How many lumens is your edc?

slimshaneee

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Apr 11, 2011
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I am thinking of buying a new light, and looking at one that is 100 lumens.
I know there are lights I could buy that are about the same size and can push over 400, heck some are getting in the 700 range.

Is your edc 100 or less? Is it good enough?

Funny thing is, I didn't even carry flashlights for most of the years of my life, now I wonder if 100 lumens is good enough
:)
 

RDPOE

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Jan 10, 2012
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I picked up a Fenix E21 as a starter light because I was in the same boat as you. It was my first "real" flashlight and at 150 lumens it's more than I need. I actually keep it dialed back to the lower setting of about 48 and that is enough for most situations. It's nice to have the higher output on tap as well.

I also snagged an iTP A1 which has an initial low setting of about 2 lumens (then 35,190) which is really nice to have during the evening if I don't want to wake my wife up. That resides in my pocket all day, with the Fenix in my bag.

I'd say 100 is adequate, but you'd probably want more soon enough, so maybe cut out the middle-man (so to speak) and get something with a little higher output. You don't always have to use it on max!
 

TEEJ

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It depends on what you NEED it for. I do inspections for various building issues, and anything from water damage to environmental forensics might be my daily routine. If you just need to be able to walk around w/o bumping into things, a squeezee key chain light works. If you need to see things a yard or so away, it still works, to not bump into, but not to examine in detail, and then the 100 lumen range comes in more handy. If what you need to see in detail is further away, then you need more power, but, depending on if you ALSO need to see where you're walking, then a floody beam for example is useful...but a spot type beam is better for a longer distance for the same lumens.

If I am in a crawlspace with lots of pipes/ducts, etc...and I want to see what's on the other side, a floody beam will light up whats around me great, but, even if the shine is shining all the way to my target, the light on the stuff next to me can make it hard to SEE the distant stuff visible through a narrow line of sight. So, for that, a narrow angle spot is better.

For some things, I need the color of the light to be more white, for others, off white's OK. If I am trying to tell if a dark spot 100' away is mold or a water stain or efflorescence, etc, the whiter light gives better color rendition.

In other words, lumens are only part of the story. Its like choosing a daily driver vehicle based solely upon horsepower. Some days, 200 lm is fine, some days I NEED 800 lm, it depends. For me at least, I never wish a light were WEAKER though, but being able to lower the intensity is often useful. I USUALLY run all of them on full power though, as a default.

So, to choose what's right for you, think about why you CARRY the light, and what you need it to do for you.
 

think2x

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100 lumens is PLENTY for most tasks. I EDC rotate between Sunwayman V10A HCRI modded, HDS 140GT and HDS 120E, I hardly ever use the HDS lights on full brightness.
BTW: I'm an Electrician and most of my lighting needs are short to medium distance at work.
 
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fisk-king

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Usually at my job (hydro dam tech/electrician) I use my light ~40x a day and usually around 60Lm is enough light for most tasks. Now when inspecting the scroll case (which contains the turbine) during outages 200Lm comes in handy quite often.
 

Mark-60

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I carry a Fenix LD15 (single AA) light with a high of 117 lumens and low of 8 lumens. I use the low setting i guess about 85% of the time. When I walk my dog at night, (I work gravyard so this is usually at night) I bring the big guns with me.
 
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eh4

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My good lights top out at about 120 lumens.
It just works out that way after I've picked around size, battery, light quality and features.
I'd be happy with 60 lumen max for EDC if the size and ergonomics of the light were right.
If I was a professional cave bear collector or something I'd have to reconsider.
 
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Chicken Drumstick

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+1 on the intended use. If it's indoors, close up work. Then way less than 100 lumens is probably more than enough. But get outside with longer distances and bigger area's and it's a different ball game.

In some ways I'd say reflector type/design is more important than lumens. You can have a high lumen light with a nice OP reflector than can light up an area really well, but it might not has the same sort of range/throw as a lesser powered light.
 

Onthelightside

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I love my 4sevens preon 2. On max mode it has 160 lumens and that is really bright. I can light up the whole side of a cliff when I rock climb.
 

