General purpose headlamp - 1AA or 2AA

Hey guys!

I'm looking for a general purpose headlamp. 1AA or 2AA, multiple light intensity modes, floody light, and waterproof (rain as well as squirts from any direction). Also, the headlamp should be comfortable to use with glasses on (both, prescription and safety glasses).

I've been reading the forums and going to different websites of flashlight manufacturers, but I have not been able to find the best all around headlamp. A couple models that seem good are the Zebralight H51F (and H51Fw) and the Spark SD52-CW. But I'm sure that there must probably be even better options out there. Cool or neutral tint is fine with me as I seldom need to distinguish colors with precision, but I'd be willing to experiment with a warm tint if that doesn't considerably decrease the light intensity output.

Also, I've seen that several quality headlamps use what seems to be a silicone wrapper around the headlamp itself. Now, I have absolutely no experience with this kind of material, but wouldn't this "silicone rubber material" be prone to wear off quickly or perhaps even easily break?

1) How would you prefer to purchase the light?

_X__I will be mail-ordering or buying online, so this doesn't matter.


2) Budget: An easy question, but you may change your mind after answering the rest!

_X__Less than $50.
_X__Less than $100.

3) Format:

_X__I want a headlamp.

4) Flashlight-specific format/size:

_X__I don't know. 1AA or 2AA, something that doesn't get uncomfortable to wear in my forehead for several hours in a row.

5) Emitter/Light source:

_X__LED (known for efficiency, longevity, and compactness)

6) Manufacturer:

_X__I want to buy a light from a traditional mass producing manufacturer that is ready to go out of the box.

7) What battery type do you want to use?

_X__I intend to use alkaline batteries (AAA, AA, C, D) (disclaimer, while it does not preclude all choices, these are not recommended for many of today's most powerful lights)
_X__I intend to use rechargeable nickel chemistry (NiCad, NiMH, NiZn)

8) How much genuine out the front (OTF) light do you want/need? Sometimes you can have too much light (trying to read up close up with a 100 lumen light is impossible).

_X__I want to navigate a dark room or read a map (0-10 lumens).
_X__I want to walk around an unlit rural area (50-150 lumens).

9) Throw vs. Flood: At what distance will you be most likely to use this light? Select all that apply.

_X__Less than 1 yard/meter (reading, other close work)
_X__Less than 5 yards/meters (looking for something inside a dark shed/garage/basement)
_X__5-20 yards/meters (check out a noise in the backyard)
_X__30-50 yards/meters (I have a big backyard)
I'll probably spend most of the time using it at "arm distance" to "walking distance".

10) Runtime: Not over-inflated manufacturer runtime claims, but usable brightness measured from first activation to 50% with new batteries (Measured on maximum output).

_X__90-120 minutes (Runtime is moderately important, but still not critical)
_X__3 hours + (I critically need this light to run on max for extended periods in between battery changes/charges).
I'll probably need the longest runtimes on the lower modes (in the ballpark of 20 to 50 lumens), but the longer the runtimes the better. I know this is hard to accomplish with a 1AA or 2AA configuration.

11) Durability/Usage: Generally the old phrase "you get what you pay for" is very accurate for flashlights.

_X__Very Important (Camping, Backpacking, Car Glove-box).
_X__Critical (Police, Fire, Search & Rescue, Caving, Survival).

12) Switch Type and location (choose all that apply):

_X__I don't know.

13) User Interface (UI) and mode selection. Select all that apply.

_X__I want multiple light levels. (Some lights have 5-16 light levels.)

14)Material/Finish/Coating

_X__Anodized Aluminum – either type II or III (Hard Anodized) (Aluminum, specifically HA, is the most common material/finish for today's flashlights).

15) Special Needs/extras: Is there anything else you want or need that hasn't been mentioned? Select any below.

_X__I don't know.

Eventually, I'm not in a hurry so I can wait for a while if there is something interesting about to be released.

Thank you in advance for all your advice and suggestions!

i guess i would throw the Spark ST5 into the mix as well. it's nice that it comes with both a clear and a frosted lens so you can switch back and forth between a floody beam and a more throwy beam depending on what you want.

regarding the Spark SD52, one thing you might want to consider about it is that, without the add-on reflector, the beam on it doesn't seem to throw at all. that's a common complaint among owners. even folks who bought it expecting to use it as a pure flood work light seem disappointed by how quickly the light intensity fades from the light source.

and regarding the Zebralights, one thing to consider about them is that you may not be able to tilt them down as far as you want because the edge of the spill beam may catch the tops of your glasses and created glare. i don't have a H51F or a H51 so i can't say exactly how those compare, but i have a H60 and mostly i have to have it pointing a little bit farther up than i really want because it lights up my glasses otherwise. the beam on the H60 is very even so this isn't really a problem for me, but it could be a problem for the H51F and H51.

for more recommendations, you might want to post this question in the Headlamps sub-forum.

