headlamp help

[tbone1993]

I recently went night fishing annd brought along my quark aa2turbo and a cheap 4aa everready headlamp. My friend ended up using the headlamp the entire time and I thought it would go unused. Since this headlamp has a terrible beam I was wondering if anyone had any possible sugguestions that wont break the bank. Im mainly interested in aa but can run aaa. Also would I be better suited buying a fenix style headband and a smaller light all together? I imagine I will use it for smaller closer tasks but want a little bit of throw, just enough to point something out 20--30ft away. Thanks in advance

 

[robostudent5000]

budget?

also, are you looking for a loaner or a headlamp for yourself?

 

[gcbryan]

I recently went night fishing annd brought along my quark aa2turbo and a cheap 4aa everready headlamp. My friend ended up using the headlamp the entire time and I thought it would go unused. Since this headlamp has a terrible beam I was wondering if anyone had any possible sugguestions that wont break the bank. Im mainly interested in aa but can run aaa. Also would I be better suited buying a fenix style headband and a smaller light all together? I imagine I will use it for smaller closer tasks but want a little bit of throw, just enough to point something out 20--30ft away. Thanks in advance

The cheapest solution is to put a piece of Scotch translucent tape over the lens that is producing the terrible beam. Does your existing headlamp throw? If so it will probably still throw more than 20-30 ft even with the tape.

 

[Outdoorsman5]

Take a look at the zebralight headlamps at zebralight.com. They are simply the best with the best UI around IMO. You can get a light with a reflector that has good balance between throw & flood (H51.) Or, you can get one with a frosted lens making it more floody (H51F.) Or, you can get one with no reflector which produces pure flood (H501.) You also have the choice with most of their lights of getting cool white or neutral white tint....cool white is brighter. Most lights have the choice of using a AA battery or a CR123 battery. They are small & lightweight lights, and great all around lights. The UI works like this: From off - quick click = high, double click = medium, and slow click = low. Once the light is on you can access a sub level for each setting by double clicking. So there are 2 highs, 2 mediums, and 2 lows. The UI may sound complicated, but it is not. It quickly becomes very intuitive.

 

[ryguy24000]

I gottta +1 on the Zebras. I personally don't own one, but I have checked them out and I'll be getting one when the 502 comes out later this year.
You may want to check out the St5 Sparks too. A little spendy though.

 

[carrot]

I'm a huge fan of the traditional headlamps like the Princeton Tec EOS and the Petzl Tikka2 series. Excellent runtimes, fairly low prices, and great build quality.

 

[Bolster]

t-bone, my recommendation is to contemplate your options a bit more. Have a look here and see if you can answer all 10 questions. If so, you'll get more tailored recommendations.

Alternately, you can just shop the lights that are most popular with the enthusiasts, if you don't have the time to sort it all out. If you go the latter route you'll likely end up with one of these 5: Zebra, Spark, PT, Petzl, or SF... all excellent lights, each excelling at different tasks.

To follow up on Bryan's comment, tape's your cheapest option. If you can spend $5, get a can of the "frosted glass" style clear finish at Home Depot, and paint the lens with it. I've "saved" two ringy-artifacty-nasty-beam lights with this stuff.

 

[tbone1993]

budget?

also, are you looking for a loaner or a headlamp for yourself?

I am thinking somewhere in the $25-$50 range. I don't really need outrageous throw considering I will have a larger light on me. Most likely a loaner but should I invest in a smaller light such as quark mini aa and slap that on a headband?

 

[robostudent5000]

I am thinking somewhere in the $25-$50 range. I don't really need outrageous throw considering I will have a larger light on me. Most likely a loaner but should I invest in a smaller light such as quark mini aa and slap that on a headband?

hmm, this is kind of tough because it sounds like you're starting from square 1. it sounds like you don't use a headlamp much, and don't plan on using one extensively going forward.

if you are mainly a handheld user and have only used crappy headlamps so far, let me say that a good headlamp can really change the way you look at individual outdoor lighting. having a floody on your head with a smooth wide beam is a real game changer IMO when you're working with your hands.

