Curse you, CPF!

[jk037]

It's all your fault; you've triggered my "geek" function!

Just after xmas I decided to treat myself to an LED Lenser P4. Was rather impressed with it - nice, tidy little light, slim enough to keep in a pocket and a good flood mode for inspection work.

Then I made the mistake of remembering CPF - I'd dabbled in green lasers a while ago and vaguely remembered this site having an LED flashlight section. Cue several hours spent reading, with a certain degree of astonishment, about tiny torches that could produce 100-200 lumens from just a single AA or AAA cell! As opposed to the 11.9 lumens that my P4 claims to produce... hmm.... :thinking:

The end result was that I've ended up ordering a small selection, purely out of curiosity, to see just what these little things can do.


The ones that interest me most are the 1xAAA lights, as these are small enough to be carried around in a pocket with wallet, mobile phone etc, so I've ordered 4 differently-priced versions to compare, as well as a highly-rated bargain-priced single AA light and a 3xAAA one just for variety:

• Akoray (or Nkoray, apparently?!) K106 @ $£13.99
• TrustFire XP-EF23 @ $13.80
• Black (Blake??) Cat HM-01 @ $7.99
• Unbranded "3W" 1xAAA flashlight @ $3.42(!!!)
• Unbranded flood-to-throw Cree P4 3xAAA @ $9.99
• iTP A3 EOS (Upgraded) @ $24.25

[links removed - DM51]

So that's $75 (about £47 of my English pounds) dropped on shiny gadgets... my girlfriend didn't look impressed, I can tell you!
Needless to say, upon arrival there will be much tinkering and I'll have a go at taking a few photos to compare the beams, build quality etc.

 

[yalskey]

You should check out...

http://www.surefire.com

and do the same thing... you're girlfriend would thank you in hindsight for only spending $75 on budget lights!

 

[jk037]

You should check out...

http://www.surefire.com

and do the same thing... you're girlfriend would thank you in hindsight for only spending $75 on budget lights!

LOL, I did have a brief look at Surefire, also 4Sevens/Fenix, Ra Lights and Wolf Eyes... but common sense and self-preservation directed me back to the cheaper stuff

(I suspect that spending £200 on a torch would result in said torch being inserted where the sun (or any flashlights, for that matter) don't shine! :green: )

 

[joshconsulting]

You will love the AKOray. Best bang for the buck, bar NONE.

 

[coolperl]

LOL, I did have a brief look at Surefire, also 4Sevens/Fenix, Ra Lights and Wolf Eyes... but common sense and self-preservation directed me back to the cheaper stuff

It's just a matter of time... :shakehead

Your common sense just needs some time to adapt.
Besides, soon you'll realize that it's better to spend 75$ on one high quality, reliable, powerful flashlight than on bunch of el-cheapos, that straight from the box (upss.. I mean envelope) need some fixing.

Better stop reading CPF. I'm telling you.

 

[csshih]

So that's $75 (about £47 of my English pounds) dropped on shiny gadgets... my girlfriend didn't look impressed, I can tell you!

Is that all? :naughty:

 

[Illumination]

(I suspect that spending £200 on a torch would result in said torch being inserted where the sun (or any flashlights, for that matter) shine! :green: )

I hope you meant don't shine....

This is an addictive hobby!

 

[jk037]

I hope you meant don't shine....

This is an addictive hobby!

LMAO... d'oh! Edited so that I don't get a reputation for being a little too fond of flashlights...

 

[mcnair55]

LMAO... d'oh! Edited so that I don't get a reputation for being a little too fond of flashlights...

Your shopping days in the UK will never be the same again, as you wander around the diy shops and places like Maplins etc you will be drawn to the torch rack and I bet you you will pop some little light into your trolley.

I must have picked up a dozen or so in the last month

 

[guiri]

Alright, the people that twisted his arm raise your hands... :wave:




George

 

[DimeRazorback]

Go straight to Surefire & custom Ti lights.

Skip all the other stuff... it works out cheaper!

 

[jhc37013]

Go straight to Surefire & custom Ti lights.

Skip all the other stuff... it works out cheaper!

+1

Do what this man says in the end you will save money not buying cheaper lights constantly looking for near perfection. Ok that is a bit of a stretch because once you buy one Surefire you will want another. Welcome to this world your not going back.

 

[Vesper]

It's all your fault; you've triggered my "geek" function!

Haha. Funny. Don't fight it!

my girlfriend didn't look impressed, I can tell you!

When the power goes out you can give her that "I told you so" look. It's our only solace. :duh2:

 

[amigafan2003]

Welcome to the club.

The collection in my sig has only been squired after buying the RC-N3 II in October - that's about £400 (inc batteries + chargers) in a few months.

One or two of the 4Sevens Maelstroms is next on my list.

 

[Henk_Lu]

There were times I thought 3 times before spending 50$ on a light...

Now I think 3 times before buying 3 custom lights and my financial consultant (I mean my wife) warned me she would think more than 3 times before giving me a cent of her savings to pay my credit card bills!

Where have the good old times gone?

 

[The Dane]

Go straight to Surefire & custom Ti lights.

Skip all the other stuff... it works out cheaper!

Depends!

Do any of your lights actually se decent daily work?
If i use @200 i get one Surefire with a decent output or @10 El Cheapos from the shop we do not dare mention.
This means i can drop, forget or destroy 9 lights before i need to pay up again.
The Surefire dont: take 18650's, last 9 times longer, always get found again when lost, will not get returned again when forgot and cant take 10 times the beating before giving up.

So cheaper lights do indeed have some merrit for us that actually use them as daily "tools"!

 

[waddup]

Depends!

Do any of your lights actually se decent daily work?
If i use @200 i get one Surefire with a decent output or @10 El Cheapos from the shop we do not dare mention.
This means i can drop, forget or destroy 9 lights before i need to pay up again.
The Surefire dont: take 18650's, last 9 times longer, always get found again when lost, will not get returned again when forgot and cant take 10 times the beating before giving up.

So cheaper lights do indeed have some merrit for us that actually use them as daily "tools"!

:thumbsup:....

 

[amigafan2003]

Re only buying surefire - ignore that - buy everything - cheap lights, mid priced lights, expensive lights, small light, big lights

 

[the.Mtn.Man]

I bought a Quark AA back in October. Now when my wife wants to use it, she doesn't say, "Do you have your flashlight?" She says, "Do you have your fancy-schmany $50 flashlight?" and I say, "What? It's a great flashlight!"

 

[jk037]

Thanks for the welcome and the advice all! :thumbsup:

Re the high-end lights, while I'm under no illusion that they're superior to the cheaper items, I'm taking the approach that it's best to start small then work my way up if it takes my fancy.

As it stands, the P4 is by far the most expensive light I own (£20, or approx. $32) and judging by the reviews and specs of alternatives such as the Akoray or the Trustfire, the P4 looks rather expensive given its relatively low output! (Although its still nicely built and the flood mode impresses me)

I'm hoping that my selection of cheap but relatively high-powered little lights will give me a bit of an insight into what makes for a good flashlight, which may well lead to me purchasing one or two of the more expensive brands - and as Amigafan2003 has mentioned, trying lights at various price points and sizes could make for some interesting comparisons!

All that aside, must say that I'm impressed with CPF, it's one of those sites where I can spend hours moving from one fascinating threads to another - there looks to be a lot of knowledgable and friendly folks here and a gold mine of useful info and amusing banter.

... just wish my lights would hurry up and arrive from Hong kong and the USA so I can join the fun!