# Recommend a torch for a Security Guard



## robbied (May 8, 2007)

Hey guys,

At work we currently use the 3 D Cell Maglite with Xenon bulbs. 
I am looking for a smaller, lighter torch with a decent battery life to use on a daily basis in my line of work. The maglite is too bulky and heavy.

You guys are pro's at this topic 

Cheers,

Robbie


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## Robban (May 8, 2007)

What kind of price are we talking about?


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## robbied (May 8, 2007)

Not too pricey, under $100


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## mdocod (May 8, 2007)

You came to the right place. WELCOME TO CPF!!!

Are you familiar with lithium powered tactical flashlights?

Do you want it to be similar brightness as the 3D mag, or brighter?

About how many minutes is your maglight "on" each night? 

Do you use it indoors or outdoors primarily?

Are you willing to spend the time to put cells on a charger, or do you want a simple primary cell based solution where you just feed it new cells every few days.

Will you still be carrying the 3D mag as a backup on your "duty belt" or are you going to try to ditch it completely in favor of smaller and lighter... And if you are going to ditch it, have you considered a "backup" light for situations when your primary light fails? We can fit several lights into the space of a 3D mag that are all brighter, hehe.


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## FILIPPO (May 8, 2007)

sure fire 6/9P or.....
what do you mean with "decent battery life"?
the 6/9P runs for about an hour and 65/105 lumens output with standard lamp assambly 
with OPTIONAL lamp assembly the 6/9P runs for 20 minutes with 120/200 lumens output.

for more info you can visit the SF site: http://www.surefire.com/maxexp/main/max_segment_listing/disp/strfnbr/6/sesent/00
http://www.tactical-flashlights-store.com/ 
or wolfeyes web site: 
http://www.tactical-flashlights-store.com/

good search!


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## ACMarina (May 8, 2007)

yeah, a clear description of "my daily work" would do wonders..


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## luigi (May 8, 2007)

It's not in your price range but a Night-Ops Gladius is a great choice for a security guard. You have a bright light, with LED, a effective disorienting strobe and multiple brightness levels.

In the $100 price range the Fenix P3D may be a good choice.

Luigi


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## carbine15 (May 8, 2007)

Strion


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## KeeperSD (May 8, 2007)

FILIPPO said:


> or wolfeyes web site:
> http://www.tactical-flashlights-store.com/


 
+ 1 with the Wolf Eyes, depending on your preference in size look at the WE Raider

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/156004


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## Trashman (May 8, 2007)

The Streamlight Stinger and the Streamlight Strion seem to be favorites among security guards. (the ones that I've seen) You can get one of the new LAPD lights (Pelican 7060) for $99, if you act fast (you'll still have to wait a month or two for its release, though), because it's on (pre) sale at the Battery Junction until the end of this month (or is it the middle of this month?).


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## Wyeast (May 8, 2007)

Depends on how heavy your light usage is during the course of a shift. If you're working where you have to have the light on frequently/near constantly, then you'll probably want a higher end LED to keep runtime high in a portable package. Most 2-cell "tactical" Xenons run in the 1-2 hour range on a set of batts - not enough for a shift with heavy usage. 

But if you're only using it occasionally, then yeah, a rechargable one will probably serve you quite well. 

--> Andy


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## defusion (May 8, 2007)

Most security guards appear to have a really bright tacticool flashlight with low runtime, and a larger one, not so bright, but enough runtime to last the entire shift.

Basicaly it's the 2 extreme's.
If you want just 1 light, you will have to find a compromise between the two, and basicaly need to figure out what you find important.

How bright does it need to be?
How long does it need to run?
How small does it need to be?

If your answers are:

100-150 lumens
1 hour
belt carry, but shouldn't keep bouncing against my leg/should fit in my pockets if i need it to.

i'd get a 3 cell surefire with rechargeables.