for a AA format, the Zebra floodies seem to be the best suited for the purpose, but they're a little out of your requested price range and i don't think you'd want to use a Zebra as a loaner. they're too nice, and maybe a bit delicate, for that.

you might want to look at the Petzl Pixa 1. it's not that bright, but it should have a smooth floody beam that, i think, will work for you. it's also waterproof and pretty rugged. it takes 2xAA, it's regulated, and the price is right. i think the price and rugged build make it a good loaner. it is a little bulky though.

i would avoid the Fenix headband unless you want it for wearing 2AA clikies on your head. i used to have one, and i didn't like it. i wear glasses, and shorter flashlights would shine into my glasses and cause a lot of glare. operating the twisty with the headband was awkward too. if you really want to go the headband with hand held route, i'd try the Nitecore headband instead. the Nitecore offers more mounting options, and you can just slip the light in and out as you please, so that makes it a little more versatile.

+1. i also recommend looking over Bolster's "To Consider Before You Purchase a Headlamp" thread.

 

[Bolster]

Agree with above posts. One additional AA light to consider on the low end at $25 is the 1AA Icon Irix II (or Irix I if you want more throw). But inexpensive has its cost: the light isn't waterproof, and IMO the beam needs modification before it's a good hand-work light. Again, the window frost spray to the rescue.

Avoid the easily obtainable Energizers. You will see they generally get failing scores in the Survey. I feel the same, I have one...frustrating to use. It's the loaner.

I would say "no" to fitting a small handheld into a headband, my opinion. Problems with (1) adjustment, very difficult to get the beam on the task, particularly if you have a (2) narrow or throwy beam, as is often the case with a handheld. You'd be surprised how even a small light that's focused is WAY TOO BRIGHT for close-up headlamp work. Cheap lights often don't have necessary 'low' settings. (The Irix Icon II is an exception, it dials way low.)

I dunno...fishing...you really should have waterproof. Back to one of the Pixas if you want to stay with inexpensive AA. If you go to AAA, then Carrot's recommendations; tikka is IPX4, sprayed water.

 

[tbone1993]

hmm, this is kind of tough because it sounds like you're starting from square 1. it sounds like you don't use a headlamp much, and don't plan on using one extensively going forward.


i would avoid the Fenix headband unless you want it for wearing 2AA clikies on your head. i used to have one, and i didn't like it. i wear glasses, and shorter flashlights would shine into my glasses and cause a lot of glare. operating the twisty with the headband was awkward too. if you really want to go the headband with hand held route, i'd try the Nitecore headband instead. the Nitecore offers more mounting options, and you can just slip the light in and out as you please, so that makes it a little more versatile.

+1. i also recommend looking over Bolster's "To Consider Before You Purchase a Headlamp" thread.

Is it possible to remove the top strap on the nitecore headband? I may go that route since i want versatility with the light. I am highly tempted with the h501 aa zebra headlight though.. decisions decisions.

 

[robostudent5000]

Is it possible to remove the top strap on the nitecore headband? I may go that route since i want versatility with the light. I am highly tempted with the h501 aa zebra headlight though.. decisions decisions.

i don't think the top strap is removable. it's sewn on and i guess you could cut it off, but i don't see why you'd want to do that since that's the best place to mount the light. mounting the light on the side makes it hard to point down.

if you really want to try a side mounting headband, there are some cheap Zebra band knockoffs you can try. see the end of this thread, which would let you mount a handheld this way. and it wouldn't cost you much to try. but IMO, side mounting on a headband just doesn't work very well.

 

[Outdoorsman5]

Is it possible to remove the top strap on the nitecore headband? I may go that route since i want versatility with the light. I am highly tempted with the h501 aa zebra headlight though.. decisions decisions.

I use the Nitecore headband a lot for running. You cannot remove the top strap unless you cut it off, but the top strap is the strap you would want to put a forward facing traditional flashlight because you can then slide it forward & down your forhead slightly to aim the light down, or slide it back or on top of your head to aim the light forward or even up a little if needed. Placing a traditional flashlight on the the side straps does not give you the ability to aim the light up or down...very annoying. Also, by having the light on top of your head the light is held very stable & doesn't bounce around.

