Clone Solarforce L2 , + Ramping P60 drop in from DX [ Variable battery options ]

For review , a clone Solarforce L2 + 18650 extension from Lightake.com and a Ramping P60 drop in from DX

Lets start with the host body . I found the body to be very well made , literally comparable to a Solarforce L2 . The fit and finish was excellent , and when swapping parts with a real Solarforce , the fit was just as good . I have nothing negative to say about the body , the only thing not really great was the 18650 extension tube , it was machines a little generously and whilst not bad , it was just a little generous until tightened down . The machining on the main body was spot on , and whilst the threads were bone dry , they were also very well machined . I would rate the main body 10 out of 10 , and the extension about 7 out of 10 . Now I have a few 18650 extensions , so I just swapped them around so that I ended up with what I wanted .


DX ramping P60 drop in . After getting my first one , I really wanted another one , I really like these . Click to turn on and half click till it ramps . It always starts from low , and with some care you can get it really low [ more later ] . Lets check out some performance .

3.6v to 8.4v input .


1x18650 Current draw = 0.76A / 248L

2x18650 Current draw = 0.49A / 248L

4xAA Alkaline Current draw = 0.65A / 246L


Now the lowest I could get the current was 3.64mA for about 2L , now if you had a 2400mAh battery , that would = 659 hours run time .


Now you may see why I like this drop in , its not the brightest , but it is very versatile , easy to use [ ramp ] , and has a good voltage range , and the performance is still good using a single 4.2v Li-ion .


Now the reason I wanted this combination , was so that in a pinch , I could use AA batteries , in fact I was looking at running 4 AA's for about 6v of current input . For this one would need a 18650 host + 2x18650 extensions to get enough internal space to take 4xAA .


Here it is , 4xAA and variable output ..

Talk about versatility , 2xCR123A , 1x18650 , 2x18650 , or 4xAA . Any of these options will offer good well regulated output , and being able to run AA's in a pinch could very well be invaluable . Im very happy with this combination , as well as with the L2 clone itself , the sample I got is excellent , and if there all like this one , anyhow , hopefully this article inspires you the reader to consider some options that are available when venturing from the norm .

Is the host kind of greenish, or just silver chrome? When you say the machining was generous, does that mean the threads are kind of loose? Did you put some kind of tube or spacer in there to keep the AA's centered?

Thanks for the review.

That does look familiar. ;-)

Great find. I already had a Fake L2, plus the extender but my extender must have been built very poorly, I couldn't screw the tail cap fully on it. But after seeing your AA experiment, I wanted to try how much gap would 3xAA need with only one extender. The cap could screw on with a 4mm gap and this seemed to have worked for me and 3xAA's could sit in quite well thanks to both end springs. 3xAA batteries made almost 18650 in voltage and capacity, 3.6V for three 1.2V batteries, 4.2V fully charged.

I tried this setup with a warm MC-E emitter and it worked really well and it was a 500lm AA light at a blink. I don't know if all 2x18650 P60 hosts will work similarly but I'll try my new 502D body with 3xAA batteries as soon as it arrives.

R2 drop-in is another story. I felt that I must buy two at least. One with the original setup, R2, and the other with a neutral R4 I also have in the mail.

The AA's just rattle around in there , I dont mind , one could tape the battery bodies to stop the rattle , or machine up a tube to take up the slop .

+ If you go back in the time machine , you will find that old was the first to LEGO to AA with the L2's , I dont remember anyone doing it before me . [ geez now Im talking about myself in the 3rd person ] Must be the Flue ...

Extension - Lose ?? might be too strong a word , not as tight fitting as the tailcap , a small amount of play until tightened down [ then it was solid ]

Body Color = Nice and Chrome looking , anything else is a trick of the light or camera .

May we give him credit where credit is due... old4570 father of all AA LEGOs ;-)

The old Superfire / a friend took a liking to it and made me an offer I could not refuse ..

CPF is down , and the images may be gone , but before the Superfire there was the L2 ..

The superfire was a result of playing with the Lego L2's If I remeber correctly I went all the way to 6xAA

So 3*18650 extensions and one 1*123 extension ? Man, that thing must have been a nice baseball bat.

It is funny, the 4*AA configuration looks very long, but it is still much shorter than a 3D Mag.

Just for kicks, could another extension tube be added to house a different usable battery configuration? Notice that I didnt ask if it had to be practical. Wink

As long as the drop in can handle the voltage ...

I had a 18v max drop in , and tried it with 6xAA , but no reason you cant go as many cells as the drop in will handle .

Just remember , each 2xAA batteries = 3xCR123A or P9 [ Surefire ]

Since CPF is up again... olds phallic construction. ;-)

My Genuine Solarforce L2 plus extenders worked just as good with 4xAA's. And I checked a 3xAA configuration with a 18650 extender and a CR123. With only 1-1.5cm you can use 3xAA batteries in a L2 body. I used some aluminum chunk for the gap and voila.

SF clone quality. What do you think? Worth it? Or better pay $5 extra (just an example)?

This sample was nice , But genuine + extender [ genuine ] your looking at more than $5 difference ..

If your talking just the host , yeah , quibling over $5 ...

I went this route as the combo was a good deal [ Body + Extender ] and the difference payed for the drop in . + I wanted to see if there really was an issue with the clone [ Host Quality ] but the one I got was sweet . Its a very personnal thing , and with the Solarforce Host bodies being so cheap ATM it might make it easy to chose SF .

Yeah, $12,63 L2 and $20,99 L2P But still, if you can buy UF 504 for $8, and the quality is almost the same... so, why should I pay $5 more? :bigsmile:

The genuine 18650 extenders I got from Solarforce yesterday are more likely to match to a L2p (matte) than an original L2 (shiny black). They still make a good grip area on the L2 host. Made a perfect outdoor light with a 4.2-8.4V 3 Modes Neutral R4 drop-in I built myself.