# Neofab Legion II review



## AardvarkSagus (Mar 18, 2009)

Posted for consideration for review forum:

*NeoFab Legion II*

The Legion II by semi-custom manufacturer Neofab, has truly stepped up the output race to the next level. No longer can incandescent lamps claim absolute superiority. If this monster doesn’t best them, it does at least give them a run for their money.






Neofab Legion II

*Meat and Potatoes*

Neofab has taken the extensive R&D that went into producing the Spartanian II and used it to very great effect in it’s big brother the Legion II. There is no doubt you can see the family resemblance, however when it comes to specifics, nearly every aspect of the Spartanian II has been improved upon dramatically. Where the S2 rattled and shook, now the L2 feels solid and smooth. I thought the S2 was quite a decent light for what it is, however I feel the Legion II to be in another category all together.

Where output is concerned, I do not believe I have met this lights equal. The Legion II is capable of putting so incredibly much light down range that everything else I have reviewed pales in comparison. While the fact that it is utilizing a 4-die Cree MC-E LED proves that this is not magic, it still is none the less impressive. Best of all, this torch is equipped with extremely adequate heat sinking to better accommodate even extended runtimes at such a high level. Neofab has also included amazing regulation to the point where you are guaranteed that every time you fire up the L2, you will be receiving exactly the same brightness. No matter the battery state, full or nearly empty, regulation is perfectly ruler flat, with no discernible decrease in light from beginning to end.

The Legion II has been equipped with 5 levels of brightness to better suit your output needs. There are times that you actually can quite safely scale back from the searing 700+ lumen level and still provide ample illumination for the tasks at hand. Boasting well over 90% electrical efficiency in the exquisitely crafted driver circuitry, even moderate reductions in brightness will net excellent gains in runtime. While this light does not have a genuine “Low” mode capable of preserving night-adapted vision, I do not see that as a weakness in the current form factor. The approximately 100 lumen lowest setting still increases runtime to over 20 hours, barely sipping energy from the three Lithium-ion cells.

Outstanding output aside, the control ring switch carried over from the Spartanian II is still the crowning achievement of the Legion II. Gone are the rattles and shakes, and especially the propensity for gritty buildup that the S2 had. Instead of bronze bearings, the L2 has been improved to utilize advanced Teflon bearings riding on brass runners to maintain proper tolerances after anodizing. The finished product is extremely smooth and feels very durable.

*Constructive Criticism*

Mass quantity of output is not lacking in any stretch of the imagination with this light, however one area that I still see room for improvement is beam quality. Originally I started testing this light with the smooth reflector installed and it was starkly apparent then that the reflector shape gives a very pronounced dark spot in the center of the beam. This is due to the use of a multi-die emitter and the inherent difficulties they entail. Once I replaced it with the textured reflector I found myself far more pleased with the beam pattern, however a dark shadow did remain in the center of the beam at any distance at all. This is one of my personal biggest pet peeves. I am willing to sacrifice quite a few things in favor of a flawless beam of light. After all, that’s what a flashlight is all about, right? The light is useful the way it is, but I feel the Legion II might have been better off with a mass market optic or possibly just pursuing an open flood beam instead to better balance the beam pattern across the board.

During my time with the L2, I took the opportunity to swap the reflectors back and forth a few times to better get a feel for both types of beams. In so doing I was able to notice a possible shortcoming in this lights design. While the ability to remove the bezel is far easier than it was on the S2, and the shock absorption o-rings that surround the heavy duty UCL lens are very adequately thick, I did notice that they had a tendency to displace when I was tightening down the bezel. I am not sure how they could have been better retained, but as they are some careful consideration was required when swapping out parts. In the grand scheme of things, this is not a major issue, since most users will decide early on which reflector they will choose and not switch again. I feel it is worth mentioning though.

Although the action and feel of the proprietary ring switch has drastically improved over the previous versions, the overall User Interface has remained unchanged. This UI has many good points, such as direct access to two user defined levels and the ability to rapidly change level up or down when constantly on. Also, the fewer number of levels in the L2 is definitely a benefit, allowing traversing the entire range to occur much more rapidly. There are, however, some slight drawbacks to this current setup. Whenever you want to switch the light to constant on, it requires holding the switch for 1.5-6 seconds before the light will “lock” on. At the same time this limits the usable momentary on function to a maximum 6 seconds before requiring you to hold the switch to turn it off. I do know however that slight adjustments to the UI are being considered by the manufacturer and these specific issues may well be addressed and corrected shortly.





