Best VALUE P60 LED upgrades for modding on a budget?

I have a couple of P60 hosts including an older Surefire 6P that I would like to modify, starting with an upgrade to LED. I have read a number of threads on the topic of P60 equivalent LED drop-ins and it seems that the general consensus is that Malkoff makes some of the best. However, I am interested in hearing from those who have experimented with a number of P60 LEDs regarding how they compare in the sense of bang-for-the-buck, especially those at the lower to middle price bracket.

Thanks in advance!

I have a couple.

One is a sportac by Eagletac. It's an XML2 that I put in a 6p. I love it very bright and has been very durable under hard use. I use 16650 li-ion KeepPower cells.

The other is a vn Mt-g2 I have in a solarforce host. The amount of light for a single emitter setup is laughable. It's running on 2 protected 18650s. And it's a vn so I have no doubts about the reliability.

Im told the solarforce dropin are a good bang for the buck. I paid about 40ish for the sportac drop in. The vn was significantly more...100ish

Nailbender (customlites) is reliable source and a great value, ignoring the really cheap chinese imports. Vinhnguyen's section here is a great way to specifically get a dropin that is 'hot rodded' but you can get less powerful as well. But we are talking $35 to $50 or more for the engine. Nailbender has SolarForce hosts. I really like the L2P because of the great quality for a decent price. You can make your own dropins also.

+1 for Nailbender. You really cant go wrong with his drop-ins.

The Sportac line is an AMAZING value for what you get. It's around $35.

If you need something substantially cheaper, you can find low quality P60 drop ins on eBay for around $10 shipped.

What is your intended use? If it isn't critical (home defense, use with a firearm, etc) the eBay unit should serve you well, but I'd highly recommend getting one of the Sportac units.

cland72 said:

The Sportac line is an AMAZING value for what you get. It's around $35.
...but I'd highly recommend getting one of the Sportac units.

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AGREE. The triple XPG2 is a very nice white tint (a little cool if you're the warm type) and you can get a triple Nichia 219 or a single XML2. All of those are single mode. I like the 'no memory' (high, medium, low) drivers that Vinh has, because I can be navigating on low, then when I see something that needs a dose of 100% full on, I just turn the light off, turn the light on; doesn't take very long at all.

Like cland72 says though; What is your need? The current state of P60 dropins is very good right now. You can get something pretty nice to more precisely meet your requirements.

Malkoffs are solid as the OP has noted but are not noted for maximum outputs at minimum cost.
That said, the Malkoff M91's are all-in-all very satisfactory. Amortizing the initial cost over the number of years that a Malkoff can be expected to perform superlatively actually makes them very affordable IMO. My M91 from 2011 is still going strong.

One of the best things about the Malkoff series is that they are one of the few high-end P60's that still perform well with CR123 primaries. Many of the other dropins out there have eschewed CR123 compatibility to get higher outputs, making many of them lithium-ion specific. I don't know if this is a consideration for the OP but I like having at least one of my high-end lights compatible with CR123's in an emergency, if need be.


On the other hand, I've been extremely pleased with my Nailbender XM-L DD, great bang-for-the-buck while still maintaining good quality.

Kestrel said:

Malkoffs are solid as the OP has noted but are not noted for maximum outputs at minimum cost.


One of the best things about the Malkoff series is that they are one of the few high-end P60's that still perform well with CR123 primaries. Many of the other dropins out there have eschewed CR123 compatibility to get higher outputs, making many of them lithium-ion specific. I don't know if this is a consideration for the OP but I like having at least one of my high-end lights compatible with CR123's in an emergency, if need be.

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This is a GREAT point that I was going to need to address before purchasing anything anyway, so I am glad it was brought up. Here's the situation: I have the 6P, which I hope to have bored out to fit an 18650 since I have other lights which already use those (Fenix TK30 & TK35). The other light is supposedly a Surefire, but I haven't gotten a positive I.D. on it even after contacting Surefire; it looks like a 6Z, but it is plastic. The battery chamber has a metal sleeve that I am unsure if I should remove and, therefore, don't know if it is a good idea to adapt this one to 18650 (although I am open to suggestions on this topic). To sum it up, I have one light that I hope to mod to fit 18650 and another that seems as though it may remain CR123 (at least for now).
I will have to look into how to tell which light engines will work with which batteries...

As for usage: The plastic 6Z fits on a rail mount so I will probably use it for home defense when the zombie apocalypse happens, but until then it is either going to be a general purpose light, or I may get an infrared drop-in for photo purposes.
The 6P is what I would prefer to carry when I shoot photos, both for light painting as well as a defense measure if approached.

My objective for both/either of these lights is to upgrade to a light that is at LEAST as bright as the current incandescent bulbs they have as well as sporting a much longer run time per battery/charge.


I will look into all of these suggestions, which I appreciate.

Oh, and if any of you have info on how the cheapo eBay/Amazon drop-ins compare, I would be quite interested in knowing what has been discovered and if any are actually worth investing in.

Sounds like you have a G2Z

cland72 said:

Sounds like you have a G2Z

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That would be it! Thank you kindly!

explodie7 said:

Oh, and if any of you have info on how the cheapo eBay/Amazon drop-ins compare, I would be quite interested in knowing what has been discovered and if any are actually worth investing in.

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When it comes to cheap P60 drop in's you get what you pay for. A $8 XPG or XML will be just that. 30ga vinyl wires, Fujik attached MCPCB, poor soldering, non centered LED. I know this well. I have an Ebay business selling LED drop in's and most of my modules start out as what I just described. I work my magic on them and they become a $25 quality built unit. When it comes to the more powerful versions I just use better quality parts and of course those are not $25 modules.

Look at Naibenders or Vinh's drop in's here on CPF for some excellent choices. They have them in all price ranges. From mild to wild too.

Just a FYI, the higher-output Malkoffs (M91 etc) pretty much need a three-cell light. Capacity is definitely on the low side with an unbored 6P and the G2Z line. Much has been written on these so feel free to search the forums for more info. Best of luck,

Edit: And I would definitely stay away from the eBay and Amazon dropins. CPF is where it's at.