Surefire G2X Pro – Initial Impressions

I was able to get my hands on a Surefire G2X Pro earlier this week, and I’ve been playing with and comparing it to some other lights I have around the house, and I must say, I’m pretty impressed.

According to Surefire’s website, this particular light is 5.2″ long, and the bezel is 1.25″ in diameter. The G2X Pro is a dual mode light, with a 15 lumen low, and a 200 lumen high. The light is advertised at a 4.4oz weight, and runs on 2, CR123 batteries.At the time of this post, these lights are running about $95 at most online retailers I looked at.

Here’s a couple of pictures of the G2X Pro with a 2 3/4″ Winchester 12ga slug, and a round of 5.56 for scale:

I compared the high beam of the G2X Pro to my Streamlight TLR-1, which is advertised at 180 lumens, and they are very close, with the G2X Pro getting the edge on the Streamlight. The difference is very small, and if I hadn’t seen the beams next to each other, at the same time, I would not have been able to tell which one was brighter.

The body of this light is a polymer, just like we are accustomed to with the old Surefire G2 lights, however this series uses an aluminum bezel, which I assume is for heat dissipation with extended use, as high output LED’s tend to get very warm.

The user interface of the G2X Pro is a little clunky at first, but once you figure it out, it isn’t so bad. The tailcap button can be locked out by loosening the tailcap, then tightening again. After doing so, you can press the tailcap all day, and the light will not turn on. Loosen again, and tighten, and the tailcap button will activate the low setting, and if you let off the button, and hit it again within 2 seconds, you will activate the high setting.

The tailcap works as both a momentary switch, as well as a constant on when pushed in all the way. I mounted this light to my primary home defense rifle with a Haley Strategic Dropwing Adaptive Light Mount, and I was very happy with both the throw, and the spread of the beam at in-home distances.

One gripe I have with the light though, is that there is no way to lock the beam onto the high output mode, meaning that when used as a weapon light, you are constantly alternating between the high and low modes, which is not great. Surefire does make a G2X Tactical, which is the same light, with only one mode, which I feel would be a better weapon mounted light.This isn’t to say that the G2X Pro is a bad light, as it is a fantastic light, but I feel it would be better suited as an “every day carry” type light, than a weapon light.

Overall, I would give the Surefire G2X Pro an A. Fantastic quality, which we have come to expect from Surefire, and it packs a lot of brightness in a relatively small package. My only gripes are that the user interface is a little clunky, and the inability to lock, or program the light to use only the high mode. Great light.