Looking for opinions on Malkoff M91W Host, etc...

I need some opinions on what you guys think would make a killer host for a Malkoff M91W P60 Drop In. Would prefer (1) 18650. I'm looking purely for opinion on what you think would be good for someone that's not real experienced with aftermarket stuff. I would need/want something that's simple to drop this right into. I want something that's durable, aesthetically pleasing, something I can use for a LONG time as an EDC and be very happy with. I don't know much about hosts, and tail switches etc., so I would need what you think would be easy for me to assemble, and be thrilled with once completed. I would like to hear what you "experts" think would be "good for me" and why. I'm ready to start researching your recommendations, & ideas.

Malkoff MD2, 3, or 4 w/ Hi-Lo Ring
Elzetta 2 or 3 cell with hi/lo tailcap

depends on what kind of battery setup you want to run


EDIT:
Possible battery setups.

MD2= x2 li ion(16340, maybe 18350) short run times on high
MD3= x2 li ion(18500) or x3(16340, maybe 18350) or x3 primaries
MD4= x2 li ion(18650)

Elzetta
2 cell= x2 li ion (16340) short run times on high
3 cell= x2 li ion (17500) or x3 li ion(16340)


Surefire C3/9P
x2 li ion(17500) (18500 if bored out)
x3 li ion(16340) (maybe 18350 if bored out)

hotlight said:

Malkoff MD2, 3, or 4 w/ Hi-Lo Ring
Elzetta 2 or 3 cell with hi/lo tailcap

depends on what kind of battery setup you want to run

Click to expand...

I would prefer 18650

geoff538 said:

I need some opinions on what you guys think would make a killer host for a Malkoff M91W P60 Drop In. I'm looking purely for opinion on what you think would be good for someone that's not real experienced with aftermarket stuff. I would need/want something that's simple to drop this right into. I want something that's durable, aesthetically pleasing, something I can use for a LONG time as an EDC and be very happy with. I don't know much about hosts, and tail switches etc., so I would need what you think would be easy for me to assemble, and be thrilled with once completed. I would like to hear what you "experts" think would be "good for me" and why. I'm ready to start researching your recommendations, & ideas.

Click to expand...

SureFire C3-HA.

The Elzetta or Malkoff hosts are also excellent choices, of course.

Some of the things you mention are subjective (aesthetics, etc), but for simplicity, durability, and (future) modular expansion (if and as desired) ... tough to beat the SureFire

geoff538 said:

I would prefer (1) 18650

Click to expand...

That is only about 4.2 volts when fully charged, while the M91 is regulated and powered with an input voltage range of 6.5-12v....

Yep!
1 18650 isn't going to cut it.
2 Lithium Ion batteries are needed or perhaps 3 primary cells.

Lots of host options. Read about the Cryos cooling bezel too.

The Surefire C3 looks like a possible option. Where can I purchase one with everything I need accept the M91W?

If you are talking EDC the C3 is a pretty big light to have in your pocket. Your best bet is to get an MD2 with a hi/lo ring, get 2 AW18350IMR cells, a good charger (Pila) and stick your M91w in there. Its the size of a 6P so its ok to have in your pocket, still a little big but its the smallest youre going to get with the M91 since it requires 6.5 volts. Each rechargeable cell is 4.2 volts so one wont cut it. Here is a picture of my lights last year. The ones on the left are your typical edc type lights, about 4 inches long. A C3 is probably around 7-8 inches. I have a C3 in there and a 6P with an extender, you can see it next to a 2C Mag and 4D Mag.




The MD2 would fall right in the middle there, size wise. You would have a decent low of around maybe 20 lumens or so that would run a long time, and then you could blast the 450 lumens when you needed it.



Here is my MD2 and MD4. I have bike grips on there for winters up here in Maine so dont mind them, but I have my M91W in the MD4, which allows 2x18650s and very long runtimes, but its way to big to carry in jeans. It gets by in a sweatshirt or coat pocket though.



And my other MD2.

I like the MD2, what drop in do you have in there?

