New headlamp arrived...EOS :)

I just got a PT EOS today...shipped and delivered for $35. Nice simple all black. The beam looks nice. It has an optic but looks like a slightly diffused spot as in there is a spot. My Storm just has a weird looking (to me) optic so I put a piece of translucent tape over it. So it is a diffused directed beam now. I've seen the Peztl XP2 and it's a more or less pure spot and this (EOS) is somewhere in the middle.

It's nice to have a simple interface. No red LED (not that I'd mind it having one), no separate flood emitter or diffuser. Just 1 click for high, 2 for medium, 3 for low, and 4 for a slow beacon type of strobe. Even the strobe isn't annoying

If you wait several seconds then a click just turns it back off....nice!

I'm going to go outside later tonight and compare it a little more throughly to the Storm.

The interesting thing (to me) was the instruction sheet. It looked as if it was written by a Flashaholic as compared to the Storm instruction sheet.

It described why one might choose to use lithium batteries...cold weather, lighter weight, flatter profile, etc. In the run time chart it showed the true regulated time on high, medium and low for both alkaline and lithium along with a graph. So you can see that with alkaline it runs 1 hour on high and then another 113 hours unregulated. On lithium it is 6 hours regulated and another 8 hours unregulated (on high). It gives similar info for each setting and battery type.

It also defines the run time as how long it would take before it hits moonlight or .25 lux at 3 meters.

You couldn't get much clearer than this! It also mentions in detail the very good lifetime warranty and goes into detail regarding cleaning the battery compartment and even mentions the catalyst in there to remove hydrogen. Some of my dive lights have had a catalyst in case of flood but I haven't seen mention of this in headlamps.

So far, at least on paper and in the form of the EOS, PT as a headlamp company seems to have their act together.

I did hear back from an engineer (I guess) at Black Diamond today regarding the very inefficient flood emitters used. He said his test data was at his desk and not where he was but that Monday he would email again. I don't think there is much he can say but maybe I'll get some insight into their thinking.

Anyway this (EOS) is a nice additional headlamp to have. I have no complaints with it. It's basic so it's easier to not screw up I guess but I think I might wait a while before deciding to give the XP2 a try (purchase). If I get some super deal perhaps but otherwise I think I'd like to try to wait until Petzl comes out with an update on that one and see how they do. I don't want any more headlamps that I have to try to like or to get used to

I love (from pictures) the angle adjustment and brightness control on the Surefire Minimus but the weight and beam and certain other features aren't my cup of tea.

One advantage of the EOS is that its high and medium are close to the levels I'll use it at. With the Storm starting at 100 lumens I always have to adjust it down.

Petzl please improve the XP2 soon ... I want to buy another headlamp

From my brief night hike I noticed that my Storm has dimmed quite a bit without me knowing it. The new EOS with a high of 70 lumens is now much brighter than the Storn on high which would be 100 lumens on new batteries.

The Storm is regulated but falls out when 75% of battery capacity is left (which just happened). The EOS is regulated for a little longer I believe.

I also noticed that although the EOS has a hotspot when I shine it on the wall in the house once I'm outside it appears to have no spot. It does seem to throw a little further than my Storm with tape or rather my Storm with tape seems to have a little more spill around my feet than the EOS. Or it may just seem that way since the EOS is currently brighter.

THe Storm does have a lower low which is 4 lumens. I'm not sure what the low of the EOS is. I'm guessing it's around 25 lumens.

The Storm is unique with it's ramping, the EOS wiith it's simplicity, and if I should get the XP2 it would have to be for its true spot and sliding diffuser.

An EOS with a knob on each side a la SF Minimus would be perfect!

Upon further testing (it's pitch black now) I see that the EOS doesn't throw any further it just has an optic that narrows the beam like one of those flood to throw DX lights if you don't have it all the way to flood.

It doesn't serve much purpose other than limiting your spill which means you might trip over something close to your body. The low is decent for hiking but would be too much in many cases in a tent.

I also took the electrical tape off that I had below the lens on the Storm which was to control limited glare to see if it would be OK if I just pushed the headlamp up further. It was OK but I was still aware of it.

A friend who has a XP 2 said the glare bothered him until he did this. The XP2 has much more glare than the Storm. I put the tape back on so if the glare from the Storm bothers me I'm sure the XP2 is not the headlamp for me until they correct that issue.

So until Petzl comes out with something else it looks like I'll use the Storm for some things and the EOS for others. I now realize that the beam (with tape) on the Storm throws as far as the EOS and is nicer and allows me to see my feet as well.

It also has a much lower low.

I try to get away from the Storm and just can't!

I think I'll keep the EOS in my car unless I'm actually hiking and need a backup.

I'd like to have the XP2 just for variety but with a clear housing I guess it's just not going to happen.

Hope you end up liking your new EOS - maybe it'll grow on you after some real world usage.

I've been able to try an EOS on a couple of trips. Liked it well enough, but not quite well enough to buy one for myself.

My two main gripes:

1. Beam profile was decent for night hiking, although I'd have preferred a bit wider beam. Beam profile was usable but not great for close range tasks around camp.