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## yellow (May 8, 2007)

all "my" guards I sent along at night just have one, and most of them extremely crappy lights, and seem to come through with them. One has a 3D-Mag with 5000 mAh Nicads and seems to recharge it every 2nd day (most of the time they drive between our objects.
So a total runtime of 2-5 hours should last for them, and I would think that will be the same for most night shifts (as there is much time spent at well lit interior).
SFs on primary are too expensive and offer not enough runtime.

My advice is the usual: Fenix L2D-CE.

As long as one does not use it on turbo all the time, it will last one shift for sure, cheap and good Ni-Mhs possible, very small and at the same time way too bright on turbo inside buildings, decent quality and a much better bang for the buck (imho the best at the moment), several output levels are good if less light is needed (and thats very often imho)

When You dont need a baton and dont run outdoors most of Your shift, thats Your light.


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## TOOCOOL (May 8, 2007)

Hi robbied I'm a security guard and I use a Bushnell upgraded by CPF member Milkyspit you may want to see if he has anything you could use 

Link


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## Gunner12 (May 8, 2007)

A terralux dropin for your maglite(a 2-3 cell one is coming out) or Malkoff devices, more expensive but brighter.

Or a new light, Lumapower M1(review). High, 4hours on a 18650 rechargeable battery, for searching and low(26 hours on rechargeable) for all around. Or for a few dollers above your budget, the Lumapower MRV will be great. Projects better then the maglite, 7000 lux Vs. 19000 lux on high and 9000 lux on low(all at 1meter), and runs on 18650 rechargeable batteries.

Fenix L2D-CE(review) is also be a good light.

Do you prefer LEDs or Incandescents?

If incans, try the Roar Of Pelican(ROP) upgrade.

Welcome to CPF!


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## BGater (May 8, 2007)

Fenix L2Dce . Several hours on Turbo, and a whole shift on med or low. You could get one of these, and a charger for $100. I have a LaCrosse BC900 charger, it works great and comes with 4 AA and 4AAA bats. I have an L1Dce and love it. Check out the flashlight review link below, it will give you all the goodies on the L2Dce.

http://fenix-store.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_55&products_id=195

http://www.thomas-distributing.com/la_crosse_bc-900_battery_charger.php

http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/fenix_l1dce-l2dce.htm


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## robbied (May 9, 2007)

Hey guys thanks for the replies! 
I usually have the flashlight on for on average 90 minutes a night. Its mostly on/off, I rarely run it constantly. I want a smaller light so I can carry a small baton also instead of the big maglite. This flashlight would be the only one I carry.

I am leaning towards the Fenix L2Dce, it has a decent run time. Would this light be brighter than the 3D Xenon Maglite?


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## scottaw (May 9, 2007)

Go for something with a Cree or Seoul, it'll give you plenty of light, and you can actually get some runtime out of it. Definately go led, im assuming as a guard it might actually get used, and the led won't break when you need it most.


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## LED61 (May 9, 2007)

I would stick to an incandescent for your needs. The wolfeyes Raider is a great buy at $49. Then, buy Lumens Factory EO9 replacement lamp and two Wolfeyes 18500 rechargeables with charger. You will have this great rechargeable setup for under $100, very bright and very portable.


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## mdocod (May 9, 2007)

90 minutes a night! wow.

are you using rechargables already? That would be pretty dim by the end of every shift on alkalines.

If you are using the light outdoors primarily, then I would suggest trying to stick with incandecent.

There are tons of ways to get the runtime you need. You can go with a lower powered lamp in a large "tactical" body (still way smaller and brighter than a 3D mag), or you can go even smaller, (or brighter) and carry spare cells along with you.

When trying to "shrink" the size of the light-source, price goes up. You kinda have to run lithium batteries to get a lot of oomf in a small space... 

