Surefire LX2 - I took mine to hell and back

Long long ago I posted a story of dropping mine from two stories and landing in a pit for a garbage dumpster when a guy we had warrants on decided he wasn't going to jail. I think I might be able to find the picture of it. Lens was busted completely but that light kept on working flawlessly. Obviously it was sent back and SureFire replaced it no questions asked and no charge.

Got my new one. Beat the **** out of it. I kept a SureFire 6P with XPG on my belt but it just really never got used except if someones light died. It had seen every traffic stop for a year or so.

Well.. This past July or so a massive storm system came through the area. It kept me safe when my car was tangled in a fallen power line. It saved an old couples life as a roof started collapsing as I was begging them to vacate their life long house. It even helped me find a lady trapped in her car when the biggest tree in town fell on her car (I swear that thing was ridiculous).

Sadly, the last day when the waters crested and the town started to flood I tripped on a bridge while trying to barricade each end in worry that it was fixing to fail. Saw my LX2 wash down the creek (now the size of a river) still turned on.

Well.. I finally got around to buying another one and it showed up today. Poor 6P (now an XML LED) will get some rest because this LX2 is my new partner.

By the way.. this is a pointless story but I got so excited I wanted to tell someone. Some people will just never understand that feeling you get when you're holding a SureFire in your hand

It is great you got your favorite light again. Don't worry - we understand how much your EDC can mean to you. I have a LX2 and like it quite a bit.

I use the LX2 for a duty light also.

Third LX2?! Must be a great light! Love to hear these great stories of real world usage of lights. Way to go saving all those people too. :thumbsup:

I'm guessing the moral is that you should have bought a light with a lanyard?

HAHAHAHA. Just think if you had a nice pocket backup you could have saved more people.

Just razzin ya amigo.

Fantastic real world story by a real torch user! And not even a mention of the tint variances between the three emitters!

Just goes to show not everybody is obsessed with specs of missing anno etc.

James

jondotcom said:

I'm guessing the moral is that you should have bought a light with a lanyard?

HAHAHAHA. Just think if you had a nice pocket backup you could have saved more people.

Just razzin ya amigo.

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lol I just never liked a lanyard personally. I have three of them in a drawer now.

jimmy1970 said:

Fantastic real world story by a real torch user! And not even a mention of the tint variances between the three emitters!

Just goes to show not everybody is obsessed with specs of missing anno etc.

James

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haha missing anno. I've just never cared. I get attached to the toys I buy but I prefer to have a something that is beat up and shows history. Sitting on a shelf and looking perfect just doesn't do much for me.

I had an E1B that stayed in my pocket every day for well over 2 years. It looked terrible. It just never stopped working. Ironically I let a girl borrow it one night because she was scared so she could feel better. I never saw it again.

Both LX2s have a slightly off center LED and you can see it if you are shining it on a wall. Who cares though. When I'm actually using it I never know.

Good post. A LX2 is my primary light and it has been through hell also and still looks pretty good considering. I have been through some low light pistol classes with it and it has been dropped, kicked, slid across the concrete floors and gravel, taken thousands of rounds of recoil and it has never failed once. Even my Incan Surefires have held up great. That is more then I can say for some of the other lights I have tried over the years that have failed one way or another. The one other light that held up better then then other non surefire lights was the JetBeam JetIII M. It held up pretty good with the exception of having to replace the clicky switch, Man I hate clicky switches..but I really hated the beam it produced and just couldn't get past it, I used my E2E over the jetbeam. I agree there is just something about a Surefire. There are other "nice lights" out there, but I won't trust my life to them....

Search said:

Sadly, the last day when the waters crested and the town started to flood I tripped on a bridge while trying to barricade each end in worry that it was fixing to fail. Saw my LX2 wash down the creek (now the size of a river) still turned on.

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I can see it as if I was there with you... the light falling in slow-motion as you fruitlessly reach toward it, willing for it to come back to you. What a drag, but what a fitting end... to make the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty!

I don't have an LX2 but I have it's older (not as bright) brother the E2DL. The beam is a thing of glory! I'd really like to have an LX2 but just can't justify the expense when the beam and tint of my E2DL are close to perfection. Mine is a use and abuser as well... a great go-to light.

On the topic of lanyards, I don't like them either but I keep one in my bag in case I'm going to be doing something where I might drop and lose it.

teak said:

Good post. A LX2 is my primary light and it has been through hell also and still looks pretty good considering. I have been through some low light pistol classes with it and it has been dropped, kicked, slid across the concrete floors and gravel, taken thousands of rounds of recoil and it has never failed once. Even my Incan Surefires have held up great. That is more then I can say for some of the other lights I have tried over the years that have failed one way or another. The one other light that held up better then then other non surefire lights was the JetBeam JetIII M. It held up pretty good with the exception of having to replace the clicky switch, Man I hate clicky switches..but I really hated the beam it produced and just couldn't get past it, I used my E2E over the jetbeam. I agree there is just something about a Surefire. There are other "nice lights" out there, but I won't trust my life to them....

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I know that feeling. I still feel the same when when holding an old 6P. You just know that it's going to work. Those twisty tail caps had to be the best thing ever made.

steveG said:

I can see it as if I was there with you... the light falling in slow-motion as you fruitlessly reach toward it, willing for it to come back to you. What a drag, but what a fitting end... to make the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty!

I don't have an LX2 but I have it's older (not as bright) brother the E2DL. The beam is a thing of glory! I'd really like to have an LX2 but just can't justify the expense when the beam and tint of my E2DL are close to perfection. Mine is a use and abuser as well... a great go-to light.

On the topic of lanyards, I don't like them either but I keep one in my bag in case I'm going to be doing something where I might drop and lose it.

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Ahhhh .. Now I miss my E2DL, except I will probably never own another like the one I had.

