Best 1XAA light for less than $30-35

[matrixshaman]

http://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/the-41/mini-L-dsh-mini/Detail

215 lumens for 3+ hours??? is that a miss print? holy snot! anybody have one?

That is an 18650 battery - which has a much higher capacity than AA. I'll also guess that is emitter lumens not actual OTF lumens.

Now back to AA lights under about $30 to $35. If you could stretch that to about $38 I'd get an Olight T15. Amazing throw and quality and great UI. Next up I'd get an MTE 5 mode Rebel 100 - tiny and bright. There's also some MTE multi-mode Cree lights using AA that are nice. I've been tracking AA lights the last few months trying to find the best in the $15 to $30 range for gifts to non-flashaholics. DX has quite a selection if you can handle the wait and an occassional hickup.

 

[yekim]

IMHO when people put artificial limits like best XXX light for less than $XX-XX, especially when it's a low amount like $20 or $30, they really do themselves a huge dis-service.

There could be lights that for not much more money that will be 10-20 times better in terms of versatility and function.

For best AA light, the sweet spot in terms of value vs function is around $50 - $70, imho. That's where one should aim for in getting the "best" light.

What I've always found is when I try to buy the cheaper lights a substitute for a better light, I almost always regret it and end up buying the better light down the road, thus wasting my $20 / $30 on the inferior product in the first place.

Just my $.02...

I concur.

I have a mess of sub $30 lights and I get them to play with, but no matter what I do to them, mod wise or whatever, they will never have a place on my belt/person.

The $50 to $70 range is pretty accurate for the most part. I think there are some lights from Olight and Lumapower that are less expensive than that but are still considered as worthy. If the Olight T15 is anything like the T25 I bought quality wise it should be a contender.

 

[LED-holic]

I concur.

I have a mess of sub $30 lights and I get them to play with, but no matter what I do to them, mod wise or whatever, they will never have a place on my belt/person.

The $50 to $70 range is pretty accurate for the most part. I think there are some lights from Olight and Lumapower that are less expensive than that but are still considered as worthy. If the Olight T15 is anything like the T25 I bought quality wise it should be a contender.

Thanks for the confirmation. I find this hobby is one where paying for quality truly is cheaper in the long run.

 

[M@elstrom]

Thanks for the confirmation. I find this hobby is one where paying for quality truly is cheaper in the long run.

Depends on your preferences IMHO, I have a Dorcy 3xAAA Luxeon LED that although I purchased it before seeing the better quality lights (ie. Surefire) I just keep coming back to it when I need a small duty/belt/backup light


I suppose that'll all change when I get a Surefire 6P :thinking:

 

[n4zov]

JetBeam CL-E V.2

 

[moses]

I would highly recommend that you spring a few $ more for a used Fenix L1D Q5. Very bright and versatile. It's my EDC that I swap bodies for AA or 123.

 

[swxb12]

JetBeam CL-E V.2

I think it's unfortunately been discontinued in favor of the new 'I.B.S.' models at Bugoutgear. It was an amazing light for $30 price bracket.

 

[russwm]

Another recommendaton for the Romisen RC-G2 Q5. Use the code "CPFuser" at shingbeam.com.

 

[dbare]

I like the ShiningBeam I-mini. Nice warm tint, mostly flood but good range. You can adjust the brightness from 7 to 260lm. It also comes with a cr123A battery body if you want it even more compact. Seems well made with good threads. Use clickie to turn on and off and twist for desired brightness level. Holds last brightness level when turned off. Very nice.
[h=2][/h]

 

[Marbouk]

4 year old thread

 

[TyJo]

4 year old thread

Ha, I was wondering why I was seeing lights I didn't recognize. For those interested, although I don't own one, I think the Xeno E03 is pretty good.