Advice on buying a flashlight

tomfruit · Feb 18, 2013

Hi everyone,

Im mainly a collector of vintage/antique flashlights so I dont know a lot about modern ones. However I was thinking of buying one really powerful modern flashlight. I dont want to spend too much, so I came up with my two favourites which look like they would be powerful, but not overly costly. The only problem is, I have no idea which one to buy. So I wondered if anyone could give me advice on what the light output would be like with each, what sort of light they would give (i.e. long range, short range) and any general pros and cons. Here they are (first one is £25.00, about $35?, and the second one is £15.00, about $20? and is a 3D cell):

This is the Maglite 6D cell flashlight:

See Rule #3 Do not Hot Link images. Please host on an image site, Imageshack or similar and repost – Thanks Norm

This is an 'RAC' flashlight, which has 95 LEDs (I have to admit that is what impressed me, for better or worse!):

See Rule #3 Do not Hot Link images. Please host on an image site, Imageshack or similar and repost – Thanks Norm

TEEJ · Feb 18, 2013

LOL

Neither would satisfy your description. (Modern high performance light)

The maglight's tend to throw a teeny spot of light pretty far....and the "shower head LED" set-up tend to be very floody but for a short distance.

:D

To work backwards, instead of wondering what the two flashlights might perform like, what kind of performance would you be interested in?

IE: There are LEDs that can light up targets a mile away with a tight spot, or flood are area the size of several foot ball fields at once...and a bunch in between those extremes.

For your budget, the extremes might be a bit ambitious...but, depending upon the quality of the instrument itself...you can get surprisingly close. (Cheaper stuff might be quite bright, etc...but break if you drop it. The better stuff can be thrown at the ground and survive, etc...)

So, how large an area would you want to light up at one time, and, to what range....and, would range with a small spot, or flood, be of more use to you?

For camping, etc...a floodier beam is generally much more useful for example.

tomfruit · Feb 18, 2013

Hi, thanks for your comment. Well Im not too bothered about being able to see something a mile away (although it probably would be good fun!), so a floodier beam would probably be better for me. In which case the 95 LED one would probably be the best im guessing. Thanks for your help!

rasmasyean · Feb 18, 2013

Well, to a certain extent, the Mag Light has a head that twists and changes the beam from spot to flood. But it's not an "even flood". It looks like a donut. I'm sure you can google pics. I think some come with LED's but the good ones you have to buy a mag specific LED upgrade. Or a cheap LED upgrade would do fine if you're not that bent on brightness.

tomfruit · Feb 18, 2013

Hi, thanks for your comment. A couple of weeks ago I bought a 1960s torch that has a flood option, which irritated me because it was like a donut. Now I know Maglite is like that I dont think I will buy one, thanks!

tomfruit · Feb 18, 2013

Also, while Im at it (rather than make a whole new thread) I have another question:

I have a very cheap torch, made from plastic that cost about $2. I was thinking of buying a maglite krypton or xenon bulb and putting it in the torch (I though it would be great fun to suprise people with it!). However I was wondering if this is possible, or if it simply wouldnt work.