Paul_in_Maryland
Flashlight Enthusiast
Buying: What do you wish you\'d done differently?
Based on the regularity with which most of us seem to replace our flashlights or add yet another, I'd say that most of us wish we had gone about the business differently. If you knew then what you know now, what would you have done differently that might have spared you the need to look for something better?
I'll start the ball rolling:
I would have passed over 2AA incandescents and any LED lights under 1 watt. Instead of spending a stream of pocket change on a series of $5 to $15 lights likely to disappoint, I should have bit the bullet, bought two or three decent #30 to $60 lights, and been done with it. I kept telling myself: "But wouldn't it be great if you found a $15 light that hit a home run?" If it did, I'd have read about it in the forums. Well, (I did finally strike a home run with the ultracheap Costco 2AA Luxeon.)
I would have abandoned my insistence on using a single AA for my keyring light. Most of the great keyring models are built around CR123A cells or N cells.
I would have looked closer at mods, pills, and such, realizing that "what I want" won't be sold on the mass-market.
I would have gone straight to Maglite 2AA, 1AA (chopped 2AA), and C-cell models, which would allow me to try new reflectors, Luxeon drop-ins, and such without paying for a new body each time. Or perhaps I might have begun with Doug Speck's Universal Battery Holder.
Finally, I would have read more of the forum archives and online reviews.
Based on the regularity with which most of us seem to replace our flashlights or add yet another, I'd say that most of us wish we had gone about the business differently. If you knew then what you know now, what would you have done differently that might have spared you the need to look for something better?
I'll start the ball rolling:
I would have passed over 2AA incandescents and any LED lights under 1 watt. Instead of spending a stream of pocket change on a series of $5 to $15 lights likely to disappoint, I should have bit the bullet, bought two or three decent #30 to $60 lights, and been done with it. I kept telling myself: "But wouldn't it be great if you found a $15 light that hit a home run?" If it did, I'd have read about it in the forums. Well, (I did finally strike a home run with the ultracheap Costco 2AA Luxeon.)
I would have abandoned my insistence on using a single AA for my keyring light. Most of the great keyring models are built around CR123A cells or N cells.
I would have looked closer at mods, pills, and such, realizing that "what I want" won't be sold on the mass-market.
I would have gone straight to Maglite 2AA, 1AA (chopped 2AA), and C-cell models, which would allow me to try new reflectors, Luxeon drop-ins, and such without paying for a new body each time. Or perhaps I might have begun with Doug Speck's Universal Battery Holder.
Finally, I would have read more of the forum archives and online reviews.
