Cesiumsponge
03-12-07, 20:37
I got the Surefire 618FA and KL5 head today for my own Rem 870 project :D Thanks Grant!
It is 100% compatible, no problems or issues at all.
The KL5 head is brighter than the OEM head, and the beam is much more diffuse and widespread. The overall whiteness of it also makes it appear much more brilliant. The OEM xenon head is very focused and yellower (typical) beam when compared side-to-side. This image doesn't do a perfect comparison due to my lack of exposure metering controls; the (cheap) camera autobalanced but the LED is actually brighter if both were exposed for the same duration.
http://www.impulselabs.org/Personal/Eric/Gun/Surefire618Comp.jpg
I think the more diffuse, wider beam of light is of great benefit for home defense since I personally think you would want maximal area coverage inside a building, not a tight, focused beam that'll give you peripheral vision in the dark. That is more suited for outdoors use where you need long light throw. It is also a solidly made LED unit. I tried opening it up to take a look at internal construction methods but couldn't unscrew any part(s) of it and didn't want to try any harder in case it was purposely sealed to prevent tampering. I don't expect it to break. Same dual spring construction as traditional Surefire shock isolated bezels, plus LEDs are solid state and have no filament to bust.
http://www.impulselabs.org/Personal/Eric/Gun/Surefire618Weight.jpg
The OEM head size is 1.715" in length and 1.375" diameter. The KL5 unit is 2.185" length and 1.470" dia, which makes it slightly larger, but that shouldn't pose any clearance issues. The KL5 is about double the weight of the OEM head, but this component isn't heavy to begin with in the overall scheme of things. In fact, the addition of the KL5 adds about the same weight as one 00 buck shotshell.
http://www.impulselabs.org/Personal/Eric/Gun/Surefire1.jpg
http://www.impulselabs.org/Personal/Eric/Gun/Surefire2.jpg
http://www.impulselabs.org/Personal/Eric/Gun/Surefire3.jpg
I highly recommend this for anyone that already runs the 618FA unit and wants to add more without buying an entirely new system. It won't quite put you in 918FA territory as far as light output but you can get something in between without adding much weight or size (the 918 looks way long!), and you don't have to worry about the dreaded xenon power dump when the batteries run low and output practically dissapears in 30 seconds.
As mentioned on Surefire's website, the benefit is a brighter beam-- 100 lumens of output for one hour followed by 3 hours of useful light output, and plug-and-play. From what I have seen, it should also be much tougher, provides a better beam profile for home defense in my opinion, looks more brilliant due to the spectrum output, and looks wicked :D
It is 100% compatible, no problems or issues at all.
The KL5 head is brighter than the OEM head, and the beam is much more diffuse and widespread. The overall whiteness of it also makes it appear much more brilliant. The OEM xenon head is very focused and yellower (typical) beam when compared side-to-side. This image doesn't do a perfect comparison due to my lack of exposure metering controls; the (cheap) camera autobalanced but the LED is actually brighter if both were exposed for the same duration.
http://www.impulselabs.org/Personal/Eric/Gun/Surefire618Comp.jpg
I think the more diffuse, wider beam of light is of great benefit for home defense since I personally think you would want maximal area coverage inside a building, not a tight, focused beam that'll give you peripheral vision in the dark. That is more suited for outdoors use where you need long light throw. It is also a solidly made LED unit. I tried opening it up to take a look at internal construction methods but couldn't unscrew any part(s) of it and didn't want to try any harder in case it was purposely sealed to prevent tampering. I don't expect it to break. Same dual spring construction as traditional Surefire shock isolated bezels, plus LEDs are solid state and have no filament to bust.
http://www.impulselabs.org/Personal/Eric/Gun/Surefire618Weight.jpg
The OEM head size is 1.715" in length and 1.375" diameter. The KL5 unit is 2.185" length and 1.470" dia, which makes it slightly larger, but that shouldn't pose any clearance issues. The KL5 is about double the weight of the OEM head, but this component isn't heavy to begin with in the overall scheme of things. In fact, the addition of the KL5 adds about the same weight as one 00 buck shotshell.
http://www.impulselabs.org/Personal/Eric/Gun/Surefire1.jpg
http://www.impulselabs.org/Personal/Eric/Gun/Surefire2.jpg
http://www.impulselabs.org/Personal/Eric/Gun/Surefire3.jpg
I highly recommend this for anyone that already runs the 618FA unit and wants to add more without buying an entirely new system. It won't quite put you in 918FA territory as far as light output but you can get something in between without adding much weight or size (the 918 looks way long!), and you don't have to worry about the dreaded xenon power dump when the batteries run low and output practically dissapears in 30 seconds.
As mentioned on Surefire's website, the benefit is a brighter beam-- 100 lumens of output for one hour followed by 3 hours of useful light output, and plug-and-play. From what I have seen, it should also be much tougher, provides a better beam profile for home defense in my opinion, looks more brilliant due to the spectrum output, and looks wicked :D