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Posted: 2/22/2010 2:45:39 PM EDT
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Ok so I have 5 Surefire flashlights. 1 G2L, 2 6PL's, and 2 G2's. Now I know the G2L has a metal bezel as a heat sink since LED can cook itself after prolonged use. I want to upgrade my 2 incandescent G2's with LED conversions.
My question is, will a conversion like the malkoff (which has a brass housing to serve as a heat sink) Solve the issue of dropping a LED conversion in a polymer flashlight or do i stll run the risk of overheating it?. |
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I'm by no means an expert on this, I'd barley call my self a novice, but I'm in the same boat as you. I have an original G2 with plastic head that I want to upgrade to LED
From the research I've done, its possible, but overall just not recommended to drop a high output LED into the G2 plastic. Basically the biggest threat to an LED is heat, because it can damage them. Normal Incandescent bulbs radiate much of their heat away in the light beam. This is not the case for LEDs, they need direct contact to transfer heat away. This is why the G2L's have a metal head, it acts as a heat sink. Although even a metal head may not be enough for prolonged use. If you look at Surefire's website, they sell a P60L LED drop in, which is the same bulb used in the G2L. Surefire says its ok to use this in the standard G2, but from what I've read its because the P60L has some built in electronics that can sense if the LED is getting too hot, and its scales back output to prevent damage to the light. This also applies to the G2L with the metal head, the electroncs add an extra layer of protection if the metal head can't get rid of the heat quick enough. If you go with the Malkoff, many people recommend the M60LL which is the lowest output he makes, 80 Lumens. Even with that you may have to be careful with a plastic head and prolonged use. If you go with a TNVC, I've seen people say they've used them in the standard G2's, but personally I don't know if I want to risk it. To sum up, plastic lights are generally a bad choice for high output LEDs. In some cases even if they have a metal head. I think I’m going to retire the G2 to everyday carry and get a 6P (all metal body) to do a drop in. Anyway hopefully an expert will chime in, but that's my take on things *Edit* I guess I should add some links to back up my ramblings Thread 1 Thread 2 Thread 3 This forum is also a good resource Candle Power Forums |
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Quoted:
I use an older import LED dropin in my G2, but use it with a Z32 metal bezel. I suppose this is one option of you want to hold onto your polymer G2. Actually, shock isolated bezels such as the Z32 provide very poor thermal conditions for LEDs, similar to polymer bezels. If you're going to purchase a bezel for your G2 to use the P60L LED Lamp Assembly or an aftermarket drop-in, the one you want is the 'standard bezel' - Z44-BK. |
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Quoted:
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I use an older import LED dropin in my G2, but use it with a Z32 metal bezel. I suppose this is one option of you want to hold onto your polymer G2. Actually, shock isolated bezels such as the Z32 provide very poor thermal conditions for LEDs, similar to polymer bezels. If you're going to purchase a bezel for your G2 to use the P60L LED Lamp Assembly or an aftermarket drop-in, the one you want is the 'standard bezel' - Z44-BK. Why is the Z32 a poor performer compared to the regular bezel? Specifically with a P60L bulb. |
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Quoted:
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Quoted:
I use an older import LED dropin in my G2, but use it with a Z32 metal bezel. I suppose this is one option of you want to hold onto your polymer G2. Actually, shock isolated bezels such as the Z32 provide very poor thermal conditions for LEDs, similar to polymer bezels. If you're going to purchase a bezel for your G2 to use the P60L LED Lamp Assembly or an aftermarket drop-in, the one you want is the 'standard bezel' - Z44-BK. Why is the Z32 a poor performer compared to the regular bezel? Specifically with a P60L bulb. Read this, it helped me understand Z32 Bezel & LEDs *Edit* I linked the wrong post, although the above post also sheds light (pun intended) on the matter, this post talks specifically to your Z32 question. http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=3&f=20&t=483482 |
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