Originally Posted by NH Shooter
Kewl set up but I think OP wanted to use primary's or be able to use both.
Kewl set up but I think OP wanted to use primary's or be able to use both.
Regarding 18350 rechargeables, the Orbtronic 18350 cells are hard to find/sold out in most places, but there are two good alternatives:
https://www.amazon.com/Vapcell-1100m.../dp/B07QDDS64F - looks sketchy but is actually being shipped by Cloud Defensive with current Rein Micros and is recommended by their customer service- no problems so far.
I have personally also had good results with these: https://www.amazon.com/KeepPower-Dis...78H8V1KT&psc=1
I can second this suggestion. The deep carry clip is great.
It may seem like I heard somebody say I need 1000 lumens but here’s what happened:
I owned an original 60 lumen surefire about 20 years ago.
I later bought a 200 lumen surefire about 12 or so years ago.
I stopped carrying a light.
People keep saying I should really carry a light. They’re so bright now. Can really blind people. Or in emergency use for signaling.
I see surefire has 2-cell 1000 lumen light in E2Defender model.
Okay cool, I’m down to try a new light after 12 years, at 5x the old brightness.
Realize E2D has silly crenulations that will get confiscated by TSA and potentially expose me to blood pathogens if used in self defense. With virtually zero benefit relative to the blunt force abilities.
So I see 2 cr123s can output 1000 lumens now. I just need a different model that lacks crenellations and only has the single mode.
Then realize literally no other light does this. It’s either stepped down after X seconds (which the E2D doesn’t do), or it’s like 600 lumens only, or you need to use rechargeable batteries to hit 1k lumens.
I dislike rechargeable batteries for my lifestyle. I’m already juggling too many rechargbles from earphones to phones to tablets and laptops. I also almost never use a tactical light. So the Cr123 is the better route for me. Replace batteries on January 1st every year, and likely will never run out throughout the year. While I frequently hear people using their edc lights to find keys under their couch or other utility tasks, I rarely have that problem. And I have a small keychain light with low lumens for the 5 times a year I need to look for something under couch or under car seat.
So it’s frustrating to see that surefire seems to be the only company that can make a 2 cell cr123 light in 1k lumens without a step down but they added crenellations which are ridiculous silly marketing for goofballs on Instagram.
So if I could get an alternate bezel for it, it would be the perfect light for me. But somehow they’re the only flashlight company to crack this code. But decided it also needed sharp crenellations.
Meanwhile if SF never made this light, and every light from every company capped out at 600 or so lumens for a 2-cell CR123, then I’d probably just get one of those and been happy. But it feels bad buying a lessor light just because of a silly marketing decision from SF to make the light look cooler. But I anchored on the possibility of a 1k lumen light since I saw this E2D at the start of my search.
Then again, I don’t know if it’s true, but I vaguely recall hearing a while back that once you pass a certain threshold like 500 lumens, the human eye can’t detect anymore. So from the standpoint of blinding a potential adversary during MUC, if this is true then 500 does the same as 1000+?
As far as how long duration I need, probably 5 to 10 minutes should be fine.
I looked up the TSA guidelines for flashlights, all it says is they are permitted in carry on and checked bags. Obviously it won't do you any good in a checked bag, but the OP is adamant about not being able to fly with a weaponized bezel. Is there somewhere these are specifically prohibited by TSA?
Please don't drag me for white knighting for TSA, they can EABOD.
If the E2D would work for you then spend $6 and buy a file and another $2 and buy some sandpaper and fix it. I'm sure you can buy a different tail cap either from surefire or the aftermarket. I would be surprised if it doesn't have a step down though if that matters. I have an older 200 lumen model that I have ground on the bezel down on cuz I can't stand it.
As I mentioned in my previous post the two battery Elzetta is 850 lumens with no step down for a full hour.
Beam pattern and color temperature will have more of an effect on what you see than 150 lumens difference as an example between the E2D and the Elzetta bravo. In other words the arbitrary 1,000 lumens is really meaningless when you're talking this category of output. Again you may have to buy a 3-4-5 lights to understand this.
You need to focus on things such as throw versus spill. Other features like do I need it to tail stand? What type of on/off interface do I want? Do I need a pocket clip? And if I do need a pocket clip do I need a two-way pocket clip? How easy is it to access the manufacturer to get things fixed? Is it in a price range that I can afford multiples?
