KartRacer31
Flashlight Enthusiast
My little review of the new Dorcy ANSI rated 618 lumen MG-XML
I've been into flashlights all my life - I'm 43 now. You can see from my avatar info I've been a CPF member for almost 10 years, so I've seen a lot of changes come to pass in the world of flashlights. I remember when not so long ago - maybe 5-6 years ago, we were spending countless hours and tons of money building custom made flashlights that were not this good - quality/output/runtime wise. Now anyone can just lay down $90 bucks and have a flashlight we would have given our left arm for not all that long ago. These are good times for the flashaholic!
So I've had this light for about a week now, and I really like it. Originally I thought it was a bit behind the competition due to lack of settings or modes, but then I realized that its simplicity is part of what makes it so good. Let's face it, not everyone out there loves flashlights like us CPF members do, and multi modes and flashing SOS etc. is just some confusing stuff to get in the way of "light when they need it" for joe home owner. I think Dorcy made the right move by keeping this light simple (just three choices high/low/off) with this light, besides we didn't need another alternative to the TK40, this simple version is really good at what it has set out to be.
My observations:
- Fit and finish are excellent!
- Beam is excellent - nice hot spot for good throw and two layers of fading spill, really great beam pattern.
- It tail stands, which is important to me, and a very useful feature.
- Has anti roll away built in with bezel and tail cap design.
- Comes with lanyard.
- Dude, buy it now it's on sale for less than $95 and comes with a pack of 8 (even tho you only need 6) quality alky batteries and free shipping!
- It can run on only 3 batteries if you need to for some reason.
- I really like the looks.
- It feels really good in the hand. Decent grip, good balance. Not too long, not too fat, not too heavy.
I haven't had a chance to run it with rechargeables yet, but I bet it will be even better. For now I'm really impressed with how well it does with the alkys.
Further info:
I've been into flashlights all my life - I'm 43 now. You can see from my avatar info I've been a CPF member for almost 10 years, so I've seen a lot of changes come to pass in the world of flashlights. I remember when not so long ago - maybe 5-6 years ago, we were spending countless hours and tons of money building custom made flashlights that were not this good - quality/output/runtime wise. Now anyone can just lay down $90 bucks and have a flashlight we would have given our left arm for not all that long ago. These are good times for the flashaholic!
So I've had this light for about a week now, and I really like it. Originally I thought it was a bit behind the competition due to lack of settings or modes, but then I realized that its simplicity is part of what makes it so good. Let's face it, not everyone out there loves flashlights like us CPF members do, and multi modes and flashing SOS etc. is just some confusing stuff to get in the way of "light when they need it" for joe home owner. I think Dorcy made the right move by keeping this light simple (just three choices high/low/off) with this light, besides we didn't need another alternative to the TK40, this simple version is really good at what it has set out to be.
My observations:
- Fit and finish are excellent!
- Beam is excellent - nice hot spot for good throw and two layers of fading spill, really great beam pattern.
- It tail stands, which is important to me, and a very useful feature.
- Has anti roll away built in with bezel and tail cap design.
- Comes with lanyard.
- Dude, buy it now it's on sale for less than $95 and comes with a pack of 8 (even tho you only need 6) quality alky batteries and free shipping!
- It can run on only 3 batteries if you need to for some reason.
- I really like the looks.
- It feels really good in the hand. Decent grip, good balance. Not too long, not too fat, not too heavy.
I haven't had a chance to run it with rechargeables yet, but I bet it will be even better. For now I'm really impressed with how well it does with the alkys.
Further info:
DESCRIPTION: 600+ Lumen – 6AA LED Metal Gear XLM Flashlight (618 ANSI rated lumens)
ITEM NO: 41-0435 on the Dorcy website
COLOR: Gun Metal Gray
MATERIAL: Aerospace Grade Anodized Aluminum
BATTERY TYPE: 6XAA
LUMENS (HIGH / LOW): 618 Lumens / 173 Lumens
RUN TIME (HIGH / LOW): 5 Hours 45 Minutes / 25+ Hours - see runtime graph below which was done with alkalines
BEAM DISTANCE (HIGH / LOW): 363 Meters / 200 Meters
SWITCH SETTING: Side Mounted Push Button Switch – High & Low
PRODUCT DIMENSIONS: 9.00" L X 1.50' W X 1.50" H
PRODUCT WEIGHT: 9.90 Ounces / 15.50 Ounces (including alkaline batteries)
ADDITIONAL FEATURES: Rotatable Lanyard Ring with Nylon Wrist Lanyard
Here (just below) is the deal that Dorcy is running right now (as I'm writing this 11-5-11). My feeling is that this light is well worth it at this price. Even if the free battery offer ends, Dorcy always extends a 20% off to CPF members.
METAL GEAR XLM -EXTREME LUMENS
USE COUPON: POWER 20% off List price
free shipping + 8 Pack of DieHard batteries
Only $95.20 after savings
By the way - just for some reference, I own dozens of flashlights including Surefire, JetBeam, Fenix, ITP, Wolf-Eyes, LumaPower, etc, etc. So I'm not just comparing this to department store flashlights. It really is a decent light. Do you remember those Oldsmobile car commercials that said "The new Oldsmobile... this isn't your fathers Oldsmobile". Well that slogan comes to mind when I look at this light... this isn't that inexpensive plastic Dorcy light your mom gave you to go trick-or-treating with when you were a kid. This thing is a serious flashlight at a reasonable price, and I love that it is fully tested and rated by the ANSI standards!
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