What was the ONE light that got you hooked...

[Lumens_kid3331]

Coleman 3aaa RWB with a magnetic control ring

[walterr839]

I'ld have to say the Surefire M6. I bought one about 10 years ago on a whim. I heard about it somewhere and thought for $600 it must be good. I had to have one. Back then it was the brightest light I had ever played with. That led me to the A2 Aviator that I used for preflighting at night. I still have both those lights but have added the PhD M6 battery pack to the M6 and a calipsoii red and warm white ring to the A2 and run it on 16340 IMR cells. I still get a kick out of the M6 and use the A2 as a night light.

[John_Galt]

Years ago: the River Rock "1/2 watt" LED. I was in Target and saw their flashlight/battery rack. I thought about getting a mini-mag in red, but poked around a little more, and they had the River Rock 2AAA LED light for $7.99 [a lot of money for me to ask a parent for, I thought]. I knew about LED's, a little, and knew they were brighter and didn't burn out, so I managed to convince my mom that she should buy it.

It was the brightest light in the house, lol, at about 10-12 lumens with a purple/blue tinted hotspot and very little spill. But it threw out an impressive [at the time] beam of light, ran forever on a pair of Duracell AAA's, survived a few trips through the wash. It couldn't be beat.

I started googling around, looking for a review, and found the flashlight reviews archive page. I spent hours poring over the various pages of lights, reading every review, comparing lights features, outputs, prices... The one I found most impressive then, was the then-new HDS EDC Ultimate 60! I knew I just had to have one, but at many, many times the cost of my river rock, I knew that was impossible. So I had to sate my appetite with online reviews.

A few years later, I found the reviews section on CPF [really weird, a website where people talk about "flashlights"]. Seeing the march of time and technology, I began searching anew. About a year after that, I was in Scouts, so I needed a good light or two for camping and hiking. I stumbled upon a great deal on a princeton tec Aurora headlamp [it was $30 retail, way, way too much for me to spend] at a yard sale for $10, so I snapped it up. I've used it for years, until about last year, when a set of Duracells leaked in it and destroyed it...

I wanted something bright and impressive. Then, as now, most lights seemed to run on CR123, which were $15 a pop at my local rite-aid [and still are, lol]. So I needed to stick with AA powered lights. After months of research, I settled on a Fenix LD20 premium Q5. Great light, excellent output and throw, considering it is literally the size and weight of a mini-mag. Reading more of the cons of using alkaline batteries, and experiencing <10 minute run times on turbo with fresh duracells, I invested in a duracell "duraloop" Ni-MH charger and a few sets of batteries.

And since then, I've collected various HDS lights, a Quark Ti AA, a Surefire E2L turned Milkyspit Expurgator, and E1E, a Surefire KL1 head, a lumapower D1... And am still looking. Nothing has jived right as my HDS lights, but I still like to collect, even if I'm more "catch and release" style now, due to the expense.

[edpmis02]

I saw youtube videos of Fenix L0Ds that out blasted 3D maglights.. L0D Q4 "Christmas edition" was my first non MegaMart light. Hate to admit it.. but it replaced a Mag Solitaire on my keychain.. Yes.. slight upgrade!

[eh4]

HDS...

[F250XLT]

Isn't it fun to think back to the early times, as well as hear about others?

[vee]

HDS. Bought 2 B60's within the first month of joining CPF!

[LGT]

A little Streamlight keychain something or the other, can't remember exactly what it was. But it was an LED that ran on four button cell batteries which cost more to replace then the price of the light. While I was "wowed" by the brightness(I didn't call it output back then) the cost of the batteries was twice the cost of the light. There must be something better then this.....

[F250XLT]

HDS. Bought 2 B60's within the first month of joining CPF!

Got either of those still in your possession?

[qwertyydude]

Mine definitely was the Inova X1 gen. 1 with the Tiros lens. That flashlight is still cool cause it had a just about perfect and uniform circle of light in actuality it's quite a bit less useful than the standard spot and spill. I wish I could still find one since I lost it camping.

[kool_BOY8323]

my first 'real' light was a AA mini maglite. it got me all through boy scouts and beyond. it became my toolbox light. i still have it. it's modded with a nite ize push button tail cap and 1w LED bulb now, along with the anti roll ring and pocket clip.

my most recent lights were a streamlight stinger ds led, and a streamlight strion led...

ive got so many flashlights now i cant keep track of em all. somewere around 20 last i counted. not counting the wife and son's collections..flashaholic family lol

[Bertrand]

Surefire Defender Incandescent version was the first light I really wanted in 2005. 7 years and a couple thousand bucks later I'm a flashaholic I guess

[enomosiki]

Fenix P2D.

It was the catalyst to the hobby that I spent several thousands of dollars on.

[Tana]

6P... few sets of batts until Malkoff was discovered... after that it kind of went down the hill (at least from my financial standpoint)...

[Richub]

My first LED flashlight was a Fenix LD20 XR-E Q5, a short while later I bought an Olight M30 triton. That M30 seriously got me hooked on powerful lights.

