# Pierce M10 mini-review



## magic79 (Apr 4, 2006)

This is a very, very quick review...I got my M10 Narrow Beam this afternoon.

Let me begin by saying that this is one of the few lights that has been an impulse buy. I had no "need" for the light...it's just been a long time since I've bought a new light! Most lights I buy have a specific requirement that the light fulfills.

The first thing you notice is that this is one TINY light. It's hard to believe that this uses a CR123 since it is so small. The picture below shows the Pierce compared to two other very popular single CR123 lights, the SureFire L1 and the UDS EDC U60XR.







The finish is quite nice. The first thing I noticed were the heatsink fins. These clearly will dissipate more heat than a solid body. 

The light comes with two lanyards: one black (attached) and one yellow. They recommend that you use one when setting the light for low mode (400 mA) and the other when you have it set for high (1000 mA). This is a good idea I think. However, these lanyards are very cheesy. They appear to be a simple thin nylon string. This is probably adequate, but it appears quite cheap.

I opened the light by unscrewing the front bezel and was surprised to see it's shipped with a Surefire CR123 battery. For $150 I expected a Duracel, like came with my UDS. It's a bit trivial, but perception is important and if you're charging top dollar, it should come with the best available battery.

I turned on the light and there is no complaint about Pierce's claims about brightness. It is very bright and useful at the factory default 400 mA setting.

As an aside: For Pete's sake, how many more disjoint methods of comparing brightness do we need? Most today use Lumens. Some (Streamlight for example) use Candlepower. Pierce uses LED current.

Frankly, LED current isn't a bad measure. But, in marketing, perception is reality. So, LED current means absolutely nothing to most people. Why not spend some money to have the light measured in either Lumens or Candlepower?

Having said that, the light is BRIGHT! I chose the same two other single CR123 lights for beam comparison. I have two "ranges" (haha) that I use. The first is my back yard. It has approximately 17 yards (15m) from the light to the fence. The second is a 1m distance to a white wall in one of my bedrooms. Here are the pictures of each. For the outdoor shots, I used manual on my Canon 20D set at 5 seconds and f4.5. For the indoor shots, the camera was set at 1/5 second and f 8. Sorry that the 'throw' shots are out of focus, but I don't think it affects the data.





HDS U60XR set at full power (60 Lumens)




Surefire L1 on High




Pierce at 400 mA




Pierce at 1000 mA




U60 beam




L1 Beam




Pierce at 400 mA




Pierce at 1000 mA

It doesn't appear so in the photos, but the Pierce's beam is somewhat square (the L1 is VERY square). Frankly, I can't see how beam shape makes any difference whatsoever, so the square vs. round is immaterial to me.

To me, subjectively, the Pierce at low power is perhaps 20 Lumens. At high power, it appears to be about 50 Lumens. Those estimates are about as unscientific as you can get...eyeballing it. The L1 TIROS optics makes a real difference in throw brightness. I know a lot of people don't like it, but it really does work.

For it's size, I'm not sure anything compares with the output of the Pierce. Again, this is the narrow beam model; I have no idea how the wide beam compares.

If I were concerned about the size of the U60XR (my EDC), the Pierce would be "IT". However, the fact that it is a single stage light disqualifies it as my EDC. I think two stages are essential. 

The U60XR will remain my EDC, and I literally do carry it in my pocket every day.

The Pierce will probably reside in my other pocket most days as my backup light. There is no other light (including the Orb Raw) that seems as bright in this small of a package in my opinion. If your wardrobe precludes even the U60, this is your light if you can tolerate a single stage. If not, the Orb Raw with two-stage switch is better.

I would like to see this light with a two stage switch. This would be a really useful light if it had a two stage switch.

I did not perform a runtime experiment.

That's it! There you have it!


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## Mini-Moder (Apr 4, 2006)

Did your unit have any scrathces or damage to it??


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## magic79 (Apr 4, 2006)

No scratches or damage. Have others?


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## Mini-Moder (Apr 4, 2006)

magic, Mine has seceral scuffs all over it, as well as some big blemishes on the knurling. 

EDIT:
I heard form Sam at Pierce (as it turns out, I was checking the wrong email address ) This problem was due to a HA defect from the company that does the HAing for Pierce. Its not Pierces fault, I was just a little upset and may have posted prematurely...Sorry Sam!


