If you could only have 3 flashlights?

[JustAGuy]

Hi all! I just discovered this site a week or so ago, and it really opened my eyes. I always thought I was doing pretty well with my MagLites and one Princeton Tec, but now I realize there's a whole world out there I wasn't even aware of. So, I'm looking to upgrade the old flashlight collection, and I've identified three separate needs.

Before explaining the three needs, there are two qualifiers. First, I want something with batteries, not a rechargeable. Everything rechargeable I buy seems to die a quick death, and there are times when I'm not around an outlet for a while, so I want batteries. Second, the price range should be around $40-$50; I'll go higher if necessary, but would prefer not to.

These are the three I'm looking for:

1. A general purpose flashlight with a bright , adjustable beam. This is the one I'll use 80% of the time for hunting, camping, fishing, or whatever. This is also the one I'd spend the most on.

2. A "glove box" light for unexpected situations, like changing a tire, finding the way to help, that kind of thing.

3. A "long-lasting" light for extended backpacking trips, survival situations, or whatever. It doesn't have to be super bright, it just has to be reliable and last for a long time with no more than one change of batteries.

I'm sorry for making my introductory post a "please help me" one, but I really would appreciate any thoughts you may have. Thanks!

 

[McGizmo]

Hello and welcome! I think I'll start you off with an opinnion from left field

1) Soon to be released SureFire A2 combination of 3 LED's and a 60 Lumen incandescent bulb that is digitally regulated. Blows your price range by a factor of 3 but you will soon learn that money goes to flashlights........... This light doesn't have an adjustable beam; rather two sources of illumination and both using their own method of light projection.

2) Many options here but I'd suggest lithium batteries and some type of Luxeon LED for the light source. I know others will have a bundle of other valid ideas here.

EDIT: Well, since I blew the budget with #1, I'd suggest a mini mag with a Dat2Zip BadBoy sandwich. You can keep a flood reflector in the light which will give you a great beam for tire patching and you can keep an optics handy to convert the light to more of a medium range spot light if you need to trek away to safety. Lithium AA batteries.

3) Eterrnalight; 4 LED's that can yield a good flood of light for up close work and will give reasonable medium illumination in quality dark as one would expect out from civilization. Key feature is PWM circuit that will allow you to go to lower levels of illumination but major long runtimes.

Stick around and you will find you have more than three lights to work with

- Don

 

[Sean]

In your price range:

1. The E2o (Outdoorsman). 2.5 hours runtime, brighter than a 3C mag and is very small.
You don't need an adjustable beam!

They don't help anyway.

It uses 2 lithiums 123's though.

I use an Arc LS as my every day carry light and is plenty bright for my needs. An Arc "second" and E2o both cost about $60.

2. PT Surge or Brinkmann Legend LX, The Surge uses AA's, the Brinkmann uses 123 lithiums.

3. Arc AAA is highly recommended and goes with you everywere, so when that emergency finds you...your ready 'cuz it's with you.

 

[FalconFX]

Well, with those 2 restrictions, there's a few lights that I can suggest from personal experience... Excluding any type of rechargeables will considerably limit the playing field of choices of flashlights for consideration...

I'll list one with a higher price range (a), and one within price range (b)...

1a) Brinkmann Legend 4xD
1b) Princeton Tech Surge 8xAA
[power and battery longevity is a necessity here, whether hunting or in the dark, and must be bright enough to throw a great beam]

2a) SureFire E2e 2xCR123A (with or without KL1)
2b) Streamlight Scorpion 2xCR123A
[both these lights are lithium based, for great storage life and dependability in all weather conditions]

3a) Any Eternalight 4xLithiumAA
3b) CMG Infinity (Regular) 1xLithiumAA
[Eternalights can last 800+ hours on a single set of Alkalines, over 1200 hours on LI-AAs, and the original Infinity can last 50+ hours on a single Lithium AA, longevity indeed]

That's for retail. As for mods, the sky's the limit...

 

[Nerd]

Falcon, the Surge cannot take even 4 lithiums much less 8 lithiums.

1)*aglite 2D with 6AA battery holder from Electrolumens and 6 Lithium batteries and a replacement bulb from Carley lamps or just a *aglite 6D white star (since the lithiums are already overdriving it)

2)*ini*ag with madmax/badboy sandwich Luxeon Star LED conversion from Electrolumens's Sandwich store and prolly 2 lithiums as well. This combo ought to give 3 plus hours of bright white light

3)Eternal light as suggested by Falcon. This light with Lithiums can last really really long like he said, 1200 hours on Lithium AAs.

