Paul Kim (PK) is NO longer with Surefire (official news/info)

[tobrien]

originally from their official Facebook page:

SureFire, LLC
Paul Kim Departs SureFire After 19 years
After 19 years of service with SureFire and countless contributions, Paul Kim has decided to leave SureFire to pursue other opportunities. Paul Kim has been the Vice President of Engineering since the earliest days of the company. He holds over 40 patents dating back to the 1980s, and many of his innovations are integrated into just about every modern flashlight. He was a pioneer in the industry, and has created some of the best-engineered and most revered illumination products ever made. Everyone at SureFire thanks Paul for his many years of service, and we wish him only the best in his latest pursuits.

what are y'alls thoughts? Surely it's the end of an era, but I guess this means we can definitely forget about a return to the classic Surefire era (with P60 modules, LEGO-able parts, etc.)

 

[greenLED]

I've seen him posting gun pics on his FB profile. Kinda cool. Wherever he goes, he will bring innovation, that's for sure!

I had the great pleasure of meeting him a few years back. I still have the (now slightly modded) L1 he gifted me.

 

[dougie]

If there is one thing in life I've learnt it's that no one is irreplaceable. Whilst PK's contribution to Surefire has undoubtedly been immense he is now gone. It will be interesting to see who steps into his shoes and what direction in style and innovation they will bring. It may well be that a new and even more interesting set of products may result from his departure.

 

[EV_007]

To me PK is to SureFire what SJ was to Apple, but a lot cooler PK is of course. Quite a legacy he'll be leaving behind.

 

[ElectronGuru]

The key question is why he left. If it wasn't for true personal reasons, there may be a cultural shift that would make it just as difficult for any replacement.

One of Steve's quotes is about 'moving the needle', when marketers take over as a company's market saturates. Engineers need the freedom and support to do great things.

 

[argleargle]

PK is *obviously* the man. Best of luck to him in all his future endeavours.

Can we talk him into modding here full time? I want to hire him for a build or two!

 

[dougie]

ElectronGuru is of course correct that PK's departure may not have been at his instigation. However, even if that is the case I doubt that anyone other than his close friends would ever know as those things are often kept quiet for contractual reasons. I personally would like to think that conspiracy theories are unhelpful as whatever the reason for PK's departure he will no longer be working at Surefire and his departure is now a done deal!

Surefire is more than one man no matter how important that individuals contribution has been. When one man leaves a company another is hired, simple as that. When one looks at some of the products that are coming out of China and other Far Eastern countries it is obvious that there are numerous intelligent and gifted engineers in the world of flashlights who are developing new and exciting products. I suspect that Surefire will already have a new person in the wings ready to bring new ideas to market? At the end of the day Surefire isn't about one man is it? Surefire as a company that will continue to be successful because of its reputation and because of the quality of its products.

I do suspect that PK will quickly make his mark either working for himself or for another company as he is undoubtedly a gifted engineer and designer. Furthermore, it may be that he himself wants to diversify into another field other than flashlights? One thing is certain and that is we probably haven't heard the last of PK!

 

[Illum]

Good post dougle, nicely done :thumbsup:

I noticed someone was gone about two years before this when all of the new surefires aesthetics started having sharp changes beginning with the 6PX and G2X, and the end of the Executive series came the oddball G2D, etc... Intuitively, it struck me the same way when a chef of a fine dining restaurant died or left. The food just doesn't taste the way it used to. Its not necessarily bad tasting, just different.

Still couldn't believe PK headed Icon though, who would have thought after 19 years the man would grown a liking for alkaline batteries.

 

[Burgess]

Good Luck to you, Paul Kim !

:thumbsup:
_

 

[mega_lumens]

We have seen the change in direction of SF products as soon as Paul Kim was playing a lesser role in the engineering department there. SF will not collapse. We will have to wait and watch where the new road will take SF. Many have discussed the changes with SF products and the nostalgia for the "old SF."
I wish we all see more amazing work from PK but better than Icon designs. I think one has to remember that SF has great financial resources for R&D. If a company can't spend a lot on R&D for engineers to play around in labs, then innovation and progress does not happen. Wherever PK ends up, I hope he'll have the same resources to help him create and innovate.

