Help choose another aa light to my quiver.

Hey guys, first time poster, lurker for a while. I'm looking to buy another light and this time I want to shake the tree and see what suggestions come up. I'm still pretty new, I used a tikka2 headtorch for years before discovering the beauty of non CW non PWM light.


I own an L3 Illuminations L10, 4 mode with nichia emitter, love the tint, love the mode levels. Hate the clip because it never stays on, dislike the head twisty, impossible one handed.


Earlier in the month I bought a Zebralight H502C. I wanted a replacement for the tikka, and something I could use at work and home. I love the beam for indoors and upclose work. The tint and colour rendering are both nice. Love the ability to check battery charge, love the ui and programmability.


Now I'd like to get another aa format light, but I've been thinking maybe 2aa rather than 1aa. Something convertable with an externder tube might be cool too. This time I want throwy. Night hiking, dog walking, and a bit of mild caving. But I'm expecting the majority of use will be skating at night in the city. The cycle lanes arent great and visibility towards drivers is even worse than cyclists. Because of higher ambient light the lights I have right now just aren't up to the task.


I'd prefer NW to CW but not essential
A relatively floody throwy beam.
Sublumen would be good but not deal breaker




So far from reading up I'm ranking the Nitecore EA2,, but I'd like to see what other ideas come. I like intereeting or quirky designs.

I started filling out the flashlight checklist but my tablet crashes the page every time I try and copy paste it, so sorry, if ive I've missed anything just ask.

Maybe something like a 4sevens Quark Turbo might fit your needs. Or if you want something a little more floody (but still with some throw), go with a regular Quark Pro or Quark Tactical. You can get them in many formats, including 2xAA. Go with an XP-G2 LED (rather than XM-L2), for the bit more throw you're looking for. The only tint option now is cool white.

I'll +1 on the Quarks with 2x and 1x AA tubes. Try some 14500 or 3V CRAAs lithium primaries for full power on the single cell tube. I wouldn't recommend the Turbo for your application (hiking/dog walking/skating) and actually prefer the floodier XML for motion sports up to bicycling speeds. The XML in the Quark head/reflector still easily out throws your lights and is more practical for general purpose use.

The Pro models do have a bit of PITA UI cycling through strobes, but they also have the very best pseudo-feature of any UI I've come across - a momentary max function from any lower mode. If the head is screwed down reasonably close to the tight bezel position, then any sideways pressure on the bezel will momentary activate max, and for as long you hold it, and then return to the previously used low when you release. Works just like car high beam flashers and is easily operated single handed with under or overhand grip. Use it to spot my dog when he's off leash, signal approaching cars pedestrians are ahead (or to dip their high beams), quickly investigate that bump in the woods, find the next trail marker, etc. I used to blade all over in Manhattan when lived there.... I know it would be very useful for that too.

Quark AA XML, still my all time favorite out of my AA/14500/sublumen collection - clicky

CarvingEnsos said:

But I'm expecting the majority of use will be skating at night in the city. The cycle lanes arent great and visibility towards drivers is even worse than cyclists. Because of higher ambient light the lights I have right now just aren't up to the task.


I'd prefer NW to CW but not essential
A relatively floody throwy beam.
Sublumen would be good but not deal breaker

Click to expand...

Having joined these forums as a cyclist who needed to light up the road in a big city, my suggestions: get a dedicated bike light to attach to your bike. If you are ice skating or roller blading and need a light then I'll suggest something bigger, brighter, with more run time like the 4Sevens Maelstrom Regen MMR-X, which is an 18650 light with built in Micro USB charging. Carry a charging cable with you to charge the light at work and have one at home and you should be set. The reason for this suggestion is two-fold. As you've seen, the more ambient light there is the more light you need to have to see your way. AA lights might provide the brightness needed for the first few minutes, but, the limited power of the smaller cells will quickly run out and you're left with a dim light, possibly miles from your destination. In the case of a light for this purpose I'd suggest a CW emitter as they produce more light for the same input, making them more efficient. Greater efficiency trumps being able to correctly see the colors of cars as you pass them because you won't be able to see them if your battery runs out of juice before your destination.