Need a TIGHT beamed light for my occupation, help!

[SoloTwo]

OK this is my first post here so be easy on me. :wave:

After posing this question on ar15.com I was referred to here.

So my job is Process Serving, basically I serve people court summons. Before you ask its not a bad job, its a great job. This isn't a big deal during this part of year because I won't serve someone after 9PM but after summer when it starts getting dark earlier I rely on a flash light a lot at night to pick up address numbers on the side of houses. So there poses the problem, I need a TIGHT beam because I'd rather not light up the whole flipping house and shine any light into windows of houses when I'm just looking for the numbers, especially if in houses that I'm not about to walk up to.

Currently I'm using a 3 d-cell LED mag lite after dropping my 4 d-cell incandescent light. To say the least, its not very bright and has a lot of light that manages to spill around the beam and light up an entire house. Not the best when I'm trying to be slight discreet.

So basically I need a light that would be slightly brighter then a the Mag lite and I really would like an extremely tight beam without any spillage around it if that even exists. I do not want to do any customizing, and I'd say put a cap around $150 or so, give or take 50 bucks or so.

I'll probably still use the Mag lite though for walking up to the door since its nice hold it in my armpit though to light up in front of me.

 

[brett174]

how about the Dereelight DBS V2?
http://www.dereelight.com/dbsv2.htm

I'm about to purchase one, and from what I've read, if you chose the Smooth reflector it has a pretty tight and long throwing beam.

 

[Kilovolt]

Hi SoloTwo and :welcome:

Personally I have two suggestions (solo two suggestions....:naughty a Surefire L1 or a Lumapower D-Mini with a smooth reflector. I have both and among my 40+ lights they are the ones with the tightest beam. Both are fed with one CR123A battery.

For your application I believe that SF L1 is slightly better because of the switch operation: you push slightly and you get a low intensity narrow beam, in case it is not enough you push further and the power increases.

:wave:

 

[Fusion_m8]

Welcome to CPF!:welcome:

Read this thread and you might find some interesting results.

Good luck!

 

[Crenshaw]

the problem with the DBS and most other didicated throwers, is that they still have alot of spill beam. The L1 may also not have the kind of reach he is talking about.

I would suggest, since you already have a 4D mag, find a way to make a spacer that will fill up 1"D" battery worth of space, and get this

http://www.kaidomain.com/WEBUI/ProductDetail.aspx?TranID=4465

its an aspheric mod for maglites. You virtually have to do nothing, just push in the LED unit, and replace the lens with the Aspheric lens. This will give you a light that has "no" spill...just a very small circle around the central beam that will not give you an peripheral vision (thats what you want right?)

Crenshaw

 

[Citivolus]

Definitely go for an aspheric configuration, as with a proper design you wouldn't have any spill. I have an el cheapo 2C aspheric with a beam pattern that would probably be ideal for your use. I think I bought it at Target back in 2006, but I doubt that particular model is in production any more.

A little warning about the mag aspheric lens from KD, I had difficulty adjusting it with a stock bulb, I think you need to go all out with the reflector etc.

Regards,
Eric

 

[Crenshaw]

yup, thats why i gave him the link to the entire kit..

btw, the aspheric kit does *not* come with a reflector

actually, a nice laser pointer might do the trick too.....:thinking:

Crenshaw

 

[Fusion_m8]

I thought he said he doesn't want to do any customizing??? So I reckon Mag mods would be out of the question...

Perhaps something like an Inova T3, T4 or T5 with TIROS lens?

 

[Kilovolt]

What SoloTwo has not specified is from what distance he wants to read the numbers on the houses. I believe that we are probably talking some 20 meters for which he does not really need what is normally called a super thrower around here.

Maybe most lights with a tight beam can do. Inova's are also a good proposal.

 

[gallonoffuel]

I would also go the Aspheric Mag route. A 3D mag with an aspheric lens, with the Terralux dropin preserves the focusing ability. You can focus it down to where you'll have a 2ft hotspot at 50 feet, and NO sidespill. None. It's pretty awesome And you'll have the benefit of backfocusing to get spill if you need to look around at other things, and it uses standard batteries. The only problem I see is the lens is vulnerable to scratches because it sticks out of the bezel. When Kaidomain starts making their bezel shrouds (if ever) that will solve that problem.

