Surefire style lego build??? Help identifying parts!

I'm hoping the group can point me to links with the desired parts; I've been researching for a while, but haven't nailed down a parts list yet that I can guarantee will fit together.

Ok, so first off if it's surefire branded lego part, or malkoff, or any brand part that's ok, I'm not trying to be single brand/vendor. If it works out that way great, but not required.

this is intended to be a daily carry light, so aluminum is fine. But note I really like patinad copper. I might have parts cerkoted; maybe.

I'll start with easiest parts 1st:

tail cap, I like the tri cap style, like the malkoff tri cap or "e series" tail cap (https://malkoffdevices.com/products/malkoff-e-series-tailcap)

clip: I don't like "snap on" clips, so clip must either be the style that gets clamped on the light between tail cap and body (like the stock fw3a clip), or "screw" on to tailcap.

body: 18350/cr123/18650 size

head: I would like to be able to customize the drop in; so I have to be able to source either p60 blanks, or pills of some kind that will fit 20mm pcb + 17mm drivers. Initial build will be cwf dragon with triple leds, and secondaries also from cwf. However I'd like to either find 1 head that I can swap custom builds with common off the shelf dropins (like those from malkoff). This may mean I end up with 2 heads that fit the body/tailcap, and that's ok. I'd also like the heads to take different bezel rings, crenelated

im trying to keep the head size as close to 1" in size as possible.

cost: ideally less, but I think between $150-200 for budget.

let me know what you guys think.

Oveready clips are my favorite, and those guys have a variety of other cool parts.

Lumens Factory head with titanium bezel and cr123 body with a custom triple (but LF also have nice single led dropins) and an RPM tail. But a tri tail from Malkoff would be nice as well.. About $250 (not sure why the 1st pic is upside down.. Lol)

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This would be one of the best Surefire lego's I use. I have always been into Surefire lego's. P60's, custom parts, bored bodies, and on and on. Every lego you can think of since around 2007. This is one of the best.

Surefire E2D Defender (200/5lm) Head
Crack head, remove stock 16mm board, replace with 16mm XPL2-HD 3000K board, screw head back together (retains stock driver and TIR)
Oveready 18350 (E35) E-to-C body
Surefire 6PX Tailcap with McClicky

Price wise, I found three 200/5 E2D's brand new in a brick and mortar. I got all of them for $120 total (after tax). That was a lucky accident, but they're pretty readily available on the used market. The Oveready body is around $48. A 16mm XPL2 board is around $7 depending on where you go (MTN Electronics).

What you wind up with is what the E1B-MV should have been. Super nice color rendition, probably around 400-500lm high, 10-15lm low, and the beam profile is awesome. the beam is almost just like the E1B-MV, but with a little tighter spot and tons of spill. So, it actually gives you a wall of light and better throw. It's a great setup. Runtime is, by far, superior to the E1B-MV. On an old AW RCR123 It runs regulated for around 45min, then starts gradually reducing output until around 1hr 45min when output on high is about low mode. Then, it will still switch to high for another 30min or so. Once it gets to a certain point it won't switch to high anymore, but will run on low mode for quite a few days. I stopped testing after 5 days, at that point it exceeded my expectations, and that was on an AW RCR123 from 2008. The body also accommodates 18350 (which i run primarily) for an even greater runtime.

So, that setup is definitely doable within your price range. You could go an even easier, longer running, less expensive, and even more flexible route by replacing the E2D head with a Lumens Factory KL4 style 2.7-4.5V E head with either a 80CRI 319A, or 90CRI XPL for $63. Then you don't have to swap the 16mm boards, and you could run it off of primary 123's, 16340's, 18350's, or 18650's (with another body or extender). With the E2d head you can only use 16340, 18350, 18650, or two primary 123's. You'd get better single cell regulation and runtime with the LF head (i also have a couple on order).

You can swap this all over the place as well. You can run the head on single cell Surefire bodies, LF bodies, OR bodies, FiveMega or RPM bodies, McGizmo clicky packs, Aleph bodies, Vital Gear bodies, etc etc. You'll be hunting for E compatible bodies all over the place haha. I like the OR bodies because (currently) they are the best 18350 solution for E-series heads.

