Please Suggest A Light For Me

[kauai]

Hello everyone.

I camp on the beach in Hawaii and need to descend a steep (170 foot high) mud trail down to the beach at night. I want my light beam to reach all the way down the trail to see where I am going. The light needs to be able to tolerate heavy rain, but I do not use it for night diving so it is not essential to be 100% waterproof, though that would help.

I have 2 hand held LED lights now and both have deficiencies. I have a Brinkmann about 5 inches long with 3 LED bulbs. The company told me it is 60 lumens. That does not put out enough light for me. That would OK for around the house but not outdoor use for trail hiking and setting up a tent in the night. The other LED light I have has no brand name printed on it. It has one bulb and is more powerful output than the Brinkmann, but even with new batteries it has the very annoying habit of going out, of course, when I am in a compromising position on the trail. There is obviously a loose connection somewhere. I am reasonably happy with the lumen output.

What can I buy for my purposes? The Brinkmann cost me 15 bucks from Fred Meyer in Fairbanks, Alaska. The other was given to me. I want one around 6 inches long and an inch wide as I want it to be small enough to fit into a small compartment in my daypack. Can I spend 30 or 40 bucks and get a product with an unconditional guarantee to replace if defective like the kind of customer service LL Bean in Freeport, Maine provides?

If I mailed the light with the going out problem back to a LED manufacturer that I am buying a new light from, would they be good enough to look at it and try to stop it from being loose?

The other question I have concerns lumens. Exactly how powerful is 100 lumens or 200 lumens? How can I tell the lumen output of a light if I don't know the brand? And what about lithium batteries? Are they really the best battery to use these days? Thanks.

 

[Oddjob]

I always recommend CPF member 4seven's site to new members. Excellent customer service, free worldwide shipping, good quality lights and many makes and models to choose from. You are bound to find something that suits your needs there.

 

[Toaster]

:welcome:

$30-40 is a bit low to get a quality light with the features and warranty you desire. If you can up your budget to around $60 you'll find some suitable options. I recommend you get the Fenix TK20 from 4Sevens. It's a well regarded and high quality light that takes 2xAAs and has the throwing power to cover the distance you want. It fits your size requirements and is built very tough. 4Sevens is a well regarded dealer here and they offer a No Questions Asked Lifetime Warranty on Fenix products so you can rest assured you will be taken care of if the light should malfunction. You can find a review of the light here along with various other 2xAA lights.


Lumen ratings should be taken with a grain of salt. Some manufacturers exaggerate heavily on rated output while others do the exact opposite. User tests and reviews of a light are generally more useful than comparing by claimed output. Also lumens is only a measurement of total light output and says nothing about what beam shape is produced by the light in question.

 

[Greg G]

I would try to pick up a better light that you can buy for $40 new. If you go with a pre-owned light you can save some money. I bought a Tiablo A9 for $50 shipped last week. Can't beat it for the price. Watch the marketplace.

 

[Marduke]

Sounds like you need a headlamp for hands-free use. For trails and camp duties, nothing beats a good headlamp.

 

[Greg G]

http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=187378

Go look at this thread. I bought one of these, and it is a lot of light for the money. Very bright and throws well. Fast shipping too.

HTH

 

[Chrontius]

That said, he's asking for a moderately powerful thrower.

If cheap is more important than compact, an Everready Dolphin with a Mag xenon bulb is going to give you a great, tightly-focused beam for about $6.50 (light) + $3 (bulb). It's waterproof and it floats... but it's big.

If compact is more important than cheap, you could have a look over at the Marketplace and see what's available used. You can occasionally score some awesome deals. That said, Tiablo makes some of the most popular pocket-throwers out there. I'm not too familiar with throwers, but in my experience, the Malkoff dropin module has moderately good throw and it's bright as heck.