What is the pinnacle of Incan Flashlights in your opinion?

I have a bunch of LED lights and in many ways they are superior to my two remaining incans, but in a way I see my Surefire lego incan as almost the last and best of an old breed - like the most highly refined carbuerated engine just prior to fuel injection, or a brass telescope made in the tradition of old world craftsmanship. To me, the lithium ion batteries, the multi-level soft start, the fabulous incan color rendition, and the form factor (2x18650 with KT4 and Lumensfactory bulb) just make it special in a way my more utilitiarian lights don't match.

What, in your opinion, is the finest incan torch out there? What is the aged wine and cheese of incan torches? Why?

Daekar said:

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What, in your opinion, is the finest incan torch out there? What is the aged wine and cheese of incan torches? Why?

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SureFire A2 :thumbsup:

EDIT - Hybrid incandescent / LED (with both throw and flood), regulated output, soft-start circuit, convenient size, nice beam, multi-color options, great style, ideal user interface, outstanding warranty, legendary toughness ....

Surefire M3, with A2 a close second.

Th M3 throws a nice beam, is easily legoable with a KT4, giving a floody and throwy option, with two different output options.
its also easily converted to run rechargeables, just dump the 123 cells out, and throw a set of 17500 in.
if i could only have one light, and it had to be incandescent, it would be an M3/M3T

Back in the day, when all I had was my trusty G2 with the HO-6 lamp, I always admired (and coveted) the M6 and the M3T. They just seemed like the best of the best, even tho I knew I could never afford them.

For the more $ sensitive, wolf eyes made seriously beefy lights that used all the great lumens factory lamps.

If we are allowing non-stock "mods" to qualify, the wquiles PhD-M6 is also near the top

Surefire 12Z(P)M with the N62 lamp.

archimedes said:

SureFire A2 :thumbsup:

EDIT - Hybrid incandescent / LED (with both throw and flood), regulated output, soft-start circuit, convenient size, nice beam, multi-color options, great style, ideal user interface, outstanding warranty, legendary toughness ....

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Ditto that. I run mine with a FiveMega Strion socket and bulb and it goes brighter without a hitch. I have grown so confident with the Strion bulb that I have one installed on my precious Black A2.

I'll agree the A2 was probably the most amazing incandescent to every hit the market. The M6 commands some respect too, it oozes quality.

sween1911 said:

Surefire 12Z(P)M with the N62 lamp.

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Really ? Its cool, but in a tim the toolman taylor "ugh more power" kinda way
12 mins of runtime, in short bursts, as it can trip the thermal protection in cells

back in the day, it was described as "the quickest way to flatten a set of cells, without shorting them with a copper rod"

Therefore, it was awesome...

Tim would be proud, you're right. And he'd be looking for an N63 bulb for More Power!

I'm still trying for an appropriate response to the original question...

another vote for the A2 Aviator as well

A2 . pretty much the only light I use..lol

tobrien said:

another vote for the A2 Aviator as well

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+1

Sometimes I sit and wonder... what if the LuxV never made the show and blew the works. What would Willie create next with this magnificent concept.

I'll throw in my MagCharger. Had it for years as a duty light and even though I replaced it with the new LED version, it's still my go-to when I patrol in heavy winter fog.

I've been thinking about this off and on. Don't laugh, but I have to put up the original Surefire G2. Here was a flashlight that cost only $35, with a really neat non-metallic surface that took pretty much any kind of beating, with a really bright, almost perfectly even bulb/beam pattern. As the ads used to say, it would out power a 2D Maglite. This was one of the first lights to put a premium quality well performing light into the hands of everyday people. It is still being sold today, and when adjusted for inflation, probably cheaper now than it was then. It and its cousin the 6P were also the first practical P60/D26 hosts that got many of us started on LEDs as well.

Well, it's not technically an incan since it lacks a filament, but it does have a bulb. But anyway, my Polarion PH40 Helios 40W HID (high intensity discharge) CWSL (Crew Served Weapon Light) is pretty awesome.

Timothybil said:

I've been thinking about this off and on. Don't laugh, but I have to put up the original Surefire G2. Here was a flashlight that cost only $35, with a really neat non-metallic surface that took pretty much any kind of beating, with a really bright, almost perfectly even bulb/beam pattern. As the ads used to say, it would out power a 2D Maglite. This was one of the first lights to put a premium quality well performing light into the hands of everyday people. It is still being sold today, and when adjusted for inflation, probably cheaper now than it was then. It and its cousin the 6P were also the first practical P60/D26 hosts that got many of us started on LEDs as well.

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I agree with you, the G2 (and its 6P cousin) got this stuff going so far as where we are now IMO. Good thinking man!

I have read that the A2 is one of only two flashlights to have had regulated incandescent output. Does anyone know what the other light was?

Since you didn't say that is has to be a production flashlight, I want to mention my 120W Hotwire. I consider it the "pinnacle of incan flashlights" for multiple reasons, but mainly because it has probably the highest possible efficiency of any incan light - ~41 Lumens/Watt. It uses an overdriven Osram 64447 IRC bulb @ 18.5V. ~4900 bulb Lumens @ 118W. The light was measured at 3600 otf Lumens in a sphere. It beat all three Polarion PH50s (it was at a big flashaholics meet here in Germany) we had on hand (they did 3200-3500 otf Lumens).

Additional reasons are that it is regulated, has an op-reflector which makes for a nice beam, uses high capacity batteries which are also protected (8 18650s), has an additional over discharge protection, has an over temperature protection, has mulitiple modes, runs for 35min with constant brightness and can be run continously when used outside in the winter (doesn't become too hot). Oh and there is one more very important reason: the bulbs only cost around 4$ here in Germany and are readily available!

Pictures can be found here. I wrote a thread on it in the German TLF Forum. I might do an Englisch version of it at some point.