Upgrade? When is enough enough?

Like many of you, I've got a bunch of lights - probably way more than I can use. I feel like I am at the saturation point...I'll only buy a new light if adds something or is unique. So how do other flashaholics feel about upgrading/replacing?

Buy now, mod later!

i just bought l2d q5s and rebel 100s. i'm gonna compare them to my l2d ce and sell the two i want the least.

i don't think i would upgrade the q5 to an r2, but when the r3 or r4 comes out, those two steps in brightness might do it for me.

i'd sell my old one, take a $10-$15 loss to get the brightness upgrade. i don't think one little upgrade would do it for me though. noticeable brightness and a little wow factor. maybe r4 would get my attention!

I'm more of a modder. If I find a light that I like alot I will just keep upgrading that light. If I don't like the light I will upgrade and sell it off for more upgrade money.

After spending at least a few grand on lights, I have really slacked off on the purchases. However, I cannot stop myself from dropping $60 on the latest and greatest Fenix. Ordered a L2D Q5 just today, which is probably my 10th Fenix. Picked up a Fenix 1xCR123 Q5 just a few days ago.

Not so long ago, we would have cr*pped our britches with joy to get 180 lumens for over 2 hours out of 2xAA. Thats crazy. I'm still amazed.

Fenix, more than any other manufacturer, seems to be squeezing out a new and
"better" light every few weeks, and I have a hard time saying no. I've said no to just about every other manufacturer, but the others don't seem to be cranking up the output like Fenix, and certainly not at the price.

right on

It's not just about the leds, I buy lights that solve a problem in a new or interesting way. I've slowed down too.

I need more than just new LED technology before I buy a new light.

I bought an L1T v2.0 RB80 instead of D series RB100/Q5 lights.
A crappy Ultrafire 602c replaced a L0D CE as my goto EDC.

I think I am downgrading, going the other way.

I'm amazed at LED technolgy. I just bought my first with a Q5 and I don't see me stopping with that purchase. With the LED technology just now getting interesting, I don't see any flashaholic sitting it out for any length of time.

I seem to be buying lights that can be upgraded and EZ to repair like dereelights(I like this drop in thing)I've slowed down a lot with new lights but the fenix bug still has a grip on me,but I'll wait until they come out with r3 or r4 bins until I buy any more as long as the tints stay on the warm side with the r bins.
DON

According to the survey results so far, most users are unlikely to buy many new lights until the next big step in LED design.

Does this bear true in the marketplace,...there seems to be a high level of interest in every new light that comes out.

I've slowed down a lot with new purchases. One of the things that has caused me to do that is the rapid release of so many new LEDs within many weeks or a few months of each other. I'm actually looking less to the new LEDs and more to the next revolution in battery technology. I have a Q5 MRV and may purchase a single light when the next bin comes out but I'm not going crazy with it anymore. I decided to upgrade my Wiseled to P4s because of the fairly big difference compared to the K2s. I'm looking forward to the increase run-time.

I'm always open to buying something better and selling the old stuff, as long as I don't have to take too much of a hit on the selling. Right now, the Q5 isn't enough of a boost over the P4 for me. Especially since Fenix lights are so variable in tint and quality from 1 sample to the next.

Sometimes a new LED makes the difference for me. I never owned any of the Fenix Luxeon lights, because I prefer lights with at least moderate throw (think KL1, 2004 version), and I knew that the tiny Fenix reflectors wouldn't give much throw with a Luxeon. But when the Cree versions came out, I became much more interested in Fenix. I now have a L0D-CE, L2D-CE, P1D-CE, and L1T 2.0 Rebel .

On the other hand, I have continued to buy some older technology Luxeon lights, particularly Inova. I judge the whole flashlight and not just the emitter. To me, the 2007 version Inova T1 is a great choice for killer output in a small and robust flashlight. The Inova T3 is also very good. (I consider the T4 to be a disappointment due to being much larger and more expensive than the T3, but not having any more output or throw.)

I buy lights that I like, even if that means purchasing a certain light that isn't stuffed with the latest and greatest LED going right now. In fact, the last three lights that I bought all have Luxeons in them. Yeah, I think that I am going backwards, as well..

But, the more time that I spend browsing CPF of late, the more that I get to thinking about doing some upgrading. And what with Halloween around the corner, I have a feeling that a new 2AA Cree light is in order. . . . . :candle:

Will be upgrading my Alephs with the new board that Wayne is working on. Will have Milky upgrade my PR-T heads one of these days and probably do a piglet/reflector in a black KL1. Would like to upgrade a couple of my JiL's too. It would be great to own a Ti McGizmo but I have a hard time justifying $500-600 for a light. Have a bunch of lights to sell but the prices have dropped so low they aren't worth the trouble to sell, don't know what i'll do with those lights.

I might upgrade my E1e+KL1 to an E1L with the new Cree, but that seems distant and far off.

The U2 is still as perfect as it's gotten. Nothing on the market has managed to top that in my opinion.

I'm buying new lights in the outrageous-lumens class. 35W HID is about the only thing that can hold my interest these days.....

I buy lots of used, or "outdated" lights to upgrade to the current, brightest LED technology. But, for new lights that are already using the Q5 LED, it is all about regulation. Give me ruler flat regulation for the length of the battery life. I do not want a light that starts out at 20,000 lux and begins a steady decline in output. The semi-regulated light has it's place, but for me it isn't that desireable.

Runtime is more important to me, when something last longer than a SMJLED and is as bright or brighter, than I will buy. But everything is geared for brightness, so I doubt I will ever see something longer than SMJLED in the near future.

I also need a good tech boost before a purchase is made. For example, I do not yet own a Cree or Seoul light. The light that I do carry around 90% of the time is my ProPoly Lux.

It takes me a long time to purchase a light. I am currently at a rate of 1 new light a year. The next purchase I make will be a Cree. I guess a jump from my PP Lux to a Cree will be sufficient in the "I wait for better technology" department.

I only own an L2dCE and am perfectly happy with it. I am in college and don't have as much cash as I would like so I was looking for a p60 compatible candidate and came across the trustfire alpha C-1 w/Q4, that takes 2 16340s or one 18650. I'd say those two lights (once the trustfire gets here) have me covered.


Phil