I'm going to suggest a 2x18650 li-ion configuration. Running a LumensFactory ES-9 bulb. This will give you about double the brightness of a mag3D with a steady discharge curve (stays reasonably bright throughout the discharge) with a maximum runtime of about 150 minutes, this gives you some overhead in the runtime department. Size of this light is going to be aprox 8.5 inches long, 1 inch diameter, (slightly larger at the head and slightly smaller in the body)

The problem with this recommendation, is the price, and the complications involved with piecing it together. You'd have to buy the following:
1. 2 18650 protected cells (I'm thinking AW cells to save on cost here) ~$29
2. 1 good quality charger so you can "set-it-and-forget-it," since you will be charging almost daily. Having to monitor charging on a cheap charger would be a pain. So the Pila IBC charger. ~$50.
3. 1 2x18650 body (leefbody) ~$70
4. tailcap/switch ~$40 for a surefire/leef type switch
5. bezel, ~$15-30 depending on source, G&P makes a cheap one that would work fine.
6. Lamp. should probably buy a spare also... so about ~$30 total for 2 lamps shipped.

notice how we're up around $250 for a compact rechargable flashlight. bummer eh?

ok... so lets cut some corners and make it happen... 

1. 2 Brinkman maxfire LXs $17 each at target. 5.5 inches x 1 inch. tiny. (this way you have a backup ready to go, extra runtime on board pre-loaded)
2. Ultrafire WF-139 charger. You need to monitor this one and remove cells when it goes "green." But it's cheaper, only like $15 online.
3. 2 protected 17670 cells from AW: $24.50, more if you want more spares, each cell fully charged will provide about 50 minutes runtime with a ...
4. LumensFactory HO-4 lamp (x2, one for each flashlight) ~$30 shipped. This is a little brighter than a 3D mag. with a much nicer beam, soft focused center spot, no artifacts in beam.

total $103 for 2 rechargable flashlights.

there are endless options like this...

LED61s idea is great, but I think I would suggest stepping down to a lower powered lamp with your runtime needs in mind. The EO-9 is a scorcher but will only run about 40 minutes on those cells, so either more spare cells or lower powered lamp. (the ES-9 would run about 100 minutes on those cells)


You can also piece together something cheaper from more common flashlights... Like... for example... find a 2AA flashlight that takes PR based bulbs, that you like the look and feel of and think would be tough enough, and drop in a 6 cell mag xenon bulb and run it on a pair of 14500 li-ion cells. Bright as a 6D mag in a 2AA formfactor with about 40 minutes runtime per set of cells.


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## BGater (May 9, 2007)

Robbied: Im not sure what the lumen output is on a Mag Xenon, but my L1D smoked it in my opinion. The L1Dce is almost as bright as the Mag 3D with factory LED. The Mag led will dial down to a tighter hot spot and throw a bit farther, but the beam on the L1D murders a stock Mag light incan bulb. I can only imagine what the L2D would do. These new cree and SSC P4's are amazing, and if you drop it no problem, no filament to break. When you turn one on in the dark for the first time, you will go "Holy S**T !!"


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## Culhain (May 9, 2007)

I work as a security supervisor in a high rise office complex with attached parking garage and retail areas. We provide 2D and 3D incan MagLites, but most of the guards carry their own MiniMags. (The MiniMag LED works great for our indoor use, but not so well outside.)

My favorite work carry combo is a SF E2E on my belt and a SF E1L in my shirt pocket. In my briefcase I carry a SF D3 for garage and perimeter checks, plus an Inova X0 and X1 in case of power outages. 

Your needs may vary greatly from mine, depending on your environment and light usage. Five or ten minutes runtime, per shift, is typical for our average light useage.


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## robbied (May 9, 2007)

Thanks for the replies, because I am a beginner and this will be my first torch I am going to take what seems to me the easier and cheaper route. 

Im quite sure im going to get the Fenix L2D CE. From what i've read it has a great run time, its compact, runs on easy to find AA batteries, digitally controlled, runs at 80 lumens for 4 hours and 135 lumens for 2.5 which i think is pretty decent. And its $56.50 with free shipping.