2. Low wasn't low enough. Seemed overly bright when used inside a tent and for reading.

Low not being low enough is a common headlamp issue for me. Most manufacturers seem to have a fairly bright lowest level these days.

I feel like a good general purpose outdoors headlamp should offer a genuine low level for battery conservation on extended trips.

Five lumens is actually a lot of light for night adapted eyes in the wilderness.

Five lumens is just about right for me to use inside a tent, reading, cooking, etc.

I can easily walk along a wooded path with no moonlight penetrating the canopy, using just five lumens.

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I like the EOS beam and for the money they're the best 3XAAA headlamps hands down.

I'd prefer a little more spill just to see a little closer to where my feet are but it's workable for night hikes (why I got it). The lack of a 5 lumen low would make it a little bright in the tent but thee Storm does go down to 4 lumens and does have more spill so I have both options.

It's the Storm that I'm having to learn to like however not the EOS

It was relatively inexpensive (EOS) and I need two headlamps anyway so I'm glad I got it. Not that it really matters but in black I like the way it looks as well.

I'd like to see adjustment by knobs catch on in more headlamps. It's sort of the equivalent of a rotating ring in a flashlight...seems like the best way to control things.

Woods Walker said:

I like the EOS beam and for the money they're the best 3XAAA headlamps hands down.

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I know that the PT EOS has long been a CPF favorite.

EOS is a great little headlamp, that I think could be relied on for general outdoor use and even for extended backpacking trips.

EOS puts out a great beam for medium range to long range, which I found to be excellent for night hiking. Its beam didn't impress me when used as a close range task light, due to beam profile and relatively bright low level.

My critcism of the EOS is a matter of personal taste not meant to detract from the utility of the headlamp, which is good overall.

I'd guess that most people want a higher low level, since that seems to be what is offered by most manufacturers these days.

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over the last couple of months, i've gone from using a PT Eos exclusively to using a Eos for hiking and my RR mule mod for everything else to using my RR mule mod and a small hand held for everything including hiking. the floody mod only lights up a 20 foot hemisphere in front of me, and at first i didn't like this for hiking. but since i've gotten used to it, i like it a lot more than the diffused spot of the Eos. i really like having light on my feet and my periphery and don't mind that it's totally dark beyond 30 feet. i think the fact that i've only hiked familiar trails with this setup has helped. would probably still need the Eos for new trails.

The only problem with new trails and the EOS is that it doesn't light up your feet very much. My Storm with tape does a good job in this regard and as I recall the XP2 even with hotspot does a decent job of this.

The EOS seems more like the effect an aspheric would have (no spill). It's kind of an artificial looking beam.

I think I like the EOS for its simplicity but would use it more in areas that I'm already familiar with or at least in areas where the trails is fairly smooth and predictable which is rarely going to happen in a climbing environment.

Since low is still fairly high it wouldn't be my choice up close in and around a tent. I just think its a nice, fairly inexpensive backup and second headlamp to have around for outdoor use.

I have been doing some night hiking using the Storms flood mode which just feels like the full moon is out. It's very nice but those 5mm or SMD emitters that everyone uses just aren't efficient so I don't use it as much as I would like to.

hey gcbryan, have you tried scotch tape on your Eos? that might coax some spill out of it.

also, have you thought about modding your Eos? its mod potential is one the best things about the Eos IMO. maybe something simple like removing the optic to get an efficient flood only headlamp?

the downside of any Eos mod is that accessing the LED and optics voids the warranty.

Robostudent. It's funny that I hadn't considered tape over the lens of the EOS even though I have tape of the lens of the Storm !

I did it on the Storm just because of an odd looking "ugly" beam but I'll see how I like the EOS with the same treatment.

I'll also look on some of the EOS modifications on here to see how much is involved in taking it apart to get to the optic in case I want to try that.

I also still a small piece of diffusion material from a dive light that I could try if I take the optic out.

Good suggestions!

robostudent5000 said:

also, have you thought about modding your Eos? its mod potential is one the best things about the Eos IMO. maybe something simple like removing the optic to get an efficient flood only headlamp?

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The problem with removing the optic is that you'd lose a LOT of lumens to the inside of the headlamp.

It shouldn't be to difficult to do an XP-G mod with a reflector, though. Even with the stock optic, the XP-G will still produce a slightly wider beam.

I think tape is the best solution (for me).

What I like about the EOS is that while it's not AMAZING at anything it does pretty darn good at everything and when you factor in the price, the water resistance, and the relatively high output that makes it a pretty incredible headlamp to have around. I won't say it's my favorite headlamp but I'd replace it immediately if anything happened to it.

It's just gotten dark and I tried the EOS with tape in my backyard and it's much more appealing. The low is still pretty high...all modes are good for hiking including low but for sitting around camp or trying to conserve battery power low is still about 30 lumens I'm guessing. Not that the tape has anything to do with that.

I'm spoiled with the ramping on the Storm getting me down to 4 lumens. That's one of the most useful setting for me when I'm not hiking. I guess a high low is a common problem as the low on the XP2 is 30 lumens as well.