Recommendation on a small (3" or so) daily carry light?

Jago1911

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I want something small like the Surefire E1E. This will be my first high quality light purchase. It needs to be small so I can clip it to my belt as well as being as bright as possible. What other lights fit this category? Thanks in advance.
smile.gif


EDIT: It also needs to have a push button tailcap.
 
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Jago1911

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Thanks! That sounds like a great light but I forgot to mention I need something with a push button tailcap like the Surefires. I have a cheap LED light that has one and I love the convenience of it. :grin2:
 

CLHC

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Greetings and Welcome!

Well, if price isn't a factor, then the McLux.PD is one to consider. You can take a look at it over in the McGizmo forums.

Hope you find what you're looking for and Enjoy!
 

nerdgineer

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This is not quite what you asked for, but it is one of my favorite 1xCR123 lights, the Nuwai ALX-2611X. It is well made, has good (if not overwhelming) brightness, has a true tactical clickie, is very electrically efficient (more light from one battery than almost any other 1xCR123 light - 3 hours to half power and more hours after that), and costs $21.50 plus shipping.

I think you can get 3 of them for about the price of 1 Amilight. My opinion only - it is a best buy among 1xCR123 lights.

At the low end, if you live near a Target store, you can get a Dorcy 1xCR123 1W Luxeon light for $20, no shipping. Well reviewed and another best buy.
 

Jago1911

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CHC said:
Greetings and Welcome!

Well, if price isn't a factor, then the McLux.PD is one to consider. You can take a look at it over in the McGizmo forums.

Hope you find what you're looking for and Enjoy!

Thank you! :grin2: I looked it up and it's a little more than I am willing to spend right now. Probably $100-$150 max is my budget. So far, I'm looking at these:

1. Surefire E1E - 3.3 inches / 15 lumens
2. Surefire E1L - 4 inches / 25 lumens (a little too large though)
 
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Razor

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Welcome aboard, Jago!

For a daily carrier, I'd highly recommend a Nuwai Q3, which has a solid clickie button on its end. The pocket clip on it is...well...it's there, but not too confidence inspiring. I've carried one around for a few months now, and because I usually wear jeans, it goes into that mini pocket on the front right. The good thing about the Q3 is it's relatively cheap priced, which in my eyes works all the better as an EDC because of the heightened chances of loosing it. The Fenix L1P also warrants a look, although it lacks a pocket clip (can someone else answer on whether or not it has a clickie?). They both are about the same ~3" length -- the L1P is slimmer do to its diet of AA's compared to the Q3's 123's.

Which ever you choose will not dissapoint you, I'm sure.
 

cslinger

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If you are looking for an all around usefull light the HDS EDC basic 42 or 60. If you want something with a "tactical" and I use that term loosely but I digress, level of brightness then go with the HDS Basic 60LE.

The HDS lights really are the best light for the money you will find IMHO. They are so versitile.

Chris
 

Jago1911

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nerdgineer said:
This is not quite what you asked for, but it is one of my favorite 1xCR123 lights, the Nuwai ALX-2611X. It is well made, has good (if not overwhelming) brightness, has a true tactical clickie, is very electrically efficient (more light from one battery than almost any other 1xCR123 light - 3 hours to half power and more hours after that), and costs $21.50 plus shipping.

I think you can get 3 of them for about the price of 1 Amilight. My opinion only - it is a best buy among 1xCR123 lights.

At the low end, if you live near a Target store, you can get a Dorcy 1xCR123 1W Luxeon light for $20, no shipping. Well reviewed and another best buy.

Wow, that Nuwai is a great buy. It's a little too large for me to carry daily but I think I'll pick one up anyway for the car for that price. :grin2:
 

Grox

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Firstly, welcome to CPF! Stay awhile and enjoy the light!

If you can get a TW4, I would get that. You'll probably have to buy the parts second hand though. A TW4 (tactical warehouse 4, after the business that marketed the idea) is basically an e1e tailcap, an e1e body and a KL4 head. This gives you a nice big bright flood light. You can use rechargeables or primaries. You can look on the sale forums here for the parts!

You also have the option of putting a mce2s tailcap on in place of the surefire tailcap. This will convert the light into a 2 stage light.

Another option in your price range is the HDS Basic series. These are very good and are available from quite a few CPF dealers.

http://www.lighthound.com/sales/hds_edc_basic_flashlights.htm
 

Jago1911

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Razor said:
Welcome aboard, Jago!

For a daily carrier, I'd highly recommend a Nuwai Q3, which has a solid clickie button on its end. The pocket clip on it is...well...it's there, but not too confidence inspiring. I've carried one around for a few months now, and because I usually wear jeans, it goes into that mini pocket on the front right. The good thing about the Q3 is it's relatively cheap priced, which in my eyes works all the better as an EDC because of the heightened chances of loosing it. The Fenix L1P also warrants a look, although it lacks a pocket clip (can someone else answer on whether or not it has a clickie?). They both are about the same ~3" length -- the L1P is slimmer do to its diet of AA's compared to the Q3's 123's.

