Malkoff E2XT Flashlight (Head) Review

Malkoff recently released the E2XT Flashlight.  It’s a very throwy head and has a nice wide voltage range.  Read on for more testing!

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Official Specs and Features

Here’s a link to the Malkoff E2XT Flashlight product page.

Versions

A couple of versions of this guy.  The E2XT (seen here) and E2XTD head.  They’re similar, but the “D” in the one you don’t see here indicates that it’s a direct drive.  They are the same price.

Price

The going price for this part (just the head) is $189.99, and it appears to be a sale price.  It’s available here.

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Short Review

I love this thing.  During testing, I scavenged another Malkoff body I had for use with the part, but I liked the head enough to procure another body, for use as one of my main handheld throwers.

Long Review

The Big Table

Malkoff E2XT Flashlight
Emitter:	[unspecified] 5500K
Price in USD at publication time:	$189.99
Cell:	1×16650
Cooled Runtime	Uncooled Runtime
LVP?	No
Switch Type:	Mechanical
On-Board Charging?	No
Claimed Lumens (lm)	500
Measured Lumens (at 30s)	454 (90.8% of claim)^
Candela per Lumen	119.6
Claimed Throw (m)	305
Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s)	1117lux @ 6.999m = 54717cd
Throw (Calculated) (m)	467.8 (153.4% of claim)^

 

Cell:	6V (bench power)
Candela per Lumen	119.5
Claimed Throw (m)	305
Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s)	920lux @ 7.436m = 50871cd
Throw (Calculated) (m)	451.1 (147.9% of claim)^
All my Malkoff reviews!

^ Measurement disclaimer:  Testing flashlights is my hobby. I use hobbyist-level equipment for testing, including some I made myself. Try not to get buried in the details of manufacturer specifications versus measurements recorded here; A certain amount of difference (say, 10 or 15%) is perfectly reasonable.

What’s Included

• Malkoff E2XT Flashlight Head

Package and Manual

No manual is included.

Build Quality and Disassembly

The build quality here is unsurprisingly fantastic.  Be reminded any body you see this head-on isn’t included….  But any E-Series light will work.  I happen to have only two – this glossy orange (very limited edition) Malkoff 16650 (or 2xCR123) body and the other body below.

The head has two silk-screened logos.  One’s just a Malkoff brand, but the other has useful information – namely the voltage range of the head.  (Important because many e-series lights can support various voltages.

This is my other E-series body – also a Malkoff.  An MDC.  I usually use this with my Nichia 219b head, and I absolutely love it.

The electronics here are potted, and so no changes are going to be made to this one.  One great thing about that is that the labels on the body are always accurate.

Much to my surprise after I took all these photos, I found that the head does kind of come apart.  The bezel fully unscrews but again, there’s nothing in there to mess with.  The optic is exposed, but it’s affixed permanently to cover the LED.

Size and Comps

Tiny thrower, right here!  On the MDC 123 body, anyway.

I really like the head on this 16650 body, and that’s what I’ve used most.

Retention and Carry

There’s no body included, so no “real” retention.  But you’ll have a body, and all my E-Series bodies have pocket clips…

Power and Runtime

The documentation for this head says that the highest output will be achieved with 2xCR123 (aka 6V).  I didn’t find that to be the case, and so I just tested the light with a 16650 cell.  Since there’s only one output, I tested cooled and uncooled.  Not all that much difference between the two.

There doesn’t seem to be any LVP, but for this class light, I don’t think you’d really expect it.  And there doesn’t seem to be any electronic shutoff at all.

Modes and Currents

Mode	Mode Claimed Output (lm)	Claimed Runtime	Measured Lumens	Tailcap Amps
4.2V (16650)	500	–	454	2.21
6.0V (Benchpower)	500	–	448	1.96

Pulse Width Modulation

No PWM on the one mode.

For reference, here’s a baseline shot, with all the room lights off and almost nothing hitting the sensor.  Also, here’s the light with the worst PWM I could find.  I’m adding multiple timescales, so it’ll be easier to compare to the test light.  Unfortunately, the PWM on this light is so bad that it doesn’t even work with my normal scale, which is 50 microseconds (50us). 10ms.  5ms.  2ms.  1ms.  0.5ms.  0.2ms.  In a display faster than 0.2ms or so, the on/off cycle is more than one screen, so it’d just (very incorrectly) look like a flat line.  I wrote more about this Ultrafire WF-602C flashlight and explained a little about PWM too.

User Interface and Operation

The head itself doesn’t have any user interface.  You’ll likely pair it with a mechanical clicky, though.  Mechanical clicky operation is easy.  Click for on.  Click again for off.  Nothing more to it.

LED and Beam

The emitter is described as a “trade secret.”  I’m not really sure what it is, and the optic doesn’t come off so it’s hard to say.  I know that some internet sleuths will get it sorted in short order.  The optic gives a very good focused beam.  The temperature is a 5500K cool white.

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

Tint vs BLF-348 (KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b version) (affiliate link)

I keep the test flashlight on the left, and the BLF-348 reference flashlight on the right.

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
• Single-mode light
• E-Series makes it suitable for many bodies
• Can be turned into a very tiny thrower

What I don’t like

• Unspecified emitter
• CW and NW isn’t made

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Notes

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