what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendations?

what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendations?

I'm curious what everyone's thoughts are on "must have" types of flashlights, and specific recommendations.

Based upon my personal experience, these are my personal recommendations and flashlight types:

-- 1AA LED flashlight, because you will never know when you only have access to a single AA as a power source. Also they are reasonably bright and small enough to use as an Every Day Carrry. Prefer multiple modes vs single mode because if you only bring this light with you it has do a quite a variety of work. Recommendations: Fenix L1D (CE, Q5, etc) $50-$60; JetBeam Jet-1 IBS, programmable user settings, $60-$70; NiteCore Defender Infinity - super bright with good low, user setting, neato factor, $70-$80

-- 2AA LED flashlight, because sometimes you need that extra endurance that a 1AA may not deliver, plus LED brightness will be greater with the extra power delivered by 2AA. Recommendation: Fenix L2D (CE, Q5, etc) $50-$60

-- 1AAA LED flashlight, because sometimes you want a very small light that you can hang on your key chain or from a necklace. Always have one as a back up. Recommendation: Fenix E01, for back up purposes so you're never without a light $15; Fenix L0D, for EDC purposes, $45; LiteFlux LF2 / LF2X, for EDC purposes $50-$60

-- LED headlamp, for when you need both hands free and still want to be productive in the dark. Recommendation: Zebralight H30, CR123 form factor, push button UI, $50-$60; Zebralight H50, 1AA form factor, twisty UI, $50-$60

-- Tactical, for emergencies and self defense situations. I don't have any experience in this area so would look for others to fill this.

-- Lights for throw, I'm not sure for when/where I would need this type of light, would be interested in learning from others on why I need a light with long throw.

These are the main categories I can think of, but I'm sure I'm missing a lot of other key types of flashlights.

I'm currently well stocked with 1AA and 2AA lights. Very happy with my L1D Q5, NDI, JetBeam, and L2D Q5. I'm looking to round out my collection with the Fenix E01, L0D, Zebralight H50.

Now that I've gotten my "essential" lights, I'd like to evaluate the holes in my collection and start setting priorities for other types of lights that I am missing.

Hope this is interesting to you. And helpful for newbies who are into flashlight hobby.

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

not necessarily "must haves" but these are the categories i try and fit my lights into (ideally only 1 each). listing mine with the matching knife just for kicks (my big 3 EDC items are: knife, fire, flashlight. fire is always tons o bics), will post pics of these soon. ones with a * are used in multiple categories. i restrict myself to primary only AAA AA and CR123A batteries. the Drake being the only exception.

EDC (Work)
Knife: *Spyderco Spin (or *Spyderco Ladybug) + *Emerson HD-7
Light: *Drake + Fenix E01, in black

EDC (Regular)
Knife: *Spyderco Spin (or *Spyderco Ladybug) + *Emerson HD-7
Light: *Drake + Nautilus (or NiteCore Defender Infinity)

EDC (Bombproof)
Knife: *Strider SnG Drop Point Folder, with Digi Camo Blade
Light: HDS Ra Twisty 100

General house, knockaround
Knife: Vox PryMate
Light: Fenix L0D CE Q4 + Streamlight MicroStream clickie

Hands free by bed
Knife: <n/a>
Light: *ZebraLight H30-Q5 Headlamp

Tactical by bed
Knife: Cold Steel Recon Tanto
Light: *NovaTac 120P, black

"Nighttime stroll/hike"
Knife: *Emerson HD-7 or *Strider SnG Drop Point Folder, or Raidops "Little John" LJ3VD (if fixed blade is OK)
Light: Milky P7 Optimator on SureFire Z2, in black

Search and Rescue
Knife: Wilson Tactical Model 22 Cop Tool + Spyderco Endura 4th Gen fully serrated blade w/Foliage Green handle
Light: Tiablo A9 Q5, in natural + *ZebraLight H30-Q5 Headlamp


(this is why i sold my LunaSol20, didnt fit )

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

-- 1AA LED flashlight, +1 to the NDI

-- 1AAA LED flashlight,ARC-AAA

-- Tactical, C2+LED dropin

-- Lights for throw, any of the throwers will perform decently,

Crenshaw

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

heres some others from my gear kits...

Modular Mini-BOB Kit
Knife: Benchmade Sequel 707
Light: NovaTac 120P, in natural

Modular Personal Survival Kit (PSK)
Knife: Spyderco Ladybug
Light: Arc-AAA Premium DS

Bug Out/Response Bag
Knife: Spyderco Rescue 93mm + SOG Gov-Tac S21T
Light: SO-LED Clip Light + ZebraLight H50-Q5 Headlamp + Fenix TK10, in natural + Glo-Toob Lithium, white LED

Infiltration Bag
Knife: RaidOps Soldier Spirit German + HideAway Knife
Light: *NovaTac 120P, black

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

Must-have:
1) F-cell lanterns for the car.
2) a household/yard torch, say, 3D size.