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## Kiessling (Apr 4, 2006)

Nice review, thanx!
Can you do a size comparo with a JIL or Ion?
bernie


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## Mini-Moder (Apr 4, 2006)

I dont have a jil or ion...YET! But I will take some of it next some other small lights when I get home... Also if anybody got both of them I would love to see another narrow vs wide compro.


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## eart (Apr 4, 2006)

Neat review, thanks.
If you dont mind me asking, why did you chose M10 over the Ion (CR2 vs 123?) or over the FireFly3?


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## Pierce Light (Apr 4, 2006)

Mini-Moder said:


> magic, Mine has seceral scuffs all over it, as well as some big blemishes on the knurling. The light looked like it had been well used...I still havnt heard from Sam at Pierce...


 
Thank you for your patience. I emailed you late last night and early this morning. I didn't want to post until I have contacted the HA supplier. In the future, please don't hesitate to contact me directly at [email protected].

Below is my respond I submitted on the other post.

--------------------------------

Mini-Moder,

Thank you for purchasing the Pierce M10 and our sincere apology for having shipped a product that has small scuff marks and blemishes. All the products we shipped are brand new and the item you received must have been mishandled. Once again our sincere apology.

Regarding your reference to the HA issue, we checked with the HA supplier and confirmed that some units were inappropriately held on the knurl area during HA. This resulted in some small blemishes. These imperfection were then touched up to hide any imperfection. We are very concern about this and working with the HA supplier to rectify this.

As promised, we will do everything we can to insure your satisfaction. We are extending the following options to rectify the situation:

1) We will be do a full exchange at no additional cost to you. We will cross ship the new product to you if you desire (although it still may have the small HA blemishes).

2) We will provide you a full refund if you would like to return the item. In your case, we will refund all shipping / handling / and battery cost. We'll also pay for the shipment back.

3) If you don't want to hassle with the exchange or refund and like to keep the Pierce M10 as is, we will refund you $20 for our mishandling.

Please let me know your choice and once again our sincere aplogy for the inconvenience.

Also for anyone who has already placed an order, please don't hesitate to contact me directly if you have any issues with blemishes or simply not happy with the flashlight. We'll do our best to accomodate.

[email protected]

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Sam


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## Mini-Moder (Apr 4, 2006)

Hey Sam I sent you back an email. Thanks for handling this all so professionally.


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## Blindasabat (Apr 4, 2006)

Do you have to disassemble it to change from 400 to 1000mA? That is not "on-the-fly" switchable like the FF and HDS. The Pierce web site was not so clear on that. I'm not as interested if it is not immediate accesible two stage since I already have a Jil Intelli and FF2 with POP2 multilevel switching which is about the same size as the Pierce.

Pierce M10: 63.5x22.2mm, $140 (dual level with some time...)
FireFly II/III: 68x20.5mm, $130
Fenix P1: 65x20mm, $45 (single level and prob(?) lower output?)
Jil Intelli/DD: 50x22mm, $110

So the Pierce is almost the smallest CR123 light I know of (slightly larger volume-wise than the upcoming Fenix claims to be), but not being "on-the-fly" two stage is too bad (for me, otherwise it looks very nice).

I'll stick with the FF for my micro RCR123 torch. The FF3 (modded FF2 in my case) equals the U60 HDS light level too.

Don't get me wrong, this looks like a very well made, nicely styled, intelligently designed, quality product, I just wish it was 'real' two staged. IF I have read this correctly...

Maybe next year?

<EDIT> After reading above: apparently very good customer service! That counts for a lot.


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## Mini-Moder (Apr 4, 2006)

Hey blindasabat, the switch is internal, you need a pin to be able to change it. However, the difference in output is very small, so I think that keeping it on 400 will be sufficiant most of the time.


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## Blindasabat (Apr 4, 2006)

Thanks Mini-Moder,
Hmm, nifty idea to keep the light small with multiple levels available...

I figured that close in milliAmps would not be such a big visual difference. Kinda like the 10 versus 42 Lumen settings on the HDS is a decent difference visually, but of course 1/4 the power usage.
200-250mA would be good level if it was more quickly switchable.

