My first SureFire Light.....

steelshooter · Jan 2, 2015

I am getting ready to order my first Surefire flashlight. I will be using this light for general outdoor type things and it will mainly be in the glove compartment of my car. Two options.

Surefire Outdoorsman E2L

Surefire E2D LED Defender Ultra

Which would make a better general purpose light and why? Please help. I am having a hard time closing the deal on this flashlight.

Lance

PS. I am new here and plan to stay and learn from you fine folks.

C.M.S · Jan 2, 2015

Have you looked into Fenix , Eagletac, Nitecore , Olight , Zebralight for your "general purpose " needs ?
you can get a lot more lumens & two of them for that matter for the price of one of those Surefires..

thedoc007 · Jan 2, 2015

C.M.S said:
Have you looked into Fenix , Eagletac, Nitecore , Olight , Zebralight for your "general purpose " needs ?
you can get a lot more lumens & two of them for that matter for the price of one of those Surefires..

Not only that, but you also can get one with more modes. Most Surefires only have high/low settings, and for "general use", this is not enough (at least for me). Some of their lights, for example, have 5-15 lumen low, and then a high of 500 lumens. Leaves a lot of territory uncovered...there are many tasks for which low is too dim, and high is too bright. This is my experience, anyway. Depending on your use, you may find it adequate, but you should be aware of the issue before you buy.

I also think buying two cheaper lights would be smarter from the perspective of reliability, too - ANY light can fail. Having a backup is important...even if the light doesn't fail electronically or mechanically, it could get lost or stolen.

Timothybil · Jan 2, 2015

Since these other two yahoos didn't say anything - "Welcome to CPF!"

C.M.S · Jan 2, 2015

Timothybil said:
Since these other two yahoos didn't say anything - "Welcome to CPF!"

My bad :welcome:

880arm · Jan 2, 2015

steelshooter said:
I am getting ready to order my first Surefire flashlight. I will be using this light for general outdoor type things and it will mainly be in the glove compartment of my car. Two options.

Surefire Outdoorsman E2L

Surefire E2D LED Defender Ultra

Which would make a better general purpose light and why? Please help. I am having a hard time closing the deal on this flashlight.

Lance

PS. I am new here and plan to stay and learn from you fine folks.

:welcome:

Of the two you described, the E2L-A is more of a utility light.

One question to ask yourself is whether you would prefer the light to start off in high or low mode. The Outdoorsman line of lights always starts in low which saves your batteries and preserves your dark adapted vision. The E2D LED Defender will begin in high mode every time which is better for defensive purposes.

If you're wanting to test the waters with a SureFire, the 6PX Pro and G2X Pro are solid choices as well. They are slightly larger than the two you mentioned but still not bad for a glove compartment light.

steelshooter · Jan 2, 2015

Thank you all for the warm welcome! I am reading every post on this thread. Very surprised for the fast responses and friendliness.

steelshooter · Jan 2, 2015

C.M.S said:
Have you looked into Fenix , Eagletac, Nitecore , Olight , Zebralight for your "general purpose " needs ?
you can get a lot more lumens & two of them for that matter for the price of one of those Surefires..

Yes. I own a fenix PD32. Very nice lights. I just want to try a surefire to see what all the hype is about. They are well known for quality and technology. I just want to have one in my collection.

Grizzman · Jan 2, 2015

Have you read through the E2D LED Ultra thread yet? http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?356967-Surefire-e2dl-ultra

For its size, the Ultra throws impressively far. I challenge any of the above mentioned manufacturers to match it's lux delivery at distance, with an equal sized light. In a previous test, my Ultra delivered almost twice the lux on target at 100 yards as a 200 lumen LX2. It nearly matched the performance of a 900 lumen 3-CR123 Elzetta Charlie, with AVS head.

If throw isn't that important, then the Ultra definitely loses some of its appeal. The Ultra also has a lot more spill than the LX2/E2DL LED. The low output level of the Ultra is quite usable. The Ultra also seems to have a bit of tint lottery, as it's common for the tint to be greenish (mine is), so if a snow-white tint is important, it may not be worth the risk. I don't have an Outdoorsman head for comparison.

As 880arm stated, the 6PX and G2X are quite popular, and are much more wallet friendly.

tonywalker23 · Jan 2, 2015

Not to self advertise but if you take a look at my YouTube channel you'll see my surefire videos. They're less stats and specs and more practical real life what I think about them. To be honest they have a lot of rambling in them, which so,e people for some reason tend to like. They can tell I'm talking about something I like and why.

