Surefire L1 and L2 owners.

Those of you that own both. Which do you find more useful for most tasks. I mainly mean the new L1, but any thoughts on the old one too would be nice since I can still find them around here at certain dealers. Also how does the L1 on low compare to the A2 and those of you that have the E1L which one do you like better. I know the common response is buy both and I fully intend to do that eventually, but at the moment I'm a poor college student. I like the idea of the L1 and its two levels, but I realize its not incredibly bright. Any replies would be greatly appreciated as I try to figure out which is more important for me next.

I have an (old style) SF L1 and really like it. In addition to it being part of my EDC (in conjunction with an E2e), it by far gets the most use of any of my lights.

That said, if I were buying a light today, I'd get an HDS EDC light instead of the L1. It does everything the L1 does and lots more for a similar price.

You have more options also, from AW's beamshaper lens, to the HDS mild diffuser to the stock reflector. You also can use a SF F04 or the HDS Strong Diffuser if you want a serious flood light.

-john

I don't have an L1 but I have an L2...

I have found this light to be more than usageful for almost everytask...

the few areas it falls short is in long range, and in really close up.

ANYTHING inbetween... and it simply owns... it cranks out so much of a spread of light... its great...

when reading a book or something.... the 15lumens is a lot... it reflects off of the pages a lot and is glarey... however... i'm going to go get those snap on SF beam filters... to run either red or blue through it... i bet that would really help cut down on the glare and reflection...

i find myself when walking to a duck blind in the pitchblack moonless night sky that the high power setting is really what I'm wanting... 100lumens... the 15 lumens for me just doesn't cut it when walking in thick brush... I WANT TO BE ABLE TO SEE...

for those reasons i'm glad i don't have an l1 or an l4 just due to it not having as much output...

however... i see the advantage of having a completely variable output.... like the U2.... however i'm still waiting to see what technology comes out...

I have a couple old style L1s, one new style L1, and several L2s.


The L2s I find the extremely useful, due to their beatiful semi-flood beam that has perfect beam quality my opinion says, no artifacts, great flood, decent throw. and having 7+ hours at 15 lumens is very useful...almost never use 100 lumens....too bright for what i need and poor runtime on high.



The old style L1 is moderately useful, indoors especially. the beam has enough spill to easily get around, and yet enough spot to see medium range.


The new L1 I find almost useless. On low, there is zero spill and almost zero throw. The laser thin beam at 1.1 lumens does nothing for me, no spill to navigate with, and not enough throw to see reasonably at any distance. On high, the new style L1 has good throw, but zero flood. Only useful for medium range outdoors, or for shocking friends that such a tiny light has throw don't like the beam of the new L1, I'm resigned to giving in and getting a beamshaper to make this light somewhat useful. I dont understnad the logic of having 100% throw at 1.1 lumens, with this amount of light you need it to be floody so that it lights close range...a dim and thin beam is useless.

I find myself using my newer style L1 more and more and more! I prefer the flood beam that the F04 beamshaper gives me, but when I need some throw - that comes off and it's a nice little multi-purpose torch.

I just didn't know until I actually got one. I'm glad I got a newer one, due to the versatility! The older one didn't have that "throw". All this on 1 cell!!

It's a keeper in my box!

I have a L2 which is my secondary EDC. (My daily light is the e1l) It is great for everything from running late at night to camping, and sweeping my yard for intruders/animals.

-tom

* Is there anyone out there willing to trade/sell an old L1?

I have a ton of Surefire lights, including the M6 and M4, yet my favorite Surefire of all is my L2. That would be the one light I could NEVER get rid of. I absolutely love it. The amount of light that thing puts out is incredible! I have had a couple of L1's but, although the form factor was nice, the light output didn't impress me at all. Go with the L2. You won't regret it.

I like my L2 and almost invariably tend to use it on high due to my severely myopic eyesight (catagorized as legally blind?). This is the light that is within arms reach (well elbow reach) at my bedside; for whence I do have to get up in the middle of the night then I use it on low.

Have no experience with the L1. The only thing for me regarding the L2 is that it's a tad bit long—although I EDC this thing with me everyday along with a couple of others. And as has already been stated here in this thread, the beam pattern is flawless and definitely has a very nice spill. . .

Well seems like the L2 is the most popular, but the L1 is useful in certain versions to some people. I'm leaning hard toward the L2 and if I can make a trade for one I will and I have a post in b/s/t about that.

The L1 would be easier to aqquire, but I'm not sure if I would be happy with another sub 60 lumen light at this point. I have the new KL1 and several e series for it and I like it, but I'm aiming for different applications now and I'm trying to avoid duplicating things at this point.