I got my hands on one of the rare single-mode E2DLs. The very first batch that were "damaged". I beat the living **** out of that light. So much that went I sent it off to have a new XPG put in the guy who did it told me the LED was actually starting to fall off. It took a beating no doubt. I ended up selling it a few months later when I was between jobs at the time. Now that life is back to normal I am kicking myself for letting it go.

I swapped the tailcap from my E1B with it. I had a "tactical" E2DL and an E1B I could actually hold without slipping from my hands.

Awesome story search!

*Shameless plug*

I have some lanyards for sale in the MP right now...LOL!

Actually, my lights are on my insurance policy...if I lose one, or some-how SF's doesn;t cover it, my insurance will. It's thrown in with my electronics, weapons, etc. All for $13 a month.

angelofwar said:

Actually, my lights are on my insurance policy...if I lose one, or some-how SF's doesn;t cover it, my insurance will. It's thrown in with my electronics, weapons, etc. All for $13 a month.

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** ring ring **

"Hello, ACME insurance. How can I help you?"

"I just lost my green-anodized SureFire 3P flashlight, mint condition. Please mail me a $400 check to my address on record. Thank you."

"WTH??"


LOL

Nice story "Search." Do you buy batteries by the case? Cr123's? Or is the LX2 rechargeable? I am having a hard time getting used to the Surefire twisty on/off switch. I kind of prefer the foreward and reverse clickys. I really like the Solarforce L2T. You don't feel so bad if it gets damaged, or if you lose it. And it performs rather well. Just my 2 cents.

RI Chevy said:

Nice story "Search." Do you buy batteries by the case? Cr123's? Or is the LX2 rechargeable? I am having a hard time getting used to the Surefire twisty on/off switch. I kind of prefer the foreward and reverse clickys. I really like the Solarforce L2T. You don't feel so bad if it gets damaged, or if you lose it. And it performs rather well. Just my 2 cents.

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I like both for the given use. My 6P and LX2 both use a twisty. Obviously the LX2 is a tad bit more advanced but same operation basically. They were bought with the intention of being duty lights. Many threads have been started here discussing "tactical use of a light" and every one of them was closed so I won't get into why I use them when working.

For just an EDC, I always carried an E1B. It just worked much better not having to fool with twisting it all of the time. However, I use Nano-Oil on my threads and they are so smooth using one hand to twist the tailcap on a 6P was very easy. The LX2 was always harder.

I buy by the case though. I'm not sure if you can use a 17600 in it. I believe it will fit, but I have no idea if it will damage. That information is in the forum somewhere. When I get down to around 12 I buy another 12 or 24. Overkill but most of them stay in my BOB/EDC bag.

Yes a lot of people have always bought Solarforce to mod it. I've never heard any complaints. I'm just partial to SureFire. They've never let me down. I'm planning on buying another HDS though. Those Rotarys are too tempting and Henry does a great job.

The SF LX2 is my go-to pocket light when I want bright, throwy beam in a manageable size. .

Search said:

I like both for the given use. My 6P and LX2 both use a twisty. Obviously the LX2 is a tad bit more advanced but same operation basically. They were bought with the intention of being duty lights. Many threads have been started here discussing "tactical use of a light" and every one of them was closed so I won't get into why I use them when working.

For just an EDC, I always carried an E1B. It just worked much better not having to fool with twisting it all of the time. However, I use Nano-Oil on my threads and they are so smooth using one hand to twist the tailcap on a 6P was very easy. The LX2 was always harder.

I buy by the case though. I'm not sure if you can use a 17600 in it. I believe it will fit, but I have no idea if it will damage. That information is in the forum somewhere. When I get down to around 12 I buy another 12 or 24. Overkill but most of them stay in my BOB/EDC bag.

Yes a lot of people have always bought Solarforce to mod it. I've never heard any complaints. I'm just partial to SureFire. They've never let me down. I'm planning on buying another HDS though. Those Rotarys are too tempting and Henry does a great job.

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Thank you for the explanation. I have a SF C2, and I really like it. It does have a great quality feel to it. :thumbsup:

I always used a Magcharger light when on duty. I did not even know all of these light options existed until a few years ago. My last light was a Streamlight LED.

In any event, be good and stay safe!

The LX2 is my EDC for security reasons. I love its tight bright beam. If the lights ever go out in a parking lot I will have it on me ready to go!

One night I came home from work to find a SUV parked in my side yard. It was not too uncommon, people park there for various reasons but just in case I pulled out my LX2, rolled down my window, and pressed my thumb on the pressure switch and blasted the vehicle with all 200+ lumens of tightly packed light. I checked and determined that the SUV was vacant. I then drove forward, twisted the tail cap, and with the low on I took down the license plate.

At that moment I felt that the LX2 served me well!

My L1 is on my keychain with quick-release keyring as a backup. It's the most ergonomic light I've ever used--the thing just fits in my hand. Furthermore, I use the ring on the quick-release keyring as a finger lanyard.

Oh, and the fact that I had Milky mod it for me and now does something like 200+ OTF lumens also helps. Throws like a beast, to say the least.

enomosiki said:

My L1 is on my keychain with quick-release keyring as a backup. It's the most ergonomic light I've ever used--the thing just fits in my hand.

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I couldn't agree with you more - you might enjoy reading my L1 homage thread here.

I used to EDC the LX2 for many months, until I bought my first HDS clicky. Ever since I have kept the LX2 in my drawer. Not that it is no good, but I prefer the smaller size of HDS for EDC. Been wanting to carry the LX2 for my camping trips just for the throw but I ended up carrying the M3LT, and now UB3T. So again it sat in my drawer.

After reading this thread, I have decided on bringing the LX2 out on my camping trip this weekend. Way to go Search!