Mag 6D or the Double Barrel 8AA?

I was wondering which flashlight would be better to get? i'm looking for a big powerful flashlight right now so just wondering which would give me the most bang for the buck in the long run. It has to be either of these two cause i saw them both at a store for around 50 something canadian each and they look really nice! the DB uses some bi-pin bulb, which makes he hesitant because of longterm use in the future when my bulbs blow up. the mag seems like a very rugged and massive piece of equipment and would be really great for a jaunt around the dark forest. also the bulb is pr based which can be found in any store or radio shack hopefully in that high of a voltage. your input is greatly appreciated. oh yeah and which is the brighter of the two here? cause that 8aa isn't really running them in series.

Someone from one of my favorite cities in all of North America!

There's lots you didn't say, but I'd suggest considering an Underwater Kinetics SL-6. Brigher than the Mag 6D and sort-of fits in the hip pocket. Uses 6C cells but they're folded over so it's only as long as a 3-C light.

Very tight and bright beam.

Check it out at BrightGuy which is where I bought mine.

It's a dive light so it's completely waterproof.

Run time is 3-4 hours (I'm still on my first set of C cells).

It's not a crowbar or hammer--it's a light <smile>.

Also for 8AA use look at the Princeton Tec Surge--lots of people on this forum like it, but I'd rather have a 6-C or 6-D light than an 8AA...but I don't have a Surge. Maybe if I had one, I'd change my mind.

More flood than spot, I also have a Underwater Kinetics D8 which uses 8 D cells--more light, but less reach than the SL6. It's about double the light, a quarter the reach and twice the run time.

Oh, and the D8 (there's also a D4 with the same feature) has TWO lamps that are moved into place in the reflector so you have an online spare.

Cheers,

Richard

Hi, between the two lights you mention, I would say 6DMag is the better one. But will you consider a 6C Mag? it's much much lighter ... if you don't need that extra length of 6D, 6C is the way to go

I am now very happy with my 6C Mag with NiMH rechargable batteries and 5cell Whitestar lamp. The lamp is a little bit overdriven, but the output is great and white! Its output is about 100lumen, by comparing it to my Surefire D3[105lu]. It's very cheap to run and the light it gives is already enough for most situation.

Get a mag, no better option
(this is my first time to 'praise' Mag)

Whitestar lamp? Are they the same as a Mag-num star lamp? I have replacement lamps for my mags and other lights that are Mag-num star lamps...please enlighten me!

[edit]Nevermind...found out the difference already:
Whitestar is the stock maglite bulb that comes with the light.[/edit]

The Mag-num Star is a lamp with a magnifying tip which is supposed to be brighter then the stock White Star lamp. The White Star comes standard in all C & D cell Mag-Lite's and has a teardrop shape (like most PR krypton lamps). The blister pack contains two of them.

(edit: I see you already found out. You can ignore that part now )

FWIW, I have had a couple of Mag-num Star lamps in my 3D Mag and they sucked. The focus is slightly off-center, the filament projects into the beam and the beam is not as round and even as with the White Star. And even though the Mag-num is stated to be 15% brighter, the hotspot of the White Star appeared brighter to me.


Greetings,
Velcro

The Carley Xenon Stars are among the best choices for alkaline cells and Mags.

If you are going to use rechargeables with a Mag, the Carly Krypton Stars with amperages of up to 1.70 are very nice.

Other threads talk about having Carley pot higher amperage Xenon or Halogen bin-pins into high temperature ceramic bases. For example, I am about to purchase Carley 3.50 V 2.30 A 136 Lumen T-1 1/2 bulbs potted into a ceramic PR base for my Mag 3Ds.

lemlux,
Do you have a source other than Carley? TX

tx:

I have tried several W/A T-2 1/4 bulbs that are beautifully bright plugged into Carley 912 PR adapter sockets. The problem is that with the "S" type base used in the DB's, they all have a PR filament height that is so long that the Mag bezel needs to be unxcrewed to almost to the falloff point.

I haven't explored W/A binpin bases that would give a shorter filament height in a Carley 912 adapter.

For a 4 cell Mag you could buy a HPR 5.0 A 1.25 A bulb private labeled for Ikelite by Carley. These are available at some dive shops for around $8.00. You could run either C or D Alkalines or rechargeables. This lamp claims to put out 150% the light of Ikelites optional 5.2 V 1.0 A bulb.

hey, thanks for the additional info on the different maglite bulbs. I also didn't notice much (any?) difference between the two bulbs, but, I'm only using my eyes to judge.

thanks for the tips guys, so i'm gonna go get me a new toy, I'm not going to go diving with it so needing a waterproof light isn't necessary and i like how mags have a back up bulb in the back of their caps, which is pretty well thought out, I'd consider a 6C one but they dont carry it at the store (it's as rare as the 6D one) and i have like 6D ni cads sittin at home doing nothing already. It'll be very useful once i pop in those high amperage bulbs, since i can take the high drain without a prob and night hikes would light up the whole trail.

I have 2 of the Energizer DB8 lights, and two Princeton Tec Surge's. The Surge BLOWS AWAY the Energizer DB8!
www.brightguy.com has them.

BuddTx:

If you use the overdriven W/A 4.8V 1.1A bulb with an otherwise stock DB8AA and alkalines it is brighter and whiter than a Surge.

The stock DB8AA 5.5V 0.70 A bulb is underdriven in the DB8AA.

What's the model # of the W/A 4.8v 1.1A bulb?

I just picked up a DB8AA off eBay and would like to try a different bulb.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by lemlux:
BuddTx:

If you use the overdriven W/A 4.8V 1.1A bulb with an otherwise stock DB8AA and alkalines it is brighter and whiter than a Surge.

The stock DB8AA 5.5V 0.70 A bulb is underdriven in the DB8AA.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

COOL!

I have two of those puppies lying around.

Where would I get a W/A Bulb?

ChrisM:
you want welch allyn; www.welamp.com
part#01307 for your 8aa db.
Larry

ChrisM:
my error. you want www.walamp.com
Larry

Thanks for the info, Larry...
Wow...it better be one sweet bulb for $7.50.

Now, just to clarify, these bulbs are ALSO W/A bulbs and NOT Carley, right?
#01121
#01148
#01278
#01307
#01315

I think I've been getting my Carley and W/A bulbs mixed up in other posts so I'm trying to sort them out as to which ones I want to get. Thanks.

I just looked that up also, cheaper than a SF LA.

ChrisM:
the information i gave you i got from previous CPF posts. the bulb that is alluded to earlier in this discussion is the number i have. i still consider my surge the best bang for the money and size. good luck to you.
Larry

ChrisM:

use this link, http://www.walamp.com/selectionwizard.asp then specify "T-2 1/4" lights and "S" base. You will get a list of lights that you can "rerate" to see what happens to various lights that will fit in the DB's at various voltages.