Which is better? The Petzl or the Princeton Tec headlamps?

[Tjin]

I gew up using ANY Petzl (and a few other lights/makers mentionned here) lights, we even built our own ones sometimes
but when I got my 1st Zebralight, EVERY "typical" headlamp makers products got screwed.

the argument that "serious" outdoor ppl use this or that has no value at all, simply because "the typical" of them has less knowledge of lights than a newborn baby.
And the traditional makers have even less clue on how to build a LED flashlight, than the users who are still getting that overpriced plastic crap, running on silly energy sources.

--> get Zebralight, Armytrek, Fenix, ...
(...based on the batteries You use in Your other gear)

Regular users are not flashoholics and have other priorities. Weight, runtime, helmet compatibility and running on the same 'silly energy source' batteries as other gear like GPS and avalanch beacons. Rarely do I need a lot of lumens. Why would anybody need 150+ lumens?

Petzl, PT, black diamond make lights for regular users and they do it well. Sure Fenix, Armytrek and Zebras look nice and have nice specs. But actually outdoor use? Those alluminium headlights like the zebra are not suitable for users in the serieus outdoors. Aluminium conducts to well in the cold and are not very glove friendly. It's either flood, spot or a add on defuser which outdoor people probably loose quickly. All regular outdoor brands offer lights which combines flood and spot options in one headlight.

I have never had one of these regular brands fail on me with giving light. Just the plastic battery latch cracks after years of abuse because i use them so much. And i never understood the 'durabilbity' issue with flashoholics. Somehow durability is so importent, but flasoholic's buy a new light every other few weeks.

There is a market for all kinds of type of headlights. If it aint your type of market, it does not mean it's no good.

 

[ForrestChump]

Regular users are not flashoholics and have other priorities. Weight, runtime, helmet compatibility and running on the same 'silly energy source' batteries as other gear like GPS and avalanch beacons. Rarely do I need a lot of lumens. Why would anybody need 150+ lumens?

Petzl, PT, black diamond make lights for regular users and they do it well. Sure Fenix, Armytrek and Zebras look nice and have nice specs. But actually outdoor use? Those alluminium headlights like the zebra are not suitable for users in the serieus outdoors. Aluminium conducts to well in the cold and are not very glove friendly. It's either flood, spot or a add on defuser which outdoor people probably loose quickly. All regular outdoor brands offer lights which combines flood and spot options in one headlight.

I have never had one of these regular brands fail on me with giving light. Just the plastic battery latch cracks after years of abuse because i use them so much. And i never understood the 'durabilbity' issue with flashoholics. Somehow durability is so importent, but flasoholic's buy a new light every other few weeks.

There is a market for all kinds of type of headlights. If it aint your type of market, it does not mean it's no good.

 

[Aperture]

Here in the Netherlands the majority of the hiking community uses Petzl or Black Diamond headlamps because those are the only brands sold in the outdoor shops. Most common are the smaller triple AAA models like the Tikka because they are compact and lightweight which is a bonus when hiking with a backpack plus the €20-40 price range tends to be the maximum non-flashoholics are willing to pay for a light.

 

[Charles L.]

Quite a lot of opinions in this thread. As someone who owns a variety of Petzl, Black Diamond, Zebralight and Armytek headlamps, my opinion is... Armytek or Zebralight. Petzl is fine, but you give up one heck of a lot for a supposed improvement in durability.

Aluminum not conducive to outdoor use??? Whaaat?? You're telling me that all the major flashlight producers have it wrong, and we should revert to plastic? Seriously, try to work the fiddly little buttons on a Petzl with gloves on. You can do it, but it is so much easier on the A or Z lights. And aluminum likes cold a lot more than plastic. It's easy to see the little plastic latches breaking on a Petzl, Black Diamond, or any other -- and it's more likely to do that in the cold.

Using threads on a forum as an accurate statistical indication of reliability is, in a word, wrong. Google the word anecdote.

The "spot" and "flood" options of the plastic lights produce nothing more than an imperfect beam. Not only do the floody beams of the A and Z lights look much better (and come in warm tints to boot), they throw as far as the others simply by virtue of their greater power. They go much lower, much higher, and have more options in between.

Totally agree with the statement that if it ain't your type of market, that doesn't mean it's no good. But that sentiment goes both ways.