Nice to have:
3) a dim torch for nightime indoor use - eg 2BF or 2AA.
4) 1AA or 1CR123 EDC
5) some sort of lantern/flood torch. 4F or 3D.

Everything else, my other 65 torches LEDs, hotwires, if I am to be really honest, cannot be even remotely termed must-have. They are toys, or gifts-in-waiting.

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

Small AAA EDC - Matterhorn for me

1xAA/2xAA light - Liteflux LF1

EDC light - Basically anything 1 cell and useful. I like my SF L1 and a few 1xCR123A Peaks

Flood Light - SF L4 or Inova T1

Thrower - SF L1 (Although there are plenty of lights that will throw farther)

Hotwire / Bitchin Incan - RoP Maglite

HID - POB from Sam's Club

LED Headlamp - Zebralight H30

Lantern - RR 4xAA lantern

I think that about covers it for me.

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

Sub-Compact
1xCR123(or similar sized)- Novatac or L1

Compact
2xCR123(or similar sized)- Novatac w/ 17670 body, G2 w/drop in

Duty
3XCR123(or similar sized)- SF M3, Pelican 7060

OMG
Mag P7 @ 2.8A

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

Wow Supernam - you're my polar opposite - nothing but CR123s. Nice list!

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

All i wanna' say . . . .


If you have a Mini-Maglite,

(the 2AA cell, "classic" model)

and most folks probably do . . . .


Then get yer'self some sort of LED upgrade module for it.


This one is (currently) my favorite:

http://www.batteryjunction.com/tle-5k2.html


Turns the plain ol' Mini-Maglite into a very bright and useful LED model.

:thumbsup:

_

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

EDC: Liteflux LF2x on 10440 LiIon (AAA as a fallback)
0.3/100 lumens for 8 days/40 min respectively

Flood light: Mag 2D, 2x Kaidomain LiIon D-Cells, Kai MOP reflector, AW Multistage driver, Philips 5761
100/300/1000 lumens for 180/90/50 mins respectively

Throw Light: Mag 2C, AW LiIon C-Cells, Kai SMO Reflector, Philips 5761
1000 lumens for 25 minutes in a VERY concentrated beam
Jacket pocketable.

Bright light: [Proposed] Mag 4C, AW LiIon C-Cells, AW Multistage Driver, FM MOP reflector, Osram 64610
200/600/2000 lumens for 100/50/25 min respectively

Insurance Lights: Hundreds of DX Fauxtons.
I will never loan out any of the nice flashlights listed above. I can afford to give away over 200 fauxtons for less than the price of replacing any of the above lights.

I have probably given away hundreds as token gifts for events, I've given entire packages of them as gifts to friends, and I've also given numerous fauxtons out to people who forgot to bring a light on a camping trip etc. I have fauxtons stashed all throughout the house, by beds, near dark corners etc. and certainly have more more than enough to last me and my neighbors through blackouts.

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

1XAA- NDI/Fenix L1D

2xAA- Fenix L2D-Q5/Novatac 120P w/ 2AA Adapter

1XAAA- Fenix L0D-Q4/E01

2XAAA- Streamlight Stylus Pro

1XCR123A- L1 Lumamax/E1B Backup/Novatac 120P

2XCR123A- U2 Ultra/Fenix P3D-Q5

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

Here is a similar thread, started last November: Where would you keep your best light?


Home light: General purpose, might get used by the non-initiated, so should be single mode for simplicity but bright enough to impress. Perhaps a plastic 2D with PR LED drop-in.

Very bright light: To blast toward things that go bump in the night. More than 500 lumens recommended. ROP is ideal, especially in smaller forms such as 2C.

EDC: Small, lightweight, and absolutely must be able to take rechargeables. Multiple modes a plus. Many, many options in AAA, AA, CR123, CR2. Some people carry larger 2xCR123/18650 lights, but IMO these are too big for EDC.

Bedside: Assuming you already keep the stupid bright light somewhere handy, the bedside light can be used for reading. A simple 2AA Minimag with UCL lens and rechargeables is great (soft tint and smooth beam).

Car: Relatively cheap light so you are not sad if it gets greasy, scratched, broken, or forgotten on the side of the road. However, it must also be durable enough to take the abuse of being banged against metal and dropped on asphalt. It must be bright enough and have sufficient runtime to look in the engine bay or fix a flat tire on a road at night with no street lamps. Adjustable brightness optional, but nice so your copilot/navigator/wife doesn't blind herself looking at a map. I guess a Surefire G2 would be good (except it lacks multiple modes).

