Best EDC light ever?

IHA

Newly Enlightened
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Mar 19, 2007
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51
Hi all,

Im now looking at google a kind of light, but all I've found is a bit ugly, the know militar lights.

Im looking for something durable, long duration, and 100 or more lumens, and 1,5 hours or more duration. MIL-Spec, and if possible EMP resistance. Not bigger than an P3D CE, or with the look of a Surefire 6P/9P.

What light do you think is the best ever?

Thanks!

Antonio
 
Actually you raise an interesting question. Anyone know if the regulator IC's in regular flashlights would survive an EMP pulse? Not that I ever expect to be near one, just curious.
 
I have an surefire e2e with a lumens factory 110 lumen bulb which gives about 75 mins of time on a set of batteries,I absolutely love it. It has a forward clicky which makes it convienent for one hand use, and is small enough to fit in the pocket without any problems and it's bright. If you use rechargables you can get 2x3.6 rcr123's and get the lumens factory 150 lumen bulb which they claim lasts 45 mins. Although these probably arent the actual lumens, I'm still amazed at the 110 lumen bulb.
I don't know about EMP resistance, however I know theres theres a certain length of metal that you'd need to be affected. My guess would be that if you have to worry about EMP, your flashlight would be the last thing on your mind, unless you work somewhere where there is an emp. Do a search on emp, I remember reading something about it on here.
 
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I think you could do well with a HuntLight FT-01XSE P4. It has lots of output (probably over 130 lumens) for over an hour, even with a pair of RCRs. With primaries or an 18650, it lasts much, much longer. It's also multi-level. I don't know about EMP resistance, though.

While I agree that the A2 is very nice, it doesn't fit the requirements of the OP, which asked for 100 lumens for an hour and a half. The A2 has half that output for half that time.

http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/huntlight_ft01xse.htm
http://www.geocities.com/tigerhawkt3/ft01xsep4.htm
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/surefire_a2.htm
 
Of the lights i have, my two favorites are the A2 Aviator, and my modified SF E1 series

the E1 consists of a E1e body, McTc/McClicky tailcap, and a modded KL1, with a Seoul P4 emitter and a McR20-S reflector, running on BatteryStation protected RCR123a's

the lights i'm looking forward to are an Eternalight Ergomarine picked up in B/S/T, and one of the HDS/Novatac lights, i don't have one *yet*, but given the excellent reviews they gather, i'm sure i'd like it
 
+1 for the SF E1e
(E1e body, E1e bezel, GD500 converter, Seoul P4 emitter, McR 20-S
reflector, sapphire lens, AWs protected RCR123, regulated runtime 1 h).
.
 
the two best i've ever had are the hds and the mclux pd. to me, the hds is a little more handy just because of the low low setting, but the pd is really something else... it's solid as a rock and the elegant design lets you switch from off to low to high as quick as you can think...
 
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IMHO the Fenix P1D-CE is the best EDC ever. I don't know about the EMP thing. I guess you could keep a Streamlight TL3 as a backup, just in case of an EMP. The TL3 would come in handy anytime you need a pocket light with throw.
 
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I think I will use the L1DCE, and as a new EDC carry light I will jump to the P3D CE, and as a little backup and since I've heard it is durable and works very well, an ARC AAA Premium ;)

What do you think?
 
Unless it is a LiIon Battery with a circuit, no an EMP won't touch a battery. Beyond that if the EMP is strong enough to wipe out an LED and driver circuit you're toast anyway.
 
Greetings!

Pyle-IT said:
I vote for the A2! It is a Great Light!!!

Yes... absolutely. As an added bonus, (I don't think a lot of people realize this...) the A2 is partially EMP resistant (one of the things you requested). The LEDs are hard-wired to the battery source, through a resistor, so there is no regulation circuitry on the LEDs to fry from EMP. It is highly unlikely that an LED itself would be toasted from EMP, and even if it were... there are two more where that came from! :D

The only thing the A2 doesn't meet in your requirements is the 100 Lumen output, it's actually rated for 50 but many people are reporting that Surefire consistently under-rates their lumen outputs, and integrating sphere measurements seem to indicate closer to 70 or 80 lumens. I personally find the A2 incandescent to be MORE than bright enough for any tasks I've ever asked of it... I don't need a portable "opening night" spotlight! :)

Best wishes,
Bawk
 
carlsjrman said:
the two best i've ever had are the hds and the mclux pd. to me, the hds is a little more handy just because of the low low setting, but the pd is really something else... it's solid as a rock and the elegant design lets you switch from off to low to high as quick as you can think...


Strauss said:
McLux PD or HDS are my votes... :)

These men know of what they speak!
 
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My vote for the HDS EDC or the McLux PD as well. Both suit different people's preferences (simple vs.complex) but either one makes an ideal edc.
 
SF L1 for me. Probably stay away from LED if you are worried about EMP.
BTW do you know something I should know?

oops-not the output requirment you wanted
 
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