lakeoffury
Newly Enlightened
Hey Everyone -
Longtime lurker and absorber of your incredible information. Have spent a while trying to figure out the right light to get for use on a sailboat sailing the great lakes. Right now I have a Sofirn IF22A, wurkkos fc11 & wk15. I am looking to have a better setup for night time on the boat for scanning shoreline, buoys, and potential man overboard scenarios. Initially I was leaning towards something with a SBT90.2 as they seem to have great throw with some spill that could be helpful. I then was thinking perhaps I go with one of those and a Q8+.
Budget would be less than $150 all in.
The ones that keep jumping out would be:
- Convoy L7
- Convoy L8
- Convoy 4x18A
- Noctigon K1
- Acebeam L19
Not married to a battery type. Also, I have read a number of boat threads on here and found some great info but also found myself realizing there is no perfect one light and that two lights might be better where I pick something with great throw but not too narrow and then something that has nice flood (Q8+). My hope is to never use it for a man overboard scenario but I would like to be prepared.
Took a stab at the survey below.
Thanks for all your thoughts in advance.
1) How would you prefer to purchase the light?
__X_This will be mail-order or Online (location doesn't matter).
2) Budget: An easy question, but you may change your mind after answering the rest!
__X__Up to $150
3) Format:
__X__I want a flashlight (hand held/self contained).
4) Size:
__X__MEDIUM - Holster/belt ring carry. (>7 inches)
5) Emitter/Light source:
__X__LED (known for efficiency, longevity, and compactness)
6) Manufacturer:
_X___I want to buy a light from a large/traditional manufacturer that is ready to go out of the box.
__X__I would like a light from a specialty manufacturer (Possibly limited run/Custom).
7) What power source do you want to use?
__X__I intend to use Rechargeable cells (NiMH or NiCD) based on the usual AAA/AA/C/D sized cells common to most stores.
__X__I intend to use Rechargeable cells based on less common formats (18500 or 18650 Li-Ion, RCR123, et-al).
7a) If you have selected a rechargeable option
__X__I don't care
8) How much genuine out the front (OTF) light do you want/need? Sometimes you can have too much light (trying to read up close up with a 100 lumen light is not a happy experience).
_X___I want to illuminate an entire field, the neighbor's front yard several houses down, impress my friends and neighbors, etc. (300-700 lumens).
__X__I want search and rescue type illumination (800+ lumens).
__X__SPECIAL NOTE: Burst/Turbo mode Category - There are several lights that will run at a super bright maximum for a very limited period (usually 5-10 minutes) and then will "step-down" to a lower level for thermal control. Check here if this is acceptable.
9) Flood vs Throw: Flood covers an area, Throw reaches out to a distance.
__X__Wide Throw: I want a beam with a noticeable hot-center for distance throw and a significant amount of "side-spill". Good for rough trail hiking, search and rescue, and general distance work.
9a) Distance: How far away will you typically need to see with this light (check all that apply)
__X__50-150 yards/meters (I live in a very rural area/farm with wide open spaces)
__X__150+ yards (I am searching from a helicopter)
10) Runtime: Not over-inflated manufacturer runtime claims, but usable brightness measured from first activation to 50% with new batteries (Measured on maximum continuous output).
__X__90-120 minutes (Runtime is moderately important, but still not critical)
11) Durability/Usage: Generally the old phrase "you get what you pay for" is very accurate for flashlights.
__X__Very Important (Camping, Backpacking, Car Glove-box).
__X__Critical (Police, Fire, Search & Rescue, Caving, Survival).
12) Switch Size, Type, and location (choose all that apply):
__X__I don't know.
13) User Interface (UI) and mode selection. Select all that apply.
__X__I don't know.
14)Material/Finish/Coating
__X__Anodized Aluminum – either type II or III (Hard Anodized) (Aluminum, specifically HA, is the most common material/finish for today's higher end flashlights).