Like I said, this light looks really nicely done. I hope they sell a bunch. If they add a FireFly/HDS/RAW style staged setup, or even a TM301X-3 type two stage, it will be a really nice all around light. I'm just a big fan of multi-level. I even got the Nuwai 115X Lux 3 for $25 on sale a while ago. 



Mini-Moder said:


> Hey blindasabat, the switch is internal, you need a pin to be able to change it. However, the difference in output is very small, so I think that keeping it on 400 will be sufficiant most of the time.


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## magic79 (Apr 4, 2006)

eart said:


> Neat review, thanks.
> If you dont mind me asking, why did you chose M10 over the Ion (CR2 vs 123?) or over the FireFly3?


 
Well...to be honest it was pretty much an impulse buy! I have an Orb Raw, and like it, but don't particularly want another CR2 light. 

As for the FireFly...I found an order thread, but no description (at least on the first or last page) so I really don't know anything about it. I couldn't find any other thread describing it either. 

There was another thread asking basically the same thing. A reply said there were pictures in the order thread, but I couldn't find them on the first page and don't have time to wander through the whole thread.


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## TrueBlue (Apr 4, 2006)

I find a great compromise by setting the Pierce to 400mA. The light is bright and doesn’t get hot with a 3.7V battery. The light is almost the same brightness using a primary CR123A battery. With the setting at 400mA the light will use both a rechargeable and a primary battery. Setting the light to 1000mA and using the 3.7V battery make the light a bit brighter but a lot hotter.


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## Mini-Moder (Apr 5, 2006)

TrueBlue, I really love the look of the bare on the Pierce, it just looks so nice. I have a few [font=&quot]comparison[/font] pics for you guys, but I think that TrueBlue has already taken care of it.






Not an exact line-up, but it gives you a sizing idea...


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## Kiessling (Apr 5, 2006)

Thanx for the pic !!!

Does anyone know if there is a version in the works with a hole for a split ring? This lanyard attachment doesn't look like it would withstand keychain carry in a reliable manner ...

bernie


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## Mini-Moder (Apr 5, 2006)

Kiessling, I think that a split ring would work if you replaced the stock lanyard, with something of a paracord loop. But the current lanyard is very strong, when tightened all the way I couldn’t not pull it off. If you wanted super secure you could either go with paracord, or maybe try to find a very small cord lock to make sure the slip knot on the stock lanyard stays in place. Here is a picture of my FAF (fully adjustable fob) custom made by ghostrider, on the M10, the paracord fits into the slot almost perfectly:








The flash did some funky things with the orange... But you get the idea.


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## Kiessling (Apr 6, 2006)

Thanx for the pic! I still cannot trust this set-up ... but maybe I am stubborn and without experience here


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## Pierce Light (Apr 8, 2006)

Kiessling said:


> Thanx for the pic !!!
> 
> Does anyone know if there is a version in the works with a hole for a split ring? This lanyard attachment doesn't look like it would withstand keychain carry in a reliable manner ...
> 
> bernie


 
Bernie, we were concern too during our design phase. However after careful testing, we arrived at our final design. During manufacturing we increased the clamping pressure of the lanyard by 3x from our original design to insure that it doesn't come apart. Simply, a user simply need to slide the knot snug against the Pierce M10 groove and it will not come off. We have tested and carried this light for over 1 year on the key ring and have not had any issue with the lanyard coming apart. Nothing like real world testing.

Sam


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## Alloy Addict (Apr 9, 2006)

With the right kind of knot, the more force applied to pulling on the lanyard the tighter the knot will be. The lanyard will be as strong as the cord is, less whatever amount the knot weakens the cord which varies between knots.

I don't have a Pierce M10, but I think it's an elegant design for a lanyard attachment.

Thanks for the review Magic79


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## CLHC (Apr 9, 2006)

Hey, nice write up on the Pierce M10 with them show-and-tell pictures. Way to go!


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## milkyspit (Aug 4, 2006)

Nice review and photos guys! I hadn't even heard of a Pierce M10 until today, believe it or not!