Neofab Legion II

*Conclusions*

If you are looking for an every day carry light, capable of the full range of illumination, I suggest you look elsewhere. However, if you are interested in a specialized monster torch of exceeding caliber, and are willing to reach for a larger light to achieve it, the Legion II may just fill the ticket for you. Neofab has definitely upped the ante here with this amazingly high output light.


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## TITAN1833 (Mar 18, 2009)

AardvarkSagus thanks for a well balanced review :twothumbs

I'm hoping I can add a little soon


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## Outdoors Fanatic (Mar 18, 2009)

Thanks for sharing!

Can you please post more Legion II Porn? I've never seen her nekkid...


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## AardvarkSagus (Mar 18, 2009)

Sorry, Nekkid isn't one of the options with this particular unit. This was before Neo revised a few things internally to allow users to disassemble. I had to leave it together. I might have a few more pictures around here somewhere and I might be able to get one or two tonight if the sun holds, but unfortunately, my cat decided to destroy my light box, making picture taking much more difficult. I'll see what I can do.


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## Outdoors Fanatic (Mar 18, 2009)

AardvarkSagus said:


> Sorry, Nekkid isn't one of the options with this particular unit. This was before Neo revised a few things internally to allow users to disassemble. I had to leave it together. I might have a few more pictures around here somewhere and I might be able to get one or two tonight if the sun holds, but unfortunately, my cat decided to destroy my light box, making picture taking much more difficult. I'll see what I can do.


Do you have a picture of the battery holder (if there is one) or pic showing the battery tube internals?

Thanks in advance.


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## 9x23 (Mar 18, 2009)

Outdoors Fanatic said:


> Do you have a picture of the battery holder (if there is one) or pic showing the battery tube internals?
> 
> Thanks in advance.



+1......Yes, I was thinking the same thing. How about a photo of the battery end? I think I recall Neo saying this light does not require a battery holder so it would be interesting to see how the batteries fit. And, thank you for the write up and review.

9x23


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## AardvarkSagus (Mar 18, 2009)

I don't currently have a picture of the battery tube at all. I will make sure to snap one tonight. No it does not require a battery holder at all. it has 3 conjoined holes in the body to hold the cells in place quite snugly. Very well constructed if you ask me.


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## OceanView (Mar 18, 2009)

Thanks for that thoughtful review. How does it balance in the hand? Just wondering if all those cells counter balance the weight of the head.


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## AardvarkSagus (Mar 18, 2009)

Actually it is balanced right behind the tail end of the ring switch. Feels really good. I'll see if I can snap a pic of the cells for you.


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## ace0001a (Mar 18, 2009)

Is yours a final production version? How bad is the donut hole with the OP reflector? I had a Tiablo ACE and I really didn't like that it has a donut hole in the beam. I was under the impression that the OP reflector somewhat blends in the donut hole.


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## Cheesy (Mar 18, 2009)

Looks good, I'm a bit dissapointed that the o-ring problem hasn't been fixed though. I pointed out how to do it with the S2. It only requires a bevel to force the o-ring outwards as you tighten down the retaining ring.

Kev.


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## AardvarkSagus (Mar 18, 2009)

It's not quite the final production version. There are some slight changes happening for that. One is the ability to disassemble it. 

Yes the OP smooths out the beam somewhat, but I am still a little disappointed.


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## Outdoors Fanatic (Mar 31, 2009)

This deserves a bump!


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## applevision (Apr 10, 2009)

Great review, *AardvarkSagus*!

I'm such a CPF junkie right now... can't wait for my EagleTac M2... and now thinking about one of these...


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## TITAN1833 (Apr 10, 2009)

applevision said:


> Great review, *AardvarkSagus*! and now thinking about one of these...


Then get on the list there is a long wait for these it seems


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## VF1Jskull1 (Apr 10, 2009)

damn!! gonna have redirect funds away from the eagletac m2c4 and get this baby.


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## Phaserburn (Apr 10, 2009)

AardvarkSagus said:


> Once I replaced it with the textured reflector I found myself far more pleased with the beam pattern, however a dark shadow did remain in the center of the beam at any distance at all. This is one of my personal biggest pet peeves. I am willing to sacrifice quite a few things in favor of a flawless beam of light.


