Tech light

sweetlight · Sep 3, 2008

Hey there, this place is strarting to get addicting.

I am looing to get Dad a new light for him to use at work. He is an air conditioning tech and likes to carry a small light in a holster. He is using a 2 AA incad mag. I would like to get him either a streamlight microstream or a Fenix 1lt. Would these be good choices for him to use as a holtster light?

He uses it mainly indoors, in fairly close quarters, like a dimly lit closet or attic to see things between 1 and 5 feet away. I guess I'm looking for something small and bright but don't need overkill. I like the Fenix cause it has two modes. But streamlight is even smaller and is rated pretty bright.

Whats do you recommend as a good small holster light?

sol-leks · Sep 3, 2008

the microstream is too small to fit in a holset and he will often wish for something brighter. I mean if he wants to drop the holster altogether then the microstream is a fine light. However, I think an L2T might be jsut right for him because its just about the smae size as his old incan mag and would probably fit in his old hoster quite well. Plus the hi mode is handy. If uoi like the streamlights, maybe the streamlight stylus pro might be up his alley.

StarHalo · Sep 3, 2008

If you think your dad could manage a multi-mode flashlight, the Fenix L1D is a great choice. Many times brighter than a MiniMag, and on only one AA battery.

superflytnt · Sep 3, 2008

sol-leks said:
the microstream is too small to fit in a holset and he will often wish for something brighter. I mean if he wants to drop the holster altogether then the microstream is a fine light. However, I think an L2T might be jsut right for him because its just about the smae size as his old incan mag and would probably fit in his old hoster quite well. Plus the hi mode is handy. If uoi like the streamlights, maybe the streamlight stylus pro might be up his alley.

I disagree. I think that the L1T on high might be too bright for most of what he needs a light for and the Microstream is brighter than the L1T on low. It is also small enough, and has a very nice clip, that he will always have it with him (he won't need a holster). If you include a 4-pack of NiMH rechargeables and charger you'll still be under the price of an L1T. The Microstream is far brighter than the Mag, has better runtime, a better beam and is small enough to be with him always. I have both lights and that's my view................

Gunner12 · Sep 3, 2008

The L2T V2.0 or L1T V2.0 should be good choices because they are simple to use and are a good size.

PhantomPhoton · Sep 3, 2008

I think for a holster light you should stick with a 2xAA light. 1AAs can be rather short and disappear down into a holster which are then a pain to fish out. There are a couple nice ones out there.
Fenix has the E20 for a very decent price. It will be far brighter and run longer than a minimag. You might also consider the Fenix TK20 for a beam that is much closer to the incan he is used to.
Other great high performance 2xAA lights from Olight, and one coming soon from Nightcore.

superflytnt · Sep 3, 2008

quote=PhantomPhoton;2613996]I think for a holster light you should stick with a 2xAA light. 1AAs can be rather short and disappear down into a holster which are then a pain to fish out. There are a couple nice ones out there.
Fenix has the E20 for a very decent price. It will be far brighter and run longer than a minimag. You might also consider the Fenix TK20 for a beam that is much closer to the incan he is used to.
Other great high performance 2xAA lights from Olight, and one coming soon from Nightcore.[/quote]

Having worked in HVAC I can say, with confidence, that an E20 will be way more light than he will need/want most of the time. It sounds like he's used to a holster carried light but I'll bet you that if you give him a Microstream and ask him to use it for a week he'll really want to keep it. I love my L1T but, for that use, I constantly find myself switching between high and low and wishing for a medium. The Microstream is that medium, good for anything up to 20 feet and so tiny that it'll fit into any nook/cranny. Just based on my experience, the MS is very well suited to HVAC work..................

shomie911 · Sep 3, 2008

The Microstream is one of my favorite lights, your dad will love it.

It has plenty of light for almost all tasks except for long range outdoor stuff.

EricTarini · Sep 3, 2008

There are a lot of good choices. You might want to keep in mind that one-cell flashlights are often a little hard to hold; two-cell flashlights give a better grip. When I saw that my boiler repairman had a dim, yellow-beamed 2AA red Minimag incan, I went to WalMart and bought him a red 2AA Minimag LED and gave it to him when he came back to finish the job later in the week. I thought it would be a good intro to LED lights; very familiar looking (it's a little longer than the incan), but with better brightness, tint, and runtime. He really liked it and it fit his Minimag holster, of course.

Other options are the Energizer Hard Case 2AAA inspection light from Lowe's for about $15; it's a Cree, but not as bright as some, and with a fairly ugly beam, not that most people whose only experience is with incans would notice. Being a 2AAA, it doesn't take up much space.

