Which little light?? - sorry if inappropriate

lukebacon

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1I have been looking for some time now for a decent little (pocket-sized), LED (probably), light that I can use when walking home on dark autumn/winter evenings as well as other spur-of-the-moment things. I have a Photon Freedom on order, but I could also do with something a little bigger as well.

It needs to be (very) bright, and strong - waterproof is nice as well, but not completely essential. Battery life isn't too much of a problem as my walk home isn't too long (10 mins-ish), however if the life was short, then it would need to be easily replaceable/rechargeable. It also needs to be comfortably pocketable, while still being better on above accounts than keyring lights (even decent ones like the freedom).

1I have looked at several already, particularly the ARC-AAA, which I gather to be very good, and also the Orb Raw-a small light with a 3W Luxeon in it-£35 but comes with charger and battery as well as a tritium locator option. There may well be other options which I have missed (hence this post).

If anyone could help me decide between these or offer a better solution from experience (which many people clearly have more of than me) then that would be very much appreciated.
 

Casual Flashlight User

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Hi Luke,

this would be a nice little set up if you can afford it (I assume you are in the UK from your use of £ signs)


Fenix P1 - £24 delivered from here...

http://fenix-store.com/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=54

Very pocketable little light...very bright...and you'd be dealing with an excellent guy.

and

Power-Plus CR123 Charger and two Rechargable batteries - £21 delivered

http://www.battech.co.uk/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=115&products_id=1156


Should be more than enough for evening strolls! - Anyways, more experienced folk than me will probably be along to offer some ideas shortly.


CFU
 

TENMMIKE

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welcome to CPF ,but as stated its important for us to know what your willing to spend,in the long run its not really going to matter as were gonna break your bank down the road anyhow:laughing: , so you might as well skip the lower priced stuff that you will try and get by with and go straight for the high end, you'll probably actually save a few bucks, by not continually searching / buying for that good low priced light, and last but not least if you are interested in 2 different lights but cant decide ...."buy em both" you can sell the other here fairly easy...good luck EDIT id like to add the arc is a great light , but its not strong enough for your purpose, its a fantastic key chain light for dark situations unless you get a highly modified one, the orb is also very nice and very bright but i would shy away from keeping it my pocket unless its in its plastic case,or it will soon become very scratched up from change and the such
 
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lukebacon

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1Many thanks for another idea-my only consideration is that (since my budget is, unfortunately limited), the cost of the light and batteries/charger is considerably more than, say, the RAW package. However the P1 may well be a better light??

p.s. yes correct I am in the UK!
 

lukebacon

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p.p.s. should have added - budget depends really on what sort of thing I end up looking at, though I would say I wouldn't want to go too too much above the £35-40 mark.
 

TENMMIKE

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well if your willing to wait tell doug makes another run in a month or 2 and double your budget you can get this little gem and you will then own a truely very ,very good light .
FF3.jpg
 

Casual Flashlight User

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Slightly cheaper...


Civictor V1 - £16 delivered (bit bigger, still slips into the pocket...great little light IMO)

http://fenix-store.com/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=76

and

Energizer 15 minute charger and 4x AA batteries - £22 delivered

http://www.7dayshop.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=777_3&products_id=101343


BTW, that Orb raw is a *very* nice little light by all accounts...lot's of folk on here have a lot of good things to say about the more powerfull 3 watt version but it's not very water resistant apparently.


CFU


P.S. I see the "light pushers" are already trying to tempt you to splash the cash on more expensive lights.
poke2.gif



*Obiwan Kenobe voice* - Run Luke, run!
biggrin.gif
 

photonhoer

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I echo the Fenix P1. My wife and I each have one and it seems to be a terrific light. Small, bright(!!!!) and long intermittant life on a single battery.
John
 

Long John

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Hello Luke:)

Welcome at CPF:grin2:

I'll throw one decision more in the pool:grin2:.

The Fenix L1T. In your price range, well build, 2-stages, long runtime, easy to feed with 1xAA nimh-photo accu/charger combo, cheap too.

Best regards

____
Tom
 

greenLED

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What kind of batteries would you like to use? The P1 everyone is suggesting uses CR123 - although cheap on-line at CPF Dealers, some people prefer to stick with more common sizes (at least when they start on CPF).

Have you checked theledmuseum.org and flashlightreviews.com - two excellent sites with info that will help you choose a good light for your needs.

Welcome to CPF!
 

carrot

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If you have no problem using rechargeables (or lithium CR123), the Fenix P1 is definitely the way to go. Otherwise, the Fenix L1P for $37 is a good choice... Fenix-Store.com offers international free shipping too.
 

chocho

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Casual Flashlight User said:

P.S. I see the "light pushers" are already trying to tempt you to splash the cash on more expensive lights.
poke2.gif


*Obiwan Kenobe voice* - Run Luke, run!
biggrin.gif

ROTFLMAO :crackup:
 

LEDninja

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Welcome to CPF.

AAA
Nuwai TM-310H
Peak Matterhorn 3LED pocket
Arc AAA rev4 -P
Peak Pacific (since you are using the torch every night consider the optional AA battery tube)
Fenix E1

AA
Civictor V1 is shorter than the L1P/L1T and more pocketable especially in tight jeans with small pockets.
 

Double_A

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Fenix L0P

It uses a single AAA cell is very bright and runs about 60 mins on a NiMH rechargeable or probably 90mins on an lithium cell.

(Price about $38USD with the dollar dropping who know's what that would be by the time you read this.)

Perfect size
 
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Any Cal.

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The fenix l2p with the 123 body is a very nice setup for all things mentioned, and runs in the neighborhood of 55 USD. The battery lasts 1.5 hours in full regulation I think, so there is not much point in buying rechargeables. I carry a photon freedom, but it is NEVER used because of the Fenix.
 

sniper

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lukebacon said:
1I have been looking for some time now for a decent little (pocket-sized), LED (probably), light that I can use when walking home on dark autumn/winter evenings as well as other spur-of-the-moment things. I have a Photon Freedom on order, but I could also do with something a little bigger as well.

Welcome!
Well, I have liked my Mini Mags with SMJLED for literally years, and think I will really enjoy the SMJLED2 when it becomes available.

Your description and needs also seem to fit the Inova X1 in the new, reflector version. Or, going a bit more expen$ive, the Underwater Kinetcs 4AA LED offering. All of the above are small, use AA batteries for great runtime, are easily pocketable, or use a very low profile sheath, and and give an amazing amount of light, all without totally fracturing the exchequer. :thumbsup:

For that matter, a small 2 cell light of any type with a SMJLED PR2 base would fill the bill nicely, also.

My experience with a "keychain light" was on a cold, rainy November night, when several of us were attempting to find addresses at an apartment complex. I was the only one of three that had a light, inadequate though it was, and it did help. We read the addresses and watched the ink run all at the same time. ): I bought the Inova the next day.
 

lightrod

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TENMMIKE said:
well if your willing to wait tell doug makes another run in a month or 2 and double your budget you can get this little gem and you will then own a truely very ,very good light .
FF3.jpg

Ditto the FF3 if at all possible. May actually save money in the long run. This is the one small (very) bright light that has kept me from buying others.
 
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