Does anyone disagree? I am a beginner!


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## mdocod (May 9, 2007)

The Fenix lights are very nice, but they really don't scream LEO/security/S&R/SWAT etc. But I guess, it depends on what your routine is like. Owning the L2D CE, whether you use it permanently as your work flashlight or not, is a good idea, a great place to start to get an idea of how much oomf is available in compact flashlights these days.

[edit in] besides... you'll have this cute thing the size of a mini-mag that blows your buddies 3Ds out of the water, lol. Just not as good for beatings.


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## robbied (May 9, 2007)

mdocod said:


> The Fenix lights are very nice, but they really don't scream LEO/security/S&R/SWAT etc. But I guess, it depends on what your routine is like. Owning the L2D CE, whether you use it permanently as your work flashlight or not, is a good idea, a great place to start to get an idea of how much oomf is available in compact flashlights these days.
> 
> [edit in] besides... you'll have this cute thing the size of a mini-mag that blows your buddies 3Ds out of the water, lol. Just not as good for beatings.


 
Thanks for the reply, I've been reading a bit and comparing and I havent found anything that can do what the L2D CE can for the price and with that sort of run time. Im just wondering if it will have enough throw outdoors, has anyone used one outdoors?


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## jayhackett03 (May 9, 2007)

why hasn't anyone said Streamlight Propolymer?


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## tibim (May 9, 2007)

l2d ce would be perfect... Long runtime with great brightness if needed (def. brighter than your maglite) and the strobe function may be especially useful in security work to get "impaired" people's attention... Also the light is cheap enough that you won't worry too much about it.

-tibim


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## vic2367 (May 9, 2007)

robbied you wont be dissapointed with the L2D CE....excellent torch,,,you can in the future buy some AA recharegables with a nice charger,,,


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## woodrow (May 9, 2007)

Having worked graveyard security before, I tried a bunch of differnt lights. My lc 100 hid (rechargable) was more than bright enough, but heavy and the spool up time sucked. With my SL Tl3 on AW 17500's I had over an hour of light (2 sets of batts) but I worried about droping the light and having to change that little bulb in the dark. Also, I hate it when protected lithium ions just go immediately to black.

The lights I would recomend to you would be:

Pila's GL3 with the cree module. It would be bright, run for 2-3 hours on 3 123a's and can be used with Pila's or other rechargable batts for a couple hours of light. Light is $80 from J.S. Burly's The rechargable batt. pack can be bought later or at the same time. You can see a review of the light in the reviews section.

Also, the Streamlight Stinger led and Inova T4 are good rechargable lights that give you good light and free lumans and are small enough to fit your needs, yet big enough to be used as a weapon. Both can be found for around $100.


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## mdocod (May 9, 2007)

> why hasn't anyone said Streamlight Propolymer?-jayhackett03



because in the world of new cree stuff, the 1W luxeon just isn't a good recommendation anymore. The L2D CE is about 4 times brighter than a propolymer 1W, and in low power modes, can give as much brightness, with as much runtime(more actually), with half the number of cells.

L2D in medium mode is same overall output as Propolymer. runtime on 2 AA alkalines 7 hours, runtime on 2 lithium AA, 16 hours.

propolymer at that same output level, burns through 4 AA alkalines in 4 hours.




> Im just wondering if it will have enough throw outdoors, has anyone used one outdoors?-robbied


That's my number 1 concern to be honest. I'm worried that if you are using this light outdoors a lot, the LED light just isn't going to punch through the night as well as a incan would. The L2D CE is technically almost twice as bright as a 3D mag w/xenon, but LED light gets washed out in outdoor environments more it seems, The mag 3D even with about half the lumens, when focused down to a tight spot, has about double the throwing punch as the L2D CE.


