non tech/li ion savvy parents (and the forgetful)

Hi everybody! I have learned a lot by visiting this site and now I am finally posting a question. Background: last summer I got my senior parents a couple of Nitecore p20s, 3500 18650 mAh Nitecore batteries, and a Nitecore D2 charger. I have since learned, via this site, that one needs to appreciate the risks concerning 18650s. I could see someone using the batteries past their safe voltage threshold, for example, converting the flashlight into a potential pipe bomb upon 18650 recharge. Bless his heart, but my stepdad does not get safety. He is smart in other ways but has the IQ of a toddler when it comes to safety. I would not bet on him listening. Also, he is a bit of a pyro. But I digress...

Considerations: a flashlight for the mountains, for older people. Hopefully scary to bears and other large mammals. One for the home and one for the car. Hopefully unpleasant for predatory people. Easy to use and forgiving to the forgetful. Can be left on high, unattended, and not get hot enough to burn someone or start a fire. Can be run "too long" and still be safe to use later.

Quality of torch, battery, and charger important. Should be somewhat rugged and most certainly reliable. One of the p20s broke sitting in the glove compartment. I had to order a new tail cap for it. No more lacking in quality controlled products. Oh, and by the way, I will be selling them this spring.

A nice neutral to warm tint would be nice. Good CRI, too. No reason to disrupt the beauty of the forest and the nice looking denizens in it.

I am thinking of a Surefire sidekick. I don't know if it protects the battery from low voltage, and maybe more than a few times of this. Does it heat up as well? Can an older person press the button easily enough?

Also thinking of the Prometheus Beta. Nimh sounds more appropriate for the non savvy. Can it be "twisted" one handed by an older person? Not so bright up compared to other lights but 85/60 lumens might be enough to make predators unhappy.

Budget: less than $100 for each light sans accessories. I am considering getting rid of all the Nitecore stuff due to quality concerns.

Thank you

Just over your budget at 110 dollars is a Malkoff MDC CR123 Nichia from Illumn.com. Which gives a lovely soft tint to the beam.
It doesn't use rechargeables but uses CR123a Lithium cells. That deals with the worries about Li-Ion cells.
If you go to malkoffdevices.com and look at the MDC lights there are lots of options regarding disposable / rechargeable and various cell sizes.
The nichia ones only come from Illumn, but I think they do a neutral head on the Malkoff site.
The lights are pretty foolproof as they do single output liights (just click on or off) or 3 mode models.
Malkoffs are bomproof, made is the US by a small company that cares about you and stands by it's Lifetime Warranty. They even answer the phone and Emails.
There's brighter small lights out there (that get hot) but nothing as reliable as a Malkoff.
P
Edit: I isn't obvious on the malkoff site, but the E1 and E2 heads akso fit the MDC bodies. Just check the voltage requirements and match with a body and cell.

I am not under the impression that wildlife care anything at all about being exposed to bright light in the dark?
I think the light is comforting to the folks for sure and certainly can influence bad guys to think twice once they know they have been discovered so maybe all of that needs to go into the deciding about a light too.

I would look to a simple AA light that will produce the amount of light you think you need to get the job done and forget about recharging altogether!
I like the MDC idea a lot but I would look at the AA versions and only the single output models of those.
They offer these in 1 & 2 aa models and they are plenty bright enough to be useful eve if not ultimately as bright as any 123 version lights.

The Malkoff 3 level MDC is pretty confusing even for me so I would NEVER suggest it for older people,NEVER!

But anything dead simple that you just put batteries in and press the button sounds like what you need to me.

A couple of 2AA Mini Mag Pro +'s - easy to use because they are twisties, 2 modes (low mode accessed by pointing light down while twisting on, point it up or to the side and it comes on in high). I would also get them some Eneloops and a simple smart charger (like the Panasonic BQ-CC17), along with some Energizer L91 advanced lithium cells to keep in the light stored in a car. If they don't really go through a lot of batteries, I would just get them the Energizer Lithiums.

If you really want to go li-ion, there are plenty of lights with integrated charging. Just get one with low voltage protection or use protected cells. A Fenix or Klarus with a magnetic charging adapter is easy to operate.

AVService said:

The Malkoff 3 level MDC is pretty confusing even for me so I would NEVER suggest it for older people,NEVER!

Click to expand...

Absolutely correct, AV.
Also, I took my Nichia MDC out in the dark tonight (I use it normally on my Sound Desk indoors) and it ain't gonna scare any creatures, I'm afraid. You'll need a normal MDC to do that.
P

Thank you everyone. I will look into the Malkoffs. I checked them out before but it is easy to get sensory overload due to all of the choices out there. I think the comment about scaring off wildlife is about right, now that I think of night footage from old animal shows (Mutual of Omaha, anyone?). I once heard of a bear "not liking" a strobe out on the Northern Cal coast, but he probably just didn't smell anything worth his trouble. Occasional tweeker, on the other hand...:sick2: