Pila GL4

Gentlemen, I have a Streamlight TL-3 (175 Lumens) and I like it a great deal. But, since anything worth doing is worth over doing, I am now interested in a Pila GL4 (195 Lumens). A Surefire M4(225 Lumens) is out of the question money wise and Pentagon lights have not yet released their X4(250 Lumens, claimed). So, who has a Pila GL4? Is it much better than my TL-3? How inflated are some of these Lumen ratings? The price for the Pila is $92. As always, thanks in advance for the information. You guys know just about everything about flashlights. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif "If some is good, then more will be better and too much should be just about enough."

i own a, Wolf-Eyes M90 Rattlesnake, which is the same as the Pila GL4. They are the same lights. Wolf-Eyes is the overseas distributor, and Pila is the US distributor.

i love my M90 with rechargeable batteries. 1 full charge last me a few weeks. i usually use it around the house just for fun instead of turning on the house lights. and i have it handy when i investigate the back yard and nieghbors yards when my dog starts barking. we've had a few break ins around my area.the light is great. gives a nice flood light which lights up every dark corner that a person might be hiding in.
taking it camping was great. beats those ppl at the site i went to with them carrying cheap lights that shines yellow like it was low battery and a dark hole in the middle kinda like the mag lights do. some annoying kid tries to blind me one night with his (what looks to be those huge 6 volt battery) light. i flashed right back at him with the M90 and it lit the whole area around him which left no place for him to hide. the M90 is brighter then my surefire 6P, but the 6P beats the M90 by just a bit for throw. i'm sure your streamlight will beat it in throw as well.

good things about the M90. has 4 LED for close work and 130-195 lumens (using rechargeable batteries or cr123a) for more power. the LED will glow after using it for a bit. that would make it easier to find the flashlight if it was turned off for a few mins. and of course the rechargeable batteries (i've never tried pila brands but i'm asuming its the same as wolf-eyes).
bad thing i find about the light is that it's a tiny bit heavy. i'm almost scared to have it drop on the floor cause it'll make a loud *THUNK*. especially on the hardwood floors. i have a holster for it but it feel awkwards running with it cause it'll slap the side of your leg. overall i'm happy that i bought it. its one light that i use the most.

OK, I carry the M90 on duty and have owned it for over 2 years.

If you use the GL4 with a 12v lamp and PILA batteries you get 130 lumens
If you swap out the batteries and use CR123's you get about 195 lumens and about 40 minute run time.

I have an LED switch and a clickie switch. I used one lamp for almost 18 months before it went out on me.

I love this light and use it nightly. I recommend it highly, construction is perfect and it just plain works.

It sounds like the GL4 does not have a very strong throw. Phantom7 says the SF 6P beats it. I am lookig for a light that out throws my TL-3. Am I barking up the wrong tree?

I have the G2 and the G2Z
The GL4 does outthrow, it just has a bigger side spill. This gives the illusion that the P-60 lamp throws further and lights up a much larger area. It also has an 80 minute run time

Pila's tend to have a little less throw for a given level of output (lumens) than comparable size Surefire's or the SL TL-3. For throw, the TL-3 is one of the better lights for it's size. Don't get me wrong, the GL4 is extremely bright. To my eyes it appears noticeably brighter than a TL-3 in terms of total output. It fills my whole backyard with extremely bright light whenever I turn it on.

Another light you might consider, is the Laser Devices OP-9. It's a 9 volt, 130 lumen light that looks brighter to my eyes than a TL-3 and throws well (but not as well as the TL-3). At $140-$150, it's not exactly cheap though.

Any other options I can think of will either be much bigger, much more expensive or lesser quality than the lights you currently have or are considering.

The OP-9 will throw better than my Z3. I know somone who sells them wit tactical switch at $130.00 /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

ugrey,

If you are looking for a better throw, you should get the M4. By adding 2 x A19, you can run the MN60 with 3x168s. I have using this setup for awhile. It (23000lux) out throw my TL-3 (13000lux) alot.

I also run one M4 with the 2 A19's and 3 168s I love it, yes its a little long but it is great. You could use a 6P with 2 A19's and a KT head to get a poormans M4 I run that setup with the 3inch Turbo and like it as well
Topper /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

The GL4 is a great light. If you use rechargeables, you only get 130lumens in which case you might as well use a GL3, but with the CR123's, it's noticeably brighter. I have an Ultra-Stinger too which when focussed definitely throws further, but I can't get the coverage that I get with the Gl4. What I really like about the Pila's is the tail-light - a lot of the time, the tail-light is more than adequate to walk around, so you have the ability to preserve the run-time at high-power for when you really need it. The after-glow is also a really nice feature on the tail-light. I've just been very impressed with the Pila lights...

I got a PILA GL3 with rechargeables a while ago and really like it. Plenty bright on the incan end. Nice flood beam. Mostly just use the LED cap. Definitely well build. Afterglow in the tailcap doesn't last that long. Highly recommended.

I'll second that. All of the Pila's are top drawer products. I have them all and am totally impressed.

There are better throwing lights if that's what you need but Pila combines great beam quality, great manufacturing quality, great light output, great innovation (4 LED's in the tailcap on the "L" models) and the option of running on CR123's OR some of the best quality Li-ions I have ever used. Fairly reasonably priced as well for what you get.

Tough combination.

Just a point to remember;

The GL4, same as is the GL3X, is a WIDE ANGLE beam, you're just not going to get the throw the same as if you were using a more narrowly focussed beam.

also (this has probably been already mentioned) if ur running the GL4 on the Rechargeables it is only 130 lumens
it is only 195 when running on normal 123s (the numbers might be wrong here)
as pila power said it will be a wide beam - more of a wall of light than a real throwing light.
very solid lights - and they feel nice in the hand
i cant comment on the led tailcap as i only have the clickie switch

You're "spot" on (pardon the pun there Echo) /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

The GL4 is a 12V lamp so the 4 x 123's give 195, the 2 x Pila 168A's give 130.

If you're looking for more of a spot beam try the Pila G3 or GL3 using either rechargeables or disposables.

is the same LA used in the GLX3 and GL4 ?
because they both put out 130 lumens when running on 2x Pila batts (about 7.4 volts)

Re: Pila GL4r

GL3X is a 9v lamp of the same size as the 12v lamp. You can use the GL3X lamp in the GL4 but NOT with the cr123 batteries

Re: Pila GL4r

My GL4r came with a 9V LA.

Re: Pila GL4r

All GL4's came with a 9v originally. Now they come with a 12v
If you don't have a 12v you need to get one. When used with CR123's they are incredibly bright and white. Slightly yellow when driven by the rechargeable cell but still 80 minute run.