Paranoid About Using Flashlights Outdoors (in neighborhoods, cities, etc)?

[Impossible lumens]

As others have said, it is quite likely that no one really cares or pays much attention at all. Therefore, outside of consideration for others and general safety, it may well be a matter of one's own personal comfort level when pushing lumens. However, if you experience an *** whooping or gunfire you may have gone too far.

 

[dragonhaertt]

I actually have had neighbours at my door for using my EDC in my living room. I live on a 5th floor apartment with a big window and was just walking from the couch to the bedroom after turning off my lights next to the couch.

 

[Taz80]

If your long haired dog has ever gotten sprayed by a skunk you will understand why I like bright lights. I don't have them on high all the time and I try not to light up houses, (except in the winter when the summer people are gone) but I do scan the area where I'm walking on a regular basis.

 

[harm]

I live in a suburb that has no streetlights, so yes I often walk at night with a flashlight because... well teenager drivers scare the crap out of me. Shrug. I get enough ambient from most things to be able to walk so my lights don't stay ON. But I do end up having one and have no issues with using it. Shrug. But then again I think the gun might get more attention than the light

 

[bykfixer]

I carry one as kinda an extension of my hand... as in bezel down with a waving motion as my arms move back n forth. Drivers can see the motion from a distance.

I avoid shining it in peoples yards or in ways that would appear as though skulking about searching for booty to plunder.
I try to put myself in the mindset of the typical neighbor... say you are sitting on your porch and somebody down the street is shining a flashlight towards neighbors houses or cars... at a distance one might get the 'something's fishy' thoughts.

Now shining the flashlight into tree tops and in an upward direction shouldn't alarm anybody besides paranoid crack heads, serious conspiracy theorists or just plain crazy people.

When I'm away from homes let there be light.

Like anything in life, a little thinking can make a large difference in how people may or may not react.

 

[Swedpat]

I think you are not alone. Today flashlights are usually used only when you need light for the bike or walking along dark paths. Or when you are seeking for something. Turning on a flashlight just for fun is considered as suspicious I guess. Or childish. You must have a strong reason to do it.
Sometimes when I walk around in the village at evening or night I have hard to not take a flashlight out of the pocket and aim it at some building or at a darker area just for fun. Of some reason I don't want to do it when it's unknown people around me. Even if I don't shine into windows or otherwise disturb people I get the feeling that people wonder what's a strange kind of adult person playing with a flashlight. When I walk in a unilluminated area it's another thing because then I really have a reason to shine up my path. When I ride the bike it's also another situation because it's law to use light even if there are street lights along the road. For the bike I find a headlamp great the best, though.
But there are nice situations when I walk in an unilluminated area and meet for example a person walking his dog. Then I can hear: "wow that's a powerful flashlight!"

 

[Caesar Tjalbo]

There are a couple of dark spots in the neighborhood and roaches come out at night, don't want to step on them. I'm pretty sure I'm one of the very few with a good amount of lumens on me in a very wide area but I think I can use it without it causing me trouble.

 

[bykfixer]

I think one thing that has changed things (good or bad) is that in the old days you'd aim your light towards a house and maybe light up the cat sitting on the porch waiting to go in. Not quite sure what color said cat is, but it's definitely a cat.

But in 016 you aim a modern light at said cat and light up the peoples living room.... like somebody hit a light switch.

Couple that with a constant burage of dramatic events of murder and mayhem plastered across the tv screen followed by tv shows about the worst in people... even in cartoons and sporting events... next thing you know you end up with a society of paranoid people.... thinking of some crazed burglar all hopped up on who knows what ready to snatch your sleeping child and shoot everybody remaining...

I know those are exagerations, but in 016 it aint far from what's in the minds of helicopter parents and old people. Used to be folks separated tv from reality. Nowadays tv is life and life is tv...
At least in many parts of America.

 

[mcnair55]

If memory serves me right a torch was designed to aid your way in the dark, would not worry what others think at all.

 

[Crazyeddiethefirst]

Interesting reading the old thread-thanks for sharing. In 1976, I was in Palm Springs at a fireworks show display celebrating America's Bicentennial. Shortly after dark, someone lobbed tear gas into the grandstands. To complicate things more, the two rows directly in front of the stands were filled with kids in wheelchairs from a local facility. They had no way to escape the gas(it was real tear gas back then, not pepper spray). We moved the kids and got the stands evacuated, but we were all so sick and short of breath we went home. Since that time I have always had a flashlight on my person(well, now that I am a Flashaholic, I always have 3-4 on me)...I live in the Southern California desert, and there are a myriad of places where using your 1,000 lumen light won't draw a second look. In the gated community I live in, we know all of our neighbors that are in the immediate vicinity, and when I first meet a new neighbor, I ask about their preparedness for any kind of disaster. They usually get a "gift package" from me with a basic light, batteries and charger and a few supplies with a pamphlet on what the minimum preps that are recommended. I also share that if they see lights in my house or backyard that I am most likely testing new lights-they also have my cell number and permission to call anytime something is questionable...but remember, just because your paranoid it doesn't mean they are not out to get you...

