Wanted: floody budget Cree

[JeffOYB]

I'm new to the budget Cree scene. I just got a Romisen RC-W4 from DealExtreme. It's a nice, bright light, 3AAA, 170 lumens.

But the spot is too tight, it seems. The spill is almost good enough, though.

I really like this size of light.

I combine it with a Petzl MyoXP headlamp.

Is there a $15-25 budget Cree out there with a wide spot and lots of spill?

For my commuting, I need a light that will last one hour and cast a lot of light from 10-20 feet in front of my bike.

I look at reviews for budget Crees and they all seem to have a really tight spot. I've been floundering awhile in the reviews and ratings.

Am I missing something? Any compact model in the Romisen, Ultrafire, Trustfire, etc., line that has what I describe?

Thanks! --JP
outyourbackdoor.com

 

[mechBgon]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

What about getting some Scotch "invisible tape," the type with the matte finish, and covering part of your flashlight's lens with it to serve as a diffuser? Perhaps cover the bottom 1/3 of the lens and see if that gets you the fill light you want?

 

[alphazeta]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

Are you comfortable modding?
As an alternative, here's a good mod for the headlamp you have.
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=166519&highlight=Myo

Might be adequate for your needs.
Hope that helps.

 

[LukeA]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

I'm a big fan of the Trustfire TR-801 (sku.13095) available from DX. It's quite floody and bright, has great build quality, and is only $17.52 (one mode). It runs on 18650 though, so I guess the price for you includes a 6105 charger ($8.44) and a 5776 ($10.49) pair of cells.

 

[StarHalo]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

You should go ahead and spend the extra money on a Fenix - you're looking at ~$60, but their build quality is indisputable, their beam profile is just right for walking/biking, and they're very popular with other bikers here. The L2D Q5 model, the most popular biker's model, needs only a pair of AAs to provide 180 lumens, for 2+ hours, with a nice broad hotspot and spillbeam. See it here (with free shipping): https://www.fenix-store.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_65&products_id=600

 

[bitt3n]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

You should go ahead and spend the extra money on a Fenix - you're looking at ~$60, but their build quality is indisputable, their beam profile is just right for walking/biking, and they're very popular with other bikers here. The L2D Q5 model, the most popular biker's model, needs only a pair of AAs to provide 180 lumens, for 2+ hours, with a nice broad hotspot and spillbeam. See it here (with free shipping): https://www.fenix-store.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_65&products_id=600

would this be appropriate for mountain biking on singletrack and doubletrack? I'm thinking of just duct-taping one to my helmet.

 

[JeffOYB]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

I understand that the Fenix is famous and built strong. But solving this problem via a "mainstream" solution isn't my mission here. I'm just looking for, well, what my subjectline says: a cheap light with big spot, lots of spill.

As regards quality of build, my cheap RC-W4 seems quite nice so far, so maybe I don't need the level that Fenix offers. We'll see! (Do the budget lights hold up for folks or are they infamous for failing?)

That Trustfire TR-801 looks good! Oddly DX often has several listings for its lights. One listing shows the TR-801 with the standard small spot---but it's a murky pic---the spill looks strong (and good!). Another listing shows no spot at all---I guess that would be called "all flood"---perfect! It looks like one of our repliers here in this thread finds the TR-801 to be good for biking---and it's CHEAP! ...But it requires a special battery. Still, it seems inevitable that to get truly strong power that a CR123 or 18650 is needed. I'm willing to try that if it's the only option.

So I suppose I'll modify my request for now: anyone know of a cheap, bright (150-250 lumen) light with big spot/lots of spill that takes AAA/AA? If it doesn't exist, I'll try a TR-801.

I tried covering my RC-W4 with scotch-tape and it didn't diffuse the spot at all. My tape is matte but maybe there's another type of tape that works better. (My Petzl MyoXp has a nice diffuser.)

Well, I'm using my new dual lite set-up tonight for the first time for my 10-mile inter-suburban rural commute! Who knows, maybe the RC-W4 spot will work out fine in real life. I know, I may have jumped the gun here with my worries, but in testing in the yard, it does seem to have a SMALL spot. Still, it has quite a bit of spill, so that might be fine. Even so, I'd really prefer a wide WASH out there 10-30 feet. Maybe I'll train the spot out far and use my headlamp in close. I'll let you know...

 

[StarHalo]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

would this be appropriate for mountain biking on singletrack and doubletrack? I'm thinking of just duct-taping one to my helmet.

It's appropriate anywhere you want a good balance of flood and throw; the Fenix beam profile is famous for being perfectly balanced between the two.

(Do the budget lights hold up for folks or are they infamous for failing?)

The latter. Let's just say that DealExtreme lights are inexpensive for a variety of reasons (expect a shipping time of ~1 month, also).

One of the most sage and oft-repeated bits of wisdom among flashaholics is that most wished they had skipped all the cheap lights in the beginning and just bought one or two good lights..

 

[bbgobie]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

would this be appropriate for mountain biking on singletrack and doubletrack? I'm thinking of just duct-taping one to my helmet.

As your only light it would have to be a slow and careful ride.

 

[JeffOYB]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

OK, I used my new 170-lumen RC-W4 plus my 85-lumen Petzl MyoXP last night for a 12-mile commute at 40F temp.

The RC-W4 was only adequate. Too bad. It would fade at the 2/3's point of each 25-minute leg of the ride. Not badly, but not great either.

