Older Surefire 6Z LED bulb possible?

I got out my old Surefire 6Z which has about an hour and twenty minutes runtime, iirc. The light is very handy and well made as a tactical light and the switch is very convenient. The light is not very bright. I searched on the Surefire website and I can't really find information clear enough for my simple mind to answer this question; is there a drop-in LED light assembly available to update and improve this light? It uses one CR123A battery. I don't want to spend more on the light than its worth.
Also, could anyone recommend a similarly built tactical light if I need to take its place?
I have realized through reading on this forum that I need at least two good lights to serve my needs. One for the tasks of everyday living such as walking the dog, doing tasks at night, etc. and one for a dedicated light used with a firearm to illuminate and momentarily blind an possible threat . I will appreciate any input.

Just to clarify, does your light look like this? If so, it is powered by two CR123a batteries. The only SureFire lights of that vintage that were powered by just one CR123a were the 3P and E1.



If your light is a 6Z, there are tons of LED upgrades available to replace the stock P60 incandescent lamp assembly. You can scan through some of the recent threads looking for "P60 drop-in" in the title and find quite a bit of information.

I can personally recommend drop-ins from Malkoff Devices and Nailbender (over on the Custom and Modified lights sub-forum) but there are several other respected builders out there as well.

I am sorry . It is a 6Z and has two batteries. I haven't even had it out in a long time. When I just opened the battery compartment to check it, a peculiar smell emitted. Is this a normal thing? It's been sitting in a drawer for around two years.
Will you tell me the upgrade you have successfully used?
Do you think it's worth the cost to upgrade? I wonder if it's better to purchase a new tactical light for efficiency and brighter emitter. Thanks for your input.

I put a Malkoff M61 in my 6Z and have been very happy with it. This is the light I keep in the fast opening lockbox with my bedside gun.

Regarding the smell, that is unusual and a potentially serious concern. I would definitely do some reading in the electronics forum and the safety sub forum. I would also not use the light with the current batteries installed. Replace them with two new cells from the same package, preferably using cells made in the US or made in Japan. Be very careful not to breathe the fumes

You've already gotten some fine advice, above ....

This particular flashlight is a desirable older model (vintage) SureFire. It was the predecessor to the Z2 model, which is unfortunately also now discontinued. If it is in excellent cosmetic condition, it could be of significant value to a collector, especially if you happen to have the original box and papers.

It will also work as an excellent "host" for a "P60 LED dropin" ( occasionally also referred to as a "d26 dropin" ) , if you would prefer to continue using it.

Malkoff makes a wide variety of P60 dropins compatible with this model and, in general, would be widely considered to be the premium choice for a modern upgrade - although they can be costly (but worth every penny and more). If you prefer something less expensive and/or more specialized instead, there are almost innumerable other options.

Good luck, and congrats on that nice torch !

EDIT - to answer your question about a similar modern alternative, Elzetta make a range of flashlights that are designed for the same purpose(s).

EDIT(2) - for safety reasons, multi-cell lights should only be used with (high-quality) identical matched / fresh / full batteries (!)

+1 to what Bill said. If you have quality cells installed I wouldn't expect the odor to be from the batteries but the safe bet is to take the light outside, dump the batteries out and let everything air out a little bit. Hopefully the smell is just from some old lubricant or maybe the coating applied to the inside of the battery tube.

As far as upgrades are concerned, one of the great thing about the incandescent SureFire lights is that they can be made "modern" buy just taking out the incandescent lamp assembly and replacing it with a new LED module. My first recommendation is the same Malkoff M61 that Bill mentioned. It is also available in lower output versions (M61L, M61LL, etc.) which will provide less output but considerably longer runtime on a set of batteries. I have also had good experience with Nailbender here on CPF. He has two sales threads here and here. There are several other makers selling drop-ins like this but these are the only two I have enough experience with to recommend.

With the tactical momentary switch such as found on the 6Z, my preference is to use single-mode drop-ins.

Hello Bentonville,

IMO the 6Z was one of the finest light bodies that SureFire has ever produced, and highly upgradeable; 1000+ lumens is a pretty easy point to get to with these.

We do have an extensive discussion thread focused on the Z-series lights here, some of which you may find interesting.

Bentonville said:

[...] I have realized through reading on this forum that I need at least two good lights to serve my needs. One for the tasks of everyday living such as walking the dog, doing tasks at night, etc. and one for a dedicated light used with a firearm to illuminate and momentarily blind an possible threat . I will appreciate any input.

Click to expand...

BTW I recently took a handgun / flashlight training course (my writeup is here), and even though I have an embarassing number of more modern SureFires, I found my 6Z to be the best flashlight for the job and got the most use on the range:




They are also collectible when in excellent condition; for your sake () I hope yours is a 'user' so you enjoy using your fine light with easily-upgraded internals.

Best of luck,

Now I am excited about my 6Z. It is in mint condition and I do have the box etc. somewhere around the house. I have only replaced batteries in it three times and replaced the blub assembly once. As stated , I rarely use it. When I first got it I shined it everywhere because I was just getting into handguns and I practiced using the Harries technique quite a bit during a couple week period. Then the light went in my bedside drawer where it has stayed for the better part of ten years, or more, iirc. I will look for the drop-in. I have a gift card for Amazon so maybe I can find it there. By the way, I have RYOVAC 123 batteries in it which I am going to discard due to the odor. I just notice they don't have the CR in front of the 123. I did notice a strong odor when I opened to take them out a minute ago. Hope I don't get cancer from smelling it. What brand is considered a good brand?
Thank you for the encouraging input.

