Initial Nitecore P12GT Thoughts

It is raining again so will add pics later. So far this thing kicks a$$. Output seems about dead on and this thing can throw. Smaller hot spot than usual but still big enough.

I'm loving mine. Wasn't sure the first day or so if it was too throwy but it's taken the #1 spot on the nightstand.

tried taking some beam shots but am at a loss with my old Canon G10. Other than that the amount of throw this little light is capable of is amazing. Anybody out there know the best settings for beam shots on an old Canon G10? I posted some indoor pics in the other P12GT thread at least

There was a bit of spongy give before the switch would activate so I took it apart and put in the switch cover from a PD35. Problem solved.

I'm picking up a P12GT soon! I've read that the P12GT gets really hot after a few minutes. How long on Turbo would you say it lasts before it becomes too hot?

I currently own a P12. Just wondering if anyone here has both, and what your feelings are on whether or not it is worth upgrading to the GT model? Is there a really noticeable difference between the two in real world use? Thanks.

the GT is designed to radiate heat to the exterior through a new to the P12 line a nice thick copper heat sink. Yes on turbo it gets hot its designed to. From there its thermal regulation takes over and eases back on power until the light cools enough then power goes back up its a beautiful thing. To hot to hold? Not in my experience and Ive been EDCing since I got it. Use the grip ring. Have found the 280 lumen high mode plenty for most tasks. Kicking it up to turbo is quite a difference and demonstrates fully how well done the throw beam has been done by NC. It may only be 25k CD but damn its a hell of a 25k CD. It does what I want it to do.

On turbo you will notice it getting hot in 30 seconds then a bit hotter then it slowly backs off automatically until temp drops enough to drive back up to full blast again.

I have the P12GT... 280 or less and its cool. But Turbo does warm up. If you want continuous 1000 lumens look at the die-cast lights... I have the EA45S and that thing runs turbo until the batteries are drained and remains cool to hold (head get warm/hot).

creegeek said:

I have the P12GT... 280 or less and its cool. But Turbo does warm up. If you want continuous 1000 lumens look at the die-cast lights... I have the EA45S and that thing runs turbo until the batteries are drained and remains cool to hold (head get warm/hot).

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Just curious how long of run time do you get with the EA45S on turbo?

if you peruse NC's now revamped P12GT page they better explain how their thermal regulation system works. The light is designed to wick heat away to the exterior so yes it will get hot on turbo but notice that it will also start to cool as the thermal regulation slowly drops power to cool it down and still provide a smooth long and useful drop off curve in output as the battery drains. Note the GT has a nice looking copper heatsink as well.

As for the EC4S running flat out on turbo until the cells drop out I believe its actually the EC4 not the EC4S that does that. Ive seen the reviews here and still need to see the EC4 running flat out with no drop in output for an hour for myself to really be sold on it. EC4S from what I understand just puts out to much heat to be able to run flat out like the EC4 does. I could be totally wrong but...just my opinion.

In the meantime I have been EDCing the GT for a bit now and am pretty damn impressed. The 280 lumen high mode(looks a good bit over 300 to me)has been the main mode used. Even at that lower level the XP-L HI still throws a visibly concentrated beam I am very impressed. The GT as good as it is still doesnt have the high quality in hand feel of say any PD35 variant but hey NC seems to have turned a big corner in 2015. The quality of NC products rolled out this year is far and above what they made before that.

Only thing I did not like about the GT was it came with a squishy switch. There was some give underneath the switch boot before one makes contact with the actual switch. I like my tail switches nice, immediate and crisp. After much rummaging through my big box of spare light parts I ended up switching the domed GT boot with the flat top boot from a PD35. Worked perfectly. No more squish then click, response is now immediate.