Here's the optic I use:

http://www.anchoroptics.com/catalog/product.cfm?id=499

You need to do some filing on the bezel ring so it fits. I can explain it better if you decide to go that route.

Here's the terralux dropin:

http://www.batteryjunction.com/tle-6exb.html

 

[Matteblack]

What about one of the Pelican lights with the Recoil LED? They are designed to throw a VERY tight beam with virtually no spill at all, and would run less than $50 or so.

 

[1 what]

Hi SoloTwo.
Welcome to CPF.
I'm for the teralux plus aspheric. It's dead easy to fit and a great increase in light all in the one place plus you'll get a lot more hours out of your batteries.

 

[gallonoffuel]

SoloTwo, if you don't want to mod it yourself, there are plenty of folks here that can build you what you want.

Hell, as a fellow ARFCOM member myself, I'll build it myself for cost, and ship it at cost. I just like building them.

 

[PhantomPhoton]

Well the DBS is a great thrower but yes it does still have side-spill. Really if you want no side-spill an aspheric lens on a M@g is the way to go. The kit at Kaidomain is minimum modification so if you're really serious about no side-spill you'll just have to suck it up.

 

[gallonoffuel]

My kit from kaidomain did not preserve focusing ability, unless I missed something. The dropin design does not allow the reflector to fit over it, so the cam doesnt ride on the little pin in the switch assembly. I wound up cutting a stock reflector down to the focal length of my lens, which gives me that glorious image of the die when you shine it on the house, but it has a few rings around that image. These photons are wasted when all you want is a hotspot.

Maybe I put it together wrong.

 

[husky20]

A Fenix P3D would be perfect throws more than good enough to see an address.and its the perfect size for cruising around on foot or in the car.:thumbsup: even a P2D would be ideal. ive diven around in my car before and lit stuff up with my P3D more than 100 feet away no problem and lit it up dam good to.

 

[TOOCOOL]

Lumapower D-Mini nice throw keep it in your pocket no need for a noob to have to start modding stuff use the KISS system :tinfoil:

 

[enLIGHTenment]

I need a TIGHT beam because I'd rather not light up the whole flipping house and shine any light into windows of houses when I'm just looking for the numbers, especially if in houses that I'm not about to walk up to.

For a zero-spill light, what you need is something based on a TIR optic, aspheric lens, or a recoil-style reverse facing LED/bulb in a reflector. Every light with a traditional forward facing reflector and rear mounted LED/bulb will produce a fair bit of spill light--and the brighter the light, the more spill you'll have. On this basis, you can rule out 99% of all lights on the market, including anything by Fenix, Dereelight, and Lumapower.

Go for an aspheric Mag mod, or look at TIR optic-based lights such as the Surefire E2DL, E2L, E1L or L1 and Inova's 2006 (TIROS optic) T3 or T4. Avoid newer Inova lights as they don't use TIR optics.

If you can wait a few weeks, keep your eyes open for LEDLenser's upcoming P6. The P6 could be a very good choice if LEDLenser doesn't screw it up somehow, but we won't know until it hits the market and gets reviewed a few times. Avoid LEDLenser's brighter lights (P7 and higher) as they have an asinine switching system that doesn't let you turn the light off quickly if you need to.

Pelican's recoil series are worth considering but they don't use newer generation LEDs. There's brighter, longer-running, stuff available from other manufacturers.

Finally, Malkoff Devices' M60 dropin might work for your needs. You'll just need a P60 host light for it.

This should give you enough to chew on for a while.

 

[husky20]

come on he's just looking for addresses he's not in the CIA or FBI Fenix P3D or P2D are the perfect solution.come to think of it they would be good if you were in the CIA or FBI.:naughty:plus you cant be to stealth with any kind of flashlight if its on i mean its a beam of light shooting through the darkness.:duck:but if anyone is looking within a mile or to raduis there going to see a beam of light

 

[warlord]

You should get a TigerLight! Then your beam will be as tight as a tiger!:huh:

HA! Get it?!?! Toight as a toiger!















Ok, fine.

I got nothing...