Would you use a modern flashlight in a reasonably rough job or not? CONCRETE BELOW!!!

[AnAppleSnail]

I carry multiple lights and have only had failures due to abuse. Such as "Oh yeah, I borrowed that (18650 hotwire) and ran it until it wouldn't turn on." Most of my light " failures" have been battery failure-to-charge. The one exception was when I kicked a light while it was down. Cost me five minutes and a penny to turn that switch failure into a twisty switch.

Concrete, dozens of meters, I don't mind. I rarely drop lights. The people below me appreciate that!

Modern lights are astonishingly durable. The batteries we use are much more reliable in holding charge and performing to the last drop. Many of my lights reduce performance on the dregs of power, giving me time to see my way to safety. One example was starting a long hike on dead Eneloops. This light gave dim but usable light all night. What would an incandescent have done?

 

[LightWalker]

I have dropped Quarks and Fenix lights onto hard surfaces without any failures.

 

[Onthelightside]

Armytek put the predator through quite a severe torture test and it held up really good.
http://youtu.be/lvA79TAMu6c

My edc light has anodizing chips/wear but that's about it.

 

[Ragnar66]

Your post was really good and it gives all of us a very good look into the life and times of flashlights that really do get used as tools and not just "shelf queens" as many of us collectors

No problem. Good thread and lots of great posts. And the font thing.....strange that people want to give you a hard time over that. It relays your enthusiasms........enthusiasms....... (hahahah.....movie quote....anyone?)

When you use a TK75 or similar flashlight as part of your kit when on duty please tell us how good a light such as the TK75 has been in actual use and the reasoning behind your choice of it.

I had been using the Sunwayman T60CS but I shorted the battery back after brushing the bottom with keys. Great light.....fixed that issue with a plug. I replaced that with the TK75 simply because of it being a Fenix and a monster. I have no doubt it will stand the test of time.

I think the combination of a Fenix TK75 with Saabs modded Thrunite TN31 is very hard to beat as I have noticed in my nightly walks around the block and on holidays in the bush etc

I can't say enough about Saabs Tn31s. It has already made my job safer. I was investigating a collision in the middle of the road between two very steep portions of highway. I could see the red/blue lights were not reflecting high enough to warn oncoming traffic. Put the 31s on the roof on strobe and bounced it off the trees at the top of the hill in the direction of what usually has the most traffic. Didn't blind the drivers coming down the hill and gave them something they could see a long ways away and thus time to slow down. There are more details but this gives the pictures. Should have taken a pic and sent it to Saab. Michael has my confidence to the point that his lights ride with the surefires and I will always be updating my lights with him.


I also like to carry a HDS 200 flashlight that can handle some really heavy duty usage and is very reliable as well as some of my heavy duty Surefire pocket rockets.
HDS is the same thing as Saabs lights for me. This is what is on all our keychains wife/son/myself. Never had an issue and put a pretty good beating on a couple so far.


Thanks for giving us all a valuable overview of what a guy in Law Enforcement needs and uses his flashlights for.

Are you still allowed to carry a Maglite like the 3D or even the 4D and 6D lights? Would you still use a Maglite 3D flashlight very often when you really need a light to see well with given the other much brighter alternatives that you already own?
I do still carry my 3d mag with cren bezel and glass smasher and Malkoff xml. If im headed into a collisions/fires etc that I need to bash windows....I grab it as I go out the door. The malkoff is SUPER bright and maintains the focus of the mag. In my opinion this is the best drop in ever. There is something about a mag......my dad was a cop and I remember his mag from when I was a kid.


Has the Maglite Magcharger been phased out nowadays by more modern alternatives that can still be recharged so easily and also stand up to the harsh environments that Police come across regularly?

I actually have the magcharger with a teralux drop that gives a great a solid 800 plus lumens but I don't have the confidence in the terra lux stuff as I have wrecked a few. I have never seen the magcharger issued just the 3ds. I think most places are going with smaller lights. I have worked for a few Depts and they issued mag but have moved on to other stuff..... mostly streamlight that I have seen.

I would have thought that LE officers would have preferred a flashlight that sits in a cradle to recharge as a must so they would be well assured that the flashlight would work well every time and for long run times when taken out of the cradle for Police work.

