'Big' Flashlight using D-Cell Advice.

[tandem]

Where I live, AA and D cells are common. You can buy a crap load of generic ones for dirt cheap. Like 12 AA batteries for less than a dollar
However, if I cannot get good torches for that kind of batteries, ill invest in rechargable ones. I can live with that if D-Cells are not that popular

You'll want to check out the Flashlight Reviews section before making any purchase then. Some manufacturers and certain lights are far more efficient than others at producing more light for longer run times off of common alkaline AA cells. If you aren't sure you want to jump into rechargeable cells straight away, at least pick a light that is known to work well off both alkaline and rechargeable cells -- that way you have a choice.

From your description of how you intend to use the light, and your stated objective "good all rounder", it seems possible that what you might really want for a first quality LED light is not a big monster at all but an every day carry (EDC) sized light -- something small enough to drop in a pocket. Good lights can be had for 50 - 70$ that will far outperform - many times over - any old D cell incandescent you may have used before.

If you shop carefully for your stated $100 budget you can even outfit yourself with a good light and a decent charger and good quality rechargeable batteries (Sanyo Eneloops or their Duracell equivalent, white-top Duracell "pre-charged") and be set for years of very inexpensive light as those cells can be recharged hundreds of times. What's more, many lights will actually *perform better* off the rechargeable cells.

 

[BarryG]

The Lumapower has 3 levels, I'm guessing low-med-high. The Lambdalight is adjustable from low to high with a dial in the switch.
Just taking this from what I've read, if someone here has one or the other they can tell you more about them.


Barry

 

[aramid]

@aramid:
1) Never had any "good" torches before. So, I really dont know how bright are x number of lumens to behonest.

You're really in for a surprise the first time you use a decent flashlight. For a comparison of Lumens, here are very approximate values for a handful of incandescent lights you might have encountered before:

2AA Mini Maglite: 10-12 Lumens
$1 Eveready generic 2D: 15-20 Lumens
Maglite 3D: 35 Lumens
Maglite 4D: 60 Lumens

Bear that in mind when you're shopping.

Also, as Tandem says, most high-quality lights perform much better on NiMH than on Alkaline. It's not just an issue of cost, it's about getting your money's worth out of an expensive flashlight. If you want to use Alkalines, buy something mass-market like an LED Maglite, because it'll be designed to work with them. If you want a high-output, hundreds-of-Lumens light, you're really wasting money if you don't use rechargeables. Such lights will run on Alkalines in a pinch, but don't give you their best output.

 

[LEDninja]

ElektroLumens Anglelux XPG
http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=227663

The new Rebel MagLED is not bad either. Serial # DLxxxx not Dxxxx

 

[Chicago X]

I saw a multi-Rebel 6xD light on FleaBay today....it claimed 1000 lumens, and was around a c-note.

No further info, except it looked a bit like a Coast X21.

 

[sol-leks]

Have you checked out the maglite showerhead drop in that is very popular in the budget forum? It's said to put out around 500 lumens but its all flood which may not suit your needs. Only 25 bucks shipped though.

 

[SuLyMaN]

Thanks for your input guys...The lumapower torches seems within my budget And I'll check out for some more before committing myself!

 

[SuLyMaN]

You're really in for a surprise the first time you use a decent flashlight. For a comparison of Lumens, here are very approximate values for a handful of incandescent lights you might have encountered before:

2AA Mini Maglite: 10-12 Lumens
$1 Eveready generic 2D: 15-20 Lumens
Maglite 3D: 35 Lumens
Maglite 4D: 60 Lumens

Bear that in mind when you're shopping.

Just checked out my bros mini mag and my dads maglite 3D...The 3D is actually kinda decent!!!If that is 35 lumens....! Any one has a clue on the lux of the mag 3D?
Im wondering if any of those good 2xAA models would out light/ out spill it?
From what I saw, its pretty decent but then again, ive never owned a 'good' torch before

 

[aramid]

Did you happen to notice whether your family's lights were incandescent or LED? The numbers I posted are for incandescent; the LED models are a bit more than twice as bright. Still, that's only getting you up to ~70 Lm.

Pretty much any light suggested here on CPF is going to be brighter, and have a lot more spill and a much smoother beam than those Maglites. However, getting the same throw as a big Maglite on tight focus will probably take a lot more Lumens. Most lights have a broader beam than that, so need more light overall to get the center of the beam up to the same brightness. I don't have much use for throw-oriented lights, so I'll leave the recommendations to others.

If you want to fill the yard around you with light, it's easy to get something brighter than a Maglite. If you want to identify critters on the treeline a hundred yards away, that'll take something more specialized.

 

[LEDninja]

2AA Mini Maglite: 10-12 Lumens
$1 Eveready generic 2D: 15-20 Lumens
Maglite 3D: 35 Lumens
Maglite 4D: 60 Lumens

Bear that in mind when you're shopping.

Just checked out my bros mini mag and my dads maglite 3D...The 3D is actually kinda decent!!!If that is 35 lumens....! Any one has a clue on the lux of the mag 3D?
Im wondering if any of those good 2xAA models would out light/ out spill it?
From what I saw, its pretty decent but then again, ive never owned a 'good' torch before

I bought a Quark Mini AA2 a couple of weeks ago.
Dimensions:
Length: 5.0 inches (That is a full inch shorter than a minimag!)
Diameter: 0.7 inches
Weight: 1.0 ounces
Seven Output Modes:
Low: 3.0 OTF lumens, 3.4 days
Medium: 36 OTF lumens, 8.8 hours
High: 180 OTF lumens, 1.7 hours
The following rarely used modes are hidden.
Strobe: 3.3 hours
S.O.S.: 10 hours
Beacon (Hi): 17 hours
Beacon (Lo): 88 hours
If you run on medium you get Mag 3D performance all night. Well sorta. The hotspot of my Qmini AA2 is fairly big and not focussable while the Mag can focus its hotspot very tight.

-----

Review of 3D incan Mag.
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/maglite_3d.htm
6185 Lux 78.65 M throw.

Review of 2AA incan minimag.
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/maglight_minimag.htm
884 Lux 29.73 M throw.

Quark Mini AA2.
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/292571
Lux was not measured.
My guess based on the Mini CR2 review is 1600 Lux 40 M.

The problem with the minimag is when using alkaline batteries output drops to 50% fairly quickly then slowly dropping to 25%. So for most of the run it will be below 500 lux. That is why the recommendation for NiMH (get the LSD or pre-charged version, the older kind needs re-charging every 2 weeks or so.)

If you need to reach out a long distance, stick with the 2D Rebel LED Mag or something with an equally B-I-G reflector.
There are 2 versions of the LED Mag. The 1st generation has a serial number D#####. It performs roughly similar to a 3D incan Mag.
The 2nd generation is the REBEL MagLED. Serial number DL#####. My source has moved the page so I can not link. IIRC ~100 lumens ~22500 Lux or ~150 M.*** The reason throw is so high for not so hot lumens is the new deep reflector. See
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/250681
For the REBEL MagLED get the 2D. Performance is very similar to the 3D but battery packs are usually 2 or 4 and chargers tend to charge 2 or 4.

*** Mag gave their numbers in feet and base brightness on 0.25 lux which makes conversion necessary.