I like the two level idea a lot though and I think I'm gonna have to go for broke on the L2, lol. Then again, the U2 passaround is about to start and I'm really gonna be in trouble I think after playing with that thing for a few days.

Thanks for the replies guys and keep them coming. I like hearing about the way everybody uses these lights.

Greetings!

I own both (a new style L2 and an old style L1), and I find they work together as a perfect complimentary pair. I would say that I use the L1 about 8x more often than the L2, but when I REALLY need a bright light, there really is no substitute for the L2. If I had to ditch one of them, it would be a very hard choice... I would probably keep the L2... with many regrets.

If you REALLY have to limit yourself to only one, buy a U2 instead of either... get the benefits of both worlds.

Best wishes,
Bawko

Some questions for you L2 owners...

I've been considering getting an L2 to replace my Z2/KL3 (gen-1) and SL Scorpion for our NIGHT WALKS here in woodsy suburbia. Accordingly:

1. Do you find your L2's output to be fairly flat for 45-60 min. (on high), or is it kinda disappointing... like the chart at FlashlightReviews.com suggests?

2. While the L2 looks like a great spill/flooder (on high), is it disorienting to the point of causing any loss of night vision (to you)?

3. Does the broad spill-beam (on high) attract perhaps too much "attention?"

4. While it's not a big thrower, is it strong enough to cut through a modest amount of ambient streetlight "clutter" out to, say, 50-75 feet?

5. Is its hot-spot strong enough (at close range) to stun/discourage hostile critters of the 2-legged and 4-legged variety (albeit, along with a little help from Fox O.C. and/or a .357 magnum)?

I appreciate any thoughtful guidance here from fellow CPF'ers.

Two-stage lights can help retain night-vision AND avoid annoying others with too much light.
The new L1, even with a Surefire F04 beamshaper is still a narrow light, and it's low is very low, much less than the low of the A2 Aviator.
As such, it is the best light for stumbling about while not trying to wake one's partner, the narrow aspect is a positive in that context, so is the low low.
Same for working in a theatre, where too much light alerts patrons or upsets lighting design...
Other multi-stage lights have a bigger chance of accidentally coming-on on high, while the Surefire two-stage tailswitch is very easily controlled.
When there is no-one else to worry about, I stomp around at home with my L4 pointed at the ceiling, and I work with a 1AA MiniMag (thanks Trueblue) with an F04 (thanks McGizmo), with a MadMaxLite 3W Luxeon (Sandwich Shoppe) and a 14500 Li-Ion (AW) just as impressive a wall of light as the 5W L4!

TonkinWarrior said:

Some questions for you L2 owners...

I've been considering getting an L2 to replace my Z2/KL3 (gen-1) and SL Scorpion for our NIGHT WALKS here in woodsy suburbia. Accordingly:

1. Do you find your L2's output to be fairly flat for 45-60 min. (on high), or is it kinda disappointing... like the chart at FlashlightReviews.com suggests?

Well..... its relitively good... remember... when on full blast its upwards of a 100lumens... even at half of that (the flashlight review chart) your shooting out around 50lumens... its still a lot of light... However the L2 isn't known for its regulation... i wouldn't look too much into the chart... its only one test, and i don't know if it was heat sinked at all via human hand or warm water... etc....

2. While the L2 looks like a great spill/flooder (on high), is it disorienting to the point of causing any loss of night vision (to you)?

no

3. Does the broad spill-beam (on high) attract perhaps too much "attention?"

don't really understand your question... it lights up an area on high yes... however... if your concerned about attention... use the 15lumen setting

4. While it's not a big thrower, is it strong enough to cut through a modest amount of ambient streetlight "clutter" out to, say, 50-75 feet?

to tell you the truth i haven't been impressed with my L2's throw ability... i bought my L2 over a year ago and basicly only looked at SF's stats... i didn't even know at the time what was a way to discribe throw and spill... on paper its amazing... but in practice it has some down falls... i have found that it really doesn't light up too much at a great distance... its mainly a short to med. ranged light... if there is any ambient light or fog/mist in the air... the effects of its lack of throw will be multiplied...

5. Is its hot-spot strong enough (at close range) to stun/discourage hostile critters of the 2-legged and 4-legged variety (albeit, along with a little help from Fox O.C. and/or a .357 magnum)?

well... remember... at least with mine... my center spot isn't as bright as the outside CENTER ring (its sort of like a donut...) however... if you got full batteries... and your within (2 legged range) which i would assume if you had a threat/attack they'll be within 25m... then yes... it will be shocking as heck for the person receiving it... and it is bright enough to blind them... especially if the attackers eyes are fully diolated due to new moon or the absence of ambient light...