After a few months I discovered the downsides of that M30: Almost no regulation on turbo, and a terrible PWM on mid and low. So it ended up in a closet. Last time I tried to find it, it was gone. Dunno if I trashed it, or if it's just misplaced somewhere...

I sold that LD20 last year, so the lights that got me hooked on flashlights are no longer a part of my collection...
Anyway, I still have plenty lights to enjoy on a daily base. And with all those new Fenix lights coming up the next months, I think I'll be getting a few more this year.

[crizyal]

The turning point for my flashaholism was when I purchased my Eternal Light. It had not one but four LEDs! I could set it to many different modes, dim it down as low as I wanted. The batteries lasted forever hence the name. This was definitely a game changer for me. Where else was the to go but a Tri-V? Well I am still working on that one...

[jssp78]

Surefire E2E. Still think it is the best form size made. Might not take 18xxx size battery but it feels great in the hand.

[motigg]

I bought a Coast flashlight at Home Depot for a camping trip. Was wowed by the brightness (about 100 lumens, all spill, unregulated). Someone broke into my car months later, stole the flashlight. I figured I should do some research to replace the light--that led me to CPF. Trouble.

Edit: I remember reading the reviews and thinking "what kind of moron spends more than $20 on a flashlight?" and "who CARES what the beam looks like." Well, now I'm a moron, too.

[fyrstormer]

The Arc6. I didn't like the way it looked in the product photos, but once I saw some better photos taken by owners with good cameras, I had to have one. I couldn't say no to a flashlight with more processing power than Apollo 11.

[Launch Mini]

A freind showed me his Lummi Wee.
About a year later I enquired about it, he told me Dave was about to release the SPY007, and I bought one.
The SPY007 was my first "real light" I purchased.
That light lit up the way for me.

[Lou Minescence]

Innova X5. Finally I had a pocket size reliable light. Batteries would last 6 months. I always remember deer hunting with that light. 5 of us were looking for a wounded deer. By the time we walked out of the woods, everyone was following me. My light was the only one still working. The X5 was so far ahead of the other lights.

[Smokescreen]

I remember seeing my Dad's Mini Mag back when they first came out and I thought those were awesome back then, but for me it was the Innova X5 too... after that I bought a Surefire e2D Defender and it just took off from there.

[ShiningKnight]

Had a couple of maglites before, even a 6D which was large and heavy but not that much light.

Then last year colleagues had a ledlenser which made also wanna have something like that. Did some research, decided that ledlenser wasn't for me and decided upon a Fenix LD10. And that one got me hooked. Couldn't wait till it was dark and go outside to look at the amazing amount of light coming out of such a small package (maglite was the only comparison for me at the time).

Bought seven more Fenix lights from E05 till TK41 since then and am still looking for situations for which I need another flashlight (it not only got me hooked but I still got the virus and can't seem to get rid of it )

[baterija]

For me it was the first non-5mm LED light I got, a Romisen RC-H3. I'd been issued a Surefire Weaponlight months before and it whet the appetite. It was well designed, well made, and functional but when I turned it on ...I wasn't hooked. I was at one of the budget dealers a couple months later for some USB cables/adapters and noticed the flashlight section. Next thing you know I am looking at a review that points here and Bessiebenny's old budget light thread. Hmmmm... high output LEDs...that's news to me. Wanting to experiment before spending a lot of money I ended up with the RC-H3. The rest is history...

[AIC]

Well, my first actual non-toy light was a 2aa Ray-o-vac Sportsman incan. It was simple, durable, bright (for the time), and looked good. It was just a flashlight to me that I used like a light should be used. I then got a Mini-mag, nothing special, didn't like it as much as the Ray-o-vac, but I used that too. Then, I was gifted an Energizer 4aaa double barrel, and I was hooked since then. Going to other Mags, bigger double barrels, more 2d lights and so on. Nothing could satisfy me like the 4aaa Double Barrel. Until I found this place after purchasing a 3aa mini-mag LED and an 80 luman dorcy 3aaa rebel, now I'm broke and illuminated.

[lightsolo]

maglite mini 2xAA in a metallic blue color. cant even remember how old i was when i asked my parents for it.

Same here...mini mag 2 AA royal blue metalic color had the best thow at the time for that battery type light. Virtually break proof for a kid, good size, and batteries were easy to get. That started me on the quality lights quest and onto the flashaholic wagon.

good times,
Lightsolo

[jw2n]

I had many lights, having started using them in the mid-60s as a boy, but it was my first 6p in the 80s that really got me hooked.

[anthony lumens]

Tell us about the ONE light the started you down the road to being a flashaholic.

For me, it was the introduction to the original HDS. When I saw a pic of it, I thought it was very intriguing. When I was finally able to play with one, it was all over. Still one of my absolute favorites, I will always have a few in my collection.

For me it was the Olight Sr90

[Eric242]

My first LED and quality light, an Orb Raw NS in early 2006. A while later a Surefire L5. Both lights really started the sickness for me.

Eric

[Labrador72]

I always liked flashlights but did not become mad about them before I got the JetBeam PA20 - then it was a flashlight after the other...