What's Your Go To Lumen Range... or.. What If Your Light Could Have Only 1 Setting

[roadkill1109]

okay i'll bite, i'd choose 200 lumens, as long as the light has a tight hotspot for throw and a very wide spill for the floody. Now if only pigs can fly and goose lay golden eggs! haha...

 

[pjandyho]

Ok, So discounting the guy who said the more the better, the guy who uses a 5000, the rancher who uses the 800 and the guy who uses a 500 when the lights go out here is the count:

Between 10-120 Lumens 22 Posters
Between 120-400 Lumens 5 Posters

It seems the trend is towards the low side.

But here is my question from an EDC and tactical standpoint, what is the brightest lumen that you could tolerate while looking through a drawer but still stand a chance of disorienting someone when you point it at their eyes?

Personally I would say around 80 lumen is the max I would go for looking into drawers. That too depends on what level of reflectivity the items in the drawers possess. Black absorbs while white reflects like hell and I am sure if your drawer is filled with white papers you would surely be blinded even with 60 lumen. So yes, 60 to 80 lumen max for looking into drawers and it is still bright enough to temporarily disorientate someone at short ranges. Anyway, I don't use flashlights for the latter purpose. It is only just a hypothetical discussion.

 

[fnj]

An interesting topic indeed to ponder. Since the postulate is single level only, I'm going to have to go with, oh, 80.

Funny, though, because I more often use 20 than 80, I also use 0.2 a LOT, and not infrequently I use 300. The reason I'm going with 80 for this specific question is because I wouldn't want to be stuck with a single level that is just plain inadequate for SOME significant tasks, even if it is plenty for MOST tasks. So my take-home is that I am really glad to have a three level light (OK, a whole bunch of three level lights, but let's not harp on my insecurities ).

 

[AZPops]

500 to 800 plus or minus Lumens! ...

.... or

Whatever the med/low settings on the 170T is, and whatever the Rotary's output is dailed at/to, awh heck whatever (same goes for the V10R as well)!

 

[Cataract]

MY sweet spot is right around 200 lumens. I work with a 180 lumen flashlight and usually go for a ~200 lumen light for weird noises at home or when hiking (although I use much less for regular navigation.)