July 16 2003
First commercially available LuxeonV-Portable light.
The head is a KL4, compatible with 2 CR123As. The KL4 is due to be released as an option unit.
The LuxeonV-Portable is known to emit quite an amount of heat when run
near the rated current so I was anxious to know how the manufacturer was
going to deal with this. The L4(KL4) was dealt forthrightly, in a way in
a very Surefire like solution. Just like the filament type lights (excluding
the E series), for a tradeoff for brightness, it generates an incredible
amount of heat when used continuously.
Thus I must warn you in the beginning. There is a lot of heat generated from this light and after running it for only 10 minutes, the head in particular gets quite hot so please be cautious not to get burned. The body part warms rather gradually so as long as you take care how you hold it without touching the head, you can somewhat use it for long periods. It is a fact that heat will not contribute to the longevity of the LED, so you should turn it off when not necessary.
Also, when carrying around, please loosen the tail (it locks out if you twist it about 180 degrees) so you don't turn it on accidentaly.
I've kept writing cautions about this light, but personally I like it. This is because I highly regard the facts that it is so compact despite using a 5W-Luxeon, and it shines a pretty beam pattern in a close range wide area. It could have been better with a slightly tighter spot beam for more throw, but exactly because it isn't, I think that there will be applications for a compact light that differs from filament type lights like the E2.
What is distinctive hardware wise is the switch. It is a Lock-out Tailcap different from the E1 or E2, and is described [click-on/click-off tailcap pushbutton switch] in the instruction manual. Put simply, it is a clickable switch like what you would find on an ARC-LS or Scorpion. Lightly press and it shines, release and it will go out. You must push it in until you hear a clicking sound (a rather large sound), and you need quite an amount of force. Some people may find it too stiff. As far as I have tested, this switch can be used on the E1 and E2. It depends on your preferences, but compared to the conventional Lock-out Tail cap, I found this easier to use for intermittent use and hope to buy one if offered as an option.
The KL4 is the first in the series of LuxeonV-Portable lights. From the aggressive approach [Brightness over heat] SUREFIRE has taken, I am highly anticipating how the series will develop. (On the other hand, those seeking reliability may have become more anxious..)
Note: Luxeons vary in quality. Especially, the beam color showed in the photos above may differ greatly. Please understand this. Also in the early production L4s, many lacked a gasket resulting in a water resistance issue. belyo has a detailed description regarding this in the BBS section so please refer.
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