 
Thanks for the review, 'vark. Nicely done.

I hate to say it, but the above is a sticking point for me, too. I cannot stand voids in the beam; it drives me nuts. And yes, I *do* easily notice them in outdoor use, which is 75% of my usage.

Neo, is there any possibility that there will be a new reflector offered that will address this? I don't care about losing some throw. I think there are many others here who feel as I do. Heck, if you even have a prototype that works void-free, I'd take that one.

If so, you'll get my business for sure, because I _love_ this light; your work looks outstanding!


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## gsxrac (Apr 10, 2009)

Im really wanting one of these lights after all these reviews and after my own review of the price! So these are available and shipping now right?


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## TITAN1833 (Apr 10, 2009)

gsxrac said:


> So these are available and shipping now right?


No they are not readily available and shipping is slow,most are still waiting even though they ordered in Feb :shakehead

this is one of the down sides IMO building and shipping these lights is slooooow,

that said Neo is taking pre-orders if you don't mind the looong wait


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## gsxrac (Apr 10, 2009)

TITAN1833 said:


> No they are not readily available and shipping is slow,most are still waiting even though they ordered in Feb :shakehead
> 
> this is one of the down sides IMO building and shipping these lights is slooooow,
> 
> that said Neo is taking pre-orders if you don't mind the looong wait



So I'm guessing these are built per order?


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## Outdoors Fanatic (Apr 10, 2009)

I've found this to share:


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## TITAN1833 (Apr 10, 2009)

Outdoors Fanatic said:


> I've found this to share:


My that was quick is that the new L2 TIROS you long for


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## AardvarkSagus (Apr 10, 2009)

Thanks for the compliments guys. I thought this thread had completely died out! Good to see that people are giving this amazing light the attention it deserves.


ehallspqr said:


> By the way AardVark if you can't live with the beam on your deluxe legion II I would be interested in buying it.


Yes I am a little unhappy with the beam on the sample I tested, but unfortunately it was only a test sample. I am at present far to financially insecure to purchase a light of this caliber and therefor I was forced to merely have a shot at the roving demo sample that Neoseikan is circulating.


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## applevision (Apr 10, 2009)

AardvarkSagus said:


> Thanks for the compliments guys. I thought this thread had completely died out! Good to see that people are giving this amazing light the attention it deserves.
> 
> Yes I am a little unhappy with the beam on the sample I tested, but unfortunately it was only a test sample. I am at present far to financially insecure to purchase a light of this caliber and therefor I was forced to merely have a shot at the roving demo sample that Neoseikan is circulating.



*AardvarkSagus*, it was a really good review in part because it was pretty hard on the product which made it feel very unbiased. I am going to pull trigger on this. But I agree--*Neoseikan*, can we at least update folks on how the lights are coming along?!


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## Illumination (Apr 11, 2009)

applevision said:


> *AardvarkSagus*, it was a really good review in part because it was pretty hard on the product which made it feel very unbiased. I am going to pull trigger on this. But I agree--*Neoseikan*, can we at least update folks on how the lights are coming along?!




yes, please give us an update. i was on the verge of buying another P7 light that is getting a lot of attention now, but I think i'd rather get one of these.

and if possible, let us know if there will be any of the "limited" units forthcoming. i missed the first batch of 30 would like to get in on that if possible. if not, any chance the regular version will at least have the stainless bezel?


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## Art Vandelay (Apr 29, 2009)




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## drjohnf (Oct 15, 2009)

*Re: Neofab Legion II: This flashlight does not work!*

I received my Neofab Legion II a couple of weeks ago - and was excited to finally receive two set of my 18650 3000mAh 3.7 V Li-Ion batteries and chargers (Ultrafire). You can imagine my surprise when the flashlight turned on - but was not even as bright as my kids' LED reading light that runs off a watch battery!
I checked the voltages on the batteries - and all is fine....and mixing all 6 of the batteries results in the same dim flashlight!

So - was I taken it? Is this Neofab flashlight just a hoax? I taken everything apart and have cleaned everything and put it back together just fine. The flashlight seems to be well made - but simply works no better than a $0.50 flashlight from the corner store! I have inserted all batteries with the positive leads towards the front of the flashlight.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[email protected]


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## HKJ (Oct 16, 2009)

*Re: Neofab Legion II: This flashlight does not work!*



drjohnf said:


> I have inserted all batteries with the positive leads towards the front of the flashlight.



