Mentor 2C w/3 LED Options

[VegasSteve777]

Hello~

My Son works for the Gas Company & climbs up 25 attics daily.

With MY sickness for quality flashlights, I was shocked to see a 2-AA Mag-lite on his tool belt.

I want to give him a better light for work. I clicked on his Maglite and the word "SAD" came to mind....(even with 2 fresh AA's, it's just a yellow haze).....He said this 2-AA Maglite was the brightest light for it's size (6"/150mm) that he could find using Alkaline Batteries (Supplied free alakaline batteries at work).....He doesn't want a big lite hanging on his belt, so I'm looking at 3 lights.


#1. Fenix LD-20 Q5
#2. Nite Core D-20 Cree Q5
#3. Lumapower 2C Mentor (bulkiest of these 3)

Although I'm leaning towards the "Fenix LD-20 Q5", I'm awaiting Lumapower's specs on size (deciding factor), I was hoping someone"In The Know" could tell me which of the following 3 LED's would be best for the application of lighting up an attic for entry (sometimes unwisely held between biting teeth)....

3 options (Different LED)
a. MENTOR MT-01 (with XR-E Q5)
b. MENTOR MT-02 (with XR-E R2)
c. MENTOR MT-03 (with XR-E Q3-5A)


Thanks for any input!!
~Steve~

 

[jabe1]

You may also want to consider the 4-sevens Quark 2AA (or even the 1 AA if he's holding it in his teeth!). IMHO these are hard to beat for the price, and you can get one with a Q3 5A so he will have better color rendition.

 

[Marduke]

Free alkalines at work is no excuse for using them. Although the batteries are free, will they replace his light when they inevitably leak inside it?

I HIGHLY recommend also getting him a basic NiMH setup with a fistful of quality AA cells and simple smart charger.

I also recommend a small headlamp. Once he tastes hands free work, he'll never go back to mouthing a light in a dirty attic.

 

[Tekno_Cowboy]

I'll recommend EagleTac lights. The P20A2 with Neutral emitter and OP reflector should be just what you're looking for. It has 3 easily accessible levels, and the build quality is very good.

The price is about the same as the other options you have listed.

+1 to what Marduke said. It's well worth the $10-$15 for a LSD(Pre-Charged) kit.

 

[cheetokhan]

I also recommend a small headlamp. Once he tastes hands free work, he'll never go back to mouthing a light in a dirty attic.

I can't imagine being without my Zebralight H501W headlight.
Before I found this forum, I did my attic work with hand held flashlights. I would have to set the light down to free up my hands to work and every time I moved, the light would have to be moved. It always seemed to be pointing at the wrong spot.
My headlight is always pointing at the right spot :thumbsup:
Working in an attic is no fun, but wearing a headlight makes it a lot less frustrating.

I have a lot of AA operated lights, but I wouldn't chose any of them for attic work. They all have too narrow a beam. For attic work, I want the widest, floodiest beam I can get. If I had to use a hand held light, I would grab my Lumapower D-Mini Extreme with the MCE emitter and an 18650 battery. The upcoming Lumapower Mentor is supposed to have a similar, wide beam. I'll be getting one as soon as Battery Junction has them available to order.

 

[Toaster]

I'm awaiting Lumapower's specs on size (deciding factor)

Overall Length: 171.2mm
Max Diameter: 45mm
Body Diameter: 33.2mm
Weight: 220g (without battery)

So it's just about the same length as the 2AA MiniMag, but wider due to the C Cells used.

I was hoping someone"In The Know" could tell me which of the following 3 LED's would be best for the application of lighting up an attic for entry (sometimes unwisely held between biting teeth)....

The R2 (WD tint) would be the brightest and best choice for lighting up an attic. There isn't much point going with the lower output Q3-5A neutral white led here as the environment he's working in won't be filled with plants and shrubs.

