Why buy SureFire?

SureFire illumination tools are the finest in the world — compact, rugged, powerful, reliable, efficient. Engineered for maximum performance and precision manufactured, they produce optimal beams — brilliant light with no rings, hot spots, or shadows. That’s why people whose lives may depend on having enough light when they need it, such as military, emergency, and police personnel and outdoors professionals, rely on SureFire.

The Surefire Difference: Superior Technology

Why do SureFire products perform so well in the field? Because we combine advanced design with superior materials and technology, delivering the finest illumination tools possible for extreme situations and environmental conditions. When your life depends on having enough light just when you need it, spend the money to get the best — SureFire.

Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs)
LED diagram compliments of Lumileds Lighting LLC. An LED (the acronym for Light-Emitting Diode) is a semiconductor “chip” that converts electrical energy directly into light. An LED is called a solid-state light source because it has no gas or liquid components, as do other light sources. The LEDs in SureFire flashlights consists of the emitter chip mounted on a solid base; the chip is attached to electrical leads (wires) that conduct power to it, and it is encased in a clear polymer that is shaped to either focus or disperse the LED’s light in the desired manner.

LEDs generally emit light within a narrow spectral band. In order to produce white light, which consists of the entire visible spectrum combined (or nearly so, as far as the human eye can discern), we use LEDs that emit near-ultraviolet blue light that strikes an upper layer of phosphors. These phosphors absorb the blue light and re-emit white light, in much the same manner that fluorescent light tubes produce white light.

LEDs possess some tremendous advantages over incandescent lamps. First, LEDs can last thousands of hours versus less than fifty hours for high-output incandescent lamps. Second, Photo showing flat surface of high-output LED and surrounding micro-textured reflector.because LEDs are very robust in construction, and have no mechanically delicate parts such as glass bulbs, filaments, or filament supports, they are extremely resistant to vibration and shock, making them well-suited for the combat environment or for mounting on firearms. Third, LEDs produce virtually no invisible infrared radiation, as opposed to incandescent lamps, which emit over 85% of their output as infrared, and therefore LEDs are much more efficient in producing light than incandescent lamps — an important factor for battery-operated flashlights. And fourth, they will emit light over a wide range of power input making LEDs the natural choice for adjustable-output light sources.

As noted above, there are currently some disadvantages to LED light sources. First, most LEDs emit forward from a flat surface, necessitating more complex reflectors and lenses to produce desirable beam characteristics. Second, because LEDs are susceptible to damage from overheating they have certain thermal design requirements. Therefore, continuous-use LED sources currently have a practical limit of less than 150 lumens. Third, LEDs are difficult to manufacture without some variance in lumen output and color. For this reason, they are tested and sorted by the manufacturer into different “bins” according to output and color. SureFire minimizes such product variability by purchasing LEDs only from the highest-quality bins.

Electronic Power Regulation — SureFire's LED illumination tools contain a rugged, sealed electronic power regulator that supervises the operation of the LED (with the exception of the A2 Aviator, in which the xenon lamp is regulated). This circuitry assesses battery output, monitors system performance, and controls power supplied to the LED. Power regulation provides a more consistent light output for the useable life of the batteries. Although any LED may continue to produce negligible light output for up to several hundred hours, the amount of useful light produced is of a shorter duration. Power regulation circuitry reduces the amount of negligible output and increases the overall duration of useful light output.

Lithium Batteries
Shelf Life — At room temperature, lithium batteries can be stored 10 years and still supply about 70% of their power. Alkaline batteries have a significantly shorter shelf life.

Temperature Tolerance — Lithium batteries function over a wide temperature range (-60° to 80°C, or -76°F to 176°F), although power is reduced at the extremes. In contrast, alkaline batteries function poorly below freezing and at higher temperatures. The temperature tolerance of lithium batteries also benefits their shelf life. Storing alkaline batteries at higher temperatures can kill them in a few months, but lithium batteries stored for years at similar temperatures can still function effectively. SF 123A Lithium Batteries

Power Density — For a given size (volume), lithium batteries produce much more power than alkaline batteries. For example, given same-sized batteries and the same power load, it would take about 2.5 alkaline batteries to match the power output of one lithium battery.

Weight — For a given size (volume) lithium batteries weigh about half as much as alkaline batteries. For example, an alkaline battery the size of a SureFire SF123 battery would weigh about twice as much.

Voltage — Terminal voltage for lithium batteries is 3 volts compared to 1.5 for alkaline batteries.

Voltage Maintenance — A lithium battery maintains fairly constant voltage for up to 95% of its life, depending on discharge rate. At moderate to high discharge rates, alkaline battery voltage drops rapidly due to internal battery resistance, which wastes power. The large reaction area provided by a lithium battery’s wound-plate construction provides very low internal resistance, ideal for high current loads.

For more information on the SureFire products we carry, please contact us.