I appreciate any thoughtful guidance here from fellow CPF'ers.

Click to expand...

From a personal useage standpoint... this flashlight is one heck of a light... no doubt about it... its great... yeah it might not regulate as well as other lights out there blah blah... but for any task within 25m.. this light is GREAT... having the confidence of knowing you have 13+ hours of 15lumen ability is something that a lot of lights don't have... if you run your light a lot i will doubt you'll use it much in the high output mark... most tasks that you need a light for can be done at 15 lumens... so you can save almost all of your battery juice for when you need it the most...

also, the spill on the L2 is so great... the light is spread so evenly and nice... you can illuminate entire indoor wall by just standing a few meters away...

and also... for the price of what an L2 can be got'n for (bought mine for $124.00 in box) its a TON of light for the price...

hope this helps bud... let me know if you got anymore questions for my beloved L2...

Rikvee and jar3ds:

Thanks a bunch for your good insights.

What I'm still trying to learn about the L2 Is:

1. How does it perform OUTSIDE (night) against ambient-light "clutter" and getting through to those vegetation/tree shadows where danger lurks?

2. How does it do, flatness/runtime-wise, when subjected to lots of MOMENTARY flashes (2 to 5 seconds each, not constant-on), on the HIGH mode?

I've used the SL Scorpion, SF 6P, SF KL3 (gen-1), SF KL1 (new throw version), Peli M6, all the Mags... and I'm still looking for the perfect WALK light.

TonkinWarrior said:

Rikvee and jar3ds:

Thanks a bunch for your good insights.

What I'm still trying to learn about the L2 Is:

1. How does it perform OUTSIDE (night) against ambient-light "clutter" and getting through to those vegetation/tree shadows where danger lurks?

2. How does it do, flatness/runtime-wise, when subjected to lots of MOMENTARY flashes (2 to 5 seconds each, not constant-on), on the HIGH mode?

I've used the SL Scorpion, SF 6P, SF KL3 (gen-1), SF KL1 (new throw version), Peli M6, all the Mags... and I'm still looking for the perfect WALK light.

Click to expand...

The "perfect WALK light:" The short answer is - you found it. The L2!

TonkinWarrior said:

Rikvee and jar3ds:

Thanks a bunch for your good insights.

What I'm still trying to learn about the L2 Is:

1. How does it perform OUTSIDE (night) against ambient-light "clutter" and getting through to those vegetation/tree shadows where danger lurks?

well.... i'll go out tonight to a local park with it on full batteries... and do some more testing... i need to get out anyways... i'll post my results...

2. How does it do, flatness/runtime-wise, when subjected to lots of MOMENTARY flashes (2 to 5 seconds each, not constant-on), on the HIGH mode?

from my experience... i've only drained the batteries in my L2 ONCE.... that was a time when I was using my light all the time (which I still do now) on a day to day basis... then I took it water fowl hunting, clipped it to my hat and kept it on high for about 30min walking to my blind... Used it setting up... etc... at this point the high output was definately brighter than the low setting 15lumens...

then I took the flashlight home... used it for a couple more weeks... and then noticed that my high was begining to be the same as my 15lumens of light on low setting... thats when I changed the batteries... i wish i wouldn't have and i would have seen how long it took for the batteries to drain but oh well... i'll do it some other time... during that battery cycle above i used the high output a lot.... lots of 10sec bursts... etc.. i really didn't use the 15lumens like I do now... for most tasks... 15 is all you need... but its VERY nice to have the high output only a snap away...

I've used the SL Scorpion, SF 6P, SF KL3 (gen-1), SF KL1 (new throw version), Peli M6, all the Mags... and I'm still looking for the perfect WALK light.

Click to expand...

i'll try to get my results up tonight or tomarrow morning

WDR65 said:

Those of you that own both. Which do you find more useful for most tasks. I mainly mean the new L1, but any thoughts on the old one too would be nice since I can still find them around here at certain dealers. Also how does the L1 on low compare to the A2 and those of you that have the E1L which one do you like better. I know the common response is buy both and I fully intend to do that eventually, but at the moment I'm a poor college student. I like the idea of the L1 and its two levels, but I realize its not incredibly bright. Any replies would be greatly appreciated as I try to figure out which is more important for me next.

Click to expand...

