Newbie looking for a long distance LED flashlight

[gkmax]

hi all,
I'm looking for a LED flashlight with the following properties:
1. long distance
2. robust
3. has only one LED in it.


1. what parameters should I be looking at when comparing flashlights?
candlelight ? lumenus? anything else?

2. do you have any specific brands/models you care to recommend on?


thanks!

 

[Painful Chafe]

There are some pretty good deals on Tiablo A9's right now, new and a couple of used ones. Great light with really good throw. Check the cpf marketplace forum. Great dealers and members selling there.

There is a pretty good review of throwers here:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=190999

This is a slightly older review and there are some new lights in the category. JetBeam has a couple of new great lights out now.

You should let us know how much you are looking to spend. And what batteries you are going to be using.

 

[PhantomPhoton]

How long distance do you mean? What size and battery do you prefer?

 

[Tora]

My vote is for the JetBeam Raptor - 1. I just received one a couple of days ago and have done light testing at 1/10 - 2/10 and 3/10 of a mile - photos in thread - UltraFire RL-2088 / Raptor - enroute. I am extremely happy with it.

 

[Toaster]

Jetbeam M1X seems to be the most robust of the high powered LED flashlights.

 

[bigchelis]

My best thrower is a Mag light R2 w/Aspheric, but my normal readily available version is the Tiablo A10. It throws just as far as the Mag aspheric and is the record holder of reflector R2 lights as measured by W.B.P. lux test.

 

[BlueBeam22]

I recommend the Dorcy 220 Lumen rechargeable LED flashlight. It has a very narrow beam and can reach objects a few hundred yards away in a dark setting.

 

[Marduke]

What do you mean by "long distance"? By your phrasing, I assume you are looking to outthrow some multi-emitter 5mm light, which can be easily done by almost any modern LED light out there.

Or do you really want a mega thrower, bordering on light saber?

 

[kramer5150]

Tiablo A10... it goes toe to toe with all but the very best aspheric throwers. It offers both high lumen and Lux to achieve its throw.

For reflector deep dish designs you want BOTH high Lux and Lumen output like the A10.
For aspheric throwers, I think they can get by with slightly lower Lumen output values, and its almost impossible to get a high lumen output from them because they only emit those LED lumens that shine onto the lens back side. All the side emitted lumens are lost inside the bezel.

 

[vali]

What do you mean by "long distance"? By your phrasing, I assume you are looking to outthrow some multi-emitter 5mm light, which can be easily done by almost any modern LED light out there.

Or do you really want a mega thrower, bordering on light saber?

+1

Some ppl think my RC-N3 is a thrower.

 

[Tora]

Anyone know if there is an aspheric lens for the raptor 1?

Never mind - it is already a thrower enough - just being greedy.

 

[saabluster]

For aspheric throwers, I think they can get by with slightly lower Lumen output values, and its almost impossible to get a high lumen output from them because they only emit those LED lumens that shine onto the lens back side. All the side emitted lumens are lost inside the bezel.

You are correct that most aspherics lose a lot of light to the sides. That is not the case with the DEFT though. I have a small optic up close to the LED that redirects that light into the main lens. You get a larger field of view due to the magnification of the die and more throw.

 

[bigchelis]

You are correct that most aspherics lose a lot of light to the sides. That is not the case with the DEFT though. I have a small optic up close to the LED that redirects that light into the main lens. You get a larger field of view due to the magnification of the die and more throw.

MrGman said he had the privlige of using one of your Deft models that W.B.P had and said it did about 200 out the front lumens in w.b.p's sphere. From seing the beamshoots MrGman and W.b.p took of your Deft, Leggion II, and the Malkoff Tripple makes me want to Deft even more.

The Deft is on my Christmas list :thumbsup: It may not make 400 plus lumens out the front, but it is definitly the worlds longest thrower.

 

[saabluster]

MrGman said he had the privlige of using one of your Deft models that W.B.P had and said it did about 200 out the front lumens in w.b.p's sphere. From seing the beamshoots MrGman and W.b.p took of your Deft, Leggion II, and the Malkoff Tripple makes me want to Deft even more.

