Who uses a flashlight because they need to?

[purelite]

Your post was great not long at all.

 

[yowzer]

While I'm as guilty as the next person here of finding any excuse to use a flashlight... I work nights, do a lot of camping, backpacking, night hikes, and nighttime SAR missions. So, yeah, I use lights because I actually need handheld portable light sources all the time.

 

[Siskik]

I really DO have to use a flashlight every day. Rattlesnakes flourish where I live here in North Florida, as do black and brown widow spiders. In fact, the kids are not allowed to walk around outside at night without a light.

However, the only time I almost stepped on a rattlesnake was in the middle of the day !! He crawled right from under the car!! His belly was bulging (lunch), so he was reacting pretty slow, otherwise I would've got bitten for sure.

Still, that was enough leverage to justify the purchase of a few nice lights. :naughty:

 

[foxtrot]

I use my flashlight everyday. I am a LEO and I search vehicles all the time for contraband and secret compartments.

 

[matthewmyatt]

I am clinically night-blind (I get no vision from the rod cells in my eye).

After dark, or in dimly-lit buildings, I can see nothing. Really. As in totally blind. Only the very brightest street-lighting is useful to me, and that is rare where I live.

Up to about 10 years ago, I was dependent on friends and family, or anyone whose arm I could hang on to while I was led around. Then the first decent LED hand-held lights came out and I got myself a Luxeon. It was a revelation - suddenly I had my independence and could walk around at night on my own.

Since then, as the technology of LEDs and batteries has improved, I've had a succession of different torches, each used every day, each making my life better and easier. It is amazing how much difference this technology has made to my life.

I now carry a Zebralight SC60 in my pocket at all times. It's by far my most-used light and is an amazing combination of small size, brightness, ease of use and battery life and the beam profile is ideal for watching where you're walking. I also carry an SC600 in my coat pocket for times when I need a little extra oomph (usually when the roads are wet with rain) and an H60 headlamp for when I need light without holding a torch in my hands. All three Zebralights are fantastic, suit me perfectly, and make a huge difference to my life. And I'm enormously grateful to be able to have them.

I've now reached the stage where I don't need to upgrade any more. I don't need a light that is brighter, or smaller, or lasts longer.

But, as I'm sure you're all aware, upgrading is no longer a case of 'need'. It's a case of 'desire'. And the next time there's a big step in brightness or size, I'll be right at the front of the queue to give my cash away...

Mat

 

[varuscelli]

matthewmyatt: another great improvement in quality of life story.

 

[CarpentryHero]

I don't know that my night vision is bad, but I get headaches from sunlight from working nights for 5 years when I was younger. At work I need flashlights for buildings with out power, LRT tunnels, attic repairs, and checking commercial building ceilings for leaks.
Even if I only needed em an hour a week I'll always have two flashlights on me and 5 more in the work van.
At home, I prefer to use low low on my Quark rather than Feeling around. My blinds work really good ? Must be

 

[Beckler]

I use mine for shining on walls and ceilings, and sometimes tree tops; useful for many self-testing applications.

Sincerely,
95% of CPF enthusiasts

 

[Tiggercat]

Matthewmyatt - that's what I'm talking about! I know the vast majority of folks here use a flashlight as a tool or a convenience, but the real revelation is people who say, "having an EDC flashlight changed my quality of life"!

 

[alex987]

i use my lights every day when working especially in the winter period in the early hours of the day and evening i am a aircraft engineer for boeing/airbus so i am depending on my flashlights when i do outside inspections of the aircraft before and after flights
so its nice to use my lights in the dark :naughty:

 

[afdk]

:huh: I use my E2DL at work for looking in racks of electronic equipment and other things in my laboratory. I find it invaluable for looking at chassis wiring. It's in my work attache everyday.

 

[pjsaleen266]

I carry one every day at work , I am in construction. As I get older I have a harder time seeing things and reading the prints if it's a little dark.

Right now I carry an Olight T20.

 

[yifu]

Flashlights are helpful in a lot of situations, but are only really REQUIRED in a no-light situation like a cave or something. Humans have got pretty god night vision.

 

[varuscelli]

Flashlights are helpful in a lot of situations, but are only really REQUIRED in a no-light situation like a cave or something. Humans have got pretty god night vision.

Hmmm...

I think that perhaps if you'll re-read posts 1 and 25 and you'll get a better feel for the spirit of the thread as I believe the OP intended it. I believe those posts give a good bit of insight into the reality of challenges the dark poses for some. Perhaps I'm not seeing the OP's intent correctly, but I believe I am.

 

[Rokron]

With my aging eyes, I have a rough time when I'm working on my Dodge Ram and there is bright light outside, I have a hard time seeing the dark spaces around the engine or under the truck. For working in or around my truck I have an old Nebo Redline with the good ole XR-E lighting the way. It's a perfect beater light for this purpose, if it gets oily or I drop it, no problem. Now for in the house I'll use my V10R or the EX11.2 on medium. For outside at night it's the TK35. It will light up the bushes far ahead of me and with its floody spill, it takes care of the close stuff. I used to see real good at night but now if there is any light shining in my eyes like a street light, forget about seeing any details. I use my lights when ever I need to see something in detail, which is all the time.

Ron

 

[PhillyRube]

Any law enforcement officer uses his lights every day to stay alive.

Yup!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[callum_crouch]

Use any of my slowly building collection every night, work in security and having a real problem with break ins just now so really do need them to check the other side of fences for lurkers as well as holes in the fence, its also a safety thing, some of my colleagues have been attacked by people in the shadows as they tried to break in.

 

[davyro]

In the 6 months of Autum/winter in the UK we average between 12 to 16 hours of darkness,it's in this time of the year
that i need a flashlight/torch every day for work as well as at home,in the spring/summer time if i need to go to the
toilet or go downstairs in my house i always have one of my lights with me on a low setting so i don't light the whole
house up.So there you have it i use a flashlight every day,even if sometimes i don't need to.

 

[africanexperience]

I work in the wilds of one of africa's largest national parks. Our house (tent) regularly has lions under it and on the deck... I never, ever am without a light source - from dawn (well, actually well before) that to sleep. I started a thread about my needs and received great input. Next light is a Malkoff. For legal reasons we cannot carry firearms, so a flashlight is basically what stands between me and dangerous animals constantly. My Jetbeam literally is a lifesaver, but with stakes like this I am no longer relying on fancy UI lights that dim after two nights use or start playing up when needed most.

 

[DisrupTer911]

I use mine @ work for doing pc repairs, working in racks, and pulling wires. A headlamp is invaluable in those situations.