Handheld -> headlamp?

Not sure whether this should be here or general, but since its in reference to head mounting, I figured here is best...

Anyways, I'm kind of toying with the idea of replacing my only headlamp with something a little more modern, and it just hit me why not use my 1AA lights? They work great in a pinch clipped to a ballcap!

Three options I've seen are the D10 headband, the fenix and the niteize. The niteize definately doesnt look hat great and the Fenix looks too gimicky with the swivels and everything. Can anybody comment on these options for use with L1Tv2 and Quark AA Mini's? I already use these mountain biking with a twofish on the helmet so I'm confident in the lights' abilities, just not in the various headstraps :candle:

As an addendum, this will be for use as a general purpose blackout light, car repair and other such activities possibly as far as trail running (although so far I havent started )...

I dont own any of the above, however, if you search for "headband nutnfancy" on youtube, you will see a few clips of him using the Fenix headband, and he seems to really like it.

I *think* I would rather use the niteize one though, just for lightness/compactness.

Buck91 said:

Three options I've seen are the D10 headband, the fenix and the niteize. The niteize definately doesnt look hat great and the Fenix looks too gimicky with the swivels and everything. Can anybody comment on these options for use with L1Tv2 and Quark AA Mini's?

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I think the niteize stinks from high to heaven (unelastic band with velcro is either too tight or too lose. And I need to regulate for whatever hat I'm using (or no hat), so I can't adjust it once and for all...) . I don't have the fenix and can't really comment on that except it looks bulky and gimmicky, but I suspect it does a pretty good job. Too bulky for me to bring along.

The D10 headband does a good job. I haven't track tested it with quark mini (only regular quark), but the mini will fit, but not very tight. It is sort of "borderline" on being too loose, but the mini is very lightweight, so it doesn't take much to hold it in position. I am pretty sure it won't fall out during occasional use, but I am not sure how it would hold up to repeated bouncing such as running. The upside is that it is very easy to insert and remove the mini, you can easily do that while wearing the headband. For extended use like running it would make sense to add some kind of cordage loop so you don't loose it if it slides out.


I also have the quark headband, which seemed on purchase to be as good as the the D10, but the loop holding my quark AA started fraying the 3rd night, so I can't recommend this. Too early to say if this was a defect of my sample, bad luck or if it is typical of this headband in general, but I think the clip on my quark played a vital role chewing up the loop...

I haven't tested any of these running, but bouncing could be an issue. A headband works splendid for skiing, though, but skiing you don't have the bounce for each step.

For close up work it is really hard to beat my zebralight.... but basically any kind of lightning works, and a D10+whatever single cell light is 100 times more practical than holding the light in your mouth.

Buck91 said:

Anyways, I'm kind of toying with the idea of replacing my only headlamp with something a little more modern, and it just hit me why not use my 1AA lights? They work great in a pinch clipped to a ballcap!

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Or like this: https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/237657

Buck91 said:

Three options I've seen are the D10 headband, the fenix and the niteize. The niteize definately doesnt look hat great and the Fenix looks too gimicky with the swivels and everything. Can anybody comment on these options for use with L1Tv2 and Quark AA Mini's?

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The niteize and the fenix in my opinion has too much glare with the torch mounted on the side of the head. The D10 is the better choice with the option of mounting the torch on top of the head.

That said, I'm now using a baseball/golf cap and the fenix MC-10 or liteflux LF2XT clipped to the peak. MC-10 with the angled head works well. LF2XT, had to get my own clip since the clip that came with it isnt reversible. The Quark 123 has the perfect clip but if you can find a clip for the Quark AA mini, it would work just as well.

Buck91 said:

Not sure whether this should be here or general, but since its in reference to head mounting, I figured here is best...

Anyways, I'm kind of toying with the idea of replacing my only headlamp with something a little more modern, and it just hit me why not use my 1AA lights? They work great in a pinch clipped to a ballcap!

Three options I've seen are the D10 headband, the fenix and the niteize. The niteize definately doesnt look hat great and the Fenix looks too gimicky with the swivels and everything. Can anybody comment on these options for use with L1Tv2 and Quark AA Mini's? I already use these mountain biking with a twofish on the helmet so I'm confident in the lights' abilities, just not in the various headstraps :candle:

As an addendum, this will be for use as a general purpose blackout light, car repair and other such activities possibly as far as trail running (although so far I havent started )...

Click to expand...

Of the options you listed, the Fenix, with its ability to angle the beam, would be the best one. A light without a means to rotate/angle the beam won't be nearly as useful as it can be, especially for the kind of up-close work you describe in the last sentence.

Anyway, try the options you listed. That way you can make an informed final decision based on actual personal experience.

I have the Fenix headband and swear by it! the swivels can seem a little bulky, but believe me, they're definitely not gimmicky! they're a must! you need to aim your light at the right angle, otherwise it becomes pretty much useless. Not only can you adjust them up/down, but also left/right by moving them front/back on the elastic band. It's perfect for hiking, but I wouldn't use it in a situation where I have to stick my head in a tight opening... (ahem, no reference to other type of human activity...)

The best part with it is that you can have 2, even 3 lights at once (combined mine with the HP10). It works great with quarks as well, and since I grew tired of chasing a bouncing ball, I put diffuser lens on my lights and now use a quark RGB with it... can't wait to try that one out.

With 2 lights or more, you can have different settings on your lights for close lighting and higher setting for far lighting. Might sound useless said like that, but believe me, on the trails, it works better than any other set-up I have tried so far... and believe me, I've done some heavy configurational testing on dark trails.

In a pinch you'd probably find it would work, and for the price you can't really go wrong.

That said, you'll probably find it annoying, as the light's you're talking about tend to be quite spotty, and the mount requires it be pointing directly in front of you. THink about using your headlight - I bet 80/90% of the time you have the beam pointed down slightly, I know I do.

A decent headlamp (I use an alpkit gamma) isn't very expensive, and will be loads more useful.

Went for a short jog with my existing headlamp yesterday about 9:30 in the evening. It was resonably dark for the time of year with some snow on the ground but no moon to speak of. The Solo with Terralux PR drop-in was sadly lacking in both throw and spill, which isn't really news. Definately need to find a better solution or trail running (well, not that hardcore but off-pavement running) WILL be limited. Probably should just pick up a EOS from my work on the cheap and not worry about but...

And I will probably be ban for this...

I just don't need another light!

davidt1 said:

Of the options you listed, the Fenix, with its ability to angle the beam, would be the best one.

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You can angle the Nitecore one if you use the top band fixings by moving them backwards or forwards (assuming you don't have a flat head). I've used it a bit for running and biking. It doesn't feel very secure with a 2AA flashlight in it, you can feel the weight of the light shifting if you move your head sharply but you kind of forget about that after a while and it does the job..... just not as well as a properly designed headlamp.