RoHS requirements.
This is an advance in quality and environmental performance/governance/stewardship.

Click to expand...

That's good to know. It's my first light with this coating. I suspected the coating was on the inside but was not sure if it was on the threads as well. I guess I like the look of the old "golden" chemfilm just for aesthetics of it.

Question:
What does it feel like if you swap the L2 and LX2 TailCaps.

Click to expand...

When I switched them they were about the same.The LX2 body was just as tight and the L2 just as loose. I think the o-ring is a little thicker on the LX2; however, it does seem to be loosing up so I don't think the tightness will be a problem. Otherwise the light is great. I love the head on it and the anti reflective lens. I will be getting a F04 diffuser for it.

What is happening here is that the lubrication is probably drying up, or it did not receive enough lubrication before leaving the factory. Try applying some lube to it and see if it works.

Is the quality of surefire lights on the decline??? I don't think so. However, many brands of lights now approach the quality of Surefire, whereas in the old days there were very few that approached their quality.

Welcome to CPF Flashlight Dave.

IMHO there are no many flashlight out there that match the quality of SureFire, BriteStrike and any other flashlights where the body is manufactured in USA. I have been experiencing many problems with Fenix, O-Light and others with not so good quality anodizing and/or coating. I have stopped buying these products as metal and anodize/coating are not match for the more expensive products from SureFire and BriteStrike. Also in terms of Lumens I have compared the 200 Lumens of the E2D and LX2 with some of the 350 or 425 Lumens claimed by other brands and SureFire has matched them and even provided better distribution of light and no defects whatsoever in the produced spot. So, no, no way there is a degradation in SureFire products and I am buying only SureFire and BriteStrike products now. My 2 cents

Is the quality of surefire lights on the decline???

Click to expand...

leon2245 said:

Click to expand...

Leon,

Where did you get the artwork? Verry funny!

RedLed said:

Leon,

Where did you get the artwork? Verry funny!

Click to expand...

Looks very Andy Warhol to me, but I am not an expert in art pieces.

RedLed said:

Leon,

Where did you get the artwork? Verry funny!

Click to expand...

It's a play on Obama's 'Hope' posters, uses the same color scheme.

pjandyho said:

Looks very Andy Warhol to me, but I am not an expert in art pieces.

Click to expand...

It's a fan made bit of artwork based off a character from the popular game Team Fortress 2.

And yes it does also spoof the Obama posters.

Looks very Andy Warhol to me, but I am not an expert in art pieces.

Click to expand...

Nope [sic], the poster style is not Andy Warhol: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama_%22Hope%22_poster

Yes...I know it is not an Andy Warhol, and it is a spoof of the Obama poster, but what is the inspiration for the dude in the scene?

^
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvdf5n-zI14


& even if their quality were on the decline, it'd sure have to fall a long way for the awesomeness that is their c.s. not to make up for it & then some. There are incidents so ridiculous they've covered for me- that were not even their responsibility (& outside of the products themselves!), I can't even say out of a)embarrassment & b) fear of scammers taking advantage in the same way (edit: my case wasn't a lack of scruples, just intelligence)!

I'm just holding off until they make more aa lights preferably one cell, more edc lights without clips, a tailstandable t1a etc.; or until I make enough money to buy an m6lt.

leon2245 said:

^
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvdf5n-zI14


& even if their quality were on the decline, it'd sure have to fall a long way for the awesomeness that is their c.s. not to make up for it & then some. There are incidents so ridiculous they've covered for me- that were not even their responsibility (& outside of the products themselves!), I can't even say out of a)embarrassment & b) fear of scammers taking advantage in the same way (edit: my case wasn't a lack of scruples, just intelligence)!

Click to expand...

Me to it's very very nice and comforting to know I can pick up the phone and talk directly to a Surefire rep anytime I need to and I know from experience they treat me like a platinum member and I'm just calling about one light and one problem but the reps are so professional they never talk down or give the 21 questions, they simply listen and fix the problem.

There is so way you can not factor that kind of service into the cost of Surefire light it just has to be acknowledge, I have not bought any Surefires lately and the reason is only because the recent models don't really interest me I've experienced most their light and I would not hesitate foe one second if they release a light I'm interested in.

So after all that am I worried about Surefire quality absolutely not, there are some very good light's being made abroad and a couple of them are my absolute favorite EDC light's but I would still take Surefire total package quality over any, there anodizing still rules all.

I have an old E2e. No flats. 3 areas of knurling with smooth bezel. (The areas of knurling are; one band around the tailcap and two bands along the battery tube.) This E2e had the clip attached to the head by a screw. The head housed an incandescent. Still have 3 E2e bulbs but have NO idea if they're any good now. Carried until clip broke. By that time SF had no more replacement clips. :mecry: Then came L4 Lumamax and then the E1B. The LED wars I had just discovered, I found out later, had been going on for some time already! Years later I revived both L4 and E2e with the VME/M60 Malkoff combo. And you guessed it! Both still use their original tailcaps. :twothumbs
The E2e was my 1st EDC light. I guess it still has the best of all I give SF kudos for.
But I carry and use the E1B now. Yes it's most days that I do so. And I DO have other examples to compare it to.
Over time SF chose "what works" compared to newest and brightest. SF invented tactical when it meant simple and bombproof. In large part SF defined it and by glorious happenstance, just when I needed it, it happened to be there.
SF quality. I CHOSE not to put a ? @ the end of the 2 word sentence just previous. I chose period.
Yeah. I'm a fanboy.

I can't say whether or not surefire's quality is on the decline but the company's products definitely seem to be going in a different direction as far as style and function. Whether that's a good or bad direction depends on how you look at it. Good if you are excited about them going over to complicated and sophisticated designs with lots of bells and whistles, and bad if you're one of the people that enjoyed surefire's simple rock solid designs over the years. Simple on off switches, no complicated mode switching or strobe flashing modes, no fuel gauges, just good old simple functionality in a simple rock solid light.

ebow86 said:

I can't say whether or not surefire's quality is on the decline but the company's products definitely seem to be going in a different direction as far as style and function. Whether that's a good or bad direction depends on how you look at it. Good if you are excited about them going over to complicated and sophisticated designs with lots of bells and whistles, and bad if you're one of the people that enjoyed surefire's simple rock solid designs over the years. Simple on off switches, no complicated mode switching or strobe flashing modes, no fuel gauges, just good old simple functionality in a simple rock solid light.

Click to expand...

Very true indeed. I looked at the description of the new four way switch and I thought it spells disaster for tactical operators. In times of stress, would the user remember to push slightly, push all the way, push sideways slightly, or push sideways all the way? And why would tactical users want an S.O.S mode on their light? I still like the design though since I am not using it for tactical reasons but I am not sure what those in the military and LE would say. And they are the main buyers of SF.