Simple, durable, high quality headlamp recommendation needed

[mckeand13]

I'm planning a hike that will require some travel in the darkness. I'm looking for recommendations on headlamps that are (#1) reliable, (#2) lightweight, and (#3) good color rendering.

I've had Armytek, Nitecore, Acebeam, Fenix, and they all have let me down in one way or another. Complete failure to work, started on fire, flickering, inability to get to modes, etc. All of them.....they suck. Luckily in those instances I was either at home or camping where I could simply grab another and move along. This trip I'm packing light so I'm not bringing another headlamp, but will have a flashlight. That said, I want a light that just works.

I don't want 5 disco modes, I don't want 8 different color lights, I don't want an angry blue tint, etc. I want a high quality, minimalistic, HCRI light that just works. AAA,AA, rechargeable, don't really care.

No, I'm not looking at Zebralight; their UI makes my head spin. And no, I'm not strapping an HDS on my head; I want a headlamp that was intended to be a headlamp.

What suggestions do you have?

 

[Monocrom]

Pretty much anything from Petzl.

 

[LEDphile]

The smaller Lucifer units seem to fit these requirements

 

[Schokokeks]

The smaller Lucifer units seem to fit these requirements

This might be the way to go because everything else that's a high CRI headlamp is made in China. Regardless of what people insist, Chinese lights are just a marked step down in quality, because you ONLY make things in China to cut costs. I know some people get upset hearing that, but it's true.

For what it's worth, I very much love the Skilhunt H150, but I have no delusions that it's going to be anywhere near as durable or reliable as a light made in the U.S. (or Europe). Generally, the saving grace is that headlamps take minimal abuse, because you naturally keep your head pretty safe.

While this is very much less than ideal - and hilarious - it WOULD allow you to pretty much use a very durable, simple light:

Malkoff Headlamp Holder – Malkoff Devices

Malkoff Headlamp Holder. This Headlamp holder is constructed of heavy duty 1 inch elastic strapping and web strapping with Velcro closures. The crown piece is adjustable and removable. The elastic flashlight holders are sized to fit the MDC. They may or may not fit other flashlights. The...

malkoffdevices.com

Any 3-mode Malkoff in this would be a pretty great light.

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Nitecore HC60 v.2 with neutral white l.e.d. The older version of this headlight was my worklight and it got beat up a lot, never failed. This version I used for very long night hikes and it did well. Beam is great for trail running. Avoid newest version which loses medium under 100 lumens and bumps up low from 1 to 8 lumens. Also, newer version has a larger more unprotected lens which will be more prone to damage. Backpacking requires maximizing runtimes to lower weight of spare batteries carried. Silicon bracket keeps the light from bouncing and eliminates a failure point of many headlights, cheap flimsy plastic brackets that break. Will take an 18650 lithium ion, has built in usb-c charging for solar or battery bank charging, or takes 2 123A batteries. Recommend protected Molicel M35A cells. They can be found for about $10, are 3500 mAh rated, and work in very cold temperatures.

Every company has their good and sucky products. With backpacking, you're often looking at the lightest, smallest products which often sacrifice waterproofing, build quality, heatsinking, brightness, and runtime to make weight. Don't get a light that is not IPX-7 or higher for waterproofing. If it's less, it's not waterproof. So you know, most Petzl and Black Diamond lights are not waterproof. I've lost a couple IPX-6 rated Princeton Tec EOS headlights in a flash flood on Mt. Whitney. The light that survived was a 200 lumen Fenix HL30 (now discontinued). That was a great light. Had a Nitecore HA23 headlight. Thought it would be the perfect backpacking headlight. Nope. Cheap, plastic bracket broke. Don't recommend that light. Oldest Fenix flashlights from around 2007 era I still use. I still edc a Fenix PD30 R4 with 16650 cell. If I was still backpacking, I'd probably take that light. Most newer Fenix lights have abandoned lower settings below 25 lumens, useless for backpacking. They also don't work well with lithium primaries. You'll ruin more than a few Fenix products using lithium AAs or AAAs.

 

[3L3M3NT]

I know that you mentioned that you've tried some of these brands before, but here are a few of my recommendations for you.

Amazon.com

Amazon.com

Amazon.com

Amazon.com

Otherwise as one other person mentioned, Lucifer lights would be a good option with one of their 18650 headlamps like this one. https://luciferlights.net/en/headlamp-z2mini



Good luck with your decision. 👍😊

 

[3L3M3NT]

It just looks like Fenix released a 2nd version of the HM23, that looks like it would be another good option. https://www.fenixlighting.com/products/fenix-hm23-v2-aa-powered-headlamp

 

[leeholaaho]

I have one, great light

Fenix WH23R Gesture Sensing Industrial LED Headlamp

The Fenix WH23R offers unparalleled hands-free convenience. Its gesture-sensing system can be activated with a simple wave, and users can adjust the light between spot and floodlight modes, as well as 3 brightness levels in each. With a 60° tilt and a 160° range of light, the WH23R is ideal for...

fenix-store.com

 

[DaveTheDude]

The smaller Lucifer units seem to fit these requirements

There are several posts in this forum addressing members' experience with Lucifer headlamps. Use the search feature to identify these posts and read the comments, and learn why these top-of-the-line headlamps have such a loyal following.