Best choice for long life, compact flashlight

CESDewar

Newly Enlightened
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My wife is going back to West Africa again in May to visit with many of our friends who run wildlife sanctuaries or are doing research in the field, and I would like to equip her with a bunch of small flashlights that have a really good run-time and good brightness that she can pass out to people (With the dismal reliability of power in West africa, good flashlights are a very valuable commodity!) Batteries are not easy to come by in West Africa, so I'll be including those too. AA is probably best as those are the most available. I did look at the non-battery "shaker" lights but the only ones I've ever looked at were awfully dim. Compact size is important so a single AA would be good. I've not used a Gerber inifinity Ultra, but the specs looked pretty close to what I was looking at, although I have little idea as to how bright they are. Any other suggestions here? And if anyone is in a position to donate anything, I run a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation (Dewar Wildlife Trust, Inc/Gorilla Haven) that would make any donations tax deductible and we would certainly post an appreciative note on our website (www.gorilla-haven.org).
 
I think the Infinity Ultra is the best 1AA light readily available.

The Dorcy 1AA 3LED are $10 at Target. I have given a few of these to co-workers and they like them.
 
Second that recommendation for the Inf Ultra. It'll eat the worst AA cells you can come across (zinc chloride, carbon-zinc cheapies), and it's regulated so you'll get full power for quite a while even on those. It's also built like it won't break, especially the older ones before the redesign. It's really the best tough, long runtime, AA powered light.
 
According to http://www.flashlightreviews.com , the Infinity Ultra has 1/6th the throw of an AA maglight and 1/2 the overall output.

In addition to the IU, I'd suggest you take a look at:

http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/gerber_trio.htm
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/palight_survival.htm
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/eternalight_ergomarine.htm



If you want to go for something cheap and easy to replace rather expensive and durable, consider one of the cheap 8 LED, single AA, lights from Ebay.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=16037&item=5153615946

Throw is pretty pathetic, but they're bright enough for short-range use and will run for 5-6 hours. They also look cheap, which might deter theft in areas where lads are active.
 
The Infinity Ultra is definitely what you are looking for. There are still a few places on-line where you can find them for $15 or so. Given the shortage of batteries, a light that uses a single AA would be nicer IMO.

For something a bit brighter, you can try to new Gerber Trio; basically a 2xAA +3 LED version of the Infinity Ultra. BatteryStation has them for $20 on their CPF page (check out the "CPF Specials" sticky thread on the Dealer's forum for a link). Kevin has been sending lights to a squadron in Iraq, maybe he'll consider a donation to your project too? I haven't checked lately, but I'm sure he sells Ultras too.

BTW, Dorcy's look nice, but they have a "cheap" feel to them, and I am still not convinced they can withstand the abuse that field tools are typically subjected to (I do research in remote tropical areas too). For example, the Dorcy's rubber cover will probably get "mushy" with accumulated sweat, dirt, and humidy.

I remember Jon Burly mentioning your project a while back; very interesting! Best luck!!

PS: You guys type fast! Three replies while I typed mine.
 
Apart from the already mentioned above, a 2AA (or even 2AAA) MiniMag with a MJLed drop in led would be a nice handy light with a long runtime as well... There's also the Eternalights which gives good runtimes. Else the UKE 4aa Eled is probably the most powerful and long running in its class.
 
I'm very impressed with the Gerber Trio. From the esthetic and functional standpoints, it's hard to beat. Feels great in the hand with the satin anodizing. Put a couple "dead" AA's in mine last night and let it run most of the evening. Seemed to light up just as good as with fresh AA's. I also liked the nice touch of the extended flange around the rim of the bezel to block more light from spilling back into your eyes from the side of the bezel. As near as I can tell, this light appears bulletproof and is short for a 2 AA light.
 
My vote is for the AA MiniMag!

