what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerdy?

Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

Headlamps are BIG with serious outdoors people. Just check out the REI website and you will see 30 or more headlamps in stock. No longer just for nerds.....
Stu
 
Headlamp -> nerdy is a new perspective to me. It has never even occured to me. Now that I think about it, it still doesn't seem nerdy. Looking in the mirror, it also doesn't look a bit nerdy to me. Where do you live? Maybe your friends are not outdoorsy. Then again, I do most of my shopping for even things like everyday clothes at REI. I see about 100 times more people using headlamps than flashlights when I'm out at night. I don't even own a reasonable hand held flashlight, just a 2AA Maglite that I bought 10-15 years ago (and has seen less use in that time than I put into a headlamp in one or two nights).

I've use my headlamps for backpacking/around camp, reading in bed, walking the dog at night, running, cross country skiing, during blackouts, walking upstairs after turning out the lights, walking downstairs or to the bathroom at night if I don't want to turn on the houselights, looking for stuff or working under the sink, looking for stuff in a dark car (dome light doesn't work in my car), etc... All the folks I see out on the trails at night have headlamps or bike lights (sometimes on their head) if they are biking. By the way, many people I see skiing/biking/running on the trails at night have higher powered headlamps than are generally discussed in this forum (much brighter than my Eos). Stuff like 10-20W or HID bike lights or 10-20W Silva or Mila type orienteering/skiing headlamps.
 
...what do you use a hand held light for? I'm just imagining how I would handle going for a pee at night with a flashlight. Would have to put the flashlight in my mouth but might fumble it and drop it in the toilet. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif
 
Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

"Headlamp -> nerdy is a new perspective to me. It has never even occured to me. Now that I think about it, it still doesn't seem nerdy. Looking in the mirror, it also doesn't look a bit nerdy to me. . . ."

I don't get the nerdy thing either. But then, when I look in the mirror, I see an engineer. That probably explains it in my case.

What's your excuse? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

I use my headlamps for the usual, doing chores in the dark, camping, fixing things. My wife is a veterinarian, and uses hers to work on animals in dimly lit barns.

Scott
 
Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

I never see headlamps around here, suburban Washington DC (actually Northern Virginia, but you get the idea /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif )

Yesterday my first headlamp arrived, a PT Corona. WOW! This thing is fantastic. I'm not crazy about the battery pack in the back but it does give good balance. I opened the door to the dark garage and it's no longer dark. The adjustable settings are easy to use and the output quality is excellent. I can see how useful headlamps are. I have a few more on order and look forward to getting them.

But the family all laughed. My wife will pretend she doesn't know me next time we go out at night with the dog /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I'm sure I'll win them over. I still love handheld flashlights but I now have discovered a new love of good headlamps. I have a Nuwai and a PT EOS on order, an a few $9.95 Auroras for the cars and as spares (great deal from Botach)
 
Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

Yeah, I put on my strap-on whenever I need both hands free-
working on the car, mostly...
If you ever experience the pleasure of a blackout, all concerns about nerdiness evaporate when you witness the utility of having a light that follows you around from room to room.
 
Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

[ QUOTE ]
Wingerr said:
Yeah, I put on my strap-on whenever I need both hands free.

[/ QUOTE ]

Uh, you mean your headlamp, right? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

I didn't think I'd ever want a "nerdy" headlamp until I got a Princeton Tec Scout for Xmas. It's so handy and light, it's unreal. Great to have for working in low-light, reading in bed, etc. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif Just don't use it to check out what that bump in the night was, or the badguy will have an instant bullseye to aim for.
 
Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

Mattman said it first- sorta /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Yep, headlamps are for the guys that don't fret when it musses up their hair. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

I use mine when I set up the camper at night and when I work on cars or the computer.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Darkaway said:
I use mine to run at night and I really don't give a rat's a$$ about what people think or what it looks like.

[/ QUOTE ]
Yeah, I don't use mine in the daylight much either- /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

The primary use I have for my one and only headlamp (little 5 LED Nuwai thing) is working on the car. Seems that the bit you need to get to is invariably shrowded in shadows, and that you need both hands (occasionally extras too) to get the work done. In a situation like this, a headlamp is indespensible. Especially given that we don't get many hours of daylight here in the winter, and our driveway only has one halogen floodlight as a light sourse. WHich highlights the car very well...but leaves the engine bay looking like a dark pit of doom.

Is also really handy just for wandering around without needing to worry about actually carrying a light - plus the light is always pointing right where you're looking.

EDIT: Have just thought a bit more, do also occasionally use it when working on the computer (well, the old one anyway), as full AT tower cases have a lot of very dark corners when they're packed with hardware!
 
Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

I just want to look weird. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/poke2.gif
 
Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

I now have the EOS, Corona, a few $9.95 Auroras, and a 1wt Nuwai headlamp. I have tried them all out except for the EOS.

My observations:

1. It is great to wear one when out on a walk or poking around the dark garage.

2. They are not the most comfortable things in the world. I don't like wearing them much.

3. Perhaps I'll get used to them? I'd like to. I see the merit in them very much.

4. My wife actually went on a walk with me while I had a headlamp on. It was terribly convenient. I had one free hand (the other holding the dog's leash). A great advantage should I have to draw my pepper spray or handgun. And nobody pointed and laughed.
 
Re: what do you use your headlamps for? Looks nerd

[ QUOTE ]
A great advantage should I have to draw my pepper spray or handgun. And nobody pointed and laughed.

[/ QUOTE ]
Perhaps that was because everyone saw your pepper spray and handgun. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Jerry
 
One of the great headlamps that I think is overlooked by way too many is the Zippka Plus. Very compact and bright enough for most uses. Just think, there is no headband to worry about if you don't need it and just need a flashlight. It can use cheap rechargable AAA cells and can last for a long time before dropping below 50% mode...

I have a few LED lights, but in the dark of night when be baby crys or stumbing to the bathroom /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smoker5.gif, the Zippka+ is wonderful!

What do I use my Zippka+ for? When trying not to get poop on me /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eeew.gif or changing a wet diaper and I need my hands free, the Zippka+ is the way to go. The multiple modes of light help make it so I don't disturb the baby more then I have to.

Having a headlamp is way cool, not nerdy. First time you need to change a diaper and you are worried about waking a baby more then you have to, cures any thoughts of "nerdy". Also, if you consider once you have a child, anything that helps you get back to sleep is COOL beyond any price! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/sleepy.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
cognitivefun said:
Being an extreme addict,

[/ QUOTE ]

If you are visiting internet discussion boards to discuss flashlights, you need not worry about looking nerdy. You are a nerd. Come to terms with it and enjoy your headlamps.

As for when I use my headlamps (I own 13), all the time. Since I got my first, I have found that I almost never used handheld anymore. The only non-headlamp lights see any use anymore are the ones in my car, my electrical tools and the light on my keychain. I still keep a headlamp in my car, but as was mentioned earlier, a headlamp doesn't always light up the part of the engine you need to see. Also, dirty hands need real flashlights. A headlamp is almost useless for appliace repair.
 
I work with other geeks, nerds and dweebs (Radar techies), so any new gadget I bring to work is always well accepted. I am pretty much the Alpha-Geek with my coworkers, so a headlamp isn't that big of a deal. If you work in an office setting or around the general public, it might not be advisable to wear it on a daily basis.

RadarGreg
 
Top