What is the toughest Surefire ever made?

I have had a couple little problems with some of my Surefire lights, bad P60's, broken pocket clip, bad switch.

Not to go into details here, but all my problems were taken care of very fast by surefire without me having to send any lights back to them /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Now I'm looking around for my next surefire and I would like to know what is the toughest surefire made. Something that can take drops evey know and then without blowing a bulb.

I'm leaning towards the L4, E2/KL1 or M2.

Would the shock bezel on the M2 help protect the LA if it was hit on the side of the bezel from a fall or does it just protect it from forward shock from the front of the bezel?

The M2 bezel is bigger around then the C2 or P6 bezels, correct?

Is this because of the protection?

So what Surefire do you think is the toughest?

Thanks,

I think you will find that the M2 and M3 are tough buggers. The M2 and M3 bezels ARE bigger due to the shock isolation.

LS is definitly tougher than bulbs. The L4!

Isolation or not you can't beat an LS for bulb durability IMHO. I like both for intended purposes but to answer your question.....LS. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Definitely L4 if you are talking about resistance to impact damage, and you want a lot of light. That KL1 head would do too, but it lacks the brightness of the KL4 head.

David <><

M2.

So far, I've found the G2 to be the toughest light. I've dropped it, it's gone swimming, my four year old throws it around. It seems that the polymer itself has some shock resistant qualities itself.

I know that the M2 and M3 are supposed to be tough, but I don't know. I had an M2 head with a high output lamp and I sold it to Ross. It had to take an overseas trip via USPS. I figured that since the M2 was shock isolated the safest place to put the lamp was inside the bezel. Well, to make a long story short, the LA didn't make the trip. I had it very well packaged too. The LA was held in the head with taped in foam.

I'm very tough on my gear. I go through 2 cell phones a year. All of my stuff gets beat up. I own about 8 Surefires right now and the only one that doesn't have a scratch on it is the G2.

Chop,
I know what you mean about the G2's. I have never had a bulb go bad in one from dropping it. In fact I don't think I have ever had a bulb go bad in a G2. My son (7) has a yellow one and I had a black one I sold because I did not like the fact that there was not a LOTC on it, but it had been used daily at work and I'm sure dropped a couple of times.

I had a 6P that seem to take bulbs out preaty easily when dropped. The drops never put a mark on the 6P, but it would take the LA out.

Maybe I should take a closer look at the G2Z.
The G2Z has a LOTC and Pyrex lens, correct?

pahl,
The G2Z is a very cool light. Light weight, tough and pyrex lense. KL3 will work with it too.

Your points on the G2 are very good. I am not anxious to test it, but I would guess that the L series lights would still be more shock resistant yet, as the LED will not easily sustain damage. My experience with armored binoculars and cameras has been that they will sustain more shock, but that they are not shock proof. I would rather drop an unarmored roof prism binocular than an armored porro prism, for example, because the prism design itself is inherently shock resistant. Likewise, I think the LA in the G2 will probably fail at a lower level of shock than an L series light will.

On the other hand, I will leave the tests to someone with a bigger budget than mine.

David <><

Rev,
There is stock in what you are saying. Dare I say that the toughest Surefire light might be a G2 or G2Z with a KL3 head?

some have reported the MN03 in the E2e to be very resistant to abuse, but i have dropped my C2 numerous times and the P60 still works. nonetheless i have a G2 on the way /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

The toughest SureFire that I've found during abusive field-testing is the M2 with P61 which was closely followed by the G2Z with P61.

In general, the P61's in my experience are tougher then the P60's (The P60 filaments tend to distort more easily then the P61 filaments do)

The Shock Isolation of SureFires is primarily designed for linear recoil shocks for WeaponLights. Impacts to the side of a bezel are less protected. Due to the size and shape of SureFires, it is likely that it will hit the ground on or around the bezel rim area or TailCap rim.

The BatonLight Bezel is pretty tough. I believe the thickness of the M2 bezel will give it the edge though.
The Pyrex lenses now-a-days mean that the lens could crack before the bulb breaks (which is what happened to my M2 and also my G2Z bezel).

I have a proto-type M2 bezel with a Lexan lens. I believe that this is the toughest bezel I have.

The weakness of a SureFire (Luxeon) is the glass lens when you consider toughness. However, for the vast majority of users the gains in output, clarity, water-resistance, heat-resistance, scratch-resistance and ease of cleaning are well worth it.

I've dropped one of the M6's I have with a Pyrex TurboHead onto concrete from "holding height" (I guess that's just under 1.5 metres for me) several times and each time it's only been dinged a bit. I've never managed to break a Pyrex Millennium TurboHead though...

Al

would a G2 with a P61 be tougher than a G2Z with a P61 since the lexan lens wouldn't crack? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Yes.
Used as in intended the Lexan lens should not melt with the P61.

I would use the G2Z with G2 Bezel and P61. Tough. Increase toughness with a BeamCover or BeamShaper (not red/blue/IR as they are glass)

Al

that's reassuring...i'm intending to use the G2 as my rough-use light that i can lend to friends without worrying too much /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Bulbs do break.
In the G2, the P60 is protected against drops because it is in a light-weight polymer body (that absorbs rather than transfers the energy).

Al

[ QUOTE ]
Chop said:
Rev,
There is stock in what you are saying. Dare I say that the toughest Surefire light might be a G2 or G2Z with a KL3 head?

[/ QUOTE ]

I think I would have to yield on that one! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

David <><

[ QUOTE ]
Chop said:
So far, I've found the G2 to be the toughest light...It seems that the polymer itself has some shock resistant qualities itself.


[/ QUOTE ]

It definitely does due to the resiliance of the polymer body. The CMG Reactor is another light that exchibits this quality. When I "torture tested" it with multiple hits against a cast iron radiator it merrily bounced back in my hand and laughed off the really hard whacks I was giving it. I'm glad to see the G2 was water tight. Did you have on the regular NLOTC (non-lockout tail cap)?

Brightnorm

The toughest SureFire made, right off the shelf, without mixing parts is the M2 w/P61 lamp assembly. This is a BEAST of a light! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/banghead.gif Add a filter to the package and you help protect the M2s weakest part, its Pyrex lens.

Dan