Why budget lights for you?

[jbrett14]

Personally, I don't like all the multi-levels of lights. It's more of a gadget than a real life need. My Fenix TK30 for example, RARELY is in any mode but HIGH. That's why I bought it, for a LOT of light (630 lumens). It makes no sense to me to use this size light for reading a book, for example, when I have plenty of 1 x AAA lights that would work much better for this.

So is 45 lumens your brightest light? If so, you would be AMAZED at the better lights. Suggestion: buy at least ONE iTP A3 EOS light for around $15. It's a little 1 x AAA light that puts out approx. 80 lumens of light. It will blow you away that such a small light can do this.

Also, if you are interested I am about to unload a bunch of older lights that I never really used much. I have several Streamlight Stylus Pros (2 of which were never used), a MicroStream, some Princeton Tec incan lights, and some headlights. I was going to sell them as a lot on ebay. I would sell them at a very reasonable cost if your interested. I hate that they just sit there, unused. I even have the Princeton Tec Surge, which is a very bright incan waterproof light (a dive light) that runs on 8 x AA's. I may be selling the SL Stylus Pros individually, depening on if the first one gets any bids. It's still considered a very nice light. I actually LOVE this light, but since spending a little more, I don't need them. I think they are around $25 brand new. I was going to list the first one (never used) for $10. Anyway, just thought I'd mention it.

 

[jbrett14]

The point is that Mercedes cars are generally over-engineered, just as some high-end lights are..

FOR SURE!

 

[mccririck]

Many high end lights are over-engineered to the point of actually offering no performance benefit - titanium lights for example are fairly pointless.

 

[jbrett14]

titanium lights for example are fairly pointless.

As are lights with 20 different blinking modes.

 

[mccririck]

As are lights with 20 different blinking modes.

True, but that doesn't actually cost much to implement, try machining titanium.

 

[RWT1405]

+1 thedukeoftank

I was ALWAYS taught that if you buy cheap, you buy twice.

My .02 FWIW YMMV

 

[Mike_TX]

+1 thedukeoftank

I was ALWAYS taught that if you buy cheap, you buy twice.

My .02 FWIW YMMV

Yep, but the corollary to that is that if you pay too much, you've wasted good money.

It kinda comes down to what is "cheap" and what is a fair price. If the Chinese makers can sell a decent product for $10, it's silly to pay $20 for essentially the same thing under a different brand name. I'm all for the free and open market concept, and if some guy can mark a product up and still sell it, good for him. By the same token, if people will buy a pretty, over-engineered product at a higher than necessary price, that's their choice.

The concept of budget lights is not that we're buying cheap trash - it's that we are savvy buyers getting a functional product at a bargain price. I know my dozen+ budget lights have been bulletproof so far. I can find guys who bought premium lights and had problems, so I figure I'm ahead of the game. Cheap implies substandard quality, and I'm looking at nicely-machined barrels and bezels, nice (even if not mil-spec or aircraft quality) threads and finish, and completely functional electrics and assembly, combined with American-made Cree emitters. All for maybe 15 bucks. What's not to like?

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[slipe]

+1 thedukeoftank

I was ALWAYS taught that if you buy cheap, you buy twice.

My .02 FWIW YMMV

But the second one a couple of years later has the latest technology and will outshine the 2 year old lifetime investment light.

My first T6 came in a couple of weeks ago. It is a budget light but is a real burner. To get that output 2 years ago in a high quality light would have cost a fortune (to me) and definitely wouldn't fit in my jeans pocket.

 

[mccririck]

+1 thedukeoftank

I was ALWAYS taught that if you buy cheap, you buy twice.

My .02 FWIW YMMV

Not always true. Do a bit of research before your purchase and you wont go too far wrong. As I've already said, i have 4 budget lights and they are all working well on a day to day work basis. I wouldnt want to lose or drop an expensive flashlight and end up wasting £50

 

[RWT1405]

Sorry, but I'm a Paramedic/Firefighter/Tactical Medic and CCW holder. I will NOT trust MY light needs to a cheap flashlight. Feel free to do so, if you wish.