USACelt

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Most of the time, 50-100 lumens is fine for me. I edc a quark 123 and love the 200+. If walking through a dark parking lot and you want to light up a big area, its great. Its like a car, extra power isn't always needed but when it is, it's there.
I'm personally looking for a 300+ replacement for the Quark, I like horsepower.
buttrock.gif
 

ylw

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My EDC is the EagleTac D25Cm Ti which is on my keychain. The reason is quite simple: on occasion I have wished I had some sort of light source with me and something I always carry are my keys. This was when fixing a computer, when looking at something in a darker area (like under a table, in a closet, etc.) and when walking in an industrial area (only roads so I need to see cars, trucks). For most tasks I need the med setting because I need it to light something that is in a darker area (or more shaded area). Lower is not visible, higher is too much. The high setting allows me to walk in those industrial areas (the bigger throw helps) and the moonlight aka low setting is helpful when looking for things like the keyhole (it is the first setting so quick to access). From the specs the lumen would be (the first one is the high setting with the first 90sec turbo boost; I think the OTF would be more around 200 after those 90 secs):

  • 359/94/3 LED lumen
  • 255/68/3 O.T.F. lumen
My Fenix L2D-ce has less lumen but I find it to be as useful on those lo, med, hi settings as the EagleTac. The EagleTac is simply a lot smaller and therefore easier to carry on a keychain. My Petzl Tikkina however is only useful for close up work like working in the darker areas/computer which is exactly why I bought it, I have 2 hands that I can use.
 

Roger Sully

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I'm personally looking for a 300+ replacement for the Quark, I like horsepower.
buttrock.gif

Quick upgrade to the QuarkX 123 and you're set!

I EDC a QuarkX 123 clipped in RF pants pocket and EagleTac P20C2 in jacket. I have the ET always with the head loosend for a medium mode and the 47s set to high and medium with the head loosened. The medium mode is ususally enough but a quick tighten of the head has the extra horsepower for sure!!
 

AnAppleSnail

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I have a Peak Vesuvius on my keychain. I occasionally use it to inspect objects at work through their casings. You can see the contents of a 5-gallon pail through the bucket with 600 lumens on a pinky-fingernail-sized spot. I also have a quark mini, around 85 lumens high CRI. Non-work days I have a Quark tactical set to 90 lumens.
 

cland72

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I pocket carry a P1D that has 16, 96, and 180 lumen options. For most things (navigating the dark) I use the 16 lumen mode, but occasionally I'll use the 96 lumen mode when I need more light. I rarely use the 180 lumens.
 

GaAslamp

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My primary EDC flashlight has output levels (OTF lumens from the manufacturer) of: 0.3, 2.8, 14, 29, 63, 80, and 130. For most tasks, I actually use the lowest two modes, which is usually quite sufficient. For walking around outside at night, for example, 14 lumens is more than enough for me (I could get by with 2.8 lumens, for that matter). I most often use the 29-lumen mode for looking in dark places during daylight when my eyes lack dark adaptation, and it's quite effective for that; I don't often use more light than this even when outside at moderate distances. I use the 63- and 80-lumen modes to illuminate things at some distance (rarely that far) or for looking around a larger area indoors with a brighter spill (and often when doing something with others, who may appreciate having more light than I would). I rarely ever use the 130-lumen mode because it doesn't make much of a difference except when illuminating things at longer distances, which I don't do a lot of. Bear in mind that I'm a minimalist when it comes to light, and I realize that some folks prefer to use even as much as 500+ lumens at short distances indoors. :)
 

RobertM

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My most carried light is my HDS EDC High CRI 100. It is capable of producing 0.07 - 100 lumens of output. The mode I use most often is around 25-30 lumens and it's 100 lumen max seems to be fine for 99% of my lighting needs.
 

Bigmac_79

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You can put 100 lumens on your keychain pretty cheap these days, so that's a minimum ;) I EDC a Sunwayman V10R XM-L, which puts out anywhere from 1 to 400+, and it's perfect. I find that having a high output is great to available at all times, but even more essential is the ability to have a low output. The lower low is the main reason I use my V10R instead of my Xeno E03 as an EDC.

(you can see a review of the V10R by the link in my signature line if you like)
 

Danielight

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My EDC is a 4Sevens Q MiniX-123 (low: 1.2 lumens, medium: 45 lumens, high: 210 lumens; also has SOS, strobe, and beacon). Very bright for such a small light; small size makes it ideal to carry in your pocket.
 
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