Also realize that not everyone has access to all the headlamps mentioned in this thread. I have no experience with Princeton Tek, but my Petzl lamps (I have a Tactikka RGB and a Tikka RXP) work just fine.

 

[davidt1]

Thanks Charles L for posting. I value and appreciate inputs from actual owners.

 

[Tjin]

Aluminum not conducive to outdoor use??? Whaaat?? You're telling me that all the major flashlight producers have it wrong, and we should revert to plastic?

News for you. Armytec, Fenix, Zebra are niche market brands. The Petzl, BD and Princeton tec are the major brands.

Seriously, try to work the fiddly little buttons on a Petzl with gloves on. You can do it, but it is so much easier on the A or Z lights. And aluminum likes cold a lot more than plastic. It's easy to see the little plastic latches breaking on a Petzl, Black Diamond, or any other -- and it's more likely to do that in the cold.

Aluminium is a terrible material in the cold. It's too conductive in really freezing conditions to touch bare handed. Try to replace the batteries in the proper cold. Yes plastic is more fragile, but at least you don't have to pee on your hands to unstuck things from your hands. Most people probably won't go outside when it's that cold, but just an illustration of what I mean.

The "spot" and "flood" options of the plastic lights produce nothing more than an imperfect beam. Not only do the floody beams of the A and Z lights look much better (and come in warm tints to boot), they throw as far as the others simply by virtue of their greater power. They go much lower, much higher, and have more options in between.

FYI, most people don't care about 'perfect' beams. No artefacts/shadows is the only thing I care about. I actually don't like a round beam. I used to carry a Fenix outdoors, but they just don't work for me. I also don't like to have to many modes. Too many things to mess with while I'm doing other things. I'm a climber (alpine, trad, sport). Trust me, you don't want to have to many options, when you just want to turn on the light while balancing, on two finger, a big toe and the other feet placed on a flat vertical surface for balance.
The things i wrote where a response to:

the argument that "serious" outdoor ppl use this or that has no value at all, simply because "the typical" of them has less knowledge of lights than a newborn baby.
And the traditional makers have even less clue on how to build a LED flashlight, than the users who are still getting that overpriced plastic crap, running on silly energy sources.

I understand why people like certain aluminium lights. I have been carrying lights for a decade on my belt. Mainly Fenix lights. Just trying to balancing out, above mentioned quote.

 

[Charles L.]

News for you. Armytec, Fenix, Zebra are niche market brands. The Petzl, BD and Princeton tec are the major brands.

In the headlamp realm, yes. But in the larger flashlight market, metal has ruled for decades.

is a terrible material in the cold. It's too conductive in really freezing conditions to touch bare handed. Try to replace the batteries in the proper cold. Yes plastic is more fragile, but at least you don't have to pee on your hands to unstuck things from your hands. Most people probably won't go outside when it's that cold, but just an illustration of what I mean.

Most people have gloves on when it is this cold. Do you not when climbing?

most people don't care about 'perfect' beams. No artefacts/shadows is the only thing I care about. I actually don't like a round beam. I used to carry a Fenix outdoors, but they just don't work for me. I also don't like to have to many modes. Too many things to mess with while I'm doing other things. I'm a climber (alpine, trad, sport). Trust me, you don't want to have to many options, when you just want to turn on the light while balancing, on two finger, a big toe and the other feet placed on a flat vertical surface for balance.

Cool. But climbing is a niche. I suspect most people would like a nicer beam. And greater output options.

i wrote where a response to:
I understand why people like certain aluminium lights. I have been carrying lights for a decade on my belt. Mainly Fenix lights. Just trying to balancing out, above mentioned quote.

OK. Balance is good. Especially if you're a climber

 

[Aperture]

I suspect most people would like a nicer beam. And greater output options.

I think the majority of the headlamp usage is in the outdoor community where everybody owns at least one but 99% of the owners doesn't know anything about beam patterns, color, Kelvin, Hi CRI, etc but they do care how their headlamp performs in rough weather, ease of operation, is small and compact, that it can take a drop or two and the occasional dunk in the water, uses easy to source batteries which are also used in the GPS (egg AA or AAA), can be operated with gloves on, etc.

As for output, 100 lumen is more than sufficient for navigating through the woods and to do camp chores (pitching tents, cooking, eating, reading a book), more power is only needed when the speed of travel increases like running or biking to see further ahead.

Like specialised photography forums CPF does NOT represent the majority of the userbase, only those interested in the latest, greatest and coolest gear around.