And I really like and highly recommend the Coleman 2AA Cree Xlamp (only available from WalMart) for $24.88. It's a forward clicky with a very bright Cree; not quite as bright as the Task Force 2C Cree or the Rayovac 4W 3C Cree, but quite impressive with a nice beam. The latter is my recommendation to friends who want to know what they can buy from a brick-and-mortar store, and who don't want to spend ~$50 for a Fenix. It'll be my main LED flashlight gift this Christmas.

GPB · Sep 3, 2008

If he's happy with his current mini-mag, perhaps a terralux LED upgrade would be easier for him to adjust to. It would give him a brighter light with longer battery life in a form factor he's familiar with....all for about 20 bucks.

JoeDizzy · Sep 3, 2008

Another vote for the microstream. Its cheap, runs forever on a single AAA, uses a forward momentary clicky, has a pocket clip and is throwy for such a small light. In small dark confined spaces(such as mentioned) you might even need a diffuser.

In these tight places you don't want too much light reflecting back at you.

Superdave · Sep 3, 2008

The streamlight stylus Pro is a very nice light, i've used it when climbing through my attic and it's not too bright but still plenty for the average user. I used it at work for a while and it fit decently in my AA-mag holster.

Pretty cheap and lasts forever on 2 AAA's it's only 1/2 oz heavier than the microstream and will have a better runtime.

superflytnt · Sep 4, 2008

Superdave said:
The streamlight stylus Pro is a very nice light, i've used it when climbing through my attic and it's not too bright but still plenty for the average user. I used it at work for a while and it fit decently in my AA-mag holster.

Pretty cheap and lasts forever on 2 AAA's it's only 1/2 oz heavier than the microstream and will have a better runtime.

Good point, I almost forgot about it. It sounds like he's used to a longer light so this might ease the transition and it'll get far better battery life than the Microstream while having roughly the same beam, output and that great clip!

This might just be the perfect techie light!

Braddah_Bill · Sep 4, 2008

sol-leks said:
I think an L2T might be jsut right for him because its just about the smae size as his old incan mag and would probably fit in his old hoster quite well. Plus the hi mode is handy. If uoi like the streamlights, maybe the streamlight stylus pro might be up his alley.

A lot of the AC Techs that service our ACs seem to favor the 2AA size lights, so I would also agree that the LT2 would be a good choice. Throw in some Sanyo eneloops and you come up with an excellent *worklight*.

You may to go over the top and throw in a Streamlight Microstream to the mix which he can keep in his top shirt pocket so he can bite down on and go hands free if needed.

An L2T in the holster and a Microstream in the top pocket........ that would be a service techs ultimate set up. :thumbsup:

Bill

Yucca Patrol · Sep 4, 2008

For close in work by someone using both hands with tools, I'd highly suggest you get him a zebralight headlamp instead of a flashlight. Get him the AA battery version.

I've worked on my car in a dark basement garage and never knew that the whole place was not perfectly illuminated.

sweetlight · Sep 9, 2008

Thank you for the responses.

One more question, please. I am going to buy the microstream and the Fenix L1t. The only thing I can't decide is which L1t. They make one that has a lumen rating of 10 on low and 37 on high. And they have another model (I'm thinking its a newer model) that is 16 on low and 98 on high. I'm thinking for my pops needs the 10/37 would be better. Do you agree?

Braddah_Bill · Sep 9, 2008

sweetlight said:
He uses it mainly indoors, in fairly close quarters, like a dimly lit closet or attic to see things between 1 and 5 feet away. I guess I'm looking for something small and bright but don't need overkill.

10 /37 is what I would go with, keeping in mind the comments you made above and it will hang out on his belt in a holster.

Bill

DM51 · Sep 9, 2008

If he is an electrical technician, he will probably need to distinguish between different colors of electric wiring. LED lights can be misleading for this purpose, as the color rendition is inaccurate.

There have been numerous other threads on the color rendition problem, and in fact there is one running at the moment here, where the OP has exactly this problem with telling the difference between wire colors.

An LED light will be fine for him to see his way around in attics, but he may require an additional incandescent light to deal with any wiring he has to attend to.

Gunner12 · Sep 9, 2008

sweetlight;2620086... They make one that has a lumen rating of 10 on low and 37 on high. And they have another model (I'm thinking its a newer model) that is 16 on low and 98 on high. I'm thinking for my pops needs the 10/37 would be better. Do you agree?[/quote said:
The lower lumen one uses the Luxeon III. The brighter one uses the Cree XR-E Q2. The difference is the efficiency of the LEDs, the Luxeon being about half the efficiency of the Cree.

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