Its spot was too small, about 2 feet at 15 feet. The spill is really wide and diffuse as a result.

The spot starts out brighter than the Petzl but ended up dimmer at the end of each leg of the commute.

The Petzl has a 3 foot spot at 15 feet, but I want one even bigger.

I note that after being indoors in the warmth for a couple hours that the RC-W4 seemed to revive and gave same results on ride back as on ride out.

What I need is a brighter, more enduring light with a spot that's 2-3X larger. I only need illumination out 30 feet at most, so I guess that means I need no throw. I don't even need a spot. My ideal is a 6-8 foot swath well-lit at 10-20 feet. : ) Pipe dream? Possible with a budget light? Maybe the small "stick" like lights can't do that and I need to step up to a light with a larger "head"---??. They have those at DX, too, in the $25 range. (I guess I could check some of their beamshots.)

Thanks for ideas along the budget line!

OK, if I end up getting a better light, like a Fenix, it would still be good to know what SHAPE of flashlight best gives that fairly wide "swath" I'm looking for.

 

[StarHalo]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

OK, if I end up getting a better light, like a Fenix, it would still be good to know what SHAPE of flashlight best gives that fairly wide "swath" I'm looking for.

All the P- and L-series Fenix lights use the same (or very nearly the same) flood/throw balance reflector, so it only comes down to what battery configuration you prefer. The L2D (2xAA) would have no problem doing max output (180 lumens) for the entire duration of your ride, even on rechargeable batteries.

I'd estimate that the spillbeam on a standard Fenix reflector is roughly 90 degrees; so from 20 feet away, the spill would be about 20 feet across, with the hotspot/corona taking up nearly a third of the center (or about six feet). Since the reflector is shallow, the brightness of the spillbeam is much brighter than on a thrower light, easily enough to navigate by alone.

 

[notnormal]

Re: Looking for sm., cheap Cree w/ wide spot, lots of spill

I'm a big fan of the Trustfire TR-801 (sku.13095) available from DX. It's quite floody and bright, has great build quality, and is only $17.52 (one mode). It runs on 18650 though, so I guess the price for you includes a 6105 charger ($8.44) and a 5776 ($10.49) pair of cells.

+1. I use them for off-road mountain biking. The TR-801 has a less intense spot then the Fenix L2D. The TR-801 also has constant output for 2 hours, and then starts to dim for an additional hour.

 

[JeffOYB]

I need a cheap light for bike commuting.

I need a 6-8 foot wide flooded light swath at 10-30 from my bike when I ride.

Is there a AA light that can do this?

I asked in the Bike Lites section and got a tip for the TR-801. Anyone have any more details about this light? What is the flood like? Any other similar light options? How about in a AA/AAA?

I'm new to lights. I see TONS of interest in throw. Some interest in spill. But very little push for FLOOD. Bikers need flood!

So, any tips on budget lights with flood?

(I hope I have the term right.)

(I have a Petzl MyoXP headlamp, 85 lumens, barely adequate flood. I also just got a RC-W4 from DX---less flood, more spill but dimmer---so I'm still looking. I've heard about the Famous Fenix (2AA) but it's a bit pricey and I'm just curious about these budget lights.)

Thanks! --JP

 

[LukeA]

I have a [Check PM - we're not allowed to discuss flashlights anymore] and I think it performs pretty well on AA. Not as bright as the TR-801, but extremely floody.

 

[sol-leks]

The Fenix E20 is pretty floody when you loosen the head, would 109 lumens be bright enough for u though?

 

[BlueBeam22]

The Coleman Max CREE 115 Lumen 3xAAA Aluminum LED flashlight $25 from Walmart might be perfect for you. It has a bright hotspot and lights up the ground and objects over 100 feet away, and the brightest spill I have ever seen from a small flashlight. Its wide ring of spill is a huge flood of light and will light up everything in front and to the sides of your bike. This light also has a pretty good runtime (around 30 minutes at full brightnes).

 

[EngrPaul]

How much runtime do you need?

 

[JeffOYB]

My commutes tend to be a cold 20-30 minutes each way with a couple hours of warm rest-time between.

(I'll search/google for beamshots from the Coleman mentioned. Again, I need a 6-8 foot swath at 10-30 feet, nothing more...or less. Spot quality and illumination 100 feet away is irrelevant for me.)

 

[BlueBeam22]

My commutes tend to be a cold 20-30 minutes each way with a couple hours of warm rest-time between.

(I'll search/google for beamshots from the Coleman mentioned. Again, I need a 6-8 foot swath at 10-30 feet, nothing more...or less. Spot quality and illumination 100 feet away is irrelevant for me.)

Then I think the Coleman would be perfect for you. At 10 feet its spill lights up an 8 foot swath, and at 30+ feet the hotspot will be a little less than 10 feet in diameter. I know of no light its size that matches it in light output, it is like a miniature spotlight.

 

[Bonky]

I, too, have started to take a look at my needs and my lights, and have found that I want my lights to be floodier than most of what's out there.

How often does a person really need to light up something 50-100 yds away? For me, never, unless I'm just showing off.

You might check out my thread in the general flashlight forum about "frosting" lenses. That way you can take any light you may own or want to own, frost all or part of the lens, and make it as floody as you like. And then if you get sick of it, most frosting techniques allow you to remove the frosting and start over or return to the original stock lens.