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## robbied (May 9, 2007)

woodrow said:


> Also, the Streamlight Stinger led and Inova T4 are good rechargable lights that give you good light and free lumans and are small enough to fit your needs, yet big enough to be used as a weapon. Both can be found for around $100.


 
Thanks for the reply, the reason I wanted a smaller light was so that I can carry the ATP baton too, I want to have the baton as a weapon and the torch just as a torch. These 3D Maglites are way too heavy and annoyingly bulky 

Does anyone own a Fenix L2D CE? What are your opinions on it and its abilities outdoors?


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## Biggoggs (May 9, 2007)

Hah this is amusing, until this week I was looking for a light for guard work too. Most information on the subject runs along the lines of `get an enormous 50 D-cell Mag lite with tactical laser scope and pepper spray pump, with sirens and flashing lights'. Many guards thesedays carry _real_ ASP batons, making the _makeshift_ baton-flashlight redundant, and a bit of a P.I.T.A. to carry around all night. And I've never seen a crowd controller carrying a Mag around a pub/club. A guard needs a *utility* light, not a *tactical* light (unless you're doing armed cash escorts I suppose).

I also settled on the Fenix L2D-CE- I received it today, haven't had a chance to test it in the field, or even at night. In a dark room however, it's easily brighter overall than my 3D Mag w/ a Mag-num Xenon bulb, much whiter, and with a much cleaner beam- no donut rings. Looking at the run-time graphs, it has very good regulation too, which means the L2D should stay bright until the last 10 minutes, as opposed to a Mag that dims into uselessness after a few hours, wasting batteries that still have charge.

If you're doing vehicle patrols, I'd keep the 3D in the car though- I expect the Mag focused to a narrow beam will have more throw for long-range, but for medium & short range the L2D is much better. And you can actually sit in a car with the thing on your belt.

Hope I've helped.


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## robbied (May 9, 2007)

Ha

Thats exactly what I hated about the Maglite its so bulky you cant even sit with it! Thanks for the info, please let me know how it performs tonight and if you can check the throw on it for me? I may be purchasing it tommorow 

Edit: can you also compare the 3D Mag and the Fenix L2D CE for me 

Thanks


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## yellow (May 9, 2007)

*wrong pic changed*

I sense a bit of "touch to extreme throw"-lovers around here.
My primary concerns are *small, possibility of a low level also + runtime *and finally *at flashlight lighting discances* (indor and outdoors), everything most night working ppl need in rality (+ price, of course)
Sure, that huge 20 min-full output-thrower is impressive, but who really want to tote it around? Every shift (or hike)?
Same goes for expensive batteries (unnecessary garbage, price, 2nd set of batts to bring along).
Working light --> rechargeable
This has changed, thank godness with all those Li-ion!

Now to the choices: still best light Fenix L2D-CE, imho 
not necessarily really brighter than the very high power incans mentionned, but its the white light that makes the difference (and the small diameter, if You are on the receiving end).
Even bright incans (the ones using three CR123s) will immediately look as if their batts are depleted, let alone any 3D light.

Honestly: I cant inderstand all those "outdoor" things, or the suggestions for SFs e-models or other 1-hour incans of the same class. I do have some of these and they simply get smoked by Cree/SSC led lights, and they also run for longer time. Only on extreme throw, incans (with very large reflectors!) might offer a bit of a better hotspot with almost no spill around --> there are better lights for this than small pocketable ones!

