Light for Mom

So, here I am, thinking....what do you get for mom? The woman has everything....tough to buy for.
I'm on the phone with her, and she says..."ANd steven (my brother) lost my flashlight!"
NICE!! Opportunity knocks.
I am thinking 1) I have seen her throw away "broken" cheapo's becasue the batteries died (had to hold in the laughter, so I want a rechargeable, can sit in a cradle long-term until use.
2) Run times of at least one hour.
3) AT LEAST 65 lumens (walks the dogs, there are coyotes and teenagers in cars).
4) LED--she wouldn't know how/want to deal with a dead bulb
5) Decent throw, decent spill/flood. Preferably a bit "throwier" than the L4, of course, giving up some flood. BUT, she needs that flood for animals, visibility.

Any thoughts? I'll go to $200 or so.
Help me out, fellow flashaholics! I've poured through all of te main players' websites...haven't found "it" yet.....

Don't think it will be available in time, but one of the Stinger LEDs sound like it would fit your needs to a tee.

On the other hand, if you could just teach your mom how to change batteries, she might do just as well with one of the MiniMag LEDs or ore of the SLPP Luxes. In any case, whatever your choice, you should be able to get something for under $100 and probably under $50 if you go for a primary battery powered light.

The big point is, though I'm sure she is familiar with the CONCEPT of changing batteries, 5 to 1 she'd be 3 miles form the house, the light would die and she wouldn't be carrying spares, no matter what I tell her.
I was looking for somehting that can live in its charger, she just grabs and goes, and it goes back on its charger. When she's back. Obviously, something that doesn't mind this charging cycle (as well as not being run down nearly all the way) is crucial.

Didn't the UK 4AA come in a rechargeable flavor?

Again it sounds like the Stinger LED is fitting your bill. It's a little expensive for a household flashlight, but compared to what some of these guys recommend (usually their fantasy light or something,) the $90 or so dollars would be a bargain.

smokelaw1 said:

I was looking for somehting that can live in its charger, she just grabs and goes, and it goes back on its charger. When she's back. Obviously, something that doesn't mind this charging cycle (as well as not being run down nearly all the way) is crucial.

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I have no issues going to 90. My edc light is 165 (on the weekends), during the week I carry a p1.

Stinger LED, huh....I'll see if I can find the rechageable one/system.
Thanks!

Umm... I'm not sure here if we might have some lines crossed here.
I'm referring to the Streamlight Stinger LED that's supposed to become available this month. All of the Streamlight Stinger series of products are rechargeable; they do not have a primary battery version of this light. You might want to take a look at the review of this light at flashlightreviews first to see if the size of the light is going to be suitable for your mother.

smokelaw1 said:

Stinger LED, huh....I'll see if I can find the rechageable one/system.
Thanks!

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What about this?

http://batteryjunction.com/lexrarxerefl.html

What about the led Inova T4 also available from www.batteryjunction.com. About $94.95 less with the CPF discount. Lithium Ion batteries and about a 2 hour runtime IIRC. Send a PM to MattK on CPF.

Consider:

1. Streamlight Strion incan rechargeable:
Good fit if Mom's walking territory has a lot of ambient light/shadows and in an area of wet/foggy/humid air. 1 hr. runtime. Compact size; a bit smaller than std. Stinger, and with a better (new-tech. LiIon vs. older NiCad) battery.

2. Surefire L5 LED:
In my experience, it's the "best" all-around suburban walk-light... and my walking environment sounds similar to your Mom's. Beautifully balanced white beam -- like an L4 but with real throw. 75-90 min. runtime. See several recent threads re "L5" and "walking lights," etc. Also takes rechargeables. MSRP is approx. $185; nice discounts avail. @ $145 +/-; watch CPF's B-S-T threads for good deals.

3. Surefire E2L LED:
Has good (3 hr.+/-) flat/regulated runtime. Very decent throw for an LED -- approaching an Inova T3/XO3. Compact size OK for smaller female hands. My favorite EDC/back-up light. Good for purse or pocket carry.

All are analyzed on FlashlightReviews.com. Ignore manufacturers' lumen ratings. Just go by FLR's ratings.

Good on you for looking out for Mom!

depusm12 said:

What about the led Inova T4 also available from www.batteryjunction.com. About $94.95 less with the CPF discount. Lithium Ion batteries and about a 2 hour runtime IIRC. Send a PM to MattK on CPF.

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T4 is out of the question, he wants some side spill.

smokelaw1 said:

5) Decent throw, decent spill/flood. Preferably a bit "throwier" than the L4, of course, giving up some flood. BUT, she needs that flood for animals, visibility.

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smokelaw1 said:

The big point is, though I'm sure she is familiar with the CONCEPT of changing batteries, 5 to 1 she'd be 3 miles form the house, the light would die and she wouldn't be carrying spares, no matter what I tell her.
I was looking for somehting that can live in its charger, she just grabs and goes, and it goes back on its charger. When she's back. Obviously, something that doesn't mind this charging cycle (as well as not being run down nearly all the way) is crucial.

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SF 10X would fit your need. Rechargeable and bright.

Wow. Thanks for all the help, guys.
There are a million great lights out there (I know, I feel like I've bought most of them!) but, of course, for dear ol' Ma, nothing but the light that hits every one of my specifications will do.
My issue with recahageable BATTERIES, not a light with a stand, is that it's not as user-friendly (read--so simple as to be a non-event).
That stinger looks great. I'm going to research it a bit more. Thanks again.

SL1

The www.flashlightreviews.com site is a good place to browse if you have not seen it before.

...

I second the majority and I would also go with a Streamlight rechargable.

Thanks everybody for all of the suggestions. I just placed an order for the Stinger. I'll let you all know how she likes it (I'm going to go set it up and "test it out" for her...such a good son...)

URGENT! Something you need to consider!

Would this light be your mom's only flashlight?
Does you mom live in an area that has power outages?


Like cordless phones, a rechargeable flashlight that will not take standard off the shelf batteries is a receipe for disaster in a power outage! IF that is your only light.

I had a family friend in just such a situation after a large earthquake.

His only light was a plug in the wall rechargeable, constantly at the hand ready to go. It was great until the electricity was out for more than 3 hours and he was in the dark.

As soon as things recovered and flashlights and batteries were back on store shelves, he bought himself another flashlight and a couple packs of batteries stored in the fridge.

Now this was back in the days of ni-cads and I use li-ions and NiMH, but still....

Double_A has a point. You might want to order a DC cord for the charger so that she can charge it in a car (there has to be power going to the lighter plug,) in the event of a power outage. Though, for an LED, there is some presumption that most power outages should be less than the run time of the light, and they can occur during daylight hours as well as at night.
Though a cheap battery powered light (bulb or LED) wouldn't be a bad thing to have around either.

Quite honestly, I think the Stinger LED is overkill for what your mom actually needs, but it does fit the criteria that you had originally established.

smokelaw1 said:

Thanks everybody for all of the suggestions. I just placed an order for the Stinger. I'll let you all know how she likes it (I'm going to go set it up and "test it out" for her...such a good son...)

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Hey, that is a really good point. But, fortunately, this will not be the only light in the house. My dad has his "work lights" in the basement and in the truck. Even if the batteries are dead, he usually has extras around, and this light would be enough to get them to what they need.
And yes, it is overkill. I am not about to give my Mom a light I wouldn't be happy to use in the same application. Not becasue she needs it, or would even know, but I would. I am going to encourage her to try out medium (or even low...but that might be too low) to conserve batteries, but the run times seem decent enough for her walks.

BUT, just to be safe, she might get one of my older surefires with a small box of 123s to keep next to it.