It's cheap and very low tech! If you have the money, you might look into the Opalec New Beam led conversion. The red low power warning light gives you the time to scrounge up new batteries. The flat runtime of the New Beam of 9-10 hours doesn't hurt either.

I would suspect that lights that are too high tech, could be prone to sprouting leggs and walking away! If you got your MiniMags all in the same color other than black, it might be easier to keep track of them.
 
If you want to include a couple more powerful lights, I would repeat what Stanley said about the UK eLED. Running for 12 hours off 4AA's. With the output of a much larger flashlight but the size of two mini-maglights side by side this is a super combination.
 
I'm surprised that no one has yet mentioned getting a few bags of 20 for $20 LED pocket lights from CountyComm.

Don't even think about replacement batteries (although they are replacable) - at $1 a piece the lights can almost be regarded as "disposable".

However I'm sure CPF members may be able to point us in the right direction for low cost 2016 lithium coin-cells - at below 50cents each?

Instead of spare batteries -
think in terms of spare flashlights -
they're inexpensive and small enough that, where needed, one could have one (or more) spare.

Here's a comparison review:

20 for $20 LED Lights
 
if AAA's are an option, the Dorcy 1xAAA 1 LED job for $6 at walmart sounds like just the ticket. Another option would be rayovac industrial 2AA lights modded with single 5mm LED's, which could also be done for about $6 a piece.
 
As usual, great suggestions abound.

I would think that a smallish personal light such as the Infinity Ultra, Dorcy AA/AAA, UK2AAALED, etc would be fantastic.

They are easy to stash in a pocket, or wear on a lanyard (EDC!). Battery life is pretty good, and they are remarkably bright for their size. Even the little Dorcy AAA, though "cheap", is an excellent performer.

I personally have and use the Infinity Ultra, Dorcy AAA, Gerber Trio, Opalec, Palight, UK4AALED and now an MJLED.
These are all excellent lights for a (relatively) reasonable price.

Bob
 
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pedalinbob said:
I would think that a smallish personal light such as the Infinity Ultra, Dorcy AA/AAA, UK2AAALED, etc would be fantastic.

[/ QUOTE ]

I was thinking of the UK 2AAA eLED as well. Small, tough, waterproof and excellent runtime. I've been carrying one as part of my EDC for quite some time now, and I really like it a lot. It's the one light I carry 24/7, no matter where I am. And it's pretty hard to beat at the price.

When it comes to AA lights, well, one of my personal favourites is the Invoa X1, even though most people around here don't like it. Very good throw for its size, good runtime, but the lack of sidespill may of course be a problem. I find I need throw more than sidespill in most situations, especially when I'm out in the country, so I can happily live with the lack of sidespill.

Hans
 
For the wet and tropical perhaps a waterproof light with probably the longest runtime of all lights And it uses AA batteries - with many functions and floats. It comes with 3 AA Lithium batteries included for $32 each - I'm talking about the Eternalight Ergomarine and this is of course an obvious plug for the lights I'm selling here. But I truly think they might be the best of all for that purpose. Check my ad and thread here:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=835960&page=0&view=&sb=5&o=&fpart=1&vc=1
 
Here's another vote for the Infinity Ultra, or the UK 4aa ELED. Both have great runtimes and are inexpensive and pretty bomb-proof for a place like Africa. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif
 
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UnknownVT said:
I'm surprised that no one has yet mentioned getting a few bags of 20 for $20 LED pocket lights from CountyComm.

[/ QUOTE ]
Thanks - that's an excellent idea, especially for the kids who would find that the ultimate exotic gadget (and it's kind of fun to do that if one can afford it -at $1 that's doable!). Thanks to everyone else for these very good suggestions which I will be following up on.
 
If batteries are a concern you might want to think about
LED Dynamo rechargeable flashlights along with the suggestions mentioned here.
 
While not the runtime champ that the single LED flashlights are, the three LED Gerber Trio has eight hours of regulated runtime and a more useful and effective output. I've reviewed the Trio here.

73
dim
 
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