Flashlights have rabid fans as much as any other kind of tech. The Candlepower forums have a lot of info to elucidate and confuse. That said, I really like the cheap Duracell focussing flashlights I got from Costco. I carry my Fenix with me when I’m out and about, but the Duracells are by the front and back doors for general use.
Let me also put in a plug for LSD NIMH batteries (e.g. Eneloop). If you think rechargeable are unreliable, you owe it to yourself to check out the modern LSD NIMH variety.
Have these companies started to add a layer of gum or rubber on top of the circuit to their improve IPX4 (impact) ratings? I’ve looked into it ages ago but none, even the expensive 200$ ones have that layer. It’s common in electronics, but for LED flashlights I’ve never seen it applied. The few LED flashlights I’ve ripped apart has their design concentration on either power efficiency or getting as much brightness as possible. And most of the expense is on the casing.
The layer just costs a few pennies per light and improve impact performance tenfold.
My favorite flashlight is a Coast LED Lenser P7 which takes 3 AAAs, has two brightness modes and a very smooth wide-to-narrow focus.
I have a Smith & Wesson, which is a nice light, but I find it hard to keep the 123 batteries around.
However, yes, headlamps win in almost all scenarios. Handsfree! I really like my Black Diamond Spot. The two brightness modes, flashing, and low-light red mode (also with flashing) work great.
Fenix LD01. Because it runs for a long time on a rechargeable AAA battery and is always on my keyring.
To mangle an old saw:
“The best flashlight is the one you have with you.”
It’s like $30 from Amazon, and has three brightness settings. On the downside, it’s “twist on” and if you don’t twist it off enough, it makes your pocket blink. I’ve managed to accidentally run down the battery a few times, but I think my 3 year old is to blame.
Please, please, torchophiles :-p I prefer Luxophiliacs. The SureFire E2D Defender provides illumination with crisp transient highs and a wide, high resolution lightstage. It will have your toes tapping with its incoherent danceable output. Just be sure to break in the LED and supply wires for 24 hours before using it for reference viewing.
I prefer fewer modes, as I usually need only a quick glance to fiddle with a zipper or find something I dropped. Mighty annoying having to press the clicker 5 times for a few seconds of light. Can’t seem to find just what I need these days, they are all way over engineered for my tastes.
We have a Fenix that we really like. Very bright, standard batteries and much less expensive. Not 100% sure what model, but looks similar to the one in the article. LD41 I think. Solid metal construction and a quality feel. Good value, methinks. Bought it at MEC in Vancouver for about $80 IIRC.
See, that’s whats so slick about the Black Diamond. To change from red to white light you hold down the button for three seconds. To make either red or white flash, you push the button three times in rapid succession.
In fact, I thought it only had two modes, low and high white light, for quite a while (until I read the manual after accidentally activating red).
EDIT: Also, it operates as Off–>On (Low) --> Off --> On (high); so you’re only ever one click away from on or off.
I found some <a href=http://www.streamlight.com/en-us/product/product.html?pid=222>Streamlight TL-2X flashlights on sale for about $50 in a gun shop (they normally sell for $75 or so), so I bought 4 for general purpose use. Mine all have Cree LEDs and they only have 200 lumens but I’ve found that plenty bright. I’ve got one mounted on an AR-15 for about 2 years and it’s still going strong.
Almost any result from an Amazon search for “flashlight Cree” will return a more powerful and way cheaper flashlight, many of them are also more compact.
$185?!
Save yourselves the money. I’m using two UltraFire WF-502B’s and they’re brilliant. Only $15 a pop.
They’re about 250 Lumens and come in either a 5 mode (3 brightness + 2 flash settings) or a single mode option.
Most of my family and friends are now using this model.
They’ll run fine on a single 18650, however best results are with 2xCR123A’s.
For $30 I picked up the 5 mode torch, two CR123s and an Li charger. 4 years later they’re still going as good as the day I bought them.
There are many flashlights on Amazon that claim a bullshit lumen level. For example. I wouldn’t trust any rating except for those listed by well-know reputable flashlight companies on their own pages.
I have a couple Surefire lights and love them. They are incredibly bright in a small package, so much so that if you are using them in a tactical situation the illumination actually has a slight stunning effect. And with their small size and easy maintenance they are much easier to use then a Galvanick Lucifer although not quite as bright.