Tommygun45 said:

If you are talking EDC the C3 is a pretty big light to have in your pocket. Your best bet is to get an MD2 with a hi/lo ring, get 2 AW18350IMR cells, a good charger (Pila) and stick your M91w in there. Its the size of a 6P so its ok to have in your pocket, still a little big but its the smallest youre going to get with the M91 since it requires 6.5 volts. Each rechargeable cell is 4.2 volts so one wont cut it. Here is a picture of my lights last year. The ones on the left are your typical edc type lights, about 4 inches long. A C3 is probably around 7-8 inches. I have a C3 in there and a 6P with an extender, you can see it next to a 2C Mag and 4D Mag.

The MD2 would fall right in the middle there, size wise. You would have a decent low of around maybe 20 lumens or so that would run a long time, and then you could blast the 450 lumens when you needed it.



Here is my MD2 and MD4. I have bike grips on there for winters up here in Maine so dont mind them, but I have my M91W in the MD4, which allows 2x18650s and very long runtimes, but its way to big to carry in jeans. It gets by in a sweatshirt or coat pocket though.

And my other MD2.

Click to expand...

Just the standard M61. You can put any of them in there though they are all the same size.
M61
M61L
M61LL
M61W
M61WL
M61WLL
M60 (same) series for warm and longer runtimes. (Older dropin but throws a bit further with less side spill)
M91W
M91

I think for true "EDC" (unless you are looking for a holster-carry torch), many might prefer a single-cell light, which is not really going to work with the M91 series ....

If you can find an M30 (not M31), the voltage range is much more convenient for shorter/smaller hosts, and also gives you more options for battery chemistry too.

Could I go with the MD2 and just use (2) AW RCR123's?

Could I go with the MD2 and use (2) AW RCR123's? Or is there a benefit to the AW IMR 18350?

Tommygun45 said:

If you are talking EDC the C3 is a pretty big light to have in your pocket. Your best bet is to get an MD2 with a hi/lo ring, get 2 AW18350IMR cells, a good charger (Pila) and stick your M91w in there. Its the size of a 6P so its ok to have in your pocket, still a little big but its the smallest youre going to get with the M91 since it requires 6.5 volts. Each rechargeable cell is 4.2 volts so one wont cut it. Here is a picture of my lights last year. The ones on the left are your typical edc type lights, about 4 inches long. A C3 is probably around 7-8 inches. I have a C3 in there and a 6P with an extender, you can see it next to a 2C Mag and 4D Mag.

The MD2 would fall right in the middle there, size wise. You would have a decent low of around maybe 20 lumens or so that would run a long time, and then you could blast the 450 lumens when you needed it.



Here is my MD2 and MD4. I have bike grips on there for winters up here in Maine so dont mind them, but I have my M91W in the MD4, which allows 2x18650s and very long runtimes, but its way to big to carry in jeans. It gets by in a sweatshirt or coat pocket though.

And my other MD2.

Click to expand...

You would be fine with RCR123s but they are only 16mm in diameter so they may rattle around a little bit in the host. You can always fix this with a little bit of electrical tape around them or some kind of battery sleeve. The way cells typically work is like this ..

Lets use AW cells as an example. They have Protected (Black) and Unprotected (Red)
The difference is the Black label cells, like your AW RCR123s have a protection circuit in them that will shut the light off when the battery drains too low. This is good typically but may leave you in the dark. It is also one more thing in the cell that can break. (Although unlikely)
Red cells will keep discharging and can run at higher amps, they have a faster discharge allowing for higher current. The tradeoff with the Red cells is they typically have less "MAH" or energy in them so they don't last as long.

Some examples of how to read cells:

Protected or Unprotected 18650 18 . 65 . 0 = 18mm diameter and 65 mm length
Protected 17670 17 . 65 . 0 = 17mm diameter and 65 mm length

Unprotected Red 16340 16 . 34 . 0 = 16mm diameter and 34 mm length
Unprotected Red 18350 18 . 35 . 0 = 18mm diameter and 35 mm length

The larger the diameter the more capacity the cell typically has, ie, runtime. The exception is that black cells of the same size as red cells always have more runtime, mah, or energy. But they will protect themselves by shutting off and are ideally less reliable. Although that's not really applicable. Therefore, since the MD2 comes bored, (which means it can fit 18mm cells), you could run 2 18350's in there, or you would be fine running the AW RCR123s.

