I'm considering the purchase of this model (XP-G2), but I have not found reviews by some of my regular sources like Going Gear or Selfbuilt. I found a couple of German reviews, but can't understand what they are saying. Even so, the beam comparisons with other high-out models popular are impressive.
http://eagletac.com/html/mx25l3c/index.html
Are there any owners out there who can comment on the reliability of this flashlight, and overall experience or impressions?
Thanks
I got the Mx25L3C nichia version, with the kit option.
As far as I can tell, it's a great light, that does a good job, considering the price you pay for it For the Nichia version you get 1800 lumen and 300+ meters of throw if I remember correctly. With the xpg2, you'll get more ( 2400+ lumen and 400+ meters of throw).
However I chose the nichia because, to my knowledge there aren't many HiCri lights that can deliver 1800 lumen on the market. Imho, having that big amount of hicri light is a big plus. That was really useful when I had to do a paint job in a room that was not really well lit, and had to check the different white tints, and if I had applied enough paint over the first layer. This was someting I could not do properly with lights with cooler tints.
Regarding the reliability, I ran the light on turbo regularly, sometimes for more than 20-30 minutes. The light got slightly hot, but not hotter than any other light on turbo mode. As for the toughness, considering its size, the light seems durable, and I think it can withstand small shocks/drops. However I wouldn't consider doing a drop test from the 2nd or 3rd floor of a building, like I would do with an HDS, if you see what I mean
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The kit that was shipped with the light, included a silver bezel, 1 diffuser, 4 color filters (red, blue, yellow, green), and a tailcap with a switch, similar to the side button.
If you buy the light with the kit option, you'll get a MX25L3C, with threads, just above the glass lens. You won't get this with the basic model. This is important as the silver bezel, the diffuser and the color filters need to be screwed on top of the light to be used. This implies that if you buy the basic light, you won't be able to do this, even if you manage to get your hands on the kit. The silver bezel is nice to have, as the light looks more classy with it
. The diffuser is also nice if you need to have pure flood light. The filters are good too, but I had a bit of a difficulty to screw them on the head the first time (switching between filters is a bit of a pain). If you plan to use different color filters regularly, I suggest you do that with an other light than with the eagletac, as you may find this unnerving (ex it's more easily done with the Olight M22, as you can pop filters in and out really fast)..
The tailcap w/ switch can be handy if you need a quick access to the switch in the dark. You won't fumble with the light trying to find the button. However the mx25l3c is a bit big to be handled comfortably like a tactical light, unless you have big hands. The light can tailstand with both tailcaps.
The user interface is very similar to all the other eagletac models. All you need to do is twist the head.
You also have access to momentary modes, by maintaining the button pressed : From off, you have access to all the modes in momentary. And from all the modes you have access to turbo. For strobe you need to do a double click.
Note that you can get a visual reference of the mode you're on, even with the light switched off, by checking the position of the "Adj" label against the stops, the "MX25L3C" label, and the 2 recesses (Turbo : label "Adj" against the stop, left of the side switch; High : "Adj" under the left recess of the switch; Medium : label "Adj" under label "MX23L3C"; Low : label "Adj" under the right recess of the side switch).
Regarding the batteries, the light is supposed to run only with top button cells. However I succesfully ran it with AW 18650 flat tops. I also ran it with 17670 with no rattle at all.
Hope it helps.