Which Modlite PL350 Head Is Right For You?

I purchased all 3 of the Modlite PL350 pistol light configurations. Here is what I learned when I ran them “head to head to head”.

Different PL350 Heads?

The Modlite PL350 was launched in August. For more information on the light in general, check out our “5 things you need to know about the Modlite PL350” video and article.

This article focuses on the interchangeability of the heads. These heads swap out easily by unscrewing them off the front. This allows me to change out heads or batteries quickly. I don’t expect people will change these heads out per mission, but it’s possible. In my case, I’m swapping them around to figure out which one is best for my application.

As of September 2021, Modlite has the PLHv2, the PLH5k, and the OKW. According to Modlite, the PLHv2 is best all around with both spill and a long throw, the PLH5k has a warmer color temperature and provides more flood, and the OKW is designed for outdoor use where maximum throw is required. Each body + head combination is priced the same, at $319.

Modlite Specs	PLHv2	PLH5k	OKW
General	This model is the best all-around, with both spill and long throw. If you are unsure which model to buy, we recommend this head.	This model is made to be a warmer color temperature to be easier on the eyes during indoor and urban operations. It also provides more flood than the other two models.	This model is designed for rural and outdoor use, where maximum throw is required. This head can still be used in close quarters but will have a brighter hot spot.
Lumens	1350	1500	680
Candela	54,000	29,000	69,000
Color Temperature	5800k	5000k	5800k
Price (with body)	$319	$319	$319

Modlite sells just the light body for $139, and non-IR heads for $209 if you want to purchase separately.

As usual, I put these lights through both practical testing in various environments as well as lab testing.

Practical Testing: Warehouse

First up, I tested in our warehouse space with menacing subject. This space is about 40 feet, and has both near and far objects, which can highlight how focused or wide the beam is. In this test, we can see that the PLHv2 has a hotspot with some spill, and the OKW has the most intense focus. The biggest difference was for the PLH5k, which has the widest beam, providing the most data about the surrounding environment. For instance, with the PLH5k, I could see inside the shelving area to the right much better than the other two heads. I could also see the subjects feet and hands while still illuminating his face, and the skin tone was more vibrant with the PLH5k.

I asked our subject to rate trying to look into these lights, and all of them were in the “painful +” range. This means that it’s very difficult to look directly at the light operator, and when the subject looks in that direction, it’s hard to see anything more than a wall of light. This is what we want, as it allows the operator to control the subject more effectively.

Practical Testing: Night Range

I packed up and performed some testing on the range at night. I wanted to get a good feel for each of these heads under the stars by trying to punch through truck headlights, then focusing on a target in the shadows, and finally shooting some steel.

First up was looking for vehicle occupants against the headlights. Here all three lights allowed positive identification of the subject in the passenger seat, but the OKW head was so focused that it didn’t include both the driver and passenger areas in the spotlight. The PLH5k was best at casting light underneath the truck’s headlights. The PLHv2 fell in between.

To get a feel for positive identification at distance, I placed a subject at 45 yards, wearing dark clothes, and under a tree. All three heads allowed identification, but the OKW head was most effective at providing detail on the subject’s activites. The PLHv2 was almost as good. The PLH5k struggled a bit at this range.

I moved to the steel targets. These pictures highlight the strengths of each head. If you need a laser-like focus and the longest throw, the OKW is your choice. If you want a warmer light with wider flood, then you want the PLH5k. If you want a compromise between the two, but closer to the OKW in terms of color and focus, then you want the PLHv2.

I finished up by shooting a magazine through the pistol with each head. The OKW head punched through the muzzle smoke like a light saber. The PLHv2 and PLH5k both had more light reflecting back, but in all three circumstances the reflectivity of the smoke did not prevent us from getting a good target picture.

Max Candela

Candela is a measurement of light intensity in a particular direction, allowing identification of target details, plus strong candela can cause a subject to turn away from the intense light. While I recognized the need for both candela and lumens, candela is more important. This is why we gather max data, as well as capture data at various angles.

As I have stated before, our equipment measures low versus the manufacturer’s ratings, but the numbers still allow accurate comparison. Here are the measurements:

Modlite Head	Max CD
PLHv2	27780
PLH5k	21160
OKW	35490

You can see that the OKW has the highest max candela output, followed by the PLHv2. The PLH5k lags behind in this comparison of three heads, but the laggard of this group is still stronger than anything else we have tested. Yes — the candela from the PLH5k is higher than the concentrated Inforce Wild 2 which was 20,000.

Candela At Angle

While our practical testing shows us how much light floods out around the focus point, this test provides the data supporting those observations. In this graph, you can visualize the angle on the x axis as width of beam, with intensity level shown on the y axis.

As expected, the OKW leads raw output at the very center of the hotspot. However, as soon as we get away from the center, the PLH5k starts leading by a significant amount. While the numbers are small on the chart, the PLH5k puts out 10x the amount of candela at just 5 degrees off center versus the OKW. The PLH5k has the much wider beam, backed up by higher lumen output. Even the PLHv2 has 3x the amount of candela at 5 degrees than the OKW.

Lumens

As usual, we threw the lights into our integrating sphere, and ran them until the batteries are dead, or effectively dead. In this case, the PLH5k continued to run for over three and a half hours, and I eventually turned it off when it was still producing 11 lumens.

If you want the the head with the strongest lumen output for the longest time, it’s the PLH5k. It provides 70 minutes with output over 500 lumens. Neither of the other heads can provide 500 lumens for 5 minutes, let alone an hour.

If you’re wondering what the jaggies are on the PLH5k, so are we. The best we can tell, the circuitry is trying to maintain a certain level of output, which we see on all lights as they step down. However, the PLH5k appears to not just hold a certain level, but jump up and then drop down. If you have an answer, please drop a comment below.

Update: If you want the real answer on how many lumens the PL350 puts out, check out our 3rd party test results.

Runtime

Runtime data reflects the dominance of the PLH5k, having it not only have the higher output, but having almost double the runtime of the other heads.

	PLHv2-PL350	PLH5k-PL350	OKW-PL350
Spec	1350	1500	680
10% of Spec	135	150	68
Runtime >10% of Spec	40.42	87.50	54.92

Color Temperature

Color temperature can make lights seem cool, or warm. When a light is too cool or too warm, our eyes won’t pick out color contrast as well. Slightly warmer colors will not reflect as harshly off of environmental conditions such as rain or snow, which is why fog lights are tinted yellow. Light color also affects our perception of output, with a cooler light appearing brighter than the same output warmer light.

Here we find both the PLHv2 and the OKW coming in around the cooler spectrum of 5700k, and the PLH5k coming in quite close to the advertised 5k.

Head	Color Temperature (Kelvin)
PLHv2	5680k
PLH5k	5030k
OKW	5740k

To my eyes, I prefer the PLH5k light color.

Bottom Line

Each one of these heads is a big step forward from what has come before. I don’t think you can go wrong with any. I like the PLH5k for a few reasons. The warmer color gives more contrast of browns, the beam pattern gives me good peripheral view, the runtime is nearly an hour and a half, and even though it doesn’t punch as far as the other two heads, it does have a higher max candela rating than any of the non-Modlites we have tested. The PLH5k head feels like a stronger version of the X300U, and by stronger I mean it has almost 3x the candela output. However, if it were my only light and I needed to positively identify at distances of 50 yards, then I would select the OKW, which has very limited spill, putting all the lumens into a concentrated hotspot. The PLHv2 is a good compromise between the two, if that’s what you’re looking for.

I’ve made my choice. Which head will you run? Comment below.