There's probably 5 lights if I rememebr right that I've had. A defender, a backup, an outdoorsman, a defender ultra, and a one cell defender. If money wasn't an issue I'd kept all of them because each have uses I like. But currently I only have one and that is the e1d defender.

YouTube.com/tonywalker23

newbie66 · Jan 2, 2015

:welcome:

Do note that the G2X and 6PX 320 lumens version have neutral tint where no other Surefire lights have.

dan05gt · Jan 2, 2015

I have used most of the lights mentioned in this thread and for general purpose use the G2X is my favorite. I like the low then high switch, the tint, the floody beam, good battery life, reliability, feel, etc. Just be sure to get the 320 lumen model, not the older 200 lumen model. For what you describe, I think the 15 lumen low and the 320 lumen high will work well.

dan05gt · Jan 2, 2015

G2X PRO to be specific.

rynholden · Jan 3, 2015

I have an outdoorsman ive been using for awhile and love it. I love the low first high second as i rarely use high

newbie66 · Jan 3, 2015

dan05gt said:
I have used most of the lights mentioned in this thread and for general purpose use the G2X is my favorite. I like the low then high switch, the tint, the floody beam, good battery life, reliability, feel, etc. Just be sure to get the 320 lumen model, not the older 200 lumen model. For what you describe, I think the 15 lumen low and the 320 lumen high will work well.

+1 on that. :twothumbs

LightWalker · Jan 3, 2015

tonywalker23 said:
Not to self advertise but if you take a look at my YouTube channel you'll see my surefire videos. They're less stats and specs and more practical real life what I think about them. To be honest they have a lot of rambling in them, which so,e people for some reason tend to like. They can tell I'm talking about something I like and why.

There's probably 5 lights if I rememebr right that I've had. A defender, a backup, an outdoorsman, a defender ultra, and a one cell defender. If money wasn't an issue I'd kept all of them because each have uses I like. But currently I only have one and that is the e1d defender.

YouTube.com/tonywalker23

I watched your Surefire reviews on YouTube several months ago and I thought they were well done. Your sermons are great too! :thumbsup:

Str8stroke · Jan 3, 2015

Howdy partner welcome aboard. Get either one. Chances are high if you are still here and reading these posts, within six months you will own both anyways! lol

I have a several of each mentioned above. I started with the Defender. I prefer it in the car. I like to grab it and have it in my hand whilst pumping gas and shopping.

For use around the house or campsite its the Outdoorsman NO QUESTION!! Starting on low is much easier. If you get the ULTRA and don't want or need 500 Lumen instantly, it will blind you! Unless you do like Me, I know the Ultra is coming on high, so I palm the head for the first click, then reclick and I am on low.

Anyways, keep us posted and good luck.

steelshooter · Jan 3, 2015

Thank you all for the warm welcome and useful information. Sounds like I am over thinking this light. I just need to start buying them all. I would then have one light for each application. To bad I am not that well off.

I am tuning into this thread heavily. I am leaning towards outdoorsman. I am just having a hard time overlooking it for some reason. I bet if they changed the light to Joe Shmo, I would change my mind! :sssh:

steelshooter · Jan 3, 2015

tonywalker23 said:
Not to self advertise but if you take a look at my YouTube channel you'll see my surefire videos. They're less stats and specs and more practical real life what I think about them. To be honest they have a lot of rambling in them, which so,e people for some reason tend to like. They can tell I'm talking about something I like and why.

There's probably 5 lights if I rememebr right that I've had. A defender, a backup, an outdoorsman, a defender ultra, and a one cell defender. If money wasn't an issue I'd kept all of them because each have uses I like. But currently I only have one and that is the e1d defender.

YouTube.com/tonywalker23

I have seen your videos and enjoy them. Keep up the good work!

ForrestChump · Jan 3, 2015

880arm said:
:welcome:

Of the two you described, the E2L-A is more of a utility light.

One question to ask yourself is whether you would prefer the light to start off in high or low mode. The Outdoorsman line of lights always starts in low which saves your batteries and preserves your dark adapted vision. The E2D LED Defender will begin in high mode every time which is better for defensive purposes.

If you're wanting to test the waters with a SureFire, the 6PX Pro and G2X Pro are solid choices as well. They are slightly larger than the two you mentioned but still not bad for a glove compartment light.

My first SureFire Light.....

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