I have a whole bunch of C-series, small, single cell lego's as well. They're great, and I love drop-in's, but it's getting hard to find a good all-around drop-in that has good runtime on high (with good throw and spill), and a low below 20lms that runs forever. Especially for under $200. Also, an option with the E-series heads is much smaller in diameter. Much easier to just throw in a pocket, much less weight as well.

It's a great option. If you're interested I can post beam pictures compared to a few P60 lights, TIR lights, and E1B-MV.

This is the most useful Surefire lego that I own. I've been lego'ing Surefire's since about 2007 and have been through it all. Custom parts, McGizmo clicky packs, Aleph parts, FiveMegas, Vital Gear, drop-in's, Milky mods, and on and on. This one is about as useful as it gets and it checks your boxes.

- E2D LED Defender Head 200/5 lms ($cheap used)
- Crack head, remove Surefire 16mm Cree board, throw board in trash, replace with XPL2 HD 3000K 16mm mcpcb ($5), retain TIR optic, screw head back together
- Oveready E35 18350 E-to-C body ($48)
- Surefire 6Px Tailcap with McClicky ($cheap)

What you ultimately assemble is what the E1B-MV should have been. The beam profile is much like the MV, but has a little more focused center and actually allows for much more throw than the MV. So you get tons of spill, a nice defused (yet focused) center that throws. Awesome tint as well. You get roughly 400-500lms on high, 10-15lms on low. Runtime is, by far, superior to the MV as well.

I first tested this with an old AW RCR123 from like 2008 and it stayed regulated for about 45min, then gradually dropped output for another 1hr 20min until the output was just about the same as low mode. Then you could still switch between high/low for awhile longer before it would only let you go into low. Once in low, you have quite a few days of runtime left. I stopped testing after five days because it exceeded my expectations at that point. Through all that, the light never abruptly turned off. So, that was with a 13 year old AW RCR123 (AW's were great). With a modern 16340, 18350, or 18650 runtime is even better.

This setup will run on any E-series compatible body. So, you can run a 16340 with a single cell Surefire body if you like, or a 16650 in a two cell Surefire body, or two primary 123's in a two cell Surefire body. It's pretty versatile.

Another option for the same setup would be the KL4 style head from Lumens Factory. It's $65 and you don't have to swap out any mcpcb's. They have a couple of better tint options available for order. You can also get it in 2.7-4.5V, which would be a bit more versatile than the E2D head in that you wouldn't need to worry about powering it on two primary cells. With a LF head you could run it with one primary 123, one 16340, one 16650, one 17670, one 18350, one 18500, one 18650, two AA's, etc. You can't run the E2D head on one primary. You could also mod an old EB1 or E1D defender head with the XPL2, then you could run a single cell. But since the LF heads are so inexpensive and well made, I'd just go that route.

With the Oveready E35 E-to-C body you can run any C-series tailcap you want. They also offer an 18650 version of that body. I thought I read somewhere that LF has some E-series 18350 bodies in the works as well.

So a very versatile, useable, simple, tank of a light. It also offers many many lego options. You can use just about every E-series compatible body and tailcap on the market with either the E2D or LF head. So many possibilities, and many cell options.

I have quite a few small single cell C-series Surefire P60 lego's. While I love them, and I love drop-ins, they form factor of the E-series heads make a huge difference. Plus, it's getting hard to find P60 drop-ins that offer great runtimes on high, that are two modes, and have a low mode lower than 20lms and under $200. Did I mention the size is a big deal? A 3P sized P60 host, even at its smallest, can't compare to a small E-series lego in the size category. Its so much easier just to dump in your pocket, throw in a pack, mount to a rifle, etc. The 3P's feel like a brick in you pocket.

As for clip options, there are many C-series clip options that will fit this setup.

Anyway, hope that helps a bit. All the Surefire lego's are great. Lego's are about the only lights I've kept over the years because they just work and they take a beating. All I have to worry about is putting a battery in them.

Also, if you're trying to have your setup cerakoted, you could do that when you disassemble the E2D head. You'd just have to go one step further and remove the driver from the head as well (not hard once you have everything else apart). The LF heads are easily disassembled as well.