If you go with one of the zebralight headlamps which I love then you could use the headband that it comes with. Only problem though is that the light bounces a little if you take it jogging. For my zebralight H51w I use a Nite Ize headband like this one. The zebralight headlamp goes on your forhead, and is held very very secure. A whole lot more comfortable, doesn't bounce around at all when jogging, and is inexpensive ($4.) Only drawback to this strap is that because it's not stretchy it is difficult to pull it down around your neck (unless you readjust it.) When I'm hiking or jogging I like the light on my head. When I'm relaxing at camp I like it around my neck aimed forward.

 

[tbone1993]

Thanks to everyone in this thread for all of the help. Im thinking about reconsidering my cheapheadlamp idea and going with the h51aa zebralight I like how its has a wider hotspot. Yet still spill along with throw. Is having 2000lumens really neccessary when I have a 200lumen light in my pocket? Or does it really matter since I can chane the output level/

 

[ryguy24000]

If you have a handheld thrower you might just as well have a pure flood headlamp. I have to admit that after reading this forum and doing a little experimenting on my own I am a fan of flood in headlamps especially when working with your hands. Tying knots, removing hooks, and finding your beer in the dark will be made easier with flood. Sometimes when you have a hotspot on a headlamp you tend to fallow that spot putting your head and eyeballs in awkward positions

 

[tbone1993]

If you have a handheld thrower you might just as well have a pure flood headlamp. I have to admit that after reading this forum and doing a little experimenting on my own I am a fan of flood in headlamps especially when working with your hands. Tying knots, removing hooks, and finding your beer in the dark will be made easier with flood. Sometimes when you have a hotspot on a headlamp you tend to fallow that spot putting your head and eyeballs in awkward positions

What headlamp do you run?

 

[gcbryan]

The trade-off between spot and flood is that with flood you're trying to light up the whole outdoors even though you really only need light where you are looking and working. If you're doing something that doesn't require a lot of light (something that's not too tedious) then flood is nice. You can get a lot of light with flood if you need it of course but now you're using up battery power rapidly by lighting up the entire outdoors at a very high level.

With a spot you don't have to have it consume as much battery power because it's only lighting up the area where you really need it. Spot is like air conditioning your house and flood is like leaving the door open and trying to air condition the outside as well 🙂

A good compromise is a diffused beam which is basically a spot beam that either you've diffused with tape or the manufacturer has diffused with frosted optics of some sort. Now you still have a directed beam (not trying to light up everything) but there is no defined spot in the middle and there is plenty of light as the beam is now wider. If you are working with your tackle you get a little more light on your hands than you would at the same setting with pure flood.

If you're not doing anything too detailed however and don't need to see more than 20 feet then a low level flood is very easy on the eyes. A directed beam (as described above) would throw a little further so maybe 50 feet or so if that's more helpful.

There are headlamps that allow you to choose between spot and flood as you need them as well. That's why Carrot (and I agree) mentioned that he was a big fan of the traditional plastic AAA type headlamps specifically made for outdoor activities by companies such as Princeton Tec, Black Diamond, and Petzl. Most also have a red LED mode to help preserve your night vision for when that's appropriate.

 

[tbone1993]

A good compromise is a diffused beam which is basically a spot beam that either you've diffused with tape or the manufacturer has diffused with frosted optics of some sort. Now you still have a directed beam (not trying to light up everything) but there is no defined spot in the middle and there is plenty of light as the beam is now wider. If you are working with your tackle you get a little more light on your hands than you would at the same setting with pure flood.

If you're not doing anything too detailed however and don't need to see more than 20 feet then a low level flood is very easy on the eyes. A directed beam (as described above) would throw a little further so maybe 50 feet or so if that's more helpful.

Then a light light the zebralight h51Fc would have the balance between a spot but not a defined hotspot and still enough flood for working with tackle or walking through brush to those hard to reach fishing spots

 

[ryguy24000]

What headlamp do you run?

I have several, but my favorite is a Spark St5. I use it with a piece of Scotch tape to defuse the light. You were thinking about the Zebra 501. I wouldn't hesitate on this one!! Nothing but good reviews on CPF.