Just as a side note I would also check out the gas pedal models of the sure fires.
It's probably time to buy a modern light and use it for the winter and then decide if you want other features and go from there.
From the research I've done, which includes talking to a TSA supervisor, flashlights that are less than 7 inches long are allowed in carry-ons/through a check-point. No item with "sharp" edges are allowed. No matter what, it's a judgement call by the agent on duty as to if a specific flashlight (or item) is permitted through.
I've never had an issue with a light with a crenellated bezel (about ~150 trips so 300 times through a checkpoint), but I carry a POS flashlight through security which I don't care if I have to pitch in case I run into an agent that doesn't like tactical flashlights. I once had an agent question why I needed such a big flashlight (it was Streamlight ProTac HL-X), but he let it through when I said something like "to help find my way through a smoke filled cabin if there is an accident". The edges on this POS are not sharp, IMHO, in that they don't cut skin and I don't see this flashlight being used to stab, unlike screw-drivers < 7", which ares still allowed in carry-ons. My good light is carried in my checked bag.
Threads like this make me miss the days when the bag monkeys in Phoenix (and ONLY Phoenix) was mostly concerned over whether your pocketknife had a serrated blade or not.
I have had zero issues carrying even “sharp” crenelated lights worldwide for at least 20 years going back to the (by current standards) amazingly weak and short-lived two cell Surefire executives. All my current lights have minimal crenelations (enough to see if you left it on if placed bezel-down on a table) but none have gotten a second glance in:
Switzerland, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, Japan, China, Dubai, Dominican Republic, Croatia, Thailand, Korea, Turkey, Hungary, or anywhere else I have flown with a light.
I’ve carried tac lights into Japan at least 100 times over the past 25 years without so much as a glance- Surefire Furies most recently- and those people are particularly picky about pointy/stabby items.
I’ve also had an Emerson folder in carry-on in every one of those countries since ‘97 except Japan, Korea, and China, without any issues.
In fact the only issues I have ever had in 2 million miles flown were not with US TSA, but the foreign types;
Leaving the World Games in Germany in ‘05, the bag inspector freaked out over the Olympic bow riser in the checked bag. I swear their reaction was as if there were a damn G3 in there.
Supervisor asked them if they had seen any television over the past 10 days (event was on the main networks in Germany and Europe) and apologized. Mind you, I was in my USA team uniform.
Transiting through DeGaulle in ‘08, got escorted down by two paramilitary-type cops to the tarmac to open my Pelican case, also containing a bow. At gunpoint. Got an apology and an upgrade for the flight. (Remarkable how big the muzzle of a FAMAS poodle-shooter looks when you’re on the wrong end.)
Transiting through DeGaulle again three years ago, they wanted to seize my (cheap plastic) cigar cutter. Okay. The Emerson works fine for capping a figurado, after all. But 20 yards outside the scanning area exit (still in the security zone) was a Dunhill store selling… cigar cutters. Expensive ones, but it was a good excuse to get one.
Those silly French.
Leaving Shanghai, five years ago, when the Chicom drone at the scanner wanted to grab my Zippo (all proper archers have a Zippo, for melting serving threads). I tossed the core in the trash, kept the shell, and went on my merry way.
Transiting through Korea, two years ago, with a Pilot “Vanishing Point” fountain pen in my carry-on. The bag inspectors spent at least ten minutes trying to figure that thing out. I think they thought it was either a weapon or a drug delivery device.
Anyway, sorry for the digression. My point is you don’t need to worry about the crenelations on normal lights, in my experience.
You want 1K lumens, and CR124’s, then Surefire EDC2L-T. Cheap, bright, slim enough not to drive you nuts in the other strong hand pocket, and reliable. The ‘gas pedal’ switch works fine and the utility level can be useful. Toss a couple extra batteries in your Dopp bag and you’re set for weeks of travel. No shrouded tailcap, though.
If you do buy something better/more spendy, be sure to get something with a removable head. If they insist on seizing the thing, there’s a good chance you can keep the head and tailcap, toss the body, and replace it a lot cheaper than the whole whack.
Another Malkoff option;
https://malkoffdevices.com/collectio...r123-body-only
https://malkoffdevices.com/collectio...gh-output-head
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