I found this on the Malkoff site. http://www.malkoffdevices.com/drop-...e-malkoff/m61ll-lowest-output-to-fit-surefire

I think this lower lumens will do fine. I want to ask about the replacement head/light assembly available from Surefire. http://www.surefire.com/kx4-led-conversion-head.html Is this better than the Malkoff? I know it's higher in price but is it better to stay with the original manufacturer? Thanks for the input.

Personally, I prefer the Malkoff dropins to the KX4 (and have both) ....

SureFire recommend using SureFire-branded CR123A batteries in their flashlights, and they are an excellent choice. There are other good options, but I choose to use SureFire cells for CR123A lithium primaries.

Most lithium primaries are considered to have a shelf life of approximately 10 years in storage (under good conditions).

The KX4 can be found at retail for about the same price as the Malkoff M61 but, in my opinion, it's not worth it. To me the M61 is simply much nicer.

If your old 6Z is in mint condition and you have the original package, it would probably be worth enough to a collector for you to fund the purchase of a nice completely new light.

EDIT: archimedes, this is twice you have posted one or two minutes quicker than I did in this thread. I swear I'm not following you around! :tinfoil:

880arm said:

The KX4 can be found at retail for about the same price as the Malkoff M61 but, in my opinion, it's not worth it. To me the M61 is simply much nicer.

If your old 6Z is in mint condition and you have the original package, it would probably be worth enough to a collector for you to fund the purchase of a nice completely new light.

EDIT: archimedes, this is twice you have posted one or two minutes quicker than I did in this thread. I swear I'm not following you around! :tinfoil:

Click to expand...

(lol) ... :laughing:

880arm. 1. How do I determine what my mint 6Z is worth? ( I just dug out the original box and manual that came with it.) What new light would be superior to an 6Z with the Malkoff drop-in?
Thanks a lot for the put. This CPF is a really great place for knowledge, support, and encouragement.

In a multi-cell light, I would use only Surefire, Duracell, Energizer. Panasonic, or Sanyo cells. Surefire cells can be purchased directly from their website in bulk at reasonable cost. There are multiple reported instances of explosions caused by cells that are made in China within the hot cells and close calls subforum, one of which resulted in permanent lung damage to the light's owner. From his post, I think you would know pretty quickly if something was wrong.

Surefire LED conversion heads are generally expensive, and less impressive than aftermarket options like Malkoff. Malkoff is every bit as reliable as Surefire.

Discussion of specific pricing and valuation is discouraged in the open forum here, but searching for recent sales on CPF MarketPlace ( ... and eBay, and Google, etc, etc ) are excellent resources.

Is there a problem that I used the Rayovac 123 with no CR in front of the numbers? I don't think I have any lung damage from getting a whiff of the odor, at least I can't tell right now.
I read the account of the misfortunate accident and it makes me wonder if I should sell my 6Z and just use AA powered lights. I really like my surefire but if it takes special care, I don't mind selling it.
On a different note; is the CPF market place affiliated with this forum for is in fact a separate entity? I couldn't see a place to inquire about the market value of my 6Z.

The "123" (or more specifically, "123a") refers to the battery size and type. Through the years manufacturers have added their own prefixes resulting in names such as DL132, SF123, etc. Here on CPF we usually just refer to them all as CR123's for the sake of convenience. These batteries do require proper handling but it's nothing too onerous, especially for a two-cell light that does not see heavy use. In fact, one of their strong points is their ability to hold a charge for many years while in storage. I wouldn't give up on your 6Z just because of the battery type.

Like archimedes said, specific pricing discussions are frowned upon as they can almost turn into an auction within the thread. As mentioned above, you can check out the CPF Marketplace or eBay to see what prices similar lights have been selling for. The condition of the light has the greatest effect on the price.

The CPF Marketplace does require a separate registration from this site.

I have been using lithium primaries for years before learning of the safety issues. Just buy good quality cells. and always use two cells from the same package, and you are very unlikely to have a problem. All of the problems I have read about involved cheap Chinese cells and/or mismatched cells. The cheaper cells might not hold their charge as well, resulting in a greater likelihood of a mismatch.

Every lithium primary powered light I've used has had a particular ether like odor when opened after a while, this is nothing to be concerned about. Any other smell is unusual but probably not a big deal as long as the batteries haven't vented (and you'll know when they do, it's rather spectacular and extrememly toxic, vacate the area immediately and get to fresh air)

as You have not used the light often, I suppose for the obvious reason: cost ... (of the batteries)

if You get a P60 led module, also switch to rechargeable cells,
in the case of Your unmodified body: a (protected) 16650 Li-Ion cell (will even 17650 fit in? Then this bigger cell)


(but the ideas to have a collector pay any exaggerated amount for some "collectors item" and you getting an "size 18650 bored 6P with klicky switch" for that + possibly have enough for a multimode P60 insert ...
... they are quite good)