Need your recommendation on Long Throw AA

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Boatguy

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Oct 7, 2010
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This is a fantastic site, you guys have this subject so covered. I've read and read, there is so much here. But I need to make a decision so let's cut to the chase.

I'm on a boat sailing long distance (across the Pacific next year) on a 54' boat. I need two lights.

Common requirements:

- AA powered (Eneloops)
- Waterproof (they've got to survive - no warranty exchanges in the Pacific). - Won't roll around when I set it down (boats are rarely level)
- I'm willing to spend to get performance and quality.


#1 Long throw - when I need to see something far away, or verify that there is nothing to see. I don't have one of those bow mounted spotlights like a big motor yacht, it's going to be in my hand.


#2 Medium range flood. Light up my sails or inspect something in the rigging. Typically not more than 30-60' away. If it will focus from spot to flood that's a bonus, but not required.

I've got a "top of the mast" strobe, and flood lights for the foredeck and stern when needed. These are hand held lights to point at things that aren't otherwise illuminated.

Thanks for your help!
 
Welcome to CandlePowerForums ! ! !


:welcome:


Good Luck in your upcoming Adventure.

:thumbsup:


PS: are you doing this SOLO ? ? ?
_
 
If your looking for a *2 AA flashilght, then I would strongly recommend the Fenix LD20. Great little light. And the pocket clip can act as an anti-rolling feature, although its still cylindrical as all flashlights are, and I'm not sure how it can handle being on a flat surface while the boat is rocking. Its throw is OK with its smooth reflector, but you also get some useful flood. But if you want impressive throw, you'll have to go with either an incandescent light, or a aspheric LED. Incans are not the brightest or longest lasting in the form of only *2 AA batteries though.

I would look through the Coast flashlight catalogue. They make almost exclusively aspheric LED flashlights, that focus from flood to throw. And they throw GREAT! The Coast P6 takes two AA batteries. It focuses from flood to throw. I would think this is your BEST canidate. Heres a link
 
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Check out Eagletac P20A2 MK2.
I hv the MK2 and very happy with it. 230 Otf lumens. The other thrower is the Dereelight Javeelin.
 
I believe one of the newer fenix lights would do fine: the throwy E21 should be ok, but you could also settle for an LD40 for a little more brightness. Both run on AA batteries as well. Both come in neutral white, a feature I appreciate greatly.

And yes, both the Eagletac P20A2 and Dereelight Javeling would be great choices as well! :)
 
You said you wanted throw - you don't want an LD20 then. If you want 2xAA, you want a dereelight Javelin (farthest throwing 2xAA light). An EagleTac P100A2 also has decent throw for a 2xAA light but is not as bright as the Javelin. The P20A2 is as bright but has a good amount less throw than a Javelin (about 4000 lux vs 7000 lux). The Javelin will do 8000 lux with their $8 3xAA extension tube and 10,000 lux with the XR-E emitter (all lux measurements are at 1 meter).

Another great option is a P60 host with a Malkoff M31 dropin.

If you want a bigger light, a Fenix LD40 (4xAA), which I've not used yet but reports seem to indicate that is has a bit of throw, or a Fenix TK40 (8xAA and may be too big for you).



my 2 cents
 
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Boatguy said:
This is a fantastic site, you guys have this subject so covered. I've read and read, there is so much here. But I need to make a decision so let's cut to the chase.

I'm on a boat sailing long distance (across the Pacific next year) on a 54' boat. I need two lights.

Common requirements:

- AA powered (Eneloops)
- Waterproof (they've got to survive - no warranty exchanges in the Pacific). - Won't roll around when I set it down (boats are rarely level)
- I'm willing to spend to get performance and quality.


#1 Long throw - when I need to see something far away, or verify that there is nothing to see. I don't have one of those bow mounted spotlights like a big motor yacht, it's going to be in my hand.


#2 Medium range flood. Light up my sails or inspect something in the rigging. Typically not more than 30-60' away. If it will focus from spot to flood that's a bonus, but not required.

I've got a "top of the mast" strobe, and flood lights for the foredeck and stern when needed. These are hand held lights to point at things that aren't otherwise illuminated.

Thanks for your help!
Click to expand...

A problem that you're likely to have with a hand-held light is that it will light up the deck of the boat a lot and result in so much glare (since most are shiny and white) that it's real hard to see what you're shining it at and it will completely ruin your night vision. And the brighter the light, the worse it will be. Also any mist and spray, etc., will light up brilliantly right in front of you in the same way.

I've done a lot of boating/fishing at night on a river where you need to watch for logs, debris, rocks, old docks, etc., and, although I know saying this is blasphemy here lol, it's really better not to turn the things on unless you absolutely have to. I've tried shielding various lights all kinds of ways without much success. Ended up breaking down and putting in a remote controlled bow-mounted light which works OK but, even mounted as far forward as I could put it, that still causes enough glare from just the very tip of the bow and bow rail that it's a pain. There's a reason why they mount those built-in lights down under the lip of the bow. As long as I have a little ambient light I don't turn it on.

It's surprising how well you can see at night once your eyes adapt and how overwhelmingly bright even a very low output light is in complete darkness. They are very useful though for scoping things out at times and when you need a light in the boat (somewhat redemming myself from the comment above lol). For your long throw light, look for something with as little spill as you can possibly find but I doubt that you'll find anything that is as tight as you really need it to be. Also when you can try to shine it off to the side versus straight ahead lighting up the whole length of the deck.
 
An aspheric lens retrofitted to whatever light you decide to buy might be a good choice for the long throw application so that you eliminate spill and thus backscatter.
 
Burgess - No, not solo, but just two of us, myself and my wife.