I certainley see an advantage to that but I have a spare light and always make sure I have fresh batteries. Light can be as important or more so than any other chunk of gear.

Would Police and other LE officers be ok with taking out the Li-ion batteries and changing over to a freshly charged set of batteries in the middle of doing their work and recharging the flatter batteries?

I do. I carry dept issued 123s as extras.

Do you have to pay for your flashlights or do you get one or more issued to you as part of your essential needs just like a gun would be provided to you in carrying out your official police duties?

I have always been issued a light but once I came to my current posting I realized how bad they were. Streamlight for two depts after they went from the mag and not sure about the other one now. Ultrastinger is still kept in cars on a charger but I have never used them.

​Again, great thread, certainly like reading about what others use their lights for........:thumbsup:

 

[Ragnar66]

LOL

Too many departments buy duty lights based upon the cheapness per case, not the performance.

There are many with memories of sweeping a dark place with an el cheapo plastic lights...and hearing the constant taps of the gun against the light to make it go on again.

Hahahaha. I don't know what to say.

 

[jorn]

Armytek put the predator through quite a severe torture test and it held up really good.
http://youtu.be/lvA79TAMu6c

My edc light has anodizing chips/wear but that's about it.

I reacted to that dude with the shotgun in the video. Is it a saiga?. Pointing it everywhere after shooting that light:thumbsdow In the next vid, i hope they emty/check the gun (and dont point it at the camera man at all after shooting) .. Even if they think it only had one cartrige in it.

 

[thelonewolf1124]

As someone who spend over 4 grand on an rc car and then launched it off jumps and such I never had an issue abusing a light. To me its a tool and a tool that needs to be babied isnt worth the money in the first place.

 

[jellydonut]

I work in the engine room of a ship. The lights are exposed to high heat, humidity, oil mist, hydraulic oil, diesel, heavy fuel oil, and alkaline chemicals. In fact, i managed to shatter the lens of my 6p the other day. Its still in one piece, so im still using it.

I do not own any lights that i 'baby'. If i felt i had to be careful with a light, it would be useless to me. Thats why i only buy surefire, malkoff and polarion. I took my polarion Ph40 into an old mine this summer, because thats what its made for. Not to sit on a shelf.

 

[N/Apower]

Hi Guys.



I was looking at my collection of "modern" flashlights recently and a thought suddenly came into my head.

Where in the "REAL WORLD" could most of these lights be used seriously?

I look after all of my lights WITH KID GLOVES ON when they are at home in my study and also when transporting any of them to a friend's place in a cushioned basket.

Maglites have proved how tough they are over decades of being on the market!

If something broke on a Maglite the part can be ordered and replaced reasonably easy.

If a Maglite gets completely beyond repair then it is fairly cheap nowadays to replace it with a brand new one and throw the other one away or gut it for spare parts.

In our quest to achieve higher light output than anybody would have dreamed of decades ago when the Maglite first came onto the market we seem to have forgotten or at very least pushed aside the DURABILITY FACTOR!!!

I started to wonder how I would REACT if a friend or onlooker dropped one of my "prized lights" onto a hard surface like concrete.

I imagine that I would be HORRIFIED and feel like I had lost one of my babies.

As collectors of flashlights us FLASHAHOLICS don't usually put these lights to any heavy duty use and care for them very well indeed.

I look in a awe at my Fenix TK75 and can't stop praising how wonderful this light is to other people whether or not they are FLASHAHOLICS.

I am using my Fenix TK75 as an "EXAMPLE ONLY" here as it could be any other fairly expensive flashlight.

It is just that I would nearly cry even if I accidentally dropped one of my lights onto any hard surface.

Most of our lights have passed the industry standard ANSI drop test of 1 metre.

I would not like to be around when anyone dropped any of the modern sleek but fragile looking flashlights onto a hard surface like concrete.

It is all very well to rate a flashlight like this to the ANSI standard but just how would this supposedly comforting rating be of any comfort by most of us in an serious accidental fall of one of our precious lights.

That begs the question of just where there is a place to use these powerful and full featured but fragile looking lights in any "REAL WORLD" scenario.


Would you use one of your own "MODERN" flashlights in a reasonably rough job or not?

"WARNING"

CONCRETE BELOW!!!