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

"Always Carry" everywhere, summer, winter, rain or shine, suit or casual -- Insight H2X Typhoon 2 (usually in belt mounted plastic holder) and a SureFire E2D in pocket (one is none and two is one.) Will likely supplement these with a SureFire E2D LED by the end of the month.

"Jacket Pocket" -- Petzl e+Lite.

"In the Bag" -- usually a Petzl Tac-Tikka XP Adapt, Petzl e+Lite and often a SureFire Helmet Light (lockout, guarded switch blue LED version) w/Z71MOLLE Adapter, and spare batteries for all.

At home "Bright Light" -- SureFire M3.

At home "General Purpose" -- Petzl Tac-Tikka XP with rechargeable AAAs.

Formerly EDC -- SureFire A2, SureFire G2Z, SureFire M2.

Somewhere in the house (SureFire A2, E2E, E1E, G2Z,...)

Did I mention I'm a flashlight nut?

Regarding the Always Carry. I've carried a Gladius type light on the belt since 2005. The switch is very nice and the low setting is extremely useful. The strobe is always ready to amuse or show off and the new Seoul emitter on the Typhoon 2 makes the light nicely powerful. Having it on the belt makes it easy to find and always available.
The E2D is a very nice, simple, ultra-reliable backup with the switch being guarded so there is no need to lockout (I've carried one w/o lockout since 2003 -- a dome lens model -- in my front pocket with only 2 battery changes necessary.) Thus if I need light right away I don't have to fiddle with lockout. The guarded tailcap is the only reason I use the D model - the crenelated bezel was not an attraction, but has smoothed enough over the years to not rip pockets. The E2D LED should be another nice backup -- more output than the Typhoon 2 from my in-store comparisons of the two -- although I'm not sure how much I'm going to like the switching, but it's going to be a backup anyway. I may have to take a file to the crenelations or cover them.
This setup has evolved from an A2 (white LEDs) and a G2Z. I found that having one light w/2 levels to be extremely useful (I used to carry an M2 with LED keychain lights attached to the lanyard before the A2 arrived.) I always need a low-power source, but often need the higher power easily available. And you need a light without having to fumble through pockets, etc., hence the belt holster. The Gladius is larger, but the switching is so well designed that the size is not a bother. Besides, the thing rides on the belt anyway so size doesn't... I always need a reliable backup (and when I had battery drain issues with the Gladius, this was very important) so I substituted the E2D for the G2Z. Thus overall, no real size change in the setups.

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

Urban EDC:

- SureFire E1e + Lumens Factory HO-E1R + AW RCR123

Camping/Hiking EDC:

- SureFire L1 Cree

Regular Outdoors flashlights:

- SureFire L5 ( soon to be replaced by 2-stage E2DL ) and SF M4 Devastator, all on primaries always.

General Purpose Headlamp:

- Black Diamond Supernova

Hybrid flashlight:

- SureFire A2 Aviator

Diving flashlights:

- Princeton Tec Shockwave incan
- UK Sunlight SL4 (backup)

Weapon light:

- SureFire G3 + EO-9

Around the house light (apartment actually):

- Inova X5

Bedside light:

- Amilite Neo T5

Big thrower:

- Amondotech N30 HID (I "need" a Polarion so bad!)

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

Pocket/Keychain EDC
Fenix L0D CE or Q4
EDIT replaced by Millermods Arc AAA /EDIT
Small AAA or 1xCR123A.

Belt carried EDC
Fenix L1T v2.0
Can go up to 2AA or 2xCR123A or 18650 if holster is available. (My MTE SSC P7 will fit into a Nite-ize Mini pock-its.)

General Household
Turtlelight (4AA stubby) with Terralux TLE-1F 1 watt PR bulb
light must be able to ceiling bounce or be aimed hands free.
I have a 1 watt headlamp but never used it.

Bedside
Civictor V1
Don't need a lot of light to go to the bathroom or raid the fridge.

Bump in the night light
MTE SSC-P7
Brightest light you got with a reasonably wide hotspot.

Car
Dorcy Gelbrite with SMJLED PR bulb
Long runtime, must last till morning,
Not so bright that reflections off engine can blind you,
Strobe and SOS might be useful.
So if I actually have a car I will get a Fenix L2D.