We've already cruised for two and a half years, we began in Maine in 2008. I'm just upgrading the lights. Currently I have a Pelican Nemo 2010 for a utility light which works pretty well, but it's C cells. I have a huge NiCad / incandescent for a thrower, but I think there are no better solutions.

I'm not limited to 2xAA, 4x or 8x is fine.

The comments about reflections off the deck and spray are valid. Underway I use the smaller light to check mainsail trim, check the deck for flying fish, etc. I have a headlamp I use when working at night. The thrower would rarely be used while underway, it's more often used at anchor.

Based on what I had read earlier I was considering the TK45 and LD40, but now you've given me a few more to consider.

Keep them coming, I appreciate the help!
 
All of the Fenix/Eagletac/Dereelight/etc lights are splashproof, not waterproof. Not the type of lights I'd want to bet on for a Pacific crossing.

I suggest you forget the AA requirement and go for the MB-Sub X1-VB 3C. It's expensive, but it's built to last under these conditions and can do both #1 and #2. Google it and you'll see plenty of discussion about the light. Keep your Nemo 2010 as a backup. And invest in LSD Nimh C cells (the new Maha Imedion C cells look nice) if you haven't already.
 
i have both the eagletac P20A2 MK2 and the surefire e2l aa. although the e2l aa doesn't have that much spill for medium range flood, i'd take the e2l if i had to choose one.
 
Perhaps due to the adverse conditions you are likely to meet may I suggest you look at a dive light so you get something that is waterproof.

Perhaps also have a word with your local coast guard and ask if they issue there boat staff with any hand held lights.

Would also suggest one of these:Waterbuoy

The unique patented trigger mechanism of the waterbuoy is designed to activate the device seconds after submersion in normal temperatures. This means your valuable won't drift or sink too far before they resurface. Underwater currents can carry things a long way from where you dropped them in a short time, and Waterbuoy aim to minimise the problems this can cause.

The waterbuoy is also designed to minimise the chance of accidental activation. You don't want it going off if you get a bit of rain on it. During our exhaustive trials, they splash tested waterbuoy continually over 1 month. it was then dropped in a tank of water and it worked perfectly.

Waterbuoy is the World's 1st and only miniature floatation device that's visible at night.

More than 80% of items lost overboard are lost in less than perfect light. Usually when loading or unloading the boat in the early morning or late in the evening, as well as being a nightmare for night fishermen.

Designed using a special balloon and seals, the waterbuoy stays afloat for 24 hours, flashing away, giving you plenty of time to find and recover it - day or night.

Waterbuoy is the World's strongest miniature floatation device.

Small as it is, the waterbuoy is very strong and will lift items up to 1kg of dry weight, and that's strong!

That's why the waterbuoy can be used to protect so many of your valuable items, from keys, to cameras, to fishing tackle, the list of potential applications is endless.

In addition, if your valuable is heavier than 1kg - attach two or more waterbuoys to it, they're small enough.

Cost in the UK is about £10
 
Excellent thread.

I did my sail-training in the late 80s on a gaff-rigged schooner (54 meters J-boat) sailing from Scheveningen (Holland) to Kusadasi (Turkey) and back, over the course of a year.

She carried a lot of canvas (mainsail was 10k ft2) that needed constant checking and adjustments. No auto-furl. ;)

Deck-check was accomplished with the venerable Mag 3 or 4D, and the light was zoomed to max for checking the sails and rigging.

One light died during the year, the other dozen or so needed only replacement bulbs during that time.

If I were to have the same adventure today, the available lighting choices would be far more confusing...:confused:

Strapped to my body at all times, awake or asleep, would be a small, floody AA light like the iTP A2 EOS. I carry an A3 on a beaded chain around the neck, but would go for the AA offering over the AAA in your situation. You never know when the lights may fail, and since it's only two of you, both need to be useful in an emergency situation. The Underwater Kinetics 2xAA is a side-by-side layout that prevents rolling, and may also be a consideration. Multi-levels, as well as a low first level may be useful here for checking your nav aids, along with higher output for below-deck roaming.

For deck and sail check, a very tight beamed, throwy light is essential. Spray and decklights make for a near-whiteout condition under sail. The less spill the light has, the more useful it will be on deck.

For dead-reckoning, docking, and sailing through channels going to or from the sea (Red Right Returning :D) I would want a powerful thrower or ashperic. The cans and nuns are not always very visible, and I would want as much lead time possible in a potential collision situation. Side-spill is not your friend here.

I hope these comments can be useful, and please post some pics of your trip on the forum. :thumbsup:
 
BTW, I decided to use AA's because I've had very good luck with Eneloop AA's.

By contrast, I purchased some Accupower LSD NiMH C cells and they would not fit into a new Pelican 2010. Which is to blame, the flashlight or the battery? I'm not interested in playing that game or being in the middle. I returned both the flashlight and the Accupower cells.

I've never had a problem with the Eneloop AA's, so I'm sticking with them.

Thanks!
 
It's the batteries. Rechargeables are slightly longer and wider than alkalines. I've run into the same problem with eneloops in cheap lights, but not quality lights. I run eneloops in all of my AA flashlights.

My suggestion is that you get the Eagletac P100A2 or Dereelight Javelin. I have both and have gotten them wet with no problems. I like the ITP A2 as the ultimate backup light worn with the neck lanyard. You'll find youself using it a lot as you move about during the night, and eneloops fit it just fine.
 
Wow !

What a WONDERFUL website ! ! !

:goodjob::kewlpics::thanks:

Thank you for sharing it with us.


Best of Luck (and health) to you and your wife, during yer' adventures.

:wave:
_
 
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