Which ever you choose will not dissapoint you, I'm sure.

Thank you Razor, great to be here! I read the reviews on the Q3 and L1P at Flashlightreviews.com and the Q3 is at the top of my list now. :) The L1P is very nice too (and has a clickie button) but because it doesn't have a clip, I'm leaning toward the Q3. Both are around the $45-$50 price range.
 

Jago1911

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cslinger said:
If you are looking for an all around usefull light the HDS EDC basic 42 or 60. If you want something with a "tactical" and I use that term loosely but I digress, level of brightness then go with the HDS Basic 60LE.

The HDS lights really are the best light for the money you will find IMHO. They are so versitile.

Chris

Thanks Chris! They are more expensive than the others on my list but I'll definitely consider them when buying. I like the different brightness features they have.
 

Jago1911

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Grox said:
Firstly, welcome to CPF! Stay awhile and enjoy the light!

If you can get a TW4, I would get that. You'll probably have to buy the parts second hand though. A TW4 (tactical warehouse 4, after the business that marketed the idea) is basically an e1e tailcap, an e1e body and a KL4 head. This gives you a nice big bright flood light. You can use rechargeables or primaries. You can look on the sale forums here for the parts!

You also have the option of putting a mce2s tailcap on in place of the surefire tailcap. This will convert the light into a 2 stage light.

Another option in your price range is the HDS Basic series. These are very good and are available from quite a few CPF dealers.

http://www.lighthound.com/sales/hds_edc_basic_flashlights.htm

Thank you Grox! I looked into the TW4 on the For Sale forum and I don't see any built ones. If I buy the parts, how much will it all cost me? Is the ouput comparable to the Nuwai Q3?

Another vote for the HDS Basic.
smile.gif
The EDC Basic 60 or 60 LE are what I am considering if I decide to go with a more expensive light. So far the Q3 is what I am really interested in based on the price and features. Razor had a good point about possibly losing the light since it will be with me every day. Losing a $160 light would ruin my day. :scowl:
 

Grox

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The basic TW4 (e1e tailcap, body, KL4 head) would put you back about 120 if you got it on the cheap. The output will utterly blow away the q3. The q3 will give you about 20 lumens out the front, whereas the KL4 will give you somewhere from 80-100.
 

bruddamoke

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If you expect to use the lights often, I'd go with the L1P over the Q3 due to battery type. The L1P runs really well on NiMH AA's and I feel the holster is a bit better in terms of usage and blending in. I've got both and carry/use the L1P a lot...the Q3 is now sitting unloaded on a shelf.

Note that the L1P has a reverse clicky, if that's important to you. The Q3 has a standard clicky (at least mine does).
 

Jago1911

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Grox said:
The basic TW4 (e1e tailcap, body, KL4 head) would put you back about 120 if you got it on the cheap. The output will utterly blow away the q3. The q3 will give you about 20 lumens out the front, whereas the KL4 will give you somewhere from 80-100.

Thank for the info. :grin2:
 

Jago1911

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bruddamoke said:
If you expect to use the lights often, I'd go with the L1P over the Q3 due to battery type. The L1P runs really well on NiMH AA's and I feel the holster is a bit better in terms of usage and blending in. I've got both and carry/use the L1P a lot...the Q3 is now sitting unloaded on a shelf.

Note that the L1P has a reverse clicky, if that's important to you. The Q3 has a standard clicky (at least mine does).

Thank you for the comparison! The cost of batteries is definitely something I need to think about as well for an every day carry light.

One of the dealers here has the Q3 for $30.75 shipped which seems like a bargain. So much good info on this forum. It's gonna take a while for me to decide which light to go with. :)
 

nerdgineer

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Jago1911 said:
...take a while for me to decide which light to go with.,,
..which light.....which light......Haahaaahaaahahahahahaha...:grin2:

...seriously, you get them all.....you just have to decide which to get first.
 

Grox

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The Q3 and TW4 and fenix l1p can all be used with rechargeables. So that's a big plus.

I liked the q3 when I had it. Go ahead and grab one. It's not a lot of money if you don't end up liking it. You can always sell it on B/S/T (buy/sell/trade) here and recoup most of the money.

I haven't tried the fenix yet but by all reports it seems to be a fantastic light for the money.

FWIW, I find belt clip carry to be one of the LEAST secure methods of carrying a light. Others may disagree with me. I find if I use a belt holster or carry the light in a pocket, it's much much much harder for the light to get lost.

Have fun!
 
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