After my Surefire G2 review, I talked to Gene Malkoff about sending some LED replacements. He agreed and sent the M61L, which is suited for the nitrolon body of the Surefire. He also threw in the package the big brother of the M61L, the M61, which is similar aside from the “L” – where “L” stands for “low output.”

I’ve reviewed similar items like this as one review before, but this will be separate posts (the other one will come later today). I think that’s a better separation of material, and should end up being a bit clearer in the long term. Let me know what you think of that!

Official Specs and Features

Here’s a link to the official product page.

Versions

In the sense of this dropin, there’s only this one. But more generally speaking, this dropin body is available in many configurations. There’s the M61L, which is a single mode low output. There’s the other one I have, the M61, which isn’t low output, but still single mode.

But there are a bunch:

M61 Mod to fit Surefire and Malkoff

M61L (Low Output) to fit Surefire

M61LL (lowest output) to fit Surefire

M61N (neutral tint) to fit Surefire and Malkoff

M61NL (neutral tint, low output) to fit Surefire and Malkoff

M61NLL (neutral tint, lowest output) to fit Surefire and Malkoff

M61W (warm tint) to fit Surefire

M61WL (warml tint, low output) to fit Surefire

M61WLL (warm tint, lowest output) to fit Surefire

M361-LMH Low-Med-High to Fit SureFire

M361N-LMH Neutral Low-Med-High to Fit SureFire

And there are even others, not really for the G2, but still using basically the same brass parts.

Price

This specific dropin is $45.99, on sale from $59.00.

Short Review

This is a very nice upgrade to the nitrolon Surefire G2 (etc) incandescent dropin. It’s extremely well built, and dead simple.

Long Review

The Big Table

And a table for the other options:

* Standard measurement disclaimer: I am an amateur flashlight reviewer. I don’t have $10,000 or even $1,000 worth of testing equipment. I test output and such in PVC tubes!! Please consider claims within 10% of what I measure to be perfectly reasonable (accurate, even).

What’s Included

Malkoff M61L dropin

Package and Manual

This dropin ships in a plastic blister pack, which is easily opened without cutting.

There is no manual. It’s plug and play.

Build Quality and Disassembly

This is a very nice dropin. It’s extremely solid. The electronics are potted, so there’s nothing to move or manipulate or …. anything. It’s just a solid chunk of dropin.

Though I don’t know what the reasons are, I expect this narrow-to-broad spring is used purposefully. I would probably prefer a bit of a stiffer spring, especially if intended as a weapon light.

The specific dropin name is scratched into the brass body. This is effective, and reasonable since the guts are potted and thus essentially permanent.

Would a sticker with the dropin name be nice? Sure, probably. Particularly if that sticker had dropin specifics like voltage range.

Size and Comps

Here are the dimensions, as measured by me:

Largest diameter: 26.16mm

Narrowest diameter: 18.46mm

Length: 29.0mm

Length including uncompressed spring: 34.68mm

Power and Runtime

The Surefire G2, in which I tested the M61L, is designed for 2 CR123 cells. The dropin voltage range is 3V to 9V. So it’ll actually work with more than 2xCR123!

Since I don’t test with primary cells, I tested with a 16650 Li-ion cell. That voltage is 4.2V. As a result, my max output will likely be a little lower than with a two-cell setup.

(The pic below is just a liion cell, more for size purposes, not what I tested the dropin with.)

As you can see, I measure around 160 lumens. The spec is 230 lumens, but that’s on 6V 2-up cells. Either way, the output is extremely consistent, until the drop off around 4 hours. At that point, output drops dramatically, and while the light never shuts off, it is noticeably dim.

There is no LVP.

PWM

No PWM on this dropin!

For reference, here’s a baseline shot, with all the room lights off and almost nothing hitting the sensor. And here’s the worst PWM light I have ever owned. Also one of the very first lights I ordered directly from China!

User Interface and Operation

No UI table is necessary. The mechanism for this dropin is either on or off. If a circuit is made between the spring, body, and a cell, the dropin will be on.

In the case of the Surefire G2, the switch is a mechanical twist, or momentary. But the dropin doesn’t care what type mechanical switch is used.

Modes and Currents

Mode Mode Claimed Output (lm) Claimed Runtime Measured Lumens Tailcap Amps 6V 230 5h 261 0.2 4.2V – – 160 0.24

LED and Beam

The emitter used in many of these dropins is a Cree XP-G2 Cool White (6200K). Some of the others are specifically labeled as being other temperatures, though. The reflector is lightly orange peel, and not terribly deep.

These beamshots are always with the following settings: f8, ISO100, 0.3s shutter, and manual 5000K exposure.

6V (CR123x2)

4.2V (Single Liion – 16650)

Tint vs BLF-348 (Killzone 219b version)

I compare everything to the Killzone 219b BLF-348, because it’s inexpensive and has the best tint!

Conclusion

What I like

Robust build quality

Low output considers nitrolon body of Surefire G2

PLENTY of options in the line, to get whatever is wanted

What I don’t like

Prefer a stiffer spring

Would like LVP

Notes

This light was provided by Malkoff for review. I was not paid to write this review.

This content originally appeared at zeroair.org. Please visit there for the best experience!

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