SHOWOFF
1) Stealth
L0D CE/10440 "I just got a tiny pocket light"
Minimak 14500 (1AA minimag SSC P4 DD by 14500) "I find the stock minimag too long"
2) The brightest I got
Elektrolumens My Little Friend 3xSSC P4
MTE SSC P7
EDIT replaced by Elektrolumens M@g 3C P7 & Elektrolumens EDC-P7 /EDIT

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

Keychain Light: Orb NS Wee
EDC: SF Titan
Almost EDC: TiPD-S
Hiking/Camping: TiS27PD + Mule
Lots of Light/Bump in the Night: 7 P4 +2 AW CLiIon HAIII Mag
Bedside: light varies

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

While I do use many other's in the rotation of the below (with over 30+ lights total), the ones I list may or may not be my favorites, but are the ones I seem to end up using more often than others:

EDC (Work)
Surefire E1B

EDC (Regular)
Novatac 120P

Full Time Glove Box Resident
Maglite 3D w/ElektroLumens MT-III drop-in

General house, knockaround
Deree CL1H

Tactical by bed
Surefire L1

Lantern (Emergency, Long Running Lamp)
Elektrolumens Blaster 1D (40+ hours of 60 lumens on one D-cell battery, tailstanding).

"Nighttime stroll/hike"
6P w/Malkoff M60

Search, Rescue, Responding to Burglar Alarm
AE Xenide 25W

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

AAA EDC: LOD Q4

Backup for EDC: P1D CE

Backup for Backup EDC: E01

Allrounder: VB-16, Dexlight X1, MiniMag with Led4more upgrade, see here: http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showpost.php?p=2471161&postcount=21

Headlamp: H30 ( in a few days:naughty

OMG: Quad P4 made by Icarus @ 1 Amp and 6x 17670 ( i always have a grin on my face fiering up and never will forget the cop i showed the light " Holly sh**" he said and couldn't believe it and looked sad at his Magcharger)


MfG Mr.Urahara

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

AAA keychain lights: L0D Q4 x2
EDC: SF E2DL Dual output
Multi Level LED: L2D Q5
Bump in the night light: SF G3 incan
Headlight: Petzl Myo XP
Plus a couple of 6 and 12 volt spotlights.

Re: what are your categories of "must-have" lights, and specific light recommendation

Quickbeam once made a similar thread. But I think he included a few too many categories. Despite that, it was a great thread. A good Primer for newbies to CPF.

Here's what I'd pick.....

1AA LED Light ~ Two types of lights come to mind. Higher output models that can compete reasonably well with lights that use CR123 cells. Such models would include the Q5 versions of the Nitecore Defender Infinity and Fenix L1D. (Don't own either one.... yet. ). The other type would be battery vampires geared more for runtime than output. Such as the old CMG Infinity and newer Gerber Infinity Ultra task lights.

2AA LED Light ~ My two personal favorites are my Mini-Mag w/ 1watt NiteIze drop-in and my Rayovac 3watt model. The former has a Maglite pen clip from their accesory kit, attached. And the tailcap is from the NiteIze 3-LED combo kit. (Not the most economical way of improving a stock Mini-Mag). The latter is stock, comes with a nice pocket-carry clip already attached, and a momentary tailcap switch. The switch rotates in place a bit, but that's the worst thing I can say about the light.

1AAA LED Light ~ Hands down, it would have to be my Fenix L0D. Variable output makes it perfect for a variety of situations. From using low-mode for going to the bathroom at night, without waking up others in the house. To using high-mode for checking around your car, after leaving a late-night dinner-party where a larger light might look out of place.

LED Headlamp ~ Only own one so far; a multi-LED no-name brand from China that runs off of 3AAA cells. It works surprisingly well.

Tactical ~ Own so many of these, not sure where to begin. My Surefire C2 was my first Surefire model. My Surefire L4 is still an awesome light if a floody beam with no hotspot is desired. Nearly all of my 2xCR123-based lights would fall into the "Tactical" category. Still, you can forget about temporarily blinding an attacker with a blast of light to the eyes. Most you'll likely to get is a split-second of extra time. They'll never advertise it, but the 2AA Mini-Maglite was originally made to be used as a kubaton.

Lights for throw ~ My Tiablo A9S Q5 is one of my all-time favorite lights! Not only does it have excellent throw, but very useful sidespill too! I modified mine by taking off the anti-roll feature. (Kept the lower, thick rubber ring on the light though). And I bought a forward clickie designed for the A8 and A9 models at Lighthound.com. Best $20 investment I ever made! The forward clickie that Lighthound sells for these lights is one of the best I have ever experienced on any light! A good budget-alternative would be the 2C Lowes Task Force model. I believe it uses a Q2, but not 100% sure. Hotspot not nearly as bright as on my A9S, but that's expected as the Lowes model is much cheaper in price.

Screaming Bright Light ~ A category that should be included. Mine would be my Surefire M6. Don't use it often. But when I do, the ouput is like having a mini Sun in your fist.