The Mentor 2C looks to be a great working light, especially for use with alkaline cells. I wouldn't worry about leaking alkaline cells due to the relatively low current draw for the battery size and the fact that your son will be replacing the batteries as soon as they're run down since he's getting free cells. If you decide to go with another light, I'd avoid getting a light where he can accidentally strobe himself as that will get old really fast. The P20A2 recommended above for example slips into strobe far too easily. The Nitecore D20 you listed would be a good choice for a smaller light due to it's floody beam pattern, one handed operation, and lack of strobe/SOS/Beacon modes.

 

[waddup]

i have owned 2 nightcore AA lights for months now, a d10 and an ndi

BOTH ARE EXCELLENT.

get your son the $59 nightcore D20 from 4sevens.

Id wager it is almost indestructible, very bright, runs a long long time with a beautiful beam on AA alkalines.

and only $59 !!??

 

[grunscga]

If you're replacing a 2xAA Maglite, and it's going to be used by a non-flashaholic, I recommend sticking to the exact same battery config*, and the simplest UI you can get. I'd probably recommend the EagleTac P100A2 (based on specs and cost alone--I don't currently own one).

However, if you're trying to decide which 2xAA would be best, it's hard to beat this review:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=214890

Assuming that you have some serious time to kill...

* I do have experience with this one: my dad owns a small construction company, and at one point actually bought Surefire G2s (and spares carriers) for all his guys, with the warning that the batteries were really expensive, so any time they needed more, they just had to come back to the shop and grab some out of the bulk-packs that we had bought online (knowing that we were going to go through a LOT of batteries). Everybody that got one loved it. They had been using whatever random lights they picked up at Wal-mart, and this was back around 2001, before Wal-mart carried LEDs at all. However, in less than a month, they were all back to using their old lights because it was "too much trouble" to remember to pick up free batteries when they were in the shop, and CR123s cost a fortune at Wal-mart.

So, the moral of the story is, if he wants to use AAs, stick with AAs...

 

[Tekno_Cowboy]

The R2 (WD tint) would be the brightest and best choice for lighting up an attic. There isn't much point going with the lower output Q3-5A neutral white led here as the environment he's working in won't be filled with plants and shrubs....
...The P20A2 recommended above for example slips into strobe far too easily. The Nitecore D20 you listed would be a good choice for a smaller light due to it's floody beam pattern, one handed operation, and lack of strobe/SOS/Beacon modes.

One thing to note is that in an attic, there's no need for a ton of light, it usually tend to overpower you. I like around 60-100 lumens when I'm working in an enclosed space.

If there's going to be a need to differentiate between similar colors, you'll want to go with a neutral emitter.

I have no issues with the strobe on my P20A2.

 

[Toaster]

One thing to note is that in an attic, there's no need for a ton of light, it usually tend to overpower you. I like around 60-100 lumens when I'm working in an enclosed space.

Sorry don't really agree here. His son probably works during daylight hours and will be walking through or climbing up a lit house to the attic. Given that he climbs up 25 attics daily it doesn't sound like he'll be giving himself much time to adapt his eyes. So having more light available certainly might help in some situations. Especially in some attics which are partially lit by a window or a solitary light bulb.

If there's going to be a need to differentiate between similar colors, you'll want to go with a neutral emitter.

Yep you better call Surefire, Maglite, and every other flashlight manufacturer and tell them their normal cool white LED lights that make up 99% of the market are absolute rubbish for differentiating color. They should switch immediately to neutral tints so that people can again see in color at night.

Seriously, gimme a break here. Neutral tint LEDs help in some situations and I'm glad you like yours. But they're hardly the silver bullet for every situation.

I have no issues with the strobe on my P20A2.

Good for you. But there are plenty of reports on here of how easy it is to activate the strobe on the new Eagletacs by flashaholics. It's not hard to imagine regular people might have an even greater problem with it. Which begs the question, why buy a work light with such an easily accessible strobe when there are other perfectly good lights that don't have that issue?

