help me decide on a new edc

looking to upgrade my edc light for a new malkoff, here the options im looking at.

mdc turnkey xpl 16650 in neutral

mdc ha 1cr123 in neutral

mdc ha 1aa in cool white


i prefer neutral tints over the cools especially for edc. i have been carrying either a dual 123 or single for edc but thought about the aa version for ease of finding batteries plus i can some eneloops im looking to put to use. the 16650 mdc is nice for the ease of recharables and ive never used a 16650 before so itll be a new experience on that end. the whole turnkey thing is a nice setup from malkoff. i think all three would satisfy my needs and wants . i also thought about an edcl2t as i have the single cell version and love it but really wanted a malkoff. help me out guys ..:thinking:

wicky998 said:

mdc turnkey xpl 16650 in neutral

mdc ha 1cr123 in neutral

mdc ha 1aa in cool white

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well, only you can decide how to spend your money, so this is just my opinion:

Jetbeam RRT01vn - The Best EDC
w SST20 4000K 95CRI

as far as your 3 choices, the first one uses a weird battery, so pass
the second one is not High CRI, I pass
the third one is not High CRI, plus its cool white.. nothing I would want

but you probably have different priorities

Out of your choices I prefer the AA because those are my batteries of choice. Toss an Eneloop into an MDC cool or neutral and enjoy worry free, bomb-proof lighting.

Malkoff makes excellent products. Given those choices, I'd prefer the 1CR123 in neutral. Gene's XPG2 has an attractive, uniform tint with minimal shift. Plenty of power for edc tasks. The downside is that the high beam will eat up a CR123 relatively quickly, but the lower modes normally suffice for most edc usage. If you think you want more capacity, then the 16650 is the ticket, but the beam from the XPL might have a little more "cree rainbow." Either way, I wouldn't make the decision based on the perceived availability of a certain battery type. I stock up and rely on my own supply. If there is a real emergency, AA batteries will vanish from every shelf instantly. Just my thoughts.

How about getting the 16650 MDC Neutral and a spare CR123 tube? That way you can run both size cells on the same head.
P

That would work if he's running 16340s in the 1CR123 tube, but I suspect he's got a supply of primary CR123s @~3V. This would not power the 16650 module.

Modernflame said:

That would work if he's running 16340s in the 1CR123 tube, but I suspect he's got a supply of primary CR123s @~3V. This would not power the 16650 module.

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currently only have proprietary olight 16340s , have a ton of SF primaries lying stashed away. I don't believe the 16340s I have would work??? the aa model caught my interest for the eneloops I have plus the smallest pack of aas you can buy is a four pack , which essentially is a full run on the light four times compared to the smallest cr123a packs are two, which would run the single cell 123 twice. more runtime per dollar. but beings that I have bookoo SF 123s it really wouldn't matter, but then again I have a ton of surefires that's currently all running primaries as well...

Aha!
P

Currently thinking on getting the single 123 mdc and buying the single aa body only and swapping them when I want. Have two in one.. Undecided still

grabbed a mdc 1aa in cool with a crenulated ring. thank you guys for all the recommendations.

Good choice wicky. I like how it starts on a very useable, fuel sipping low.

You can opt for a VME head and put in an M31 for a single setting option as well. Stick an eneloop pro in that baby and shine on you crazy diamond.

Bykfixer, that doesn't sound like a bad idea. Do you know what the output would be on the single mode?

If I recall correctly 180 out the front for the L version (Gene says 200) provided the battery holds 1.2 volts. Something like an eneloop pro is pretty good at that or energizer ultimate lithium. Will dim as volts decline as low as 0.8.

I had an MDC/VME M31W combo for a while, but the seller begged me to sell it back. lol.
I kept the MDC head for using on a Klarus P1A that also holds E size apperati. The Klarus was a poor mans MD2-hi/lo a few years back.

I may do this I'll see how I like it when I receive it, may save the mdc head for another model, possibly buy the orange body I've been eyeing.

anyone have experience with the PC body from malkoff? hows the durability/ finish??