Off to Los Alamos and In Need of a Flashlight

I'm going to be leaving in about two weeks to Los Alamos National Laboratories to run a nuclear physics experiment, and after coming across this site, I've finally decided to invest in a serious flashlight for every-day carry.

I'm interested in small size, multiple levels, LED, and long runtime on low levels. I don't mind CR123 batteries. Whatever light I pick will be coming with me everywhere.

After a lot of research, I decided on a Fire~Fly 3. Unfortunately, I missed the last one by about 6 hours. My next thought was a McLux III PD (I've handled one before, and it was awesome). No luck on the McLux until mid-June/July because McGizmo's moving to Maui.

What to do?

Right now the options I'm thinking of are either an L1T, with a G2 (with G90 bulb and RCR123s) for backup, or an HDS Basic 60.

I'm kind of leaning towards the HDS Basic 60 because it's a single light that should be able to handle all of my needs (plus it has a pocket clip!).

What do you all think? Would the HDS B60 serve all my needs? Is it worth it to bump it up to the U60XR (or GT, or XRGT) model? I'm a KISS kind of guy, and I don't really need strobe or progammability in a flashlight (also why I was so impressed with the McLux III PD I handled).

Is there another light out there that I'm missing, or should I go with one of the above, and if so, which one?

Also, for those of you who've handled both, how do the HDS 60's brightness levels compare with those on the McLux III PD? Same question goes for the L1T /G2(G90) combo and the McLux.

Definitely go with the U60 over the B60 (I'd go one further myself and get the U60XR for the increased runtime). The U60 at the very least, it's only $10 more than the Basic. For $20 more you can get the XR, which lasts a long time on lower levels. Well over 2 hours at 42 lumens on a lithium ion. The GT option is nice, but many people don't bother spending the extra cash and are quite satisfied with the tint.

The problem I see with the Basic 60 is that there's no inbetween for "Primary" at 10 lumens and "Maximum" at 60 lumens. The 10 lumen setting lasts several hours, while the 60 lumen setting only lasts 20-30 minutes. Not a very good selection IMO for a light with 4 brightness settings. I'd rather swap one of the lower settings (the lowest on the Basic series is too low for usefulness IMO, others may disagree) and get a 30 or 42 lumen setting instead. With the Ultimate for $10 more you can choose all your brightness levels yourself.

The Ulitmate interface will take a while to get used to and figure out, but it's not difficult. I have no use for the strobes myself. What I really like is the ability to select my own brightness settings, and I really like the simple momentary function turned on and the force setting turned off. I've set mine up to 42 lumens on "Primary", 10L on "Secondary", some pretty low one (not sure of level, I was eyeballing it) for "Minimum" for reading in the dark without blinding myself, and 60L on "Maximum". Note that you can rearrange everything so "Minimum" could be 60L and "Maximum" could be .08L. It all depends on your preferences for the click sequence.

With the Simple Momentary function, you can press and hold the button when the light is off and it's on only as long as you're pressing the button. Nice for quick bursts where you don't want to mess around with click sequences. With the Force Setting option off, the light turns on (including momentary) to whatever level you used last. Very nice for when you want a low level of light and don't want a bright blast each time you turn it on before changing the levels. Same if you want a full blast of light each time, and don't want to be stuck on a low primary level each time you turn it on.

As for the McLux III PD vs. The HDS EDC, it really comes down to a matter of preference. The HDS can do more, especially the Ultimate series, but it's complicated to use. The PD is simple as simple can be. Push the piston or turn the head, it turns on. Push or twist some more, it's on full brightness. I own both, and honestly I can't choose a favorite. The PD is definitely sexier, especially with titanium and tritium trimmings (say that 5 times fast). The HDS is definitely more of a Jeep type light; functional but not much to look at. The PD has a slightly tighter beam than the HDS, so it's throwier, but IMO the HDS's beam is more useful all around. The HDS at 60 lumens should beat the PD, even in throw, but lasts less than half as long. It'd be better to compare a U60 set at 42 lumens to the PD on high.

I also have a Fire~Fly III, and it's a terrific light too, and a bargin at its price. Unfortunately, as you've found out, both the McLux III PD and the Fire~Fly III are currently unavailable except on the secondary market (and good luck finding one there--before everybody else does).

So, you're left with the HDS. I would personally skip the G2. OK for a belt or in the glove comparerment, but it's no pocket light. If you want to look at a Surefire, look at the A2 Aviator. I just got one a couple days ago, and it's everything everybody's said about it. You get the brightness, throw, and color rendition of an incandescent, with the regulation of an LED light (it's the only regulated hi-power pocket incandescent around), plus a nice floody LED mode on low. I find the low of the A2 much more useful than the low on the PD or HDS because it's so floody. The low on the PD is kinda limited because of its narrow focus. The lows on the HDS are better, since the HDS reflector gives more sidespill and a broader hotspot. The A2 however has a very broad flood, and I really like a broad flood in low-output situations because it's easier on the eyes and you can see more despite being a "low" mode.

Excellent response, Planterz. I couldn't have said it better.

Well....except 'throwier'? J/K

Jeff

xpitxbullx said:

Excellent response, Planterz. I couldn't have said it better.

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I probably could have, if I wanted to bother spending the time rearranging all that random gobbledegook into a more coherent manner.

Well....except 'throwier'? J/K

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More throwy? Having more throw? In which in itself has more throw? How does one properly conjugate a made up term?:lolsign:




Hey, 800 posts! Yay me!