Having both L1 (new throw version) and L2 flashlights, I must say that they both are pretty usefull in their own way. I use the L1 (with the beamshaper) every single night inside the house on the low setting to do various chores, from taking a shower going to the bathroom, feeding the cat or simply finding my way back to the bed. I even use it from time to time to read in bed without disturbing my girlfriend. I use the combo low-high beam of the L1 on camping a lot. That's where the combo throw-flood(beamshaper) is very appreciated. The L1 is incomplete without the beamshaper!!! And the L1 on low is going on and on forever on low. I use a single cell per 2-3months inside the house with quick high beam burst now and then to blind the cats.

For the L2. I never use it in house. Way to strong for close range, Even at the low setting. (maybe I'm acustomed to my low L1 and the ArcAAA-P (5.5lumens) In house, 5 lumens (and less is far enough). The L2 got a wider flood that the L1 high with beamshaper. The L2 on low is perfect outside when it's dark enough. The high beam is really something to see. Never saw something with a wiiiide bright light like this. For use at medium range please.

Note: I also use the L1 with the beamshaper when going biking at night. On low it's more of a beacon so people can see me, and at high beam I can see clearly in front of me. :grin:

So to answer your question :lol: Yes, the L2 should be usefull for night walks. Wide flood and two level of lights.

alright... just got back from my night walk... this is what i found:

i took out the two batteries that i've been running for a LONG time... and replaced them with new ones... i would say that the output at high increased a factor of maybe 25%, if that... the low output mode had no change in brightness to my eyes...

i live basicly very close to the downtown portion of my city... therefore there was lots of ambient light coming from cars, street lights etc.... for the most part... the need for a light in this circumstances becomes less important.... at least (long range-wise)

I got off the path a little and walked where it was darker... I have forgot'n about how good of a light this truely is... But i will say straight up... the darker it is outside the better as far as throw goes....

i was walking next to an abandend school... no lights where near... and i was able to illimunate the whole side of the building almost from a distance of 30-40m away... thats impressive to me... the spill on this thing is SO bright... so balanced.... the center is brighter but not really by much... the way to discribe this light is its putting a blanket of light on your target... its either a blanket of 15lumens... or 100lumens... its still an over all blanket of even large diameter light... i was impressed again how well the 15lumen's acually work... i could aim it at the wall 30m away with 15lumens and be able to see it quite well.... i could switch to 100lumens to get even more detail...

Walking along sidewalk on fairly well lit streets i was able to easily aim the light into cars parked on the opposite side of the street and see if there was something or someone inside... this is important to me... to be able to view from my own window if someone is in my vechile or a friend's vechile...

15lumens provides excellent walk light capabilies... being just bright enough to not be anoyingly bright... but allow enough so to ensure that you won't trip or anything... this light in a park where there really isn't any light... will be amazing at 15lumens...

my bud just bought a gladius and i've been impressed with his strobe... i used the tailcap on my L2 pressing it really fast to basicly make a strobe effect that was better than i thought i could make it... something interesting...

the person who posted above me "MelloJello" said that he thinks the 15lumens is too bright for him indoors... i personaly haven't found this to be true with my experience (not that he is wrong, just differnet than me)... 15 seems to be perfect for those tasks of looking under couches/chairs.. behind the entertainment desk... find a lost contact lense etc etc etc... lots of tasks... maybe for reading it would be a little too bright due to the white pages and all the reflection but thats when you slap on your red filter or something...

hope this helps... let me know if you want more info... have you looked into the U2? why do you not want to go with this? cost? / size?

overall fantasic med. range outdoor light and fantastic indoor...

p.s. i think i'm definatelly going to be trying out the 3v rechargeable li-ion cells...

WDR65 said:

Those of you that own both. Which do you find more useful for most tasks. I mainly mean the new L1, but any thoughts on the old one too would be nice since I can still find them around here at certain dealers. Also how does the L1 on low compare to the A2 and those of you that have the E1L which one do you like better. I know the common response is buy both and I fully intend to do that eventually, but at the moment I'm a poor college student. I like the idea of the L1 and its two levels, but I realize its not incredibly bright. Any replies would be greatly appreciated as I try to figure out which is more important for me next.

Click to expand...

I've owned the L2 for about a year now and it has to be the best light I have ever had in my possession. I use the light for everything from tooling around in the garage, working under my truck, camping, hunting, fishing, and investigating things that go bump in the night. As others have mentioned it is a little bright for close up applications but once I installed a red filter it can be used for any up close needs. In fact it's such a great light that I have another one on order to keep in my truck for emergencies.

Robert