Got my Surge!!!

Was at work today and someone handed me the box (I work at UPS) so later on I put the batteries in my pocket to warm them up and then went to put them in the light.....

Its not all the easy to get in the thing the first time as the threads seam to have oil on them and this coats the tabs as well causing my fingers to slip and bed the bulb over. I was able to straighten it without it breaking off but I was getting worring. I aparently didn't slight it all back into the body far enough though because it wouldn't turn on. It flashed as I put it in and then nothing. Taking it would and putting it back in again fixed the problem. Also the first time I screwed back on the reflector the orin sliped out and was caught in the threads but that wasn't a bid deal.

So I finally turn it on and start blinding coworkeds. Very bright, very white light but it wasn't till I got home that I got to see the throw of it. Very nice.

All in all this light looks to be exactly that I was looking for.

definitely do a search on the Surge.. some ppl have some very effective fixes to make battery replacement easier, among other things.

I'd really like to find a cheap flashlight with a smooth reflector I could put in there just to see the difference in throw.

GQ, a lot of the guys here are bored hearing about the "cheapie" that puts out a WALL of light.

I was thrilled to find a work horse light that blows away $ 150 lights like they don't exist.

Maybe some of us do as I do; we hold our expensive 123 powered lights close to the chest.

But, when you need a LOT of light, the Surge certainly does the trick, for cheap.

JohnK,

I fully agree! The surge may have it's problems, but for a $25 light that runs on common AAs, IMO, it's one of the best values out there. I'm sure if someone ran a formula for photons per dollar, the Surge would do well.

anyone have any speculation as to how much of an increase in throw I'd get with a smooth reflector?

i don't think it'd be much difference @ all

I've never heard of a smooth reflector for the Surge. You can't just drop in the reflector from some random flashlight.

The Surge is not really built for maximum throw. It has a nice wide beam and depends on its brute power to get decent throw. With a smooth reflector, possibly with a slightly different shape, it could have much more throw.

If you want a $30 light with tons of throw, try a UKE SL6C. Note it has six C cells and is about 2x heavier than the Surge.

My Surge out throws my G2 and Dorcy Spyder. I didn't compare it, but I would guess that it even beats my Super LGI.

The G2 and Spyder are also wide-beam lights, while the LGI (1 watt Luxeon) is not nearly in their brightness league. I doubt that a Surge would outthrow a PM6 which is basically the same brightness as a G2 or Spyder, but tuned for more throw. A Surge is about 2x as bright as a G2, by the way.

[ QUOTE ]
paulr said:
The G2 and Spyder are also wide-beam lights, while the LGI (1 watt Luxeon) is not nearly in their brightness league. I doubt that a Surge would outthrow a PM6 which is basically the same brightness as a G2 or Spyder, but tuned for more throw. A Surge is about 2x as bright as a G2, by the way.

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i think it can or at least equal.... will test l8ter.... but from quickbeams site... the lux of the surge is 10000 whereas the pm6 gets 7000 ....

And if you doubt the Surge's throw, Quickbeam has it EQUALLING the Streamlight TL-3 Xenon in throw, and only 10% less Lumens.

That's being in very good company.

help!

The head has been a pain to loosen when tighten up (even just a litte) since I got it but good lord, I CANNONT uncrew it at all at the moment. Anything I can do to help? (maybe warm it up or cool it off?) I don't want to risk the vise or pliers really. More importantly, once I get it moving again is there anything I can do to stop this from happening?

Re: help!

To get it off, you could use your shirt. Then add some lube.

Re: help!

I finally got it... felt like something was gunna burst from trying so hard though lol.

Is it still waterproof while you adjust the beam? I was thinking getting an O-ring and putting in there would keep it from being tightened back so far it sticks but I don't know if that would let water leak in.

Anyway the first night I took it outside I didn't realize you could adjust it and I hadn't gotten around to toying with it till just a few min ago. For contrast I took my dad's 99 cent 2D cell light out on the porch. I could get the bushes at the edge of the yard but barely could tell what they were. Turn on the surge and the bushes, the grass, the whole works lights up, but just slightly dim. Adjust it to the most focuses and they are nice and brightly lit. Very impressive.

The UKE dive light sounds interesting as well, might have to get one of my friends to pick that up so we have some variety when camping. I did noticed that if I hold the surge over my head and piont at the ground I can easily light up an area well enough that setting up camp would be very doable in the dark.

Re: help!

Sweet light.........for the money, VERY hard to beat.

Re: help!

hey,

As far as worklights go, the surge is hard to beat, especially when it comes to value and utility. I bought one for my father last year for christmas and he was very impressed. This year, I bought another one for myself as well as gave a few away for christmas. They make great glovebox/truck utility lights due to their small size and great output. They are still waterproof as you asdjust them, just make sure you don't expose the o-ring. I've taken mine free diving among other things. I don't think it's necessary, but there shouldn't (in theory, I haven't tried this myself) be any problem with putting a rubber/silicone gasket in there, provided you could find one the right size.

The only problem I've had is with the older batches, my father's lightswitch was bad, leaked once, and then the board shorted out later. I have yet to send it in, but from what I've heard PT has an excellent reputation for these things.

Oh, and the head binding on your Surge... I just remembered, both mine and the one I gave to my uncle had a plastic bur on the body threads facing toward the head. Very similar (if not the case) to the tabs left by the molding process, like plastic parts on the "tree" from a model kit. It prevents the head from backing evenly down onto the flange, and can make it bind. I simply shaved mine off with a sharp pocket knife. It's a bit hard to describe, but I hope that gives you a place to start. If you need more info I'd be glad to help.

Re: help!

Shouldn't be hard to adjust. Make sure that you didn't cross thread it. Another potential problem is gas from the cells. If enough gas is emitted it can create a lot of pressure. There was a thread quite a while back about someone that had a Surge nearly explode on him when he opened it. I started opening mine every 2 - 3 weeks just to make sure, but I never had any build up, so I stopped.

If you think that's the problem, wrap it in a thick towel while you're opening it.