​

CHEERS :mecry:

I don't own any that I wouldn't. If I will jam my $2500 M4's barrel through car windshields, slam it against barricades, etc. I expect the lights I own to stand up to this, too, and don't cut them any slack. My Surefire 6P's retain their Pyrex type lenses, and I run stainless bezel rings on them to retain the shape of the bezel after impact. There is no room for garage-queens in my collection except for my full-time suppressed SBR, and it wouldn't be a garage queen if not for the legislation and red-tape that made it such a PITA to get.

That said, my pen-lights are IPX-8 rated or whatever, and I bet they hold up decent, but in the hospital they really don't have a rough life.

I work in the engine room of a ship. The lights are exposed to high heat, humidity, oil mist, hydraulic oil, diesel, heavy fuel oil, and alkaline chemicals. In fact, i managed to shatter the lens of my 6p the other day. Its still in one piece, so im still using it.

I do not own any lights that i 'baby'. If i felt i had to be careful with a light, it would be useless to me. Thats why i only buy surefire, malkoff and polarion. I took my polarion Ph40 into an old mine this summer, because thats what its made for. Not to sit on a shelf.

Exactly. You buy quality kit and it doesn't take a dump on you when you actually use it. You should never abuse it, and neglect constitutes abuse just as well as misuse. Leaving it on the shelf and picking something else to use that you don't have such an emotional investment in when the tool on the shelf is better for the job...is neglect.

 

[Oztorchfreak]

Here is the light I especially intended to be used for rough job. Not a beauty so it doesn't matter if it becomes scratched.
Good knurling for good grip also with gloves on.

Solarforce L2r with Malkoff M31LL dropin. Simple and reliable. Stable output for several hours also with alkalines.

Hi Swedpat.


That is not a bad combination by the sound of it and should work out well.

I have two older Solarforce L2M hosts still in their packets and I do not know what to use in them or just go with a newer Solarforce body, buy a Malkoff LED (complete) flashlight or go for a Surefire flashlight (complete) as a heavy duty smaller sized EDC.

The higher powered U2 drop-ins from Solarforce look tempting but I really don't think that the body can effectively shed that much heat quick enough even with copper tape and thermal paste etc.

I am probably better off staying with an XPG or maybe an XPG2 in a drop-in.

As I am talking about lights that can be used in a heavy duty way without too much worry what do you or others think of as far as using Solarforce hosts or others go?



CHEERS

 

[Swedpat]

Hi Swedpat.


That is not a bad combination by the sound of and should work out well.

I have two Solarforce L2M hosts and I do not know what to use in them or just go with a newer Solarforce body, buy a Malkoff LED (complete) flashlight or go for a Surefire flashlight (complete) as a heavy duty smaller sized EDC.

The higher powered U2 drop-ins from Solarforce look tempting but I really don't think that the body can effectively shed that much heat quick enough even with copper tape and thermal paste etc.

I am probably better off staying with an XPG or maybe an XPG2 in a drop-in.

As I am talking about lights that can be used in a heavy duty way without too much worry what do you or others think of as far as using Solarforce hosts or others go?



CHEERS

Thanks Oztorchfreak,

I have an L2m as well but I became dissapointed that the knurling is not the aggressive kind as the knurling of L2r, it's pretty slippery. Regarding the Solarforce dropins my experience is that usually are very cool tinted, too much in my taste. The multimode dropins have a very noticable PWM.
Unfortunately(if that isn't changed with the newest editions) L2r is the only Solarforce host which works with Malkoff dropins, and I think it's now discontinued.

 

[Burntrubber87]

With the exception of my numbered malkoff MD2 (0065) all of my lights are well used. My favorite work light (I am an auto transmission tech) was my Clicky with the factory enormous pocket clip. That light was put to the test..constantly..at least 5-10 times a day it would take a 6' + drop from where I was using it on a customers vehicle to the concrete or steel lift below. It never batted an eye. the UI never glitched, not even once. Over a period of about 4-5 years the only thing i did was wear all the finish off from it, break the clip and tore the boot out of the tailcap. Which Henry promptly sent me a replacement cap free of charge.

I even dropped it out of my pocket in our parking lot during a snowstorm, the light was snowplowed into the snowbank and sat there for about 2 months until the snow thawed and there it was sitting proudly on top of the bank. One click later and my life was back to normal. There's a couple pics of it in the beat up lights thread.