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## hawkz (Aug 4, 2006)

Well, now that you've heard of it, you should get one while it's only $95. (haha..a college student saying "it's only $95" like 95 bones is nothing)


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## Kiessling (Aug 4, 2006)

Got one now (Thanx Sigman! :bow: ) ... and have to agree that it is a very nice light!
I am using it with the flood optix ... and what a nice medium flood beam it produces!
The 400mA setting is perfect, 1000mA won't change too much except heat and runtime, but that is just IMHO of course.
Very nice light.
bernie


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## Archangel (Aug 4, 2006)

High *is* twice the output, but there simply isn't enough metal there for it not to quickly heat up when run at 1000mA.


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## JimH (Aug 4, 2006)

. . .



. . .


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## EuroBeetle (Aug 4, 2006)

Have one and LOVE it.Has become my EDC for the reason it can run primary or RCR at about same brightness.


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## luxlunatic (Aug 5, 2006)

Been wanting to pick one of these up for a while now. I first saw them on ebay well over a year ago, looked perhaps like pre-production versions (bare Al), once in a while one would pop up but I kept getting outbid in the last minutes, and at auction end, they were going for about $250-$300 average, IIRC, and at that time (this being BCPF, before Candle Power Forums,for me) that was a lot to spend on a flashlight. It was a stretch for me to buy my first 'premier light', an Arc LSHP at over $100, but now, jeez, well look at my sig line and tell me if CPF hasn't slightly skewed my perception of money when it comes to lights :laughing: . So for $95 this looks like a sweet deal!


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## milkyspit (Aug 5, 2006)

Uh, where does one possessing the requisite 95 bones go to buy one at that price?  oo:
:thinking:




hawkz said:


> Well, now that you've heard of it, you should get one while it's only $95. (haha..a college student saying "it's only $95" like 95 bones is nothing)


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## marcspar (Aug 5, 2006)

Here, Milky:

http://www.piercelight.com/CPF.htm

Marc


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## fleegs (Aug 5, 2006)

Is the battery easy to change in this light?


Thanks,
rob


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## Dandrop (Aug 5, 2006)

Yep, very easy. Just unscrew the head and drop in the new batt. 



fleegs said:


> Is the battery easy to change in this light?
> 
> 
> Thanks,
> rob


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## hawkz (Aug 7, 2006)

milkyspit said:


> Uh, where does one possessing the requisite 95 bones go to buy one at that price?  oo:
> :thinking:



One goes about buying this light the "American Way." In other words, CHARGE IT!  LOL. Well, in all seriousness, I indeed did charge it. My CC company decided to give me 1.9% rate for the life of my balance. So now I have $8K to play with. To use all that money on flashlights would indeed be irresponsible. Thus I've only gotten myself a L1P, Orb Raw, and this coming Pierce light. Cheers


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## geepondy (Aug 7, 2006)

Normally if I saw a light offered in a narrow version or a wide version, I'd go for the wide but in this case the narrow is wider then the lights it is being compared to. Is this an accurate statement. Just how wide is the wide version?


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## dizzy (Aug 8, 2006)

I ordered mine friday night and can't wait until it gets here to try it out. I will probably use it every day for work and keep it on my key ring.


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## BladeZealot (Aug 10, 2006)

I got mine yesterday. I am quite pleased. Aside from the "shadow lettering", which is not a large problem, I found the Pierce M10i to be quite aesthetically pleasing. I am particularly fond of the cooling fins. Other than being functional, they add a nice look to the light. 

And bright...for it's size...to say I am impressed is an understatement. This light will definitely become an EDC, along with my custom Fenix L2P {CR2 body}, and my Aleph 1.


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## dizzy (Aug 10, 2006)

I got mine yesterday, as well, and can't seem to stop playing with it. I had it with me all day at work and used it several times and when I wasn't using it , I wouldn't even notice it in my pocket, it is that small.

People couldn't believe that a light this small could be so bright. One guy was carrying a 3 D cell mag around and we compared both in a dark auditorium at a school we are renovating. It wasn't even close. He said "holy sh!%" what the hell is that!

If you get the chance to get one of these for the special CPF price, I would definitely recommend picking one up.


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## europium (Aug 10, 2006)

magic79 said:


> ... The picture below shows the Pierce compared to two other very popular single CR123 lights, the SureFire L1 and the UDS EDC U60XR.
> 
> ...
> 
> ...