My .02 FWIW YMMV

 

[mvyrmnd]

I've gone a little bit both ways.

I use Solarforce bodies - I find them well built enough to stand up to my needs, and inexpensive enough that I can buy a few different ones to experiment a bit. Plus I like the look of them. Then I put a $130 dropin in them :devil:

Early in my flashaholic career I bought a lot of "cheap" lights from the usual suspects. I had a few fail, I had a few that were rubbish, and I had a few that were excellent. In my experience, the first thing you sacrifice with a "cheap" light is consistency.

The big advantage of having access to inexpensive lights is that you can afford to buy a whole bunch of them, and decide on which form factor, emitter, tint, etc. that most appeals to you. You can experiment before possibly deciding to invest in a more expensive light.

 

[thedukeoftank]

I have no problem with well built lights that are in an affordable price range... my 4sevens Quark AA2 turbo is the furthest thing from a "cheap light", but it is much less expensive than many other "high end" lights out there.

On the other hand, I don't think that I'll ever buy a Surefire light. Being wise with your money also means knowing when you are over paying.

 

[slipe]

Sorry, but I'm a Paramedic/Firefighter/Tactical Medic and CCW holder. I will NOT trust MY light needs to a cheap flashlight. Feel free to do so, if you wish.

My .02 FWIW YMMV

Do you really think the people posting on this thread are Paramedic/Firefighter/Tactical Medics and CCW holders?

I flew fighters and put new batteries in and checked my light before every mission. It saved my life one dark night when I had a complete electrical failure. But in those days I'm sure I wouldn't have been dumb enough to tell someone about to walk their dog that their life depended on fresh batteries and checking their flashlight before going out because of my requirements.

 

[pobox1475]

I started out on the slippery slope about twenty years ago with this;

It set me back around 200 bucks that was a lot to me beck then. I had strongly needed a good thrower for pizza delivery and it saw lots of use. When the NiCad failed a polite call to manufacturer and a replacement was in hand days later (N/C). When the head finally burned out another enthusiastic call and I was back up and running in under a week (again N/C). The point I have is that although you may pay for higher quality at diminishing returns pricing the manufacturers generally go a long way with after sale support. This is added value to me.

 

[mccririck]

Sorry, but I'm a Paramedic/Firefighter/Tactical Medic and CCW holder. I will NOT trust MY light needs to a cheap flashlight. Feel free to do so, if you wish.

My .02 FWIW YMMV

Well if I had your kind of job I'd probably agree with you, but in my line of work I wouldnt trust an expensive flashlight as I could easily lose it and it could get damaged easily. I work in the construction industry doing building surveys.

 

[herosemblem]

Let me just send you my G2X Pro, LX2 & E1B, and you will cry tears of joy.

 

[Mike_TX]

Let me just send you my G2X Pro, LX2 & E1B, and you will cry tears of joy.

lovecpf

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[LEDrock]

Let me just send you my G2X Pro, LX2 & E1B, and you will cry tears of joy.

Not to be disrespectful, but I think the tears I would be crying would be the sticker shock when buying those CR123 batteries. I've always steered clear of them, especially now that LED tech has gotten to where 2AA can put out more light than what even a Surefire incan could do for $200 not many years ago. I was very tempted to get a Surefire back then when it was all the rage, but I'm glad I resisted.

 

[herosemblem]

I don't blame you RE CR123 battery prices.
I spend $1 apiece on mine. Most dealers sell them for ~$2.50 apiece, and I sure as heck would never pay that much.
I buy them (Titanium Innovations brand, equivalent to Surefire CR123's) 100 pieces for $100 at the Junction that sells Batteries online. The 100 cells last me a year or so; not sure. That, I can afford .
I'm not sure how much your avg AA battery sells apiece. How do they compare to a buck apiece?

 

[flatline]

But the second one a couple of years later has the latest technology and will outshine the 2 year old lifetime investment light.

My current light can already go much brighter than I ever need, so if a new light is inferior to my current light in every way except max output, I'm not interested.

--flatline