With all the torches here using Litiums, you should start finding on e-bay, a cheap source of Energizer Lithiums. I have taken the liberty of finding it for you

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1946684002

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1946071646

 

[FalconFX]

What?????????????????????????????????????

I've been using 8 Lithiums in my Surge for the past month!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Shoot, shoot, shoot... What the heck's supposed to happen?

EDIT: Awe crap... Thank god my bulb hasn't exploded yet... Dang, didn't even know this was that bad of a deal...

 

[Nerd]

That's amazing, I blew my bulb within nanoseconds of using it. Maybe your lithiums was run down and so wasn't that powerful?

 

[FalconFX]

Right now, the lithiums straight out of the Surge tests anywhere from 1.58 V to 1.64 V... Who knows. These were fresh cells. I took out the lithiums from their packaging and stuff them happily into the Surge with no worries in mind...

Well, at least now I have some extra lithiums for my Reactor and InRetech AA... And the Surge gets a healthy diet of Rayovac Maximums...

Thanks for the heads up on the Lithiums, Nerd!

 

[Grummond]

JustAGuy

Bearing in mind your price range of $40-$50 I would looks at the following.

1. PT Surge
2. dat2zip BB500 or Mad Max drop in.
3. Streamlight 3C 10 LED.

You can buy some fantastic lights for the price range you are looking at spending IMHO.

I have to totally agree with Sean with regards to adjustable beams, in fact I'm sure many here will stay clear of lights using adjustable beams as most of the common ones are under powered and you will find yourself using it on its tightest spot anyway, so why not get a high powered flashlight with good beam quality and it will spill enough light from the hotspot to blow away most adjustable beamed lights on wide angle.

I have put the Surge in as your 1 as your description was that of an incandescent and one of your needs was hunting, although to be honest if you had these three lights the one you'd probably use most would be the BB500 drop in.

I have to be fair, I say BB500 but there are a number of LS based flashlights out there, I used the BB500 as I got mine a couple of days ago and am like a kid with a new toy at the moment.

If you're not planning to buy all these lights at once but still want a solution I would suggest the Surge and a Opalec Newbeam drop in to start with.
This would take care of your high light and low light plus you could use the batts from the Surge after they are to week to operate and use them I the Opalec.

Oh boy I just realized it's actually quite hard to suggest some flashlights as there are so many and every time I think of one that would be a good choice I immediately think "no, no he needs this or he's going to have to have that!"

There are some excellent review sites you could check out which are overflowing with pics, beamshots, runtime tests, output ratings, quality you name it, spend a while browsing through, although I have to warn you you'll be wanting more than 3 lights by the time you've finished.

 

[Nerd]

Originally posted by FalconFX:
Right now, the lithiums straight out of the Surge tests anywhere from 1.58 V to 1.64 V... Who knows. These were fresh cells. I took out the lithiums from their packaging and stuff them happily into the Surge with no worries in mind...

Well, at least now I have some extra lithiums for my Reactor and InRetech AA... And the Surge gets a healthy diet of Rayovac Maximums...

Thanks for the heads up on the Lithiums, Nerd!

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">sure, no problem, but just that I am really surprise that your Surge survived. If you do happen do a bit of digging, some have had not so good experience using Lithiums in Surge. If it measures anything over 1.7, don't use it. You will melt the filament and it's time to get a new bulb.

 

[FalconFX]

Yeah, I went back and searched some strings, and it threw me for a loop to find that the bulbs would just literally fry with lithiums.

I was using lithiums with mine all the time. Didn't even think twice about it. Kind'a scares me now, knowing I was very liberal about turning it on, too. It was heavily used, as well, probably with 2 good hours of use with the original set of lithiums... BTW, the 1.58V-1.64V I got was readings from the ALREADY USED lithium cells that were taken out of the PTS today. Had I took a reading of the cells a month ago when they were new, I'm pretty sure they would've tested to or above 1.7V...

 

[monanza]

1. General purpose (EDC):
------------------------
a. Surefire E2 GM (2x123, $53-68) - Pros: Strong beam, nice beam profile (smooth hotspot and good spill), decent throw, different output lamp assemblies allow longer runtime, has off the self beam shaper, tactical/twist lockout switch, small and easy carry, can use KL1 LED bezel. Cons: Fixed focus (to me this is a good thing), expensive replacement lamps ($12-15), lexan press-fit lens, lamp not shock isolated.