I'm sorry, but I just don't believe a Surefire L1 can touch the output of the HDS U60 at full power. 

Something is wrong here... :thinking::shakehead

And that means it's hard to tell from your beamshots just how bright the M10 is ... or isn't.


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## Blazer (Aug 25, 2006)

OK, got mine today (M10i). Been playing around with it for a while. The increase to 1000mah is noticeable but for what I'll be using this flashlight for (general utility EDC or just around the house) the 400 is fine with me. The switching method is a bit cumbersome so I'll probably leave it for long periods of time on one setting or the other without switching back and forth. Came with the wide angle optic, but for the life of me I can't figure out how to switch out the optics to try the narrow beam. Anybody do this yet? And the website www.piercelight.com doesn't seem to have any instructions on this matter (after about 10 min of searching).
Thanks in advance for any help.


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## SlotCAR (Aug 25, 2006)

With my order confirmation, I received PDF files of the user manual and how to change out the optics. Did you not get the PDF files from Pierce?

PM me with your email address and I'll send them to you. 

*- SlotCAR*


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## Blazer (Aug 25, 2006)

SlotCAR said:


> With my order confirmation, I received PDF files of the user manual and how to change out the optics. Did you not get the PDF files from Pierce?
> 
> PM me with your email address and I'll send them to you.
> 
> *- SlotCAR*



That's strange, I didn't get anything in PDF.
PM Sent.
Thanks.


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## Archangel (Aug 25, 2006)

europium- an L1 v2 won't have any problem matching a U60 for throw.


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## SlotCAR (Aug 25, 2006)

Blazer said:


> That's strange, I didn't get anything in PDF.
> PM Sent.
> Thanks.




*BLAZER* - You got mail ... 



*- SlotCAR*


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## TigerhawkT3 (Aug 26, 2006)

I was really hoping to get a Pierce, but hearing that the .4A setting isn't too different from the 1A setting is kind of disappointing. I have already compared its size to the P1 (the C-note pic on Pierce comes out exactly right on my monitor, so I just held my P1 up in front of the M10). Since the P1 is the same size, twisty, and runs for two hours (same as the M10's "low"), does the Pierce beat out the P1, using any setting, battery, or optic?

Maybe it's just me, but I really think it should, given that it's twice the price and much harder to find...


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## Archangel (Aug 26, 2006)

The M10's high is twice as bright as low. Not everyone will find that enough of a difference, but there's a definite difference. I don't have a P1, so someone else will have to take that part.


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## TigerhawkT3 (Aug 26, 2006)

Archangel said:


> The M10's high is twice as bright as low. Not everyone will find that enough of a difference, but there's a definite difference. I don't have a P1, so someone else will have to take that part.


Ah! Excellent. Thank you! :thanks:

I'm planning on buying one from a fellow CPFer, so once I've got the M10 and my P1 together, I might try to take some comparative beamshots.


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## leprechaun414 (Aug 27, 2006)

I purchased the M10 with both optics and it came with the wide optic installed and the setting was on low. Changing the optics was very easy and the high low output is even easier. Plain and simply this is a GREAT light. When you compare it against other EDC lights I think it would be close to #1. I say this because of the price for what you get. I still LUV other lights like the ORB and HDS and have to add this to a favorite. If you purchase with the CPF discount, you cant go wrong. I look forward to seeing additional lights in the future.


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## europium (Aug 28, 2006)

TigerhawkT3 said:


> Ah! Excellent. Thank you! :thanks:
> 
> I'm planning on buying one from a fellow CPFer, so once I've got the M10 and my P1 together, I might try to take some comparative beamshots.


I hope you are able to do this. It would be comparing apples to apples after all. If you want to turn the Fenix P1 into a flood beam, you can attache a clear water bottle cap to the bezel, which is how I use the light indoors.


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## Blazer (Aug 28, 2006)

SlotCAR said:


> *BLAZER* - You got mail ...
> 
> 
> 
> *- SlotCAR*




Got the PDF's.
Thanks a lot.
I was able to switch out the optic easily and now I'm using the M10 with the narrow optic on low setting.


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## SlotCAR (Aug 28, 2006)

Blazer said:


> Got the PDF's.
> Thanks a lot.
> I was able to switch out the optic easily and now I'm using the M10 with the narrow optic on low setting.