 

[Triburst1]

Haha. I shoot suppressed .22s in my backyard in the middle of the city, so no, I don't worry about flashlights.

 

[Milw light]

Lets see, I can walk around without a flashlight & trip & break my neck, orrr brave the distain of a fellow citizen & actually see where I am going....I'm going with the 2nd option.

 

[mcnair55]

Lets see, I can walk around without a flashlight & trip & break my neck, orrr brave the distain of a fellow citizen & actually see where I am going....I'm going with the 2nd option.

Option 2 for me as well,the op needs another hobby.

 

[D6859]

I first was a little bit shy about using my flashlights in public just for testing them and not using for an actual need (e.g bicycling). Now I have bright enough lights to make people go from "who the heck is in that woods playing with a flashlight" to "holy moly that's bright!"

I live in a Finnish suburbia so there are little woods here and there. I recently found a great spot to test my flashlights on a path that crosses another path about 100+ metres away. I had just turned on my DP and aiming it over the crossing path when someone came out of the darkness and walked through my hotspot. I hadn't seen him coming because he was wearing dark clothes and no reflector. I hope I didn't blind him. If I had been in his situation I might have thought it was the police looking for someone. I felt a little bit embarrassed for troubling him by then.

I think accidental blinding like that is fine. I don't feel paranoid and think that guy is coming after me now. I think shining someone's yard or into their house is where I draw the line. It might be interpreted as an invasion of privacy. My room is in the basement so people walking past with a flashlight might shine and see directly into my room and I wouldn't mind (I usually keep my curtains closed anyway). But if someone kept shining the window for longer I might go and ask him what he was up to.

Some of our neighbours has been playing with a laserpointer and pointing at our TV sometimes when we've been watching it with the roommates. I think it stopped when I walked to the window and aimed a middle finger to the direction where the laser was coming. I didn't want to watch straight at the light source so I didn't see who the neighbour was, I guess they were some kids. If I shone someone's livingroom with some of my most powerful flashlights I think I would get more problem than a one finger salute...

I'm now visiting home at country side. It's been nice to play with the new flashlights without worrying about neighbours, though I first thought I woke up neighbour's (about 500 metres from our house) dog even when I wasn't aiming at their direction. I guess it was my smell and sound that made her bark and I still need bigger flashlights.

 

[hyperloop]

Just surfing the threads and came across this one, I don't think I would be a worried if I could spot someone shining a light and walking around (as long as no suspicious actvities), I would be more worried if someone was lurking in the dark with an NVG.

And I don't blame LEOs for questioning people who walk around shining lights, c'mon they aren't flashaholics, I can't even play with my NC EC4SW on turbo sob sob.

 

[Tre_Asay]

I think I am cursed, I have had streetlights burn out at least 6 times over me.
I have never had problems from others when I use flashlights.
Common sense is to not point directly in eyes or into structures. If I am around sleeping people or in a theater I won't use more than 0.01-1 lumens.

 

[bykfixer]

I think I am cursed, I have had streetlights burn out at least 6 times over me.
I have never had problems from others when I use flashlights.
Common sense is to not point directly in eyes or into structures. If I am around sleeping people or in a theater I won't use more than 0.01-1 lumens.

Ha!

I use my flashlights to turn off streetlights. Yup I own a few that can actually fool the sensor into thinking its daylight... provided it is side or bottom mounted.



Hey Mr. Streetlight...feel the Roar of the Pelcan


Turned that one off a bit after that pic was taken

 

[billcoe]

Taking a Thorfire S70 or a Convoy L6 out to a crowded campground can be problematical if you have kids with you. They just want to blast the light right out there on high all the time. It's embarrassing and yeah, you get paranoid.

 

[aginthelaw]

I've arrested a few people who were paranoid about possessing flashlights. on 2 occasions I've had guys toss lights because it gives more credence to a charge of possession of burglar tools. breaking into a car with a screwdriver is one thing. having a flashlight and a screwdriver closes the case for my judges I guess. logging lights in and presenting it at trial was always a winner in the prosecutors eyes. which is really weird. most burglars wouldn't toss their box cutters saying they need it for work. though if you're not at work it's a concealed weapon. idiots...

 

[Taz80]

I never realized I was collecting burglar tools, how many years am I going to get for a whole bunch:sigh:? On the bright side the summer people are leaving for the winter, so I'll be able to start exercising my lights soon, really stretching their legs:twothumbs. That is until I get sent to prison for have lots of burglar tools. That will be really sad, as my lights will wither and die with no exercise.:mecry: