Are LED's really that bright and what's brightest?

[Markbo]

I have a non-tactical carry question. I am building a .460 Rowland 1911 that will be used for hunting. Often hog hunting. My frame did not come with an integral rail and I am using what I got - so please... I know already. Gotta use what I got. :D

There are 2 options that I am aware of to attach a rail and I think either will work fine. A Dawson Precision and I think a Surefire... Does anyone have any experience and opinions on the 2 different add-on rails?

I also need to know is what is the brightest light I can attach to it? Am I to believe the manufacturers that the new breed of Multi-LED lights are actually that bright?

Besides handhelds, the only weapon mounted light I have is the mini MX3 for an XD sub compact. And while surprisingly bright for it's size, I want max possible light with a compact beam. I don't need to light up a field... I need to light up an area.

And please, I am not looking to hunt animals illegally or anything like that. Like most game animals, hogs are most mobile at dawn and dusk and if I need a light to shoot or track one I want one hanging out there.

Many thanks
Mark

[Markbo]

Anybody???

[gottripletsNC]

LED's are very bright, even from distance. The question is, do you want bright light no further than 10 feet in front of you, or do you want a beam that will reach out and touch you. The LED's are bright from a distance, at least to be seen by something or someone else, but they just do not project a beam. The are wonderful for battery conservation, and close in area lighting. For a weapon light, I would stick to a Xenon light such as the streamlights.

[Markbo]

Thank you. That is what I thought and didn't want to fall for marketing claims. That is exactly what I needed to know.

Mark

[gottripletsNC]

Can't beat the Xenons for brightness and the beams they produce.

[Hersh]

Can't beat the Xenons for brightness and the beams they produce.

You got that right Brian! I have an E2E Surefire (Xenon lamp) that will fit in the palm of your hand that lights up my back yard like a 747 landing light :D

[Markbo]

I just went over to C&G Wholesale in Houston because they are supposed to have good prices. Had the M3X for $194. I just ordered it from LA Police Gear for $137. Oh well... I did pick up a belt and mag holder that I needed while I was there. Now I know I will have the brightest light. Can't wait to try it out.

Now if I could only make up my mind on which add on rail to use! :confused:

[gottripletsNC]

Hersh, I have the E2D Defender, same light with strike bezels on it for self defense when everything else goes wrong.
On the other side, Brinkman sells a light at Wal-Mart, 20 bucks, same bulb, same battery, same size, just has a rubberized coating over it. With a little bigger lens area. Just as bright, and has about the same run time on a set of batteries. I carry it on duty as a medic, and keep the defender in my vest for use on call outs.

Sorry can't help you on the rails.

[Hersh]

On the other side, Brinkman sells a light at Wal-Mart, 20 bucks, same bulb, same battery, same size, just has a rubberized coating over it. With a little bigger lens area. Just as bright, and has about the same run time on a set of batteries.

Sounds like a good one to have in the car.

[John]

Check the test on the Surefire X200, if I am not mistaken it is in our Home Page.

The brightest combination I can think off, is an M3 clone (they use Surefire P60 style lamps) with the Surefire P61 lamp. This will give you about 120 lumens of lighting vs 65 lumens of the P60 lamp. I got my M3 clone from Airsoft Extreme, and yes, it has withstand shooting with a real firearm, albeit a .45 ACP one. I can't guarantee it will live with your setup. But the light itself is not expensive, and a lamp costs about 30$ (if memory serves me right).

The above setup will work on any M1913 rail, but not with the Dawson. As far as I know, the Dawson needs either an X200 (not very bright) or another light from Surefire, I do not recall its name.

[Markbo]

Thanks John. I compared the X200 to the M3X side by side in hand yesterday and chose the M3X. I actually have a call into Dawson now to see if they have an adapter for it. I would prefer to use theirs over any other I have seen so far just because of how clean it looks. But if it doesn't work, I know Caspian and Surefire also have add-on rails I can look into.

Now that Brinkman clone for $20 is worth going to look around for!

[gottripletsNC]

well its not a weapon light, just a little flashlight, but some ingenuity, you might be able to make it work LOL.

[Markbo]

No, no, no... not my intent. It's just that at $20 vs $69 for a comparable flashlight I owe it to myself to shop around a bit!

[Clarence Whorley]

That imitation M3 is awful. I bought one a long time ago and broke both plastic retaining bars. They included an extra because they knew how lousy they were.

Anyway, AFAIK, Dawson ONLY makes a flashlight adapter for the Surefire X200 series. The adapter replaces the piece of aluminum on top of the light that is made to fit picatinny rails with one that fits Dawson rails, obviously.

The M3, M6,and X series are molded plastic and don't have the removable portion.

Inside the house, the X200A is as bright as my M3 Millenium Surefire (9v) but outside the M3 may have a much longer throw- I'm sure it does- but it's a 9v after all.

gottripletsNC- have you seen a quality LED light or just the Discount Store types? Don't take any offense, I'm just asking because there are a TON of LED lights out there but none of them compare to the large Diodes used in quality lights like the SF.

