Woods Walker
The Wood is cut, The Bacon is cooked, Now it’s tim
Following the advice of those on CPF I picked up a L2D Q5 and E01 about a month ago. Did a little review however not a field report yet. Here is the thread.
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/201284
As stated I wanted these lights for outdoor use. I was drawn to the Fenix line based on the advice given here and the weight to runtime and output. So here is my field report from the AT and a local trail.
The E01:
A very nice light. I found myself packing it for a backup to my PT Aurora headlamp in the extended daypack and for a hammock light. Here is a photo of the E01 doing its job under my Hammock rain fly. The crazy thing about this little AAA light is it runs forever in flat regulation. So far I am up to about 7 hours and the light seems the same brightness to my eye.
There was enough light to work under the fly without my headlamp. Was also nice to see my camp at some distance when looking for fire wood etc. Plus using only 1 AAA I didn't feel bad about running the thing for hours on end. I added a little yellow paracord to the light just incase it fell into ground cover. Stands out good and does not add much bulk when inside my pocket.
I ran the E01 for about 6 hours during the weekend trip. The E01 and PT Aurora were placed into my large daypack after the AT trip. However I never did recharge the batteries in the headlamp. I have just got into the LSD batteries and these Energizers were charged some time ago. So I ran thought the primary set and ran down the backups on the AT trip. I forgot this a week later during an 8-mile day hike. Took along the camera to take some photos of woodland critters etc. However I messed up and left the camera on the ground 1.5 miles from the trailhead. It was 8:30 pm and knew 3 miles at night looking for a camera would mean a 10 pm return at best. However had the headlamp and E01 so didn't care. But then I turned the lamp on and seen the poor output. Oh the shame of being a flashlight lover and not having charged batteries.
The Aurora was nearly DOA when I found the camera. With 1.5 miles to return the output was so dim that it only messed with my night vision. Heck even with good batteries the Aurora is not very bright. It was pitch black woods with overcast. So I did the only thing I could. Use the E01 for a primary trail light and turned off the weak headlamp. Sorry for the poor photo but I was not really in the mood to even take this photo. However happy I found my camera to do it.
I know people say the E01 has 6-10 lumens but in the pitch black it seemed brighter than inside my home. I would not recommend the E01 for a trail light but was not in a position to be picky. Well the light was enough to get me to the trailhead. I used it for about an hour. Not the fastest mile in the dark but took things slow. I did add my Fenix lanyard to the daypack just incase I need to do this again. Holding the little light for an hour was not all that fun even with the small amount of yellow paracord.
I still can't believe 7 hours on the same Rayovac alkaline AAA. This is the reason why flat regulation beats higher initial output in the woods. :rock:
The L2D Q5 premium:
Nothing action packed to report from the field. I found the light met all of my expectations and more. I tested it out on the AT and during a night hike with a friend. I didn't really need the light as my headlamps are primary for camp work and for the most part setup camp before dark. During testing on the AT I found low was more than enough in camp. Medium worked good for nearly everthing else. High is almost too high but great for spot lighting critters near camp. Turbo was overkill but may prove useful during my winter pulk sled trips. I will report on this when winter moves in. I did replace the Fenix lanyard with a homemade field lanyard. I made it the same lengh as the newer SF lanyards.
Once again I went with yellow incase I drop the light.
Daytime photo.
nighttime photo.
I added some yellow kevlar line to connect the flashlight to the lanyard. The kevlar line is nearly break proof.
I am going to add a plastic hook or maybe the metal hook from my SF battery holder's lanyard. This way I can remove the field lanyard faster. The lanyard can also be worn around the neck but often I put flashlights worn like this under my jacket or shirt to reduce the chance of hanging myslef.
I like to hang things in trees around camp and the homemade field lanyard works nice for this.
It is good for finding the light at night with your hands. The yellow cord can be seen around the gear that is packed for overnight. Boots turned upside down. TP and water left out under the hammock tarp. Flashlight on top of the pack just incase the headlamp fails and I need to walk into the woods to answer nature's call.
I did use the L2D Q5 during the local night hike with a friend. She forgot her headlamp so loaned out the Aurora. As stated the medium setting was more than enough for trail work. I guess high would be nice if we got off trail but this didn't happen.
