The last one to turn off the incandescent...

[zipplet]

Gah this incandescent talk is tempting me to get hold of a G2...

 

[sappyg]

i still prefer incans for all the reasons listed here. i edc with an LED only because it is small. i saw some incans on ebay this weekend that looked like real screamers for cheap. LED has it's place but incans will be here for a long time yet.

 

[cernobila]

I think that only when LED's will perform like an incan/xenon in the color/tint/spectrum area, we could start to see a downturn in incan/xenon interest.....but not until then.

 

[LED-holic]

I think that only when LED's will perform like an incan/xenon in the color/tint/spectrum area, we could start to see a downturn in incan/xenon interest.....but not until then.

We've already seen it. There are just a few hold outs who still use incans.

I haven't used incans since 7-8 years ago, when I swapped all my MagLite incans to LED drop-ins. I got tired of the incan bulbs dimming and then burning out. This was way way before I ever had a notion of being a flashaholic.

 

[IcantC]

I still carry my A2 and M6. I have a ROP at home as well for bump at night.

NOTHING comes close to touching my M6 and I have a P7. Sure something may have more lumens, but when used(I mean USED, not shining at a wall or a light meter) the M6 is just superb! I have the fivemega holder so mine is rechargeable.

Let me share a story of where LEDs suck. So in my parents house, they had racoons in the ceiling. Me and my dad climbed in to the attic to check it out. I had my ROP, Malkoff 3D, Z2 with Q5 Deree light module and M6. The ROP and M6 did all the work. For some reason LEDs were not cutting it.

 

[ampdude]

I don't really have any LED flashlights anymore. I got rid of them including some R2 Crees and a U2 Seoul because of the general uselessness of their output compared to my xenon incans.

I do have a couple keychain led squeeze lights and a small 2AAA .5W LED that is a cheap knock around light.

Oh yea, my Surefire A2 has led's which come in useful, but get annoying after awhile and I have to turn on the Lumens Factory xenon bulb.

 

[cernobila]

We've already seen it. There are just a few hold outs who still use incans.

I haven't used incans since 7-8 years ago, when I swapped all my MagLite incans to LED drop-ins. I got tired of the incan bulbs dimming and then burning out. This was way way before I ever had a notion of being a flashaholic.

Not so sure about this......when I first got my 6P the only xenon lamps were from SF.....jump to today and we see the choices in xenon lamps growing with the Lumens Factory offerings being quite recent......As peoples initial jump to LED's novelty will die down, customers will become more specific in what they want and one of the main characteristics they would be/are looking for is the light quality, something close to the incan/xenon lamps of today.....when LED's perform like todays xenon lamps, even I would change over in the future.

 

[DoubleDutch]

Stick a 1w led replacement bulb in that P-40 and put it back to work.

I considered that, but don't think it will be worth it.

Kees

 

[Juggernaut]

The day that a LED can match the output and throw of a 4546 sealed beam bulb, while only consuming the same amount of power, is the day I'll think of and LED as more then a fun little gadget. I have 3 LED lights: a dive water proof something or other, a very unreliable 3xaa Maglite, and a useful Task Force. Only the Task Force I consider good enough to use were an Incan would be used normally. I'll never stop using Incans. Well I hop not. But perhaps it's just that I don't have the money to experience higher quality LEDs:shakehead.

 

[m16a]

My Surefire G2 still fights to remain a part of my collection. Yes, I still use an incan

 

[firefly99]

I kind of wish people would stop talking about incans as though they are obsolete. They are NOT obsolete, just not "new on the block" like LED's or HID's. I have many great, respectable incans and many great, respectable LED's. I like both technologies for many reasons. They both have their benefits and detriments. I like the benefits of LED's BIG TIME. However, I also like the benefits of incans BIG TIME as well. I will be using both technologies for MANY years to come.

Totally Agreed.:wave::wave::wave:

Anyone want to get rid of their Incan or LEDs, are welcome to send them to me. I am able to provide a loving environment for the lights.

 

[Black Rose]

I only have 4 incans left, 3 which are functional (my 38 year old incan needs a new bulb). I had 5 but I left one in the engine compartment of my car and it fell out while driving

All of my other lights are LEDs or incans converted to LED.