Read up on it all here:
http://www.oveready.com/batteries-chargers/cat_13.html

Thanks everyone for the advice, and Tommygun45 for the awesome battery education. I am definitely leaning towards a Malkoff MD2. I just want to make sure I'm not just okay with the RCR123's. I want to be safe, & have never owned "un" protected cells. So, I'm not privy to knowing all the safety precautions. I have a feeling that I'm gonna like this setup and eventually build more than one with the MD2 host. So, do you guys think it's okay to use the AW RCR123's? Or, get the IMR, unprotected, or ?????

x2 RCR123 will be fine, but runtime will be short..... I think around 15 min (IIRC)(I could be wrong)

no matter what batteries you end up using, keep the cells "matched"

But will it be shorter than 2 18350s? RCR123s have 750 MAH while the 18350s are only rated for 700 MAH.

On overreadys site they say that the red cells are "Safe". How is that the case? If they keep running down isnt that bad? Is it the Lithium Manganese chemistry that is safer or something?

hotlight said:

x2 RCR123 will be fine, but runtime will be short..... I think around 15 min (IIRC)(I could be wrong)

no matter what batteries you end up using, keep the cells "matched"

Click to expand...

I'm not a battery expert, so please, don't take anything I type as fact.... I've been corrected before.

I've read the IMRs (in some applications) will have about the same runtime (or more?) as equivalent size Li Ion due to being able to handle current better than Li Ion. (more efficient at higher loads?)
(in the case of the M91, I think the 700mah 18350s will last longer than the Li Ion 16340s)
My x2 16340s were being taxed with the M91(cells were warm).


running down any chemistry is bad. (AFAIK) I try to change batteries/charge at 3.7v/3.8v....
safer- I think they are safer because instead of exploding/venting like Li Ion, they do something else(?) that is probably not as violent.

Tommygun45 said:

But will it be shorter than 2 18350s? RCR123s have 750 MAH while the 18350s are only rated for 700 MAH.

On overreadys site they say that the red cells are "Safe". How is that the case? If they keep running down isnt that bad? Is it the Lithium Manganese chemistry that is safer or something?

Click to expand...

I get 29 minutes out of 2 AW RCR123s before my M91 starts flickering as it drops out of regulation. Current draw is 960 mAh with the cells fully charged and peaks at 1310 mAh when the M91 starts flickering. I estimated the RCR123s capacity as about 600 mAh with the average load of the M91, so the AW IMR18350s at 720 mAh capacity should give you about 20% more runtime: about 35 minutes total.

If you can live with the extra 1 3/8" length of an MD3 you can get 75 minutes of runtime out of 2 AW RCR18500s.

Howecollc said:

I get 29 minutes out of 2 AW RCR123s before my M91 starts flickering as it drops out of regulation. Current draw is 960 mAh with the cells fully charged and peaks at 1310 mAh when the M91 starts flickering. I estimated the RCR123s capacity as about 600 mAh with the average load of the M91, so the AW IMR18350s at 720 mAh capacity should give you about 20% more runtime: about 35 minutes total.

If you can live with the extra 1 3/8" length of an MD3 you can get 75 minutes of runtime out of 2 AW RCR18500s.

Click to expand...

Hmmmmmm..... I'm going to have to play with the MD2 when it arrives, actually 2 of them, one for the M91W & one for a M61W. If I find it's shorter than I expected in my pocket, I'll "Pop" for a MD3. Or maybe I'll just try an MD3 because I can???? Nothing wrong with an "extra" around the house, right? I'll just need to figure what module I would want to drop into the MD3 then???? I think I've got about the 2 best that Gene makes, correct? Guess I"ll order a few 18350's just to be safe.