Got my first LED today - Surefire L4

It's very bright, very white and AWESOME! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif

your first LED the L4?
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif
now there aren't many lights left that can kill the L4 ... hold on your wallet for the next LED you purchase /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/evilgrin07.gif !
bernhard

cia,
As one L4 owner to the other, you have to start somewhere, you might as well start with one of the best. You will find the more you use it, the more you will like it and appreciate it.

CajunBabe

Great choice with the L4. You arent gonna do much better than that right now. One of my personal favorites!

congrats cia another impressed l4 owner. makes me look forward to thursday even more!!!!(my l4 should be here thursday) enjoy your new light /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/happy14.gif

Thanks for the replies.
I was even more impressed with my L4 once it got dark outside. It really lights up the back yard, wow what a light. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Not to go off topic, but I now have in the mail a McE2S two stage switch.

I hope the McE2s will be the end of it for awhile. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

cia,
Listen to CajunBabe. "She knows from whence she is speaking!" I consider the L4 to be SureFire's greatest high output two battery achievement, with a "wall of light" output, and a manageable 5.1 inch length. To make it "the best in the north, south, east, and west", I highly recommend that you buy a McE2S tailcap switch from Don Mcleish, making your L4 a dual level output device.

In case you are not familiar with the function of these switches, a slight "sustained push" gets you the low level, a heavier "sustained push" gets you the high level, a "partial twist" of the tailcap gets you the sustained low level, and a "full twist" of the tailcap gets you the sustained high level. It is like having the dual output of the new 6 1/16 inch long L2 light, in a package roughly 1 inch shorter. You will find that as you use the L4, there will be times when the output will be too great, and you will want to tone it down a little. That is why Don made his switches. Another plus for the inclusion of a low level in a light, is the increased runtime, the lower running temperature, and the longer lifespan of the Luxeon light source.

Whether you get a switch or not, you will thoroughly enjoy your light.

cia,
Oopsy! While I was in the middle of writing my last post, you wrote yours about your McE2S order. Circumstances dictated that I would not be looking at your thread, until I had submitted my post. Regardless, you are ahead of me and I am proud of you! Which value resistor board will you be getting from Don? For a super low output, I recommend a 60 ohm board, which is the highest resistor value he builds. Make sure that when you do your darkness testing, you let your eyes adapt to the dark, before you push the tailcap button or turn the tailcap for the low level. The darker the environment, the more useful the low level will become.

If you will be happy with super bright and ultra low outputs, then this may be the end of your spending. Let us know when you get the switch!

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Which value resistor board will you be getting from Don?

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I have the 15 ohm one coming. I wanted the new KL1 to start with, but as you probly know they are not out yet and I was getting tired of waiting for them.

So after I read about the McE2S I decide to go with the L4 and a McE2S that would give me the lower power that the KL1 would have.

I have a friend that has a old style KL1 so I know how bright they are and for a everyday work light I think the McE2S 15 ohm will be great on the L4.

I will find out for sure in a couple more days. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I'd also like to jump in and say how great I think the Surefire L4 is. I had to wait quite a while and return one(not because it was defective) but my current L4 rocks.
I was impressed instantly, I've since tweaked it a touch and its now beyond bright and makes my Pelican M6 lithium look dim.(even at a distance!)

Now get a rechargeable Pila batt for guilt free lumens and you will like your L4 even more! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

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I've since tweaked it a touch and its now beyond bright and makes my Pelican M6 lithium look dim.(even at a distance!)

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What did you do to the L4 to tweake it?

Damn, and to think my first LED light was an ASP Sapphire, followed by the PALight Survival. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif Not much room to move up from there - you can start going down, collect the really good custom lights, or mod the L4. No matter what way you go, congrats. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Forgive me if I'm missing something here, but why not just get an L2? An L4 plus the McGizmo tailcap is a more costly route than just buying an L2. It has the two power level feature right out of the box, although it does mean one extra ounce to carry and is about an inch longer. What's the advantage of the L4 vs. the L2?

VaughnWest,

Welcome to CPF /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink2.gif

The advantage of the L4 over the L2 is size. YMMV but for many this is a huge advantage.

Hi VaughnWest, the L4 is using the E series body, which provides a very versatile host to a number of other Surefire parts and a number custom modded bezels and tailcaps. You can also attach an E2C collar , which will allow you to attach the C series sized bezels for more options. I believe it's more modular than the body the L2 is using.

oops...

What suppin said too.

Heh, though it may be biased opinion from my part, since I chose to buy a light with an E series body over the L2 /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

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Hoghead said:
oops...

What suppin said too.

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Thanks for pointing out the flexibility of the L4 body.

Otherwise the L2 is pretty much the functional equal of the L4, yes?

The beams are similar.

The L2 is a little brighter on high than the L4.

The L4 has a clicky switch(Z57). The L2 has a press or twist switch.

The L4 can use Pila 168S rechargeable battery, this is a huge advantage for me.

The L2 on low is much nicer than I expected.