just came out of the flashlight closet

For years my first stop in any dept, hardware, hunting store was the flashlight section. I was unaware of the whole lighting comunity. So I'm kinda a old new guy. Just never saw the light. I have been secretely listening on you guys for about a month and a half.

I am a 42 year old freight conductor that travels from FT Mad Iowa to Downtown Chicago. and I make this trip about every other day/night. So I spend a lot of time in the dark both litteraly and figuratively.

Anyway purchased a small 21 led 3 AAA batt light because it was bright. But I have no way of knowing what kind of output is has. It was kind of a generic in the impulse Isle kind of light.

I would like purchase something that kicks @$$ (been fantasizing about Polarion like a teen thinking about cheerleaders) But Really my board of directors (wife and kids) will surely take issue with a light half the price of my car.

I need to know roughly my starting point (how bright is my current light) then the most bang for my buck while keeping the form factor within reason (I have to walk these trains 6000" to 8000" on rocky ballest at night in unlit rural and city areas.) The weight and size needs to be comfortable. It would be rare for me to take over an hour for this.

I do carry other light for specific things I.E. headlight aimed near my feet and a magnetic task light to work on the cars.

I have seen that you all seem to treat the new guys well and was hoping to get some advise. Thanks in advance

hangn9

Hi, :welcome:

From a pure bang for the buck standpoint, I would have to go with the simple, basic 3D MagLED. It will last for several weeks of your style use on a set of cells, and offers you a good platform for later upgrades.

Otherwise:
What is your budget?
Just what size do you want?
How do you want to power it? (disposable alkaline, rechargable AA's, or Lithium Ion)
Do you want multiple modes?

You can't go wrong with a Fenix light.
but now what you have to decide is what kind of batteries you want...
AA batteries: I would recomend the Fenix LD10 https://www.4sevens.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_65&products_id=466
OR for two AAs you could go with the Fenix LD20 https://www.4sevens.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_65&products_id=362

CR123 batteries: I would go with the Fenix PD20 https://www.4sevens.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_65&products_id=360
OR for two CR123 the PD30 is also a great choice/buy https://www.4sevens.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_65&products_id=358

Any of these lights are very bright and a really big bang for your buck. it's hard to find anything this good for this cheap..

Good luck with your search and hope you find one that's good for what you do!!!
:welcome:

:welcome:Give us an idea of what your budget is like, distance of typical objects you encounter, desire of multi-light levels, etc.

Marduke said:

Hi, :welcome:

From a pure bang for the buck standpoint, I would have to go with the simple, basic 3D MagLED. It will last for several weeks of your style use on a set of cells, and offers you a good platform for later upgrades.

Otherwise:
What is your budget? $300 or less
Just what size do you want? 10 lb or less
How do you want to power it? (disposable alkaline, rechargable AA's, or Lithium Ion) would be used frequently prob rechargable
Do you want multiple modes?Not required but would be nice

Click to expand...

thanks

You should consider a HEADlamp. Your hands will be free to keep yourself steady while you do your work.

If I were you, I would get an AA powered Zebralight and run it on rechargeables. It will very adequately and pleasantly light up any confined spaces and small areas like would be found on a train.

Then I would consider a small AA powered handheld flashlight that is VERY bright and can throw a beam for some distance. The above suggestions of the Fenix lights, either the L1d, L2D, or the newer versions now called the LD10 and LD20.

Now that you have these lights, buy yourself a set of quality rechargeable batteries and charger.

If your budget is 300 then you should(in my opinion) get a nitecore D10, its a great sized light and they are many times brighter than your 21 led light use the left over money to get another light or invest in rechargable lithium ion bateries for the d10

:wave:Welcome to the forum

D10 is a pretty good deal, I've seen them for as little as $40, lightly used.

You can get a few HID lights within your price range. Your 21 LED light is probably around 60 lumen at most and runtime is probably up to 1 hour to 50%. The Fenix L2T V2.0 is at least 100 lumen out the front on high and runs around 1 hour on high with alkaline batteries and 2 hours on high with rechargeable AAs. The L0D-CE Q4 is around 60 lumen from 1 AAA battery but runtime is only 18 minutes to with alkaline battery(almost an hour with a rechargeable battery). The N30 is 3200 lumen HID and also has 7 5mm LEDs for closer range use. There are also many lights between the L0D-CE and N30.

How much do you need the light to throw?
How much output will you need?
Runtime?(I'm guessing 1 hour minimal)
Size/Shape?

:welcome:

I would only use a D10 as a backup light.
Walking around in pitch darkness, I would want to carry something that kicks out alot of lumens.
Something like a custom LED Mag, you should be able to pick up the light and have enough $$$ left for a charger and cells.

I dunno, he could get a D10 and a nice ROP (Roar Of the Pelican) for that budget (the latter being a Maglite modified into something like a portable car headlight)

Zebralight H50-Q5, and Fenix TK10

You might want to check out some reviews - here (http://www.light-reviews.com/reviews.html) and in the reviews forum. At light-reviews, by clicking on "model", "lux", "rating" you can re-rank the listings below. So keep clicking on "lux" and you can arrange the reviewed lights from brightest to weakest light.
As has been said, fenix makes some great lights and is now transitioning to a new lineup. Several places have the former models discounted. And Zebralights are definitely worth checking out. Not great throwers, but extremely verstile flood head or hand held lights. You can clip them on your shirt or belt, or a nail on a wall.

One of the great throwers right now (laserlike beam) is the Dereelight DBS. If you need to light up something or someone at great distance, this is your light. One of the more recent flashlight developments has been the introduction of the P7 emitter which is capable of putting out as much as 700-900 lumens. For a well made off the shelf P7, check out Electrolumen's offerings in the CPF marketplace. I think he had a 2D m@g mod with 3 "C" Nimh batteries. There are also several chinese P7's available at DX and Kai. A P7 should have enough throw for any of your needs but will also put out a generally broader and brighter beam than other LED lights.

Perhaps a NiteCore D20 (available soon) or Fenix TK20 (available now)

Don't forget to checkout the Olights.

thanks to all for your help. I plan on spending the next day reseaching the lights listed. This will be my first knowledge based light purchase thanks again.

hangn

If you have a Maglite, check this thread.

Search for ROP on this forum and build a ROP-hi.

Check out this one:
http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=177152

And if you want to go wild and spend more:
http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=179644

:welcome:Your story sounds a lot like mine.Before CPF I was always looking for a better flashlight.Now I have quite a few "better" flashlights You may want to hide your wallet I like Marduke's suggestion of a Magled.If you want something smaller you can always go with a 2C Maglite and a 2 cell Magled module(2C Maglites can usually be found at Home Depot for about $16,should be able to find the 2 cell module at most major retailers for $18 or maybe less on sale/claearance)There are quite a few chioces if you are willing to pay $40-$70(or more).Lots of things to consider-throw,runtime,tint,battery type...................Have Fun !

If you're fantasizing about Polarion then you're probably looking for some HIDs. The most bang for your buck HID seems to be the 35W Sam's Club Power on Board light which can be had for as cheap as $30 - $40. Its pretty big in size tho so there's a hit. The next alternative as Gunner suggested is the N30 but if you want something slicker looking then I'd look at the Wolfeyes Boxer series esp the 24W model.

The incan alternative given your $300 budget would be to look out for some used Surefire M6 in CPFM. I've seen them go as low as 240 there. There are options available for making it use rechargeables so its a pretty good light to get.