A quick size comparison in case it helps. You mentioned a FW3A so from left to right it's FW3A, E1B-MV, E-Lego, EDCL1-T, M2/C2 Centurion, Z2, LX2, 6Px with LF P60-to-Xseries head and Cryos Standoff tailcap, E2DL Ultra

Compared to probably one of the smallest 18350 C-type P60 lights I've ever come across, which is not something that's available anywhere as it was a custom made light with an unknown origin.



Just to give you an Idea of the weight. The SF Lego weighs 3.5oz with an 18350. The Custom P60 light weighs 4.875oz with an 18350. And the LW3A weighs 4.25oz with an 18650. The E1B-MV weighs 2.875oz with a 16340, and if I put the modded E2D head on the E1B-MV body it also weighs 2.87oz.

ten5three,
Thank you so much for taking the time to do that write-up. Fascinating. It is absolutely not that I need anything else, but I am intrigued. Bookmarks, ahoy.

Sidenote: OT perhaps, but the E2DL should take 2x Li-ion cells. I wouldn't have tried it on my own, but some brave CPF soul did, and posted the favorable outcome, so I tried it myself. Haven't used that combination for long periods of time, but I have an E2DL head attached to a Fivemega 2x18650 E-head body. I am ignorant enough about electronics, that I do not know if keeping the original circuitry and replacing the emitter would also accept 2x Li-ion, although ten5three pointedly replaced the original circuitry in his lego. I have not, and would not, try any other E-series head on 2x Li-ion cells, on my own.

novice said:

ten5three,
Thank you so much for taking the time to do that write-up. Fascinating. It is absolutely not that I need anything else, but I am intrigued. Bookmarks, ahoy.

Sidenote: OT perhaps, but the E2DL should take 2x Li-ion cells. I wouldn't have tried it on my own, but some brave CPF soul did, and posted the favorable outcome, so I tried it myself. Haven't used that combination for long periods of time, but I have an E2DL head attached to a Fivemega 2x18650 E-head body. I am ignorant enough about electronics, that I do not know if keeping the original circuitry and replacing the emitter would also accept 2x Li-ion, although ten5three pointedly replaced the original circuitry in his lego. I have not, and would not, try any other E-series head on 2x Li-ion cells, on my own.

Click to expand...

No problem at all novice.

As for the E2DL head taking two 18650's; I'm not sure I would run that setup for long periods of time. It may work initially, but that voltage would probably prematurely age the emitter and driver. I kept the stock Surefire driver and just swapped out the emitter mcpcb. The XPL2 that i put in it can handle the voltage coming from the stock driver well, as it can run on high mode throughout its whole runtime until the cell's are completely depleted and not get even remotely warm to the touch.

I haven't taken any current measurements, but with the almost non-existent heat buildup, I'm fairly certain the XPL2 is under-driven with the stock Surefire driver. However, with high drain cells (especially two) that may cause a problem. I'm not 100% sure though. For this application in the 200/5lm E2DL head, I just wanted to make sure the XPL2 wasn't pulling TOO MUCH current for the stock driver. It's not doing that, so this setup should last a good long time. I wouldn't expect there to be too many problems since the stock Surefire driver is regulating voltage. If it weren't regulating voltage then swapping the emitter with one of the modern emitters with a super low forward voltage may also have caused a problem. So far so good with this setup though. I've been using it quite a bit. I've probably run 20 18350's through it so far with no issues.

I just happened to stumble upon this setup. It started because I found a few "new old stock" 200/5lm E2DL's in a brick and mortar for a ridiculously low price, so I bought them all. The stock output, tint, and TIR setup was great in 2008, but leaves a little to be desired now days. So, I wanted to update them a bit. I started with that one. I had some 3000K XPL2 mcpcb's laying around so I cracked the E2DL head, desoldered the two wires going to the old Surefire mcpcb, soldered the new board in, and done. The emitter ring around the XPL2 dome even fit the bottom of the TIR perfectly, like it was meant to be LOL. I managed to get about twice the output, better beam profile, better runtime, and waaaaaaaay better tint just from an emitter swap so I stopped there. Glad I did.