 

[g.p.]

Hi Swedpat.


That is not a bad combination by the sound of it and should work out well.

I have two older Solarforce L2M hosts still in their packets and I do not know what to use in them or just go with a newer Solarforce body, buy a Malkoff LED (complete) flashlight or go for a Surefire flashlight (complete) as a heavy duty smaller sized EDC.

The higher powered U2 drop-ins from Solarforce look tempting but I really don't think that the body can effectively shed that much heat quick enough even with copper tape and thermal paste etc.

I am probably better off staying with an XPG or maybe an XPG2 in a drop-in.

As I am talking about lights that can be used in a heavy duty way without too much worry what do you or others think of as far as using Solarforce hosts or others go?



CHEERS

I'm an aircraft mechanic working 100% nights outside in the elements. Back in the days of Maglites I would go through one every 3-4 months. They would sometimes get damaged from drops, but mostly the rubber switch cover would not seal well enough, or go missing all together. Hydraulic fluid (Skydrol) would make it's way into the switch and eventually eat away everything.

I have been using my Fenix lights (TK41 & 45) and a Solarforce L2T (with a cheap Manafont XML dropin) without issues for about two years now. The L2T is on my belt and with me 100% of the time. It easily sees the most use and abuse and has not missed a beat. I even set up my coworker with a Solarforce host and dropin. His hasn't missed a beat either, even after driving over it with a 1 ton dually by accident!

IMO, modern lights are far superior to crappy old Maglites in every way and are built to be used!

 

[CdBoy]

Well said TWL!


I still have my Olight M20 flashlight and it did stand up to a lot of heavy duty use in the past.

There is a video of a Torture Test that some guys did with one of these lights that is very interesting to watch as it only confirms to me just what I have always thought of this flashlight.


[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6WSPKuunCI[/URL]


Some will say that this test was not very well scientifically controlled and that it could be faked somehow.

I will leave that one up to the viewers of that particular video to judge for themselves.

Things included in this video are water, shotguns and being dragged behind a fast moving vehicle etc.

I am not sure just how many flashlights could handle this sort of abuse.

Maybe this could become an ANSI standard in the future.

AS IF!!




CHEERS

I can attest to the authenticity of the video.

 

[jamesmtl514]

Without having read through this whole thread, the day I received my $400 McGizmo mule AA I took sandpaper to it, then threw it in a jug with beach rocks and shook it up.
Since then I've been EDC'ing it almost daily without ever having it fail.

The are guys on this forum that have done worse to lights worth four times my mule.

 

[utlgoa]

Check out Led Lenser on youtube and energized hard case flashlights, they really take a beating !

 

[Charles L.]

Some of my lights I baby, some I put through the wringer. Three 2014 acquisitions that have taken a lot of abuse, and now look like hell, are an Olight S-20, Nitecore SRT3 and Zebralight H600F headlamp (I have a bad habit of swinging it around by the strap when I'm not wearing it). I also have a Nitecore Extreme, now more than 4 years old, that has more chips and scratches than paint. All work fine.

OTOH I do have one titanium light, and I will admit I am very careful with it. My brass Peak El Capitan also gets treated with TLC.

 

[Wiggle]

Of my lights I have consider pretty much all of them good for "medium-duty". So I'd feel comfortable dropping them on normal surfaces and standing up to my standard everyday and out in the woods usage easily. But for a light that would take some serious heavy use there are two I would trust. My Armytek Predator 2.5 Pro and my Shiningbeam Blaze. Since the Blaze is ridiculously rugged, affordable and has a very useful mostly-flood beam it is my go to for tough tasks. It also is well knurled and perfectly sized for my one handed use. I've always been surprised the Blaze isn't more popular. Mine has taken several bad drops, some on tile and some on concrete. It has suffered no problems other than a couple small knicks in the HA 3 annodizing.

 

[nfetterly]

I use almost all my lights in industry (pulp & paper) - I used a McGizmo Haiku for a year as my primary light.

 

[BababooeyHTJ]

Re: Would you use a fairly pricey LED flashlight in a rough job or not? CONCRETE BELO

I've dropped my sc600 mk2 a bunch of times. Several of those times off of a ladder. Still works great. Edges are pretty beat up though