Wow. Count on CPF when you really need it.

Thanks a million Planterz! With what you said in mind, I'll definitely be going for at least an HDS U60 XR. The question becomes whether or not the GT is worth it. Any opinions on that?

I asked this very question myself once (click). You'll see from the responses that most people were fine with their non-GT models. The non-GT models aren't GT rejects; in other words, if you don't buy a Guaranteed Tint model, you aren't guaranteed to get a bad tint.

Here's the blurb from HDS's webpage on the GT models:

This flashlight is for those who must have the absolute whitest white in output tint. These are the whitest LEDs manufactured. We guarantee the color of these LEDs will lie close to the Planckian black body radiator line in the range of 0.30 to 0.33 on the x-coordinate on the CIE-1931 Chromaticity Diagram.

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So basically it's a $20 guarantee that your tint won't be yucky green or violent purple. While there might be a few people who weren't happy with the tint on their non-GT model, I haven't heard of anybody who wasn't satisfied with a GT. Kind of a "piece of mind" thing.

The way I see things now, if you're going to spend $190 on a U60XR, you might as well spend the extra $20 for an XRGT. At the very least you've got the piece of mind that it's a good tint, and at the most you've avoided the potentiality (albeit small) of receiving an unsatisfactory tint. $20 might seem like a lot on its own, but compared to the cost of the light, it's only about 10%. I doubt there's a person among us who wouldn't spend an additional 10% to receive guaranteed tint on their Fenix (which would be a whopping $5), and I know if Surefire offered it, every last one of us would jump aboard (especially the U2 owners).

I know I said in that thread that I was extremely happy with the tint on my old B42XR, but this is a bit different. For one thing, the prices of the HDS lights were reduced significantly between that post and this one, and the GT option on the B42 was quite a larger percentage increase than 10%. I personally would never get a U60GT myself, since the % difference is higher and you don't get the bonus of the XR.

I in no way regret spending the extra $20 on my U60XRGT.

For more piece of mind, know that these lights can resell very quickly here with minimal deprecaition if it's in good condition. Think of the remainder as a "rental fee".

BTW, although I live in the same town HDS is located, I am in no way affiliated with them (to some people I might look like a shill).

Wow. A lot of what you say echos the thought going through the back of my head. I'm heavily leaning towards the HDS U60 XRGT now, but I think I'll sleep on it for the night, and decide in the morning.

Thanks again for all the help!

carpdiem said:

Wow. A lot of what you say echos the thought going through the back of my head. I'm heavily leaning towards the HDS U60 XRGT now, but I think I'll sleep on it for the night, and decide in the morning.

Thanks again for all the help!

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Where do you live that right now it's night and you'll wake up in the morning? Here in AZ it's morning and I'll go to bed and wake up in the evening.

BTW, if you order from OpticsHQ, you can choose from a list of free "gifts" (I chose the $35 certificate), including, coincidentally enough, a Surefire G2 (+6 additional batteries).

I'm at Caltech, in Pasadena, CA. When I say I'll sleep on it, I really mean "I'll take a three hour nap..."

Well I cant't say what light to get but I live in Los Alamos It is a great place. Welcome, enjoy your stay here on CPF and in Los Alamos.

Take care
Dan

Dangit. I almost slept on it. That extra free G2 and CR123s just sealed the deal for me. It should be arriving on Monday or Tuesday.

CPF, for finding people to convince you on new purchases at any hour of the day or night.

dsl said:

Well I cant't say what light to get but I live in Los Alamos It is a great place. Welcome, enjoy your stay here on CPF and in Los Alamos.

Take care
Dan

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Thanks Dan! I'll be arriving there between on June 12th probably. It should be exciting!

carpdiem said:

Dangit. I almost slept on it. That extra free G2 and CR123s just sealed the deal for me. It should be arriving on Monday or Tuesday.

CPF, for finding people to convince you on new purchases at any hour of the day or night.

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Somehow I knew that'd push you over the edge. If you need help with configuring your new light, don't hesitate to ask. In the meantime, here's wishing you pleasant dreams of illuminated darkness.:sleepy:

Hahahah! It's so true.

I'm looking forward to playing around with the interface, but thanks for the offer!

Tuesday sure can't get here soon enough. Actually, come to think of it, I've got a date that evening as well. Wow, Tuesday really can't get here soon enough. What more could a guy want?

if you're able to get a hold of an ARC4's clip for your HDS then i'll guarantee you'll love the light more!

What's so much better about the Arc 4's clip?

It's a foldover clip so it rides much deeper in the pocket. The stock HDS clip rides kinda high (a lot of the bezel sticks out). It's still secure, but as secure as the Arc 4 clip. These aren't exactly commonplace though. It took me several months to snag one for myself.

There is a project going to make aftermarket Arc style clips for the HDS lights. They fit each other because Henry (the H in HDS) designed the Arc 4 series lights then split to make his own lights. I think the reason went with the clip style found on the HDS is that it allows you to use the Surefire F04 Beamshaper (diffuser lens cap), while the Arc 4 clip would get in the way.

And the U60XRGT arrived today, along with a yellow G2! :-D

After playing with this light for a little bit, I have to say it's amazing. Somehow these things always end up smaller than I expect, and the HDS is no exception. Thanks for the convincing Planterz! I'm sure I'll be loving this light.

Glad to help!