The Deft is on my Christmas list :thumbsup: It may not make 400 plus lumens out the front, but it is definitly the worlds longest thrower.

I didn't know there were any pictures here from them. I'll have to search around for it. I am not sure how much I trust his numbers though as he told me at 1 meter he measured 42800lux at turn on. That is nowhere near reality. Not even a little bit.

 

[bigchelis]

I didn't know there were any pictures here from them. I'll have to search around for it. I am not sure how much I trust his numbers though as he told me at 1 meter he measured 42800lux at turn on. That is nowhere near reality. Not even a little bit.

If I recall correctly your Deft was said not to be ideal at 100yards because it is blinding:devil: Now, that is just awesome if you ask me. I guess at 200 yards it must be easier on the eyes.

If I purchased it I would get the Deft with the flood aspheric for closer range use and of course the normal aspheric to light up the moon.

bigchelis

 

[ANDREAS FERRARI]

I am not sure how much I trust his numbers though as he told me at 1 meter he measured 42800lux at turn on. That is nowhere near reality. Not even a little bit.

Correct me if I'm wrong saabluster but it seems to me the reading should be at least 2-3 times that! What up with that.

 

[saabluster]

If I recall correctly your Deft was said not to be ideal at 100yards because it is blinding:devil: Now, that is just awesome if you ask me. I guess at 200 yards it must be easier on the eyes.

If I purchased it I would get the Deft with the flood aspheric for closer range use and of course the normal aspheric to light up the moon.

bigchelis

Sadly most people only focus on the smooth lens and super tight focus. Glad to see you know about the diffused aspheric option.:thumbsup: What you might have missed is that the DEFT now is basically 3 lights in one. The the super thrower good from about 150 yards on, the diffused aspheric good from about 15 yards to 150 yards, and now with the head removed and used as a mule from at your feet to about 20 yards. What makes this last bit possible is the new small optic that I have which mounts over the LED so even if you remove the head the LED is still protected from impacts and the side spill is blocked from blinding you by the optic holder.

Correct me if I'm wrong saabluster but it seems to me the reading should be at least 2-3 times that! What up with that.

You are correct. I tried to explain that you cannot do 1 meter tests with this kind of light and have accurate results. Maybe he doesn't have the ability to test from very far using his equipment?:shrug: I don't know. When I did some tests from around 400-500 feet a while back I got a calculated 156,000lux at 1m if memory serves. And that was before the latest improvements which have both increased the throw and the field of view. I am now getting about 60% more light out the front than the first gen DEFT without increasing the drive level.

 

[PhantomPhoton]

You are correct. I tried to explain that you cannot do 1 meter tests with this kind of light and have accurate results. Maybe he doesn't have the ability to test from very far using his equipment?:shrug: I don't know. When I did some tests from around 400-500 feet a while back I got a calculated 156,000lux at 1m if memory serves. And that was before the latest improvements which have both increased the throw and the field of view. I am now getting about 60% more light out the front than the first gen DEFT without increasing the drive level.

Yes I agree. Using it in the fog or even just in a nice dark area where the beam is visible you can see that the DEFT's beam isn't completely converged at 1m yet. You can also tell just by looking at the whitewall pattern at 1m. Most throwers like my DBS are like this as well.

 

[ANDREAS FERRARI]

...you can see that the DEFT's beam isn't completely converged at 1m yet. Most throwers like my DBS are like this as well.

This makes sense to me. I have a Raidfire Spear Clone that has an incredible hot spot(when compared to my DBS-white wall at 1 meter) but in real world testing can't touch the DBS in throw in testing at over 200M.I think some lights need to be tested at 3M/5M/10M or even further to get an accurate lux measurement.

 

[gkmax]

First,
Thanks for the link, it's great!

I haven't really thought about the $$$ I'm willing to spend, so... for now - lets assume the sky is the limit.

as for batteries...
I prefer flashlights that uses standard batteries and not a flashlight with proprietary or built-in/rechargeable batteries


any recommendation on these newer models will be appreciated

thanks!