b. Surefire 6P black (2x123, $60-75) - Pros: Strong beam, good throw, tactical/twist lockout switch, dual lamp assembly, pyrex lens (new model), a host of filters and accessories are available (including beam shaper, and tailcap click-switch), textured reflectors for excellent beam pattern, can use KL3 LED bezel, extensible to 3x123 and higher output lamp assembly. Cons: bezel not shock isolated, not as compact for EDC, expensive replacement lamp assemblies ($22-30), oval hotspot (problem to some).

c. Brinkman Legend LX (2x123, ~$22-30) - Pros: strong beam, adjustable focus, lens easily replaced with high quality lens, cheap replacement lamps, textured reflector for smoother beam. Cons: Large head, lamp seat is mechanically weak, beam quality not so good except in tight focus.

d. Streamlight Scorpion (2x123, $34-50) - Pros: strong beam, adjustable focus, small, cheap replacement lamps, can use surefire KL1 or KL3 head if you don't mind a funky looking light

. Cons: Rubber sleeve loosens over time, lamp has shorter life than other incandescents, polycarbonate lens is press fit.

e. ASP Triad (2x123, $48-80) - Pros: Strong beam output (best in class hotspot intensity), adjustable focus (comes in two models, internal focus and external focus), very nice tactical tail switch, non-slip grip. Cons: lens distorts when used with tight focus beam.

NOTES: Use fixed focus lights and invest in a beam shaper for flood beam.

2. Glove box:
------------
a. Brinkman Legend LX (2x123, ~$22-30) - Pros: strong beam, adjustable focus, lens easily replaced with high quality lens, cheap replacement lamps. Cons: Large head, lamp seat is mechanically weak, incandescent lamps have shorter life.

b. Streamlight Scorpion (2x123, $34-50) - Pros: strong beam, adjustable focus, small, cheap replacement lamps, can use surefire KL1 or KL3 bezel if you don't mind a funky looking light

. Cons: Rubber sleeve loosens over time, incandescent lamps have shorter life, lens is press fit.

c. Inova X5T (2x123, $40-50) - Pros: LED, tough, comfortable size, can double as a backup survival light, long runtime. Cons: Light output not as strong as some incandescents.

NOTES: Try to use lithium powered lights for your car-carry (temperature extremes are likely to damage alkalines and subsequently the light). Have not had it happen to me yet but it has happened to others. It would be better to use an LED based light so you do not have to worry about lamp replacement (I have both incandescent and LED in my car - this way I also have a backup).

3. Extended run / survival:
--------------------------
a. Arc AAA (1xAAA, $20-40) - Pros: long runtime, water proof, has been run/disassembled/reassembled under water, small, lightweight, reliable, very tough. Cons: Hard to find nowadays, thread and o-ring need lube or head will be a little stiff to twist, operates mostly at or above freezing temperatures (or thereabouts - this is a battery problem not an Arc problem as far as I know).

b. Eternalight - Pros: multiple output levels, flasher mode for SOS, very very long run time. Cons: May be too big for a survival box, when a battery change is finally needed it would require screw driver.

c. Inova X5T (2x123, $40-50) - Pros: long runtime, water proof, tough, comfortable size, nice flood beam, has a tactical switch so easy to use for signaling. Cons: May be too big for a survival box.

d. Infinity Ultra (1xAA, $16-25) - Pros: long runtime, tough, reasonable size, readily available, should be able to handle lithiums. Cons: nothing serious.

NOTES: Since most of the weight is in the batteries if you take an extra set of batteries use a backup light to hold them

. Try to use lithium batteries because they operate at below freezing temperatures and at higher temperatures than alkalines. Use led based lights since they do not require lamp replacement.

Well I have to go but there are a host of polymer lights that would provide excellent functionality at an attractive price. May be someone else can post recommendations for them.

Cheers.

Edit - Also check out this 'Combo Light'. It is also reviewed here. You may find it useful (I do not own one yet).

 

[Charles Bradshaw]

1 and 2 could be covered by Brinkmann Legend LX (1 hour runtime).

2 and 3 could be covered by CMG Reactor (Lithium AAs only). about 25 hours runtime.

3 only could be covered by CMG Infinity Ultra or regular.

Depends on what you mean by 'extended'. The LX uses CR123A lithiums, and the other would use Eveready Lithium AAs.

These are within your price range and having the advantage of lithiums, gives you maximum temperature range.

 

[dilettante]

Here's my best attempt to stay within your price range:

1. A general purpose flashlight with a bright , adjustable beam. This is the one I'll use 80% of the time for hunting, camping, fishing, or whatever. This is also the one I'd spend the most on.

I'm not much of an adjustable beam fan, so I'll leave this one for others. FYI I find I can often regflect the beam of my Surefire M2 off of something to get a flood effect. Around the house the light bouncing off the ceiling is enough to read by . . .