There surely are cheaper lights (not so good machining!) also to be looked at: www.dealextreme.com (site problems) 
I d have a look at cree/seoul lights with one 18650 Li-Ion and high-low level including charger if You dont want to get the Fenix,
or, if it really has to be an incan, one of these here:
http://www.lighthound.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=53
maybe the Streamlight Scorpion 18650, or that XTAR (including charger + 2 batts)


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## yellow (May 9, 2007)

PS: I do not have a L2D. but a L1D (means highest mode is a bit dimmer than "high" of the L2D)
and did some pics for comparing with one of these cheap "a bunch of 5 mm leds"-light

lights:






just with this awful cluster light:





with Fenix and a Mag 2D (fresh Ni-Mhs) as a comparison, set on about same beam diameter than the fenix
(and cluster light still shining, a bit more to the right, at the rear tyre)





and that 6P/Cree/18650 mod to kick everything
(quite brighter than the "turbo" of a L2D will be, but not too much ...)





thats why I type "at this size class incans are dead", they just are


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## greenstuffs (May 9, 2007)

Malkoff 2D/3D maglite they are great plenty of runtime 6 hrs on the 3D i love mine good luck getting hold of one now i regret selling 1 of my modules to my friend.


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## TORCH_BOY (May 9, 2007)

I would go for the [email protected] Charger


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## mdocod (May 9, 2007)

here's a mag 4D with krypton bulb, a little brighter than the 3D with xenon, but good comparison.





Here's a light that would be comparable to a Surefire P90 in output. Or other typical 3xCR123 1 hour running incandescent configuration.





There's actually about 3x the amount of lumens coming from the head of the lithium light. But the beam is more diffuse, wide enough to be more useful at typical outdoor distances. It's about 100 feet to the garage door.


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## Daekar (May 9, 2007)

I'm unsure why the Lumapower lights have not been recommended more. I've been very pleased with my M1 Tactical - it runs forever (4 hours high, 27 hours low) on a single 18650 and with the OP reflector will throw well AND provide a decent amount of spill. I would recommend the new MRV, but it seems to have a nice shiny nickel finish on the pill which makes it unsuitable for serious tasks like this - so I'll stick with recommending the M1 Tactical from Lumapower.


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## bones_708 (May 9, 2007)

Go with a steamlight stinger or strion. Nothing charges easier or with less hassle. Very reliable and, not to direct this to you, as idiot proof as any light. Also much better known and recognized in your field as "tools of the trade" than Fenix. They also have a very good resale value commonly being sold used for almost 3/4 of their original cost. Another factor is the ability to easily find duty gear for these lights.


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## Monocrom (May 9, 2007)

robbied said:


> Hey guys,
> 
> At work we currently use the 3 D Cell Maglite with Xenon bulbs.
> I am looking for a smaller, lighter torch with a decent battery life to use on a daily basis in my line of work. The maglite is too bulky and heavy.


 
I work the night shift as a Security Guard. I use a *2 C cell Maglite w/ MagLED bulb* in it. Works great! Definitely lighter than the 3 D cell you're using now.


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## Cydonia (May 9, 2007)

monocrom said:


> I work the night shift as a Security Guard. I use a 2 C cell Maglite w/ MagLED bulb in it. Works great! Definitely lighter than the 3 D cell you're using now.



Yeah, everyone is forgetting the C size Maglites! Much lighter.
And don't forget that magLED's are not all equal. According to the flashlightreviews.com MagLED review 

2 cell MagLED puts out 3800 overall
3 cell MagLED puts out 4750 overall
4 cell MagLED puts out 4300 overall
The 3 cell is about 25% brighter than the 2 cell! And about 10% more than the 4 cell.
Then add in the 8% *more* light throughput you get from replacing the plastic Maglite lens with a hard glass UCL one with anti reflecive coatings from flashlightlens.com for $5.25. (You need the 52.1mm x 1.90mm size lens for both C and D Maglites.)
Best Maglite option and performance is a 3C with MagLED with UCL lens. You get 10 hours of light from about $1.50 of alkaline batteries too.


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## ghostguy6 (May 9, 2007)

Im a doorman and I carry a Pelican M6 2330 led. Its not the brightest out there but I can still light people up at 100 ft. The run time is very good on it. Pelican claims 40 hours on a set of 2 CR123's, Some of the reviews say as little as 2 hours if you run it non stop. I use my light for about an hour a night and I find that I average around 25 hours before I need to change the cells. The light is very compact and comes with a holster that also carries 2 extra cells incase you need them. I have also tried the streamlight strion but found that the runtime was getting dangerously close to my daily needs, it however does make an excellent backup light to keep in my truck.