15) Water resistance
____None needed
____IPX4 (Splash resistant)
_X___IPX7 (Waterproof to 1 meter/30min)
__X__IPX8 (Submersible to greater than 1 meter for 4 hours)
16) Storage conditions
__X__In house (temperature/climate controlled environment)
__X__Emergency kit (long standby periods)
Longtime lurker and absorber of your incredible information. Have spent a while trying to figure out the right light to get for use on a sailboat sailing the great lakes. Right now I have a Sofirn IF22A, wurkkos fc11 & wk15. I am looking to have a better setup for night time on the boat for scanning shoreline, buoys, and potential man overboard scenarios. Initially I was leaning towards something with a SBT90.2 as they seem to have great throw with some spill that could be helpful. I then was thinking perhaps I go with one of those and a Q8+.
Budget would be less than $150 all in.
The ones that keep jumping out would be:
- Convoy L7
- Convoy L8
- Convoy 4x18A
- Noctigon K1
- Acebeam L19
Not married to a battery type. Also, I have read a number of boat threads on here and found some great info but also found myself realizing there is no perfect one light and that two lights might be better where I pick something with great throw but not too narrow and then something that has nice flood (Q8+). My hope is to never use it for a man overboard scenario but I would like to be prepared.
Took a stab at the survey below.
Thanks for all your thoughts in advance.
1) How would you prefer to purchase the light?
__X_This will be mail-order or Online (location doesn't matter).
2) Budget: An easy question, but you may change your mind after answering the rest!
__X__Up to $150
3) Format:
__X__I want a flashlight (hand held/self contained).
4) Size:
__X__MEDIUM - Holster/belt ring carry. (>7 inches)
5) Emitter/Light source:
__X__LED (known for efficiency, longevity, and compactness)
6) Manufacturer:
_X___I want to buy a light from a large/traditional manufacturer that is ready to go out of the box.
__X__I would like a light from a specialty manufacturer (Possibly limited run/Custom).
7) What power source do you want to use?
__X__I intend to use Rechargeable cells (NiMH or NiCD) based on the usual AAA/AA/C/D sized cells common to most stores.
__X__I intend to use Rechargeable cells based on less common formats (18500 or 18650 Li-Ion, RCR123, et-al).
7a) If you have selected a rechargeable option
__X__I don't care
8) How much genuine out the front (OTF) light do you want/need? Sometimes you can have too much light (trying to read up close up with a 100 lumen light is not a happy experience).
_X___I want to illuminate an entire field, the neighbor's front yard several houses down, impress my friends and neighbors, etc. (300-700 lumens).
__X__I want search and rescue type illumination (800+ lumens).
__X__SPECIAL NOTE: Burst/Turbo mode Category - There are several lights that will run at a super bright maximum for a very limited period (usually 5-10 minutes) and then will "step-down" to a lower level for thermal control. Check here if this is acceptable.
9) Flood vs Throw: Flood covers an area, Throw reaches out to a distance.
__X__Wide Throw: I want a beam with a noticeable hot-center for distance throw and a significant amount of "side-spill". Good for rough trail hiking, search and rescue, and general distance work.
9a) Distance: How far away will you typically need to see with this light (check all that apply)
__X__50-150 yards/meters (I live in a very rural area/farm with wide open spaces)
__X__150+ yards (I am searching from a helicopter)
10) Runtime: Not over-inflated manufacturer runtime claims, but usable brightness measured from first activation to 50% with new batteries (Measured on maximum continuous output).
__X__90-120 minutes (Runtime is moderately important, but still not critical)
11) Durability/Usage: Generally the old phrase "you get what you pay for" is very accurate for flashlights.
__X__Very Important (Camping, Backpacking, Car Glove-box).
__X__Critical (Police, Fire, Search & Rescue, Caving, Survival).
12) Switch Size, Type, and location (choose all that apply):
__X__I don't know.
13) User Interface (UI) and mode selection. Select all that apply.
__X__I don't know.
14)Material/Finish/Coating
__X__Anodized Aluminum – either type II or III (Hard Anodized) (Aluminum, specifically HA, is the most common material/finish for today's higher end flashlights).
15) Water resistance
____None needed
____IPX4 (Splash resistant)
_X___IPX7 (Waterproof to 1 meter/30min)
__X__IPX8 (Submersible to greater than 1 meter for 4 hours)
16) Storage conditions
__X__In house (temperature/climate controlled environment)
__X__Emergency kit (long standby periods)