Personally I don't know of a better option than the Zebralight H51f that you've already mentioned. Regarding the silicone wrapper on quality headlamps that you mentioned as well...I've never seen that.

I'd be interested to hear what headlamps you are referring to that have the silicone wrapper.

Thank you for all your suggestions, I'm considering them all.

As for "silicone wrapper", I was referring to the silicone holder that forms part of the headband. The term "silicone holder" is used in the Zebralight terminology, I do not know what other names this piece may have.

Eventually, this goes for GcBryan, do you use your ZL H51F while wearing glasses?

My all around favorites are the zebralight headlights, and I've tried a lot of other brands through recent years. I do not wear glasses, so I cannot comment on how they perform for those that do wear glasses.

- For general use my favorite is the H501w (all flood). This light is on the top ten "Flashaholics Must-Have" list. Click Here - http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...ot-Must-Have-quot-List-Cast-your-vote!-PART-2

- For short distance running or hiking my favorite is the H51 or H51w (spot with flood). Single AA light.

- For long distance running or hiking my favorite is the H600 (mostly floody with some spot). Single 18650 rechargeable Li-ion battery (battery & charger not included when purchasing this light.)

bon1 said:

Thank you for all your suggestions, I'm considering them all.

As for "silicone wrapper", I was referring to the silicone holder that forms part of the headband. The term "silicone holder" is used in the Zebralight terminology, I do not know what other names this piece may have.

Eventually, this goes for GcBryan, do you use your ZL H51F while wearing glasses?

Click to expand...

I see what you are talking about now regarding the silicone holder. They provide two when you order a Zebralight. One is black and one is glow-in-the-dark. Silicone doesn't degrade easily and I think this is a perfect application for it.

I don't wear glasses in general but do need them for reading. I have used my H51f with reading glasses on and don't see any problem. You could rotate the headlamp to the point where it did cause glare however that's only because you can position this headlamp in ways that you can't with other headlamps.

The plastic 3AAA headlamps generally have a hinged plate that allows the whole unit to drop down. The Zebralight design of simply rotating the unit in place is much more efficient and stable IMO.

I have 5 (good) headlamps and the H51f is my favorite (I also have the H51).

I'd go for the ZL H series, perhaps in a non-flood warm flavor. Some throw is good for general purpose use and the ZLs are pretty floody anyways. I wear glasses, no problem at all.

One thing that's worthwhile is to thread the headband throught the silicone holder the opposite way of OEM... More comfortable and it won't put dents in your head.

Another vote for the Zebralights. I have an H31. It's not only a great headlamp, but also a very nice hand held light. You can stand it up, lay it down on it's side at any angle, or clip it to your shirt pocket. It's amazing how many ways it can be used. The provided clip is very solid.

Thank you for your advice, guys!

Experimenting pays off.

I see that some of you warn me about the use of Zebralight headlamps while wearing glasses, while other users of prescription glasses say that Zebralights are not a problem when wearing glasses. Well, that confuses me.

I've done a bit of an experiment holding a floody EagleTac D25A Mini flashlight near to were a headlamp would be on my head and I can say that my glasses started to collect light whenever I was shining the D25A less than two meters away from my feet (while I was standing up).

Also, in another experiment using the same light source in the same way as in the experiment above, I realized that my glasses also pick up some light when sitting in front of a table and the flashlight spot is within the working distance of my arms (let's say the that the D25A's beam is shining where the keyboard of a desktop computer would be).

In both of the former experiments, the light collected in my glasses came from the beam spill of the flashlight. I understand that all Zebralight headlamps are floodier than my EagleTac D25A Mini flashlight so *my guess* is that the problem of my glasses collecting light from its source would only be exacerbated. I must add that I've done both of my experiments using the highest light intensity mode on my D25A flashlight and I understand that my glasses would not collect so much light when using the lower light intensity modes of said flashlight.

It's for all the above that I can see why the Spark ST5 that "robostudent5000" adviced me to look into would be a wise choice--the glass on the ST5 headlamp is located further away from the head when compared against the Zebralight headlamps. Also, I've been able to recreate what "robostudent5000" warned me about the beam spill catching on my glasses as I have done in my experiments above with a flashlight.

On the other hand, I've read some complains on the forum about the headband used for Spark headlamps where the top strap seems to be too short. Because of this, do you guys know if Spark is coming up with an updated ST5 model anytime soon?

Also, I would appreciate if any users of the Spark ST5 could comment on their experiences using this headlamp. Alternatives to the ST5 would also come in handy.