 

[tobrien]

yall have offered such tremendous thoughts on this matter. thank you

how old is PK by the way?

 

[StandardBattery]

Although the writing has been on the wall for a while, it's still a bit sad. What was brilliant is not only his illumination products, but that he had the foresight to design and build illumination systems. I've never met him, but I admire is designs and attention to detail required to make the flexible systems he did and to have them really work and evolve. I do believe that most of the good days are over at Surefire, but that may not be their fault as much as just a general evolution of the industry and the direction it is growing. I have to think that it was actually the right time for him to leave (if not a little late), I hope he has some exciting new project that he will enjoy. It sure would be good to Shoot-the-**** with him about flashlights and working at SF. All the Best Paul.

 

[Vortus]

What are those two beastly lights he is holding?

 

[RedLED]

Mr. Kim,

Good luck in your future ventures.

Thank you for giving us some of the most wonderful products in the world.

Again, good luck,

With all best wishes,

Ned Redway, Director of Photography
Redway Photo Agency
National Political News Coverage
Corporate and Entretainment industry-
Special Events

Executive Producer
NR Digital Productions Worldwide

 

[dougie]

I would have to respectfully differ in the suggestion that we may have seen the best of Surefire. I'm by no means a Surefire fanboy but I do admire them as a company and of how they have contributed to, and advanced, flashlight design. PK was an extremely important part of the story so far but you can't equate a company's success to one individual no matter how likeable or brilliant they may be. What is undoubtedly correct is the assertion that flashlight technology is advancing extremely quickly and is driven in no small part by competition from the Far East. Surefire's success has never to my mind been about making cheap flashlights it's about making a technically great product fit for the purpose it was designed for. Whilst the competition is now upping its game there are still very few people or organisations in either the military or law enforcement that use or trust products worldwide as much as they do Surefire. However, Surefire are not, and haven't, stood still and I'm sure will meet these challenges with new and better products in the future. Nothing drives innovation as much as competition and with the amount of competition in flashlight manufacture as there is now I'm confident that Surefire will still be producing cutting edge products in the future.

 

[prime77]

I have some of the "old school" Surefire lights designed by PK and I will enjoy using them for years to come. I wish PK all the best with whatever his future holds.

I did a little searching for more info on this story and stumbled on this web page that looks very interesting. Check out the blog posts and gallery.

http://www.pkdesignlab.com/index.html

 

[Silgt]

To me PK is to SureFire what SJ was to Apple...

+1 :thumbsup:

The key question is why he left....One of Steve's quotes is about 'moving the needle', when marketers take over as a company's market saturates. Engineers need the freedom and support to do great things.

True engineers/technicians and marketers/bean counters seldom see eye to eye...one likes to be creative, push the boundaries of the industry while the other let the bottom line dictates their decisions.

I truly believe the best days of Surefire has long gone. As great as some of their products are in the past, their new lines just do not interest me one bit. I believe their price/performance and innovation of the past has evaporated. Past reliability record alone does not mean the brand will do well in the market place going forward (I know they have the lucrative military and law enforcement contracts, and so long as that remains Surefire will continue to survive) but in the face of fierce competitions especially from the East, a more innovative and hungry competitors working at a lower cost based will surely be able to match any of Surefire's advantages at the given (premium) price point.

 

[Rat]

I have some of the "old school" Surefire lights designed by PK and I will enjoy using them for years to come. I wish PK all the best with whatever his future holds.

I did a little searching for more info on this story and stumbled on this web page that looks very interesting. Check out the blog posts and gallery.

http://www.pkdesignlab.com/index.html

WOW those PK1 & PK2 lights look great. Looks like we will have more PK lights to come in the future. I just hope he also works with Surefire again for some special editions.

 

[Silgt]

I have some of the "old school" Surefire lights designed by PK and I will enjoy using them for years to come. I wish PK all the best with whatever his future holds.

I did a little searching for more info on this story and stumbled on this web page that looks very interesting. Check out the blog posts and gallery.

http://www.pkdesignlab.com/index.html

I love all my old school Surefire and I too will enjoy them for the years to come.

The new pk1 & pk2 looked very interesting indeed. I think PK's departure from Surefire has been in the work probably many many moons ago

 

[dano]

What are those two beastly lights he is holding?

Beast and Hellfire HID prototypes.