Light for "Kokoda Trek" 9 day back packing trip

[cernobila]

Yes, three of us are planning the above trip and one of the questions we need to deal with is what light to take.

We would need to be independent for the duration of this trip as far as batteries are concerned. So what would be the best choices? Should be compact/light in weight, usable output two stage of low/high, good run times and reliable.

We would carry enough spare batteries for this duration, the lights/batteries will be in waterproof plastic bags.

Any suggestions?

 

[jbosman1013]

price range? being a flashaholic what lights do you have

 

[scottaw]

You need a headlamp, and a good multi level light would come in handy as well. Try to make them both take the same batteries. Check out princeton tec for the lamp, and novatac for your light. Have fun.

 

[cernobila]

price range? being a flashaholic what lights do you have

ok, I have ;

Nightcutter 5PC (Inova X5T) good as a headlamp in headband.
Fenix P2DCE, L2DCE multistage
Amilite T5 two stage
Surefire G2, E2E, E1E
Lumacraft D-Mini with two stage output
Dereelight CL1H two stage original
WE Sniper, Raider both with LED tailcaps
WE Defender II with cree HO lamp two stage output

I would presume that one of the LED lights would be more appropriate, even something that is not on my list....

 

[shakeylegs]

Depends what your lighting needs will be. If you are familiar with the area and will be navigating at night primarily around a campsite, buy a few photon freedoms and a few extra batteries. They function great for local task work and can be clipped to a cap for headlamp. If you need more light for spotting and route finding, take either the P2d or L2d. On low you'll get approximately 30 and 80 hours respectively (per set of batteries). On high mode, about 2.5 and 6.5 hours. Approximately 45 min and 2 hours 15 min on turbo.

Think about how much light you'll need and bring enough battery power for a margine of safety. If caught in a night retreat you'll want to light the entire way home.

 

[mossyoak]

i highly recommend the surefire L1, either version but the older model would be best. its low mode is great for outdoors at night and it runs forever. get it and honestly i doubt you would change the batts more than once even with heavy use. i love mine for being in the boonies, even more so cause mine has a seoul in it for twice the output and the same runtime.

and a great headlamp is the PT apex. great design and nice output.

 

[mossyoak]

ok just saw your light list, take both fenixes and the lumacraft d-mini as a thrower.

 

[jbosman1013]

my computer froze the first time i tryed to type this

of your lights I would chose the L2DCE with energizer L91 for runtime and multi mode would also go with the G2 and P61 LA for good incan light I also agree with shakeylegs on a light you can clip to your hat or some sort of headlamp besides that i think your covered by the lights you have unless you just want a new one. you should take one of these too https://www.kabar.com/product_detai...ryId=1,2,3,7,9&categoryName=Military/Tactical

 

[cernobila]

of your lights I would chose the L2DCE with energizer L91 for runtime and multi mode would also go with the G2 and P61 LA for good incan light I also agree with shakeylegs on a light you can clip to your hat or some sort of headlamp besides that i think your covered by the lights you have unless you just want a new one.

Never tried the L91 batteries, are these the best AA cells? The L2DCE was on top of my list, where can I get the L91's in AU? What is the LF lamp equivalent to the P61?....and what about the WE Sniper with good incan up front and the LED tailcap with 2x CR123's?

 

[paulr]

L91's are lithium AA's that are lightweight and will run the L2DCE for ridiculous lengths of time, but are $$$$ expensive (about $2 USD a cell here in the states, probably even more in .au). NiMH AA cells work almost as well and are a lot more cost effective.

Really unless you plan to do a lot of night hiking, powerful flashlights with long runtime just won't be important. I agree with those who suggested headlamps. If you're going with 123-powered flashlights the PT Apex Pro might be a good choice (2x123 powered headlamp). Otherwise I'm pretty happy with my PT Aurora (3AAA) and there are many comparable models that are also good. Unfortunately I just don't know of a good 1AA or 2AA led headlamp, and the 4AA models weigh too much for my preferences.

 

[jbosman1013]

the L91's are energizer E2 lithiums(as shown on package) they are said to make a noticeable difference between high and turbo here is a review with runtime graph http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/fenix_l1dce-l2dce.htm

 

[Argon]

Never tried the L91 batteries, are these the best AA cells? The L2DCE was on top of my list, where can I get the L91's in AU?

**** smith's, jaycar and probably a few other places, personally i would just stick with nimh cells as it's only a few days, they retail for about $7-10 au a cell. You can buy **** smith branded lithium ion disposable batteries for cheaper.

 

[TORCH_BOY]

Definately the Fenix L2D-CE