2. A "glove box" light for unexpected situations, like changing a tire, finding the way to help, that kind of thing.

Maglite 2AA with Opalec Newbeam module and Lithium AAs. As you can see HERE it will provide many hours of decent light (enough for your purposes in item 2).

3. A "long-lasting" light for extended backpacking trips, survival situations, or whatever. It doesn't have to be super bright, it just has to be reliable and last for a long time with no more than one change of batteries.

Maglite 2AA w/Opalec Newbeam module, Lithium AAs and a Nite-Ize headband for hands free use.

I find a Surefire E2e/KL1 combination will satisfy most of my lighting needs. I'm sure an ARC LS1 or LS2 would be equally satisfactory. Add a Photon or ARC AAA for pocket carry and IMO you'd be covered for most occasions . . .

If I could only pick three lights, they would be a 120 lumen Surefire (I have an M2) an E2E/KL1 and an E1e. Throw in one of McGizmo's E to C adapters (which permit you to mount the 120 lumen surefire head on an E2e body) and you've got a lot of versatility. I don't think I could stop at three, because I'd want an ARC AAA, too . . .

 

[txwest]

Light #1: PT Surge

Light #2: X5T (or X5), Reactor, or MiniMag
with drop in, all with lithium's.

Light #3: Eternalight X-Ray, with lithium's for
a small light (for back packing).
PT 3C LED for larger light at home
or around camp.

Light #4: The "must have light" in all situations: The ARC AAA hanging around your neck.

TX

 

[John N]

Originally posted by JustAGuy:

1. A general purpose flashlight with a bright ,
2. A "glove box" light for unexpected
3. A "long-lasting" light for extended

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Based on what you asked for:

1) This one is a bit hard because you don't say how sensitive you are to battery costs. The SF A2, M2 and E2O come to mind, but battery cost may be unreasonable for extended usage (and the price is a bit more than you suggested). The PT Surge might be a good select as it's bright and fairly small. Heck, the Princton Tec 40 might be a good light - small, waterproof, inexpensive batteries and fairly bright. Maybe you could say a bit more on what you want from this light.

2) UK 2L. Fairly bright. Fairly long runtime. Very sturdy and very waterproof. Very reliable. Also inexpensive. I'm sold this is THE* emergency kit and glovebox light. * Ok, the UK 4AA lights might qualify as well (because you can use lithium batteries too- check them out as well.

3) Minimag 2AA with Opalec Newbeam, Kroll tailcap and glass replacement lens. 10hrs of fairly constaint 3 LED light, not picky about batteries. Handy form factor.

3b) You might also consider the CMG Infinity Ultra. 1AA, 1LED, very long lasting, very sturdy. Small enough you can just keep it in your pocket all the time. 17-2x hours of light depending on what type of battery you use.

-john

 

[Owen]

The streamlined version.
1)general purpose: Surefire E2e, or E2o for the longer clip, and longer runtime.
2)glovebox: a KL1 for the E2, and a spare set of batteries
3)long lasting: the KL1 from your glovebox
The cheaper version.
1)general purpose: a PT Surge or Tec 40
2)glovebox: PT Attitude
3)long lasting: PT Attitude

 

[T-Rex]

IMO, I don't think the Inova X5 has enough 'punch' to work well when changing a tire in the shoulder of a highway (The shoulder is not a recommended spot to change a tire, but that's another thread).

If you're on a busy/semi-busy highway, automobile headlights will be ruining any night vision that your eyes would have adapated to.

I would say that a 2 cell 123 flashlight would be a minimum lightning level to overcome the constant bombardment from the headlights. (I do not have first hand experience with modified flashlights) The Legend LX comes to mind, and you can then spend more of your budget on your general purpose light instead of your glove compartment light.

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the Surefire G2 as a viable alternative... Isn't this the Surefire board. whatja mean it isn't?

re: adjustable beams. They are useful. Taking an M2 under your dashboard to look at your fuses is frustrating if the hot spot cannot be reduced. You'll be blinded trying to figure out if that's a 5, 10 amp fuse since the hot spot will make it extremely difficult to see anything. Same thing with poking your head into a server. Reading small print is next to impossible with a bright spot.

 

[monanza]

T-Rex,

Oh my!... How could we forget the G2 indeed. I personally don't have one yet but it can be had for a very reasonable price so it definately competes with / complements Legends and Scorpions. The lamp assemblies are still pricey but the G2 should be an option whenever another SF is recommended (apart from size).

Cheers.

 

[JustAGuy]

Thanks for all the info! This is exactly what I was hoping for. Please feel free to keep it coming.