 

[Tjin]

Most people have gloves on when it is this cold. Do you not when climbing?

Climbers don't plan to change batteries during climbs. We do that in base camp (which can be pretty cold in an alpine situation) and with bare hands or thin gloves, you get way better grip for doing things like battery changes. Not always a good idea, lots of people get cold injuries from touching liquid fuel canisters or spilling liquid fuels and not wearing gloves.

A good rule to thumb is to always take fresh batteries before a trip and the spare batteries are in the spare light. A light is considerd a critical item and having a super heavy duty reliable one does not help, when you just dropped it from a cliff.

btw, nothing beats the grip of bare hands. So if its not too cold; glove on during belay, glove off during climbing.
If it's really cold; Mittens. hmm... mittens with handwarmers.

 

[whothedonk]

Hi,

Just a quick feedback as I have the Petzl Tikka xp.

It never let me down after regular use during 2 years and dropping it 2 times in the water.
Petzl is a quality brand and even if the Tikka is not the high range, the quality is there.

Personal comments:
I really liked the beam, not too wide, not too polarized, quite good throw for the "few" lumens.
Normal AAA batteries lasted significantly longer than rechargeable AAA (Enerloop Pro 2nd generation) for me.

 

[bearbreeder]

I use the tikka rxp and fenix hl55 jus fine for night climbing

either one will work, aluminum body or not

The tikka however is easier to do battery changes as ita faster and you dont risk dropping the cap ... The hl55 however lasts longer ... With petzls you also dont risk getting moisture in the innards with a bat change

the hl55 will work just fine in whatever temperature, the aluminum body gets warmed up by the light at higher settings regardless ... Not to mention that with cr123a bats it works better at lower temps in theory than li-on bats of 18650 or some petzls

as to cold temps if you can do stuff like open locking carabiners, boiling a cup of joe on your jetboil, etc ... You can change your bats

And if you climb all night (8 hours+) youll likely change yr bats at some point

for more normal hiking, etc ... Aluminum lamps work fine with the same cavaets

Petzl is well known for reliability ...

This november on a squamish multi ... We used both petzl and fenix

http://i.imgur.com/84AGL3Jl.jpg

 

[Monocrom]

Bit surprised at some of the negative comments regarding PT. My EOS has been trouble free for years now.

 

[Charles L.]

bearbreeder, that is a great photo. I will bow out of any discussion about headlamps for such a task, because I never intend to find myself in that position... at least not intentionally

 

[magicstone12]

I think each one has its own advantage,running or climbing,you need different headlamp.

 

[Illum]

Your question is like asking Tropicana or Dole? Well what kind of juice do you drink? PT headlamps seems to be good for all around work, but often overkill for low light level work even at the lowest setting. Petzl works great for very low light applications, and generally seem more lightweight and longer running than PT.

 

[Taz steer]

Agreed. The Petzl is an item that can be relied on over and over. Thanks

 

[rotncore]

Not a hard user of my outdoor brand headlamps, but I've owned several Petzl, and a few Princeton Tec ones, and the Petzls haven't failed, while I had a PT fail. Good warranty service, but it was concerning that one day out of my light storage the PT Remix just didn't turn on (stored empty of batteries). I didn't have proof of purchase, and told them it was at least a few years old, and they mailed me a new one, all I needed to do was email a photo of the dead one.

Their customer service is great, but my faith in their reliability is higher with Petzl.

 

[smooth2o]

Have you looked at the Nitecore headlamps. 600-1000 lumens.

 

[Taz steer]

There are so many lights out there. And the level of power on each of these heads vary. I think if your relying on these lights to save your life or maneuver in the dark then you need a light that always comes on even after hanging on a closet door over and over. As stated that is the Petzl. And just to add if you want a tank of a flashlight the older sure fires never stop. I have had a light in my car for 12 years an E1E. Without fail it always turns on. Thanks and take care.

 

[Tjin]

Have you looked at the Nitecore headlamps. 600-1000 lumens.

Don't know why you would want that many lumens on your head.

Just look down for a second and you just blinded yourself from the reflective light, blind your self by just breathing in the cold, blind your self inside a tent/building/room, get smacked in the face when you look at somebody.

Never used a nitecore, might be super durable, but thats not a issue if somebody just tossed it of a cliff, because your blinding everybody and ruinings everybodies night vision.