 

[Tekno_Cowboy]

Sorry don't really agree here. His son probably works during daylight hours and will be walking through or climbing up a lit house to the attic. Given that he climbs up 25 attics daily it doesn't sound like he'll be giving himself much time to adapt his eyes. So having more light available certainly might help in some situations. Especially in some attics which are partially lit by a window or a solitary light bulb.



Yep you better call Surefire, Maglite, and every other flashlight manufacturer and tell them their normal cool white LED lights that make up 99% of the market are absolute rubbish for differentiating color. They should switch immediately to neutral tints so that people can again see in color at night.

Seriously, gimme a break here. Neutral tint LEDs help in some situations and I'm glad you like yours. But they're hardly the silver bullet for every situation.




Good for you. But there are plenty of reports on here of how easy it is to activate the strobe on the new Eagletacs by flashaholics. It's not hard to imagine regular people might have an even greater problem with it. Which begs the question, why buy a work light with such an easily accessible strobe when there are other perfectly good lights that don't have that issue?

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree. :shrug:

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

It's well worth the $10-$15 for a LSD(Pre-Charged) kit.

I absolutely agree:

1) Cheaper (for his company)
2) Kinder to the planet
3) Less chance of leaks
4) Longer runtime

My suggestion is to stick with the 2xAA format and go with the Duracell Mobile Charger. Cheap, no wall-wart, reliable, excellent reviews.

I think a headlamp would compliment that 2xAA light very nicely.

 

[RWT1405]

Not everyone wants to use rechargable batts. (me, for one). I am all for those of you that do like them, but for me, no thank you. I have better things to do with my time then babysitting batts..

If he's not into flashlights, stick with alkies.

My .02 FWIW YMMV

 

[Marduke]

Not everyone wants to use rechargable batts. (me, for one). I am all for those of you that do like them, but for me, no thank you. I have better things to do with my time then babysitting batts..

If he's not into flashlights, stick with alkies.

My .02 FWIW YMMV

Huh? No babysitting required. Basic NiMH setup is extremely user friendly, and performance will run circles around any alkaline setup.

They are cheaper, brighter, run longer, and won't ruin a light from leakage. What exactly is the downside?

 

[RWT1405]

Really? So, if they get forgotten about, or you get called into work, and you can't get them off charge for 26 or 27 hrs., they'll be ok? No problems? No house fire?

My .02 FWIW YMMV

 

[VegasSteve777]

Thank you for all the input!

In talking about lights with my neighbor, he has a friend that's a flashlight hound too and he owns a D20 Nightcore. I actually got to check out the light and I'm sold. It's perfect and way way brighter that I expected for the two Duracell alkalines he had in the light!! The light has a high power setting of 180 lumens and let me tell you, I was actually surprised how well this little light brought my neighbors 4 car garage to life.....I'm buying 3 of these since I can't give that light away to my son, and not have one for myself........The third one?? My Father of 80 years is still way with the program and when he sees this light, he too will be delighted to unwrap the third D20 from his X-mas Stocking in December!!

As much as I agree with the idea of a headlight,(I have a couple myself) we live in Vegas, and in the summer time, there's no way he's wearing or strapping anything to his head....(He runs a bit hotter than I do)......All of these vacant homes (one out of every sixteen homes are now vacant here in Vegas) don't have power or the air-co running and it's well over 140 degrees in these attics on a hot 118 degree day here in the desert heat.....

He's gonna be VERY happy with this light.....He's been using this little Mag for over 5 years now and is used to the one handed blast of light that he needs to find what he looking for in the attics.
From what I saw in the performance of this D20, he'll be wishing he had come to me a long time ago and never bought that AA Mag~

By the way!! I too, enjoy the performance of good protected rechargeables........They are completley safe and very cost effective!!.....The chargers that are now available, and listed with UL are designed not to overcharge or cause a fire, even if you left your Protected Batteries in the charger for a year!!

Thanks again to all of you that took the time to share with me and one another!! :twothumbs

Peace
~Steve~