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## woodrow (May 9, 2007)

mdocod said:


> That's my number 1 concern to be honest. I'm worried that if you are using this light outdoors a lot, the LED light just isn't going to punch through the night as well as a incan would. The L2D CE is technically almost twice as bright as a 3D mag w/xenon, but LED light gets washed out in outdoor environments more it seems, The mag 3D even with about half the lumens, when focused down to a tight spot, has about double the throwing punch as the L2D CE.


 
I do not know if your statement is actually true any more. I took some beamshots at the local rifle range at night some months ago. Then I was comparing a SurvivorLED to a Tl-3 incan (known for its throw and over 120 lumans of light) At 35 yards or beyond, I actually prefered the beam of the SurvivorLED. At more than 50 yards it was no contest. My survivorLED is not near as bright as a cree light (except its spot). I would believe the new MRV form lumapower - about $105 would kill any regular Mag in throw...up to 6 cell. I would also pick my cheap Ultrafire C2 cree light to out throw a 3-5 cell Mag running on D batteries and put out one h*ll of a lot more usable sidespill.
Just my .02


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## Bror Jace (May 10, 2007)

Up until very recently, my most powerful/brightest light was my 5C Maglite with a 4-cell xenon bulb (25% overdriven) filled full of alkaline cells.

I bought a "Vika" which is Luxeon III supposedly rated for 12 watts driven by a single 18650 Li-Ion cell and this thing puts my trusty old Mag to shame, especially when it comes to color and throw (the pics of the bycicle above look familiar to me  ). Not much spill, but a very bright hot spot and a good deal of throw where it is aimed. I feel the uniformity of the beam makes up for any advantages the incan has when its focused to a spot.

I've since then got a similar light (a single 18650 cell in a similar body) but it replaces the Luxeon III emitter with a P4 Seoul LED and it's gotta be twice as bright as the Vika. Simply amazing the light these new emitters put out ... and they are more efficient to boot.

If the Fenix with a Cree is anything like my Chinese Seoul light, you'll have a winner for sure! :twothumbs:


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## Bror Jace (May 10, 2007)

I have to amend what I wrote above. After posting, I ran out and re-tested all three lights against the edge of the woods in the backyard.

My 5C cell Mag, focused as tightly as possible, still provides the most throw of any of the three ... but with it set liked this, it provides virtually no usable side spill. My Seoul punches out almost as strong but at 75-100 yards it lights up an area many times larger than the incan Mag.

If I was searching for a perp in the woods, I'd take the LED. I think the usable pattern and greater side-spill makes up for the slightly blueish tint (when compared to the incan Mag) and the inferior color rendering this usually gives.


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## 276 (May 10, 2007)

BGater said:


> Fenix L2Dce . Several hours on Turbo, and a whole shift on med or low. You could get one of these, and a charger for $100. I have a LaCrosse BC900 charger, it works great and comes with 4 AA and 4AAA bats. I have an L1Dce and love it. Check out the flashlight review link below, it will give you all the goodies on the L2Dce.
> 
> http://fenix-store.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_55&products_id=195
> 
> ...



the battery charger works with the L2dce ?


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## 2xTrinity (May 10, 2007)

> Then add in the 8% more light throughput you get from replacing the plastic Maglite lens with a hard glass UCL one with anti reflecive coatings from flashlightlens.com for $5.25. (You need the 52.1mm x 1.90mm size lens for both C and D Maglites.)
> Best Maglite option and performance is a 3C with MagLED with UCL lens. You get 10 hours of light from about $1.50 of alkaline batteries too.


