matrixshaman
Flashlight Enthusiast
It wasn't quite a war zone but it seemed close. Over the last 3 weeks I found heavy use for my lights both day and night as we had no electricity and were dealing with a huge amount of things that needed moving and the destination had no electricity. I found myself picking my best lights and using them constantly for all sorts of tasks. I started out with a Fenix P2D LE on me but ended up dumping it for the Novatac 120P despite the slightly larger diameter that needed to fit in my Levi key pocket. It was worth it. The Novatac (and I'm sure my HDS would have worked as well) won the 'most valuable' light for my venture. I also found good use for the $23 DX Ultrafire 5 mode Rebel at times and it ended up tied to me most of the time in addition the the Novatac. Imagine being buried in a mountain of junk over 50 feet into tunnel of stuff you are climbing over with only one light. Despite my feeling the Novatac is ultra-dependable you never know when a battery is going to go out and some places just aren't made for changing batteries in the dark. So 2 lights EDC were a minimum. In 3 weeks of heavy use the Novatac went at least 8 or 9 days before I needed to replace the rechargeable battery with a spare RCR123 I had. To me that was amazing. The Fenix was okay but I got too annoyed with a couple of it's 'features' - the lack of different levels on the rechargeable and a more difficult to use switch with it's smooth sides. The Surefire L4 with it's Luxeon V did well too and it still amazes me how bright this light is in closer quarters. Inside rooms it's a fantastic amount of light that seems as bright or brighter than many of the new Cree, Seoul SSC and even Rebel LED's. Outside at any distance it loses out if you want any throw but it's a great substitute for a room light in smaller rooms and a great flood of pleasant even light. I really like the E2D tail switch on the L4 to make it easier to hang on to also.
The Ultrafire is the one with the side switch and that alone made it very handy for some tasks. It got a fair amount of use and made it the whole 3 weeks without needing a charge as I always tend to step it down to the lowest level I can use if high isn't needed. It throws like crazy and for a cheap light performed flawlessly - this is the FMR1 from DX with an RCR123. I won't say the Fenix was bad but since I've gone to nearly all rechargeable batteries it came in last out of the 4 I used the most. I also used my Wolf-Eyes Rattlesnake with an upgraded bulb a few times and eventually tested a lot of my other lights. It's great to be a flashaholic at times like this
I'd also like to add that the Novatac clip most people complained about really came out as a big positive feature for me in all this multi-faceted venture. It became obvious - at least to me - why it was built like it is. I did flatten mine just a little (message thread around here somewhere shows this little mod) but it was not much and having that type of clip made it so much better for clipping it to various heavier clothing and other items nearby when needed. Lower profile clips would not have worked as well. The other lights mentioned also all were good to have but if I had to do this all over again (and that's not going to happen :sick2: ) the Novatac (or HDS with my Ti clip mod) seemed to do it all and would definitely be the light of choice for such an extreme venture.
The Ultrafire is the one with the side switch and that alone made it very handy for some tasks. It got a fair amount of use and made it the whole 3 weeks without needing a charge as I always tend to step it down to the lowest level I can use if high isn't needed. It throws like crazy and for a cheap light performed flawlessly - this is the FMR1 from DX with an RCR123. I won't say the Fenix was bad but since I've gone to nearly all rechargeable batteries it came in last out of the 4 I used the most. I also used my Wolf-Eyes Rattlesnake with an upgraded bulb a few times and eventually tested a lot of my other lights. It's great to be a flashaholic at times like this
I'd also like to add that the Novatac clip most people complained about really came out as a big positive feature for me in all this multi-faceted venture. It became obvious - at least to me - why it was built like it is. I did flatten mine just a little (message thread around here somewhere shows this little mod) but it was not much and having that type of clip made it so much better for clipping it to various heavier clothing and other items nearby when needed. Lower profile clips would not have worked as well. The other lights mentioned also all were good to have but if I had to do this all over again (and that's not going to happen :sick2: ) the Novatac (or HDS with my Ti clip mod) seemed to do it all and would definitely be the light of choice for such an extreme venture.
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