 
I'm glad you received the PDF's ...

I too am running the narrow optic @ 400ma.

What was your opinion of the WIDE optic?


*- SlotCAR*


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## Blazer (Aug 28, 2006)

I actually didn't mind the wide optic, but I'm not a floody kind of guy, I like the spill enough on the narrow optic to keep it in. I don't use my lights for reading or really close up work so although the wide optic performed well, it's just not my preferred beam. I'll add though, that I like haveing the option of the two optics with the M10i


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## TigerhawkT3 (Aug 28, 2006)

If I could possibly do that, Europium, I will. I'll either be buying it today or tomorrow, and when it arrives, I'll try some comparison shots.


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## PlayboyJoeShmoe (Nov 20, 2008)

Dredging up an OLD thread!

I had bought an M-10 from a fellow CPFer at DFW Flashapolooza 2006 (or 7).

I just got it out and fooled with it again. 

I don't see THAT much difference between low and high. Throw is decent with the narrow optic but the beam leaves MUCH to desire.

The flood optic REALLY does and has a smoooooth beam!

I may just start carrying it in my pocket with the flood optic and 400mA for close work!

I searched Google to get to this thread as I was thinking of donating this light in another thread. Now not so much.


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## milkyspit (Nov 20, 2008)

PlayboyJoeShmoe said:


> Dredging up an OLD thread!
> 
> I had bought an M-10 from a fellow CPFer at DFW Flashapolooza 2006 (or 7).
> 
> ...




PBJS, on the brightness part of your post, just did a quick calculation... doubling the lumens a light generates only increases the perceived brightness (that is, what the human eye sees) by 30% or so... and doubling drive current won't even double the lumens, so the human eye will perceive even less of a difference. What you saw makes a lot of sense from that standpoint!

I used to have one of these and liked it, but didn't give it much use, eventually passed it along to a friend. Now I have the shell of a broken M-10 and sooner or later will retrofit it with an Acorn driver and probably a high CRI Seoul P4 emitter, for a nice little EDC. Just haven't gotten to that particular project yet! These days, my personal fiddlings often come last.

:sigh:


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## PlayboyJoeShmoe (Nov 20, 2008)

I bow to you Milky!

How I wish I could afford even one of the famous lights you mod not to even mention getting you to mod it!

With the flood optic in the M-10 I get a small idea what the Room Sweeper is all about!


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## milkyspit (Dec 1, 2008)

PlayboyJoeShmoe said:


> I bow to you Milky!
> 
> How I wish I could afford even one of the famous lights you mod not to even mention getting you to mod it!
> 
> With the flood optic in the M-10 I get a small idea what the Room Sweeper is all about!




PBJS, thanks so much.  You know I'm always happy to build for you... we got that Milkbone put together way back when, looking forward to whatever comes next. :thumbsup:

A little OT, but wonder when the the M10 stopped being available?


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## PlayboyJoeShmoe (Dec 1, 2008)

Milkbone still has an honored place! Hanging next to the shower on a push pin.

No idea about when M10 stopped but it sure has a BLUEISH beam.

And today Boss and I really couldn't tell much if any difference between 400ma and 1000ma. I carry it for up close use so 400 works well.


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## tsask (Dec 1, 2008)

about 2 years ago they were discontiuned. I love my M10, :twothumbswith a SSC mod. I was sad to see this Maryland based compay stop production.


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## marcoc (Dec 12, 2008)

Just got M10 from Bernie! Was just wondering if it can take a 3.7v rechargeable li-ion. Thanks.

Marco


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## datiLED (Dec 12, 2008)

marcoc said:


> Just got M10 from Bernie! Was just wondering if it can take a 3.7v rechargeable li-ion. Thanks.
> 
> Marco


 
The Pierce M10 can use rechargeable cells. At 1000mA it will get warm, though. Converting the light to a Seoul LED, and using it on the 400mA setting will yield the brightness you currently see at 1A. (Follow the easy tutorial in my sig line.) Even with the stock Luxeon it is pretty bright, and would make a great EDC.

Either way, the Pierce is a seriously nice light that did not get enough attention. The quality and performance are hard to beat in such a small package.


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