Not quite. The MagLED has the irritating side-effect of dimming itself to half brightness after 5 minutes of continuous on-time due to heat buildup. The Terralux SSC drop-in module from battery jucniton (works best on 4C, though 3C will work well, too) draws less power (and produces less heat), produces more light, and won't dim dramtiaclly due to the heat feedback. 

Throw a UCL lens on there, and oyu have a focusable LED light that will throw very well. Although, from what I understand, overall output doesn't really increase as much as throw -- that is because with a standard (non-coated) lens, a lot of light is reflected by the lens, but then back off the reflector again, as spill. With a coated lens, it will be 99% transmissive and all the throw will make it out the first time, leading to about 10% higher beam intensity (as each lens/air interface reflects about 5% -- although most of that light would probably eventually make it out as spill).


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## PurpleDrazi (May 10, 2007)

276 said:


> the battery charger works with the L2dce ?



The battery charger works with NiMh AA batteries which power/fit the L2D CE

Francis


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## Biggoggs (May 10, 2007)

robbied said:


> Ha
> 
> Thats exactly what I hated about the Maglite its so bulky you cant even sit with it! Thanks for the info, please let me know how it performs tonight and if you can check the throw on it for me? I may be purchasing it tommorow
> 
> ...


Now, someone else has the camera so I can't provide any pictures, but the L2D-CE on turbo is definately brighter than a 3D on used batteries- as you probably know, the Mags drop to more than half the brightness they started with on new batteries after the first hour or so.

The 3D Xenon *does* throw further, because you can focus it into a semi-useless `pencil beam' (like mdocod's photo above shows), but the L2D-CE's is a lot more practical. I drove to get takeaway this evening, and had a great deal of childish fun lighting up trees, postboxes, bus stop shelters, powerlines and parked cars while I was driving along with the window down. The L2D seems much more practical at short and medium range, but for long-long range you'll probably need to keep the 3D on pencil-beam, or get a proper spotlight. I highly recommend the L2D, it even comes with a good quality pouch.


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## defusion (May 10, 2007)

Biggoggs said:


> Now, someone else has the camera so I can't provide any pictures, but the L2D-CE on turbo is definately brighter than a 3D on used batteries- as you probably know, the Mags drop to more than half the brightness they started with on new batteries after the first hour or so.
> 
> The 3D Xenon *does* throw further, because you can focus it into a semi-useless `pencil beam' (like mdocod's photo above shows), but the L2D-CE's is a lot more practical. I drove to get takeaway this evening, and had a great deal of childish fun lighting up trees, postboxes, bus stop shelters, powerlines and parked cars while I was driving along with the window down. The L2D seems much more practical at short and medium range, but for long-long range you'll probably need to keep the 3D on pencil-beam, or get a proper spotlight. I highly recommend the L2D, it even comes with a good quality pouch.


repeat after me:
NEVER EVER RUN UNREGULATED FLASHLIGHTS ON ALKALINE BATERIES!!
so get some nimh's for that maglite, and it'll be fine.


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## QuinnK (May 14, 2007)

At the price of an L2D (which should work great, being able to carry your baton also), you can buy 2 of them in your approximate price range... or something else also small and maybe less expensive and have a backup. Fenix's seem quite durable, but any flashlight can have a problem... and the backup could probably be a good single AA you could carry in a very small holster on your belt.

Good luck with whatever you choose... Quinn


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## Long John (May 14, 2007)

mdocod said:


> That's my number 1 concern to be honest. I'm worried that if you are using this light outdoors a lot, the LED light just isn't going to punch through the night as well as a incan would.



These days, with appearance of the SSC's and Cree's, the diversity is better than ever before.
The customer can choose different sizes, batt.-configurations, optics, reflectors, drivers, DD-lights, tints..........

Here are a few pictures of Led-lights with amazing runtimes due to different brightness levels (no incan comparable at the same size), larger and smaller lights.......but please don't tell, that Led-lights are not be able to throw.
Be aware, distance is 70 meters:

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/160783

Best regards

____
Tom


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