$50 to spend. Brightness and Runtime.

My fraternity brother wants me to find him a flashlight for him. I gave him the usual "pick 2, brightness, runtime, or small size". his choices were brightness and runtime. he said "i wanna be able to blind a guy", but we all know sometimes thats not realistic. His price range is a maximum of $50. He's used to using Maglites, so i think he'd be uncomfortable with a Fenix. i was thinking a Pelican 2020 Recoil LED. Lets see what you guys can come up with.

I would think a SL Propoly Lux 4AA would be a good choice for a beginner. It's not really bright in current terms, but it should be better than a stock mag, throws well, can blind, has long runtime and is tough.

If you can get it modded to a Seoul, that'd be better.

Otherwise I would say Fenix... he might just enjoy getting used to it

How about one of the TerraLUX TLE-6EX or TLE-6EXB replacement bulbs? They're bright and you'll get hours and hours of runtime with two D cells.

I think the Fenix might just be great for him, but he might not get used to the reverse clickie unless you get him a L1/2T v2.0 with the forward clickie.

If not, how about the DX VB-16 kit with two 18650 batteries? Forward clickie and variable modes for brightness or runtime.

the Fenix ,,,,

I don't recommend exotic batteries for non-flashaholics. I think a Mag2D or 3D with a Terralux drop in is the best bet. He'll be in for a surprise when he see's the difference between stock and the Terralux TLE-6EXB. The other recommendations don't really offer that much runtime, especially when you consider the cost of CR123's or even the initial investment cost of 18650's and charger. Mags are a little under $20, plus about $30 after shipping for the drop in. $50. Bright. Good Runtime. Exactly what you're looking for.

Take a look in the LED section for a discussion of the Ray-o-vac 3c cree light.

What about the new Fenix L2T V2. In the price range, bright with good runtime and not to small. Its even not that complicated, a Maglite user could handle it.

jayhackett03 said:

he said "i wanna be able to blind a guy", but we all know sometimes thats not realistic. His price range is a maximum of $50. He's used to using Maglites, so i think he'd be uncomfortable with a Fenix.

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Why would he be uncomfortable with a Fenix? There are simple Fenixes without the blinky blink modes. The Fenix L2T v2.0 RB80 has better runtime and is more blinding but I think the Fenix L1T V2.0 RB80 is easier to EDC. Both use common AA batteries and are below $50 before discount.

i just thought i'd bring this old thread back to life, see what else we can come up with.

http://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/the-19/RC-dsh-G2--Romisen/Detail

1aa commonly avalible battery,small,bright,Romisen quality. Whats not to like? I'm fixing to order me up one!

jayhackett03 said:

i just thought i'd bring this old thread back to life, see what else we can come up with.

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Power on board spot light. Hey he did pick Runtime and brightness.

I would have let him pick brightness, cheap, runtime. So far it's Cheap and bright.

Brightness + runtime = battery efficiency, at which Fenix excels. This one is under $50, and you get another 8% off from Fenix Store with CPF8 code.

There are a few low cost gems out there which come surprisingly close to Fenix in battery efficiency at 1/4 the price (I really like the "Supet Bright" XJ8 for $13.50) but buying one of those entails a risk that: 1) they changed the supplier since the excellent ones I got; or 2) there's sample variation in the current lot and you might not be so lucky as me. That said, both my samples were consistent and had good brightness, run time, and build quality. Excellent considering the price charged.

Note, both these lights run OK with alkaline AAs, but they will run longer with NIMHs because NIMHs work better in high current drain apps.