There you have the problem, look at post #12 in this thread.


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## sjalbrec (Oct 16, 2009)




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## Paa100 (Oct 16, 2009)

Looks like that's it. There is no clue on the torch. Mine came a couple of weeks ago. A few dings on the bezel and tailcap but it's like a lightsabre.


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## TITAN1833 (Oct 16, 2009)

*Re: Neofab Legion II: This flashlight does not work!*



drjohnf said:


> I received my Neofab Legion II a couple of weeks ago - and was excited to finally receive two set of my 18650 3000mAh 3.7 V Li-Ion batteries and chargers (Ultrafire). You can imagine my surprise when the flashlight turned on - but was not even as bright as my kids' LED reading light that runs off a watch battery!
> I checked the voltages on the batteries - and all is fine....and mixing all 6 of the batteries results in the same dim flashlight!
> 
> So - was I taken it? Is this Neofab flashlight just a hoax? I taken everything apart and have cleaned everything and put it back together just fine. The flashlight seems to be well made - but simply works no better than a $0.50 flashlight from the corner store! I have inserted all batteries with the positive leads towards the front of the flashlight.
> ...



Did you not get instructions as posted by sjalbrec #29?:thinking:


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## AardvarkSagus (Oct 16, 2009)

*Re: Neofab Legion II: This flashlight does not work!*

That definitely doesn't sound right to me. No it's not a hoax. I don't actually own one but the one I tested made me giggle every time I fired it up on max.


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## jahxman (Oct 16, 2009)

I hope it isn't damaged from inserting the batteries that way. 

Admittedly the lack of included documentation or polarity marks on the light itself is a problem, but I'm a little surprised you bought a $180 light and didn't educate yourself on how to properly insert the batteries before doing so. The information is posted on most of the threads about the Legion II here on CPF.

ALso, hopefully you didn't run it like that for very long, as the reverse charging on the backwards cell could have damaged it and made it risky to use.


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## neoseikan (Oct 16, 2009)

jahxman said:


> I hope it isn't damaged from inserting the batteries that way.
> 
> Admittedly the lack of included documentation or polarity marks on the light itself is a problem, but I'm a little surprised you bought a $180 light and didn't educate yourself on how to properly insert the batteries before doing so. The information is posted on most of the threads about the Legion II here on CPF.
> 
> ALso, hopefully you didn't run it like that for very long, as the reverse charging on the backwards cell could have damaged it and made it risky to use.



The wrong direction won't damage the batteries.
But the wrong direction of the board in front of the tube might bring short of the batteries. It's dangerous.
Sorry for not mailing the instruction in time.


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## TITAN1833 (Oct 16, 2009)

jahxman said:


> I hope it isn't damaged from inserting the batteries that way.
> 
> Admittedly the lack of included documentation or polarity marks on the light itself is a problem, but I'm a little surprised you bought a $180 light and didn't educate yourself on how to properly insert the batteries before doing so. The information is posted on most of the threads about the Legion II here on CPF.
> 
> ALso, hopefully you didn't run it like that for very long, as the reverse charging on the backwards cell could have damaged it and made it risky to use.



With respect  I would certainly say this if the poster had been on CPF for awhile but here we should give the guy a chance/and benefit of doubt he's only joined in October and IMO the responsibility falls at the manufacturer for not supplying proper instructions in the first place, indeed if that is the case here 

yes in hindsight he may have wondered about the correct installation but lets not be to hasty with him it seems he got the light first and waited for batteries,

excitement when the batteries arrived may have got the better of him,I'm sure it's happened to use all at sometime in our lives


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## HKJ (Oct 16, 2009)

I think that is a careless of Neoseikan not to include polarity indication in the light, my solution was to scratch some + and - sign into the battery tube.


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## TITAN1833 (Oct 16, 2009)

HKJ said:


> I think that is a careless of Neoseikan not to include polarity indication in the light, my solution was to scratch some + and - sign into the battery tube.



It's an absolute requirement to protect the customer and the manufacturers liability when it comes to warranty issues i.e reversing battery polarity  you can imagine the mayhem if a shop took and sold 100 lights with no instructions or battery polarity markings :mecry: Good thing as Neo said this should not harm this light :twothumbs


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