I've been a Surefire guy for the last 5 years or so. Every since my good ol' rechargeable Streamlight SL-20 to a **** on me in the middle of the woods during a manhunt in the middle of the night.
But that's another story.
For the last few years, the LED type of flashlights has taken over the flashlight market by leaps and bounds. IMHO, a flashlight has basically three jobs to do.
1. Illuminate a room or the insides of a car with a fairly wide flood so that I can see everything around.
2. Be bright enough to blind any and all subjects I encounter.
And...
3. Be able to illuminate a target/threat at least 50 yards (+/-) away.
Surefire's Xenon/incandescent lights basically did all of that, but runtime on a set of batts wasn't the best in the world. That was always the one area where the LED really made it's name. Instead of just an hour or so on a single set of batts from a Xenon torch, an LED powered light could run for 2, 4 even 10 or 12 hours on a single set of batteries, depending on the lumens.
So, a few years ago, Surefire starts making LEDs...which basically sucked.
Oh sure, they would light up a room like nobody's business and they would even temporarilly blind an assailant...if you were up close and personal. But, they never, ever really had the power to reach out there and light up the world past 20 or 30 yards.
Until now.
Last month, I bought a Surefire LX2 "Lumamax" which replaced my old friend, the Surefire L4.
The Surefire L4 was an awesome light. It lit up a room like high noon with it's 100 lumen "wall of light" but again, it just couldn't throw enough for my likings.
The Surefire LX2 with it's TIR (Total Internal Reflection) lens and cornea searing 200 lumens can illuminate targets/threats from 50 yards away and then some. It also sports a 15 lumen low beam for finding your way down a dark path or for whenever 200 lumens is a little too much. This little guy is AWESOME!
Today I get a package in the mail from our good buddy Repete34 (thanks again budro! ) containing a new Surefire Z2X "Combat Light."
This little guy doesn't have the TIR lens like the Surefire LX2, but buddy let me tell ya...it'll throw just as far as my little LX2 and light up a room nicely.
Yep! Surefire FINALLY got it right! I've got, what I think, is an awesome duty combo with the Surefire Z2X "Combat Light" on my belt in a kydex Blade-Tech combo mag pouch and the Surefire LX2 clipped inside my pocket, serving as my back-up light. The little LX2 also serves as my off-duty/EDC light.
Surefire! Don't have one? Get one!
But that's another story.
For the last few years, the LED type of flashlights has taken over the flashlight market by leaps and bounds. IMHO, a flashlight has basically three jobs to do.
1. Illuminate a room or the insides of a car with a fairly wide flood so that I can see everything around.
2. Be bright enough to blind any and all subjects I encounter.
And...
3. Be able to illuminate a target/threat at least 50 yards (+/-) away.
Surefire's Xenon/incandescent lights basically did all of that, but runtime on a set of batts wasn't the best in the world. That was always the one area where the LED really made it's name. Instead of just an hour or so on a single set of batts from a Xenon torch, an LED powered light could run for 2, 4 even 10 or 12 hours on a single set of batteries, depending on the lumens.
So, a few years ago, Surefire starts making LEDs...which basically sucked.
Oh sure, they would light up a room like nobody's business and they would even temporarilly blind an assailant...if you were up close and personal. But, they never, ever really had the power to reach out there and light up the world past 20 or 30 yards.
Until now.
Last month, I bought a Surefire LX2 "Lumamax" which replaced my old friend, the Surefire L4.
The Surefire L4 was an awesome light. It lit up a room like high noon with it's 100 lumen "wall of light" but again, it just couldn't throw enough for my likings.
The Surefire LX2 with it's TIR (Total Internal Reflection) lens and cornea searing 200 lumens can illuminate targets/threats from 50 yards away and then some. It also sports a 15 lumen low beam for finding your way down a dark path or for whenever 200 lumens is a little too much. This little guy is AWESOME!
Today I get a package in the mail from our good buddy Repete34 (thanks again budro! ) containing a new Surefire Z2X "Combat Light."
This little guy doesn't have the TIR lens like the Surefire LX2, but buddy let me tell ya...it'll throw just as far as my little LX2 and light up a room nicely.
Yep! Surefire FINALLY got it right! I've got, what I think, is an awesome duty combo with the Surefire Z2X "Combat Light" on my belt in a kydex Blade-Tech combo mag pouch and the Surefire LX2 clipped inside my pocket, serving as my back-up light. The little LX2 also serves as my off-duty/EDC light.
Surefire! Don't have one? Get one!