Overall I really like these two lights and now feel the need to buy more lights. Not that I really need more. Well maybe I do.
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/201284
As stated I wanted these lights for outdoor use. I was drawn to the Fenix line based on the advice given here and the weight to runtime and output. So here is my field report from the AT and a local trail.
The E01:
A very nice light. I found myself packing it for a backup to my PT Aurora headlamp in the extended daypack and for a hammock light. Here is a photo of the E01 doing its job under my Hammock rain fly. The crazy thing about this little AAA light is it runs forever in flat regulation. So far I am up to about 7 hours and the light seems the same brightness to my eye.
There was enough light to work under the fly without my headlamp. Was also nice to see my camp at some distance when looking for fire wood etc. Plus using only 1 AAA I didn't feel bad about running the thing for hours on end. I added a little yellow paracord to the light just incase it fell into ground cover. Stands out good and does not add much bulk when inside my pocket.
I ran the E01 for about 6 hours during the weekend trip. The E01 and PT Aurora were placed into my large daypack after the AT trip. However I never did recharge the batteries in the headlamp. I have just got into the LSD batteries and these Energizers were charged some time ago. So I ran thought the primary set and ran down the backups on the AT trip. I forgot this a week later during an 8-mile day hike. Took along the camera to take some photos of woodland critters etc. However I messed up and left the camera on the ground 1.5 miles from the trailhead. It was 8:30 pm and knew 3 miles at night looking for a camera would mean a 10 pm return at best. However had the headlamp and E01 so didn't care. But then I turned the lamp on and seen the poor output. Oh the shame of being a flashlight lover and not having charged batteries.
The Aurora was nearly DOA when I found the camera. With 1.5 miles to return the output was so dim that it only messed with my night vision. Heck even with good batteries the Aurora is not very bright. It was pitch black woods with overcast. So I did the only thing I could. Use the E01 for a primary trail light and turned off the weak headlamp. Sorry for the poor photo but I was not really in the mood to even take this photo. However happy I found my camera to do it.
I know people say the E01 has 6-10 lumens but in the pitch black it seemed brighter than inside my home. I would not recommend the E01 for a trail light but was not in a position to be picky. Well the light was enough to get me to the trailhead. I used it for about an hour. Not the fastest mile in the dark but took things slow. I did add my Fenix lanyard to the daypack just incase I need to do this again. Holding the little light for an hour was not all that fun even with the small amount of yellow paracord.
I still can't believe 7 hours on the same Rayovac alkaline AAA. This is the reason why flat regulation beats higher initial output in the woods. :rock:
The L2D Q5 premium:
Nothing action packed to report from the field. I found the light met all of my expectations and more. I tested it out on the AT and during a night hike with a friend. I didn't really need the light as my headlamps are primary for camp work and for the most part setup camp before dark. During testing on the AT I found low was more than enough in camp. Medium worked good for nearly everthing else. High is almost too high but great for spot lighting critters near camp. Turbo was overkill but may prove useful during my winter pulk sled trips. I will report on this when winter moves in. I did replace the Fenix lanyard with a homemade field lanyard. I made it the same lengh as the newer SF lanyards.
Once again I went with yellow incase I drop the light.
Daytime photo.
nighttime photo.
I added some yellow kevlar line to connect the flashlight to the lanyard. The kevlar line is nearly break proof.
I am going to add a plastic hook or maybe the metal hook from my SF battery holder's lanyard. This way I can remove the field lanyard faster. The lanyard can also be worn around the neck but often I put flashlights worn like this under my jacket or shirt to reduce the chance of hanging myslef.
I like to hang things in trees around camp and the homemade field lanyard works nice for this.
It is good for finding the light at night with your hands. The yellow cord can be seen around the gear that is packed for overnight. Boots turned upside down. TP and water left out under the hammock tarp. Flashlight on top of the pack just incase the headlamp fails and I need to walk into the woods to answer nature's call.
I did use the L2D Q5 during the local night hike with a friend. She forgot her headlamp so loaned out the Aurora. As stated the medium setting was more than enough for trail work. I guess high would be nice if we got off trail but this didn't happen.
Overall I really like these two lights and now feel the need to buy more lights. Not that I really need more. Well maybe I do.