I have no pictures with the light yet, just the rail.

http://cwhorley.zoto.com/img/640x480x1/95fe2bc1d023c05fd631a0cb186b3372-.jpg

http://cwhorley.zoto.com/img/640x480x1/92753681936cfccb89f62729c33dc016-.jpg

[gottripletsNC]

No offense taken, I will have to say however, the new technology you can get in the Luxeon LED's is awesome. They don't beam out quite as far as Xenon's but the light is so pure white, it almost has a blue hue to it, and will blind you to the point your eyes will hurt at distance. I have two now, one is my helmet light, and is a 6 watt Luxeon, and at 100 yards does better, and is brighter white than my E2D surefire.

I'll change my statement somewhat, the standard LED's still are not what you want, but the new Luxeons are well worth it.

[TOASTERLOCKER]

The new "Cree" and "Seoul" LEDs are supposed to be even better than Luxeons.

LEDs are great, as long as you get the newer kind. They have all the "throw" you could ask for, and lately have dimming and strobing options available as well depending on the light.

Don't count out LEDs, they are great and are getting better faster and faster.

[actionpursuit1]

My X200 blows away my shotgun 6V lights and handhelds.
Anthony

[aml]

New cree and seoul LEDs are shutting down xenons...big time.

driven at 6V and 1000 mAh a single SEOUL LED emitter will put out 200 lumens. and will do it for more than an hour.

xenons cant do that. cant even come close.

both of these are Surefire g2's....both have new batteries.....one has an aftermarket CREE drop in emitter pushed at 700 mAh. that led will run for nearly 2 hours.

guess which is which.

http://www.uploadhouse.com/fileuploads/37/3791609f8ba590c4845f2f33f956d57aada0b.jpg

[Icepick15]

I have two SureFire LED flashlights, an E1L and an E2L. Same head; one uses 1 CR123 battery, one uses 2 CR123 batteries. Surprisingly bright for their size. Good runtime. Not quite the "throw" as an incandescent bulb, but pretty good with the lens SureFire uses.

I had to get a replacement tailcap for my SureFire E2L a couple of weeks ago. Called SureFire customer service, told them my problem, and Eric said he'd just ship one to me, no charge. Got it about 5 days later.

While I had him on the phone, I asked him if SureFire was planning on building any lights with the new Cree LED's. He said that they are, and some new models are listed in the new paper catalog. I requested a new catalog, too, but it's not here yet.

I don't have any personal experience with the new Cree or Seoul LED's (yet), but from everything I've read, they're supposed to blow away the Luxeon LED's.

SureFire's online catalog lists a new LED flashlight, the Titan. Their specs say: it has variable output, 0 to 65 lumens, with 2 hour runtime at max output. One CR2 lithium battery. Titanium body, 3.15 inches long, 1.90 ounces. They don't say in the online catalog, but with that output/runtime, I'm guessing that they're using a Cree or Seoul LED. That's the good news.

How much, you ask??

Sit down.

Take a deep breath.

FOUR HUNDRED AND NINETY-NINE DOLLARS!!

Just so you'll know that wasn't a typo...I'll type it again.

FOUR HUNDRED AND NINETY-NINE DOLLARS!!

Of course, with orders over 99 dollars, SureFire offers free shipping in the USA.

Now, don't get me wrong. I like SureFire flashlights. Own several. Will probably buy more. But, for the love of humanity......FOUR HUNDRED AND NINETY-NINE DOLLARS??!!??

[gunfighter48]

I just bought a CREE 3W unit from this site:http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.1447

Got it yesterday and it fits my Surefire 6P very well. It's extremely bright and has a very white light. Now I'll have to get another 6P and another CREE assembly for my truck!!!!

[wichaka]

Been looking at the cree bulbs to update my surefires......anyone else try them?

[skiking8515]

Been looking at the cree bulbs to update my surefires......anyone else try them?

Can someone inform the uninformed what CREE bulbs are? I really have no idea. I have a Surefire G2 and a Cabelas 5watt single led light that uses 3 cr123s. I take the Surefire if I need to check something out, but the Cableas light is plenty bright with two settings. Also the led battery lasts so much longer than the hour with the G2.

[skiking8515]

wichaka, haven't tried these yet but i did find them available
http://www.lighthound.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=2605

[Singlestack Wonder]

My G2 LED offers 80 lumens and 11 hour battery life with 2-CR123 batteries. What is the lumen and battery life rating of the Cree LED module?

[knguye11]

My L1 has 65 lumens. That's plenty of light for me

[Belker]

LEDs have surpassed normal incadenscent flashlights by a large margin.

While this board appears to be a wonderful resource for info on 1911s, if you want to learn about flashlights you should check out http://candlepowerforums.com/ and will find more info than any normal person will ever need.

[Warthog]

I often hang out at a forum called Candlepower Forums. It is THE place for all things that illuminate.

IMHO (and having purchased many lights and drop-ins) the very best drop-in replacement for the Surefire (6P, 9P, G2, G3, etc.) is the Malkoff Devices unit. It comes in several setups depending on what you want; high output, runtime, throw, spot or some combination. These are the very best and outperform anything Surefire makes for these lights.

LEDs have come a long way. Today, they are the preferred choice for hard use lights. Given the right reflector, LED, controller and battery, they can throw with the best zenon (usually better). They can tend to be harsher on colors at night, but with the right tint or color temperature, they can be very much like incandescents.

The future of hard use lights is with LEDs.