I think that for 14500 one could use L2r with one 14500 and a dummy cell.
But boosting from 2xAA 2.4v (or even 3v) input to 3.7 Vf shouldn't waste too much. Two AA eneloops have about 4.8Wh, three AAA have about 2.8Wh, so I guess the 2xAA in the L2r will give brighter output / longer runtime than the L2i.
I got the L2i for 8 bucks at solarforce sales...its the whole body excluding the drop in of course.
Great history of the P60, Solarforce, etc. I disagree on going straight to the L2 though. If you can find the drop-in you want in a DX host for $20, that will be hard to beat, especially if you're just getting started. You can get a L2 for $13.50 (I really don't like the L2i for 18650 use though I know some people disagree; L2i is great for 3xAAA though I wouldn't try to run an XM-L from it), but then you need the flat bezel for $2.50 for a total of $16 and now you might as well get the L2p for $19.99. So now you've spent what the whole light cost at DX and all you've got is a host. Then you can buy a drop-in at DX for $12-16 and you're way over the $20 you could have spent.
If someone has a target price of $35-40 then yeah, a Solarforce is great, but if their target is $20-25 then the DX lottery might be the way to go or even a fake Solarforce with XM-L from KD. I'm quite happy with a 502B and a 504B I got from DX though I changed the drivers out. I like my Solarforce hosts too. I think there is a place for the Ultrafires and Solarforces, but for a first or only purchase it just depends on what a person wants to spend.
Thanks again to everyone for the reply!
I read on another thread that someone here on BLF is using 1x14500 with the L2i.
I do strongly prefer AA batteries, but I don't like 2xAA such as the L2r, looks rather unwieldy.
The Ultrafire WF-504B does look pretty nice. Just that the L2i is a true Solarforce for a really good price.
Here's a good review of some 18650 battery lengths: http://lygte-info.dk/info/Batteries18650-2011%20UK.html
If i ever get a solarforce and probably will, it would be a L2P grey. That one looks so good to me that i don't mind spending the extra required.
That was a very nice writeup brjones :)
I don't have an L2 so I'm not sure if it's as generous inside as an L2P, but the L2P has so much space inside a 75mm cell wouldn't be the slightest problem I suspect an 80mm one would fit too...not that either of those exist.
Seems there is a bit of confusion about battery lengths and widths .. the first 2 numbers being the width and the second three the length .So obviously if people are having problems with a 18650 than a 18700 that has 5 more millimeters will be an even greater problem...All this is assuming that a black trustfire is indeed 650 milimeters long ..(Which it ISN"T) They run long and you need to be careful with certain hosts . you need to know the real specs on all batteries .(one more reason that bad specs from vendors make people crazy )
That and the extra money for another bezel Knocks Lxi out .Even brted who seems to be somewaht handy claims he isn't a fan of his and has seemingly happily replace it with a L2p..seems to me the l2 is only 12 bucks .. so what's the difference between this and the lxi and a bezel for 3 bucks more ..(I thought bezels used to be 5 ?? )
My theory remains buy a decent one .. there will be plenty of opportunities to buy junk cheap like the last 3 manafont deals ..There have been hosts in every one , Don't worry you want trash It's always available ..
The P-60 takes a lot of heat ..And I mean the pun here ..Lots of people are either unrealistic or very wreckless when it comes to their lights ..DUH every light heats up .. turn it off or turn it down ..To continually whine about the thermal properties of the flashlight is just dumb .99% of the people using a flashlight never run it on high for hours at a time .Anyone who plans on doing so need to seriously get a clue and ask real questions about what kind of light they should be buying , because running the highest brightest and pulling the most amps causes heat and heat causes failure..
Best advice is buy the l2 or like brted said a fake L2. lego ability becomes very important factor as there are too many models that don't swap parts already , why add to the confusion .
Battery nomenclature
3 parts.
So for an 18650 we get 18 and 65 and 0.
First is cell diameter, second is cell length, the 0 is for a cylindrical cell.
Or for 16340, 16mm diameter, 34mm length, cylindrical cell
Hmmm, an L2... You're right, they do have L2 models for $11.50. But that's with a spiky bezel and the standard switch, which doesn't seem to be able to tailstand.
I could just follow the suggestion to get an Ultrafire 504B, but I'm heard so many good things about Solarforce products and so many negative things about a lot of other Ultrafire products that it doesn't make a lot of sense when there are such inexpensive Solarforces out there.
Well I'll be... is THAT what those numbers mean?
Learn something new every day, thanks Don!
I recieved my 3 hosts from Solarforce toady and must correct a mistake I made when I attempted to answer the OP question above. Or rather, a mistake on Solarforec-sales that I repeated. Solarforce lists the L2i as 3 x AAA with the carrier and 2 x CR123 or 1 x 18650 without the carrier. 18650 or CR123s will not fit in there - they're too long. Unless I'm missing something obvious.
Anyway, I'm delighted with these hosts.
reviewtofollowFoy
An 18650 can fit, but you have to make sure it is in the ring at the top of the battery compartment. And you still may not be able to fully tighten the head and tailcap. The website says it will take a 18650, but it isn't easy. There's some discussion of this here:
OK I offer this up as an option only because it is what I did when I first got into flashlights ..I bought this . which has a shortened body for the cr123a or the 16340 cells ///for like 15$ then I went and bought the convertor from solarforce for like 4$ ? !6 $ shipped ..so i ended up with a not sharp bezel an r2 5 mode and an extra body if I want to make it a shorty for about 20$.. But then you ask yourself the question Didn't kia domain have fake l2's with xmls for twenty somethin ??..http://kaidomain.com/ProductDetails.aspx?ProductId=11155 fake but xml < my question would be ... does it lego with real solarforce ...Oddly this may be the exact dividing line between budget lights and non-budget . xml's and solarforce @ about 40$