I have nothing against incans, I just prefer LEDs for most things I do.

One thing I have noticed locally is that other than in "outdoors" stores, most retailers do not carry incans or their incan stock is very limited.

 

[ampdude]

One thing I have noticed locally is that other than in "outdoors" stores, most retailers do not carry incans or their incan stock is very limited.

I think this is true in most parts of the country now. I'm not so sure this is as much an example of the superiority of LED's over incan as it is the superiority of LED's in the $5-$20 price range over incans in the $5-$20 price range.

Notice that the $35 Inovas on up don't generally move off the pegs unless someone from CPF happens to walk by.

 

[LED-holic]

Agreed Incans are not obsolete. It's just that they've become a "niche" solution than they used to be.

Those who need good tints will stick with incan, but the world has moved onto LEDs.

 

[ampdude]

Agreed Incans are not obsolete. It's just that they've become a "niche" solution than they used to be.

Those who need good tints will stick with incan, but the world has moved onto LEDs.

I have to disagree, most of the LEO's I know still carry incans. Mostly Streamlights such as Stinger XT's, Maglites, Tigerlights, some old Surefires ect. in fact the only ones I know that carry LEDs bought the lights themselves. And usually aren't too impressed with them for serious work.

There's definitely a lot of low cost LED flashlights in American households now though.. Collecting dust in drawers, like the low cost incans laying next to them.

 

[ZMZ67]

The vast majority of my flashlight use is with LED lights but I still keep incandescents around.Even modest incandescents seem to throw more effectively than LEDs with an equal size reflector.Incandescents also provide better contrast outdoors for my eyes at least.Before I aquired my INOVA T1(2008) I was seriously looking at incans but the latest T-series are "warm" enough in tint to satisfy most of my needs.

 

[Wattnot]

The vast majority of my flashlight use is with LED lights but I still keep incandescents around.Even modest incandescents seem to throw more effectively than LEDs with an equal size reflector.Incandescents also provide better contrast outdoors for my eyes at least.

Well said. You beat me to it!

Why do these threads always end up in a "Lord of the Flies" style war? I have more LED's than incans but each has it's role. If I learned one thing here it's that one light just can't do it all and neither can one technology. Recent reinforcement of this fact to me was the Tiablo A9 I bought. At first I was disappointed with it's laser like, spill-less beam and almost sold it until I took it for a walk with my CL1H. Shining it at an object 250 feet away really showed me the difference with the A9 putting about 3 times the light on the object. But I almost had a hard time telling what the object was. It was like looking at a black and white film negative vs a color photo.

For me, the LED's are great in the small form factor lights. I love the power, efficiency and the extra features. But when it comes to the big boys (500 lumen plus), I still feel the incans rule.

They all have their place. Now can't we all just get along? :naughty:

 

[Sgt. LED]

After all of my strict LED only rehetoric I recently started using incans.
My gateway drug was the A2. I have a mountain of led lights but now have a G2 with UCL lens and 5mega D26 holding a strion bulb running on a 17650, a Mag74, an M6 with 2X18650 battery holder, and sometimes I sneak a P90 into my C3.

So now I have both and tend to perfer the incans outdors.

That said I'll always have a malkoff m60L/m60LL running on 2 18650's waiting for me when something dire happens. Good CRAZY TOUGH light for a long LONG time.

 

[pbs357]

I'm an admitted LED junkie. For EDC, or any tiny+bright frame, LED emitters can't be beat. There's no way an incan running a single AA battery could make 100+lumens for an hour.

BUT for color rendition and short to medium length bursts of outdoor lighting, a ROP or Mag85 is hard to beat. I was blahblah-incan for a long time when Cree came to town, but one of my favorite lights is a 2C ROP I put together. No, it doesn't fit in the pocket but none of what I consider "Blaster" category lights do (400+lumens).

Buy both. Ah heck buy 'em all. And when you're done playing with one you're not crazy about, sell it in CPF!

+1 to Wattnot, well said!

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Many of my incandescents are not retired. They are simply upgraded to l.e.d. If the regular bulbs work better for a task, I can put them back in the lights. Big maglights and Cabela's 6 volt P60 light are the main ones converted to l.e.d. These lights are still getting used, just not the bulbs.