Need recommendations for first time headlamp purchase

crackedegg · Nov 9, 2008

I am going on a field trip to the Costa Rican rain forest in a few weeks and need to purchase a headlamp.

I need something that has a nice broad range to see what is going on around me while i am walking along with a nice high power beam to see far into the forest.

I just picked up a Coast Tactical focused beam flashlight at a good price and it seems to work very nicely for a concentrated beam so I will be using this as well. This is good when I am not going to be taking pictures/handling insects/writing things down but I will of course be doing all these things so a good headlamp would be nice.

The headlamp I was looking at getting was the PT Apex but am not sure which one of the apex i should get or even if this is the best possibility. I read something on here about upgrading these to make them more powerful which seems like something I could do but voiding the warranty is important but if they usually last past the warranty then it doesnt matter.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Yucca Patrol · Nov 10, 2008

The Apex would be a great all-around headlamp.

Very recently, Princeton Tec has begun shipping new versions with 130 lumens max brightness. These almost certainly perform the same as a modified 60 or 80 lumen version.

If I were in the market today for an Apex, I would simply buy the 130 lumen model and not worry about having to modify it.

yowzer · Nov 10, 2008

Depending on just how far you want you want the spotlight to go, you can save some money by getting a headlamp with a modern 1-watt LED. Mammut TXlite, new EOS with the frosted reflector, Black Diamond Spot, etc. A Tikka XP would be good if Petzl ever gets around to updating the LED in it. For serious throw, it's hard to beat the Black Diamond Icon in the most bang for the buck category.

greenLED · Nov 10, 2008

crackedegg said:
I am going on a field trip to the Costa Rican rain forest in a few weeks and need to purchase a headlamp.

I need something that has a nice broad range to see what is going on around me while i am walking along with a nice high power beam to see far into the forest.

I just picked up a Coast Tactical focused beam flashlight at a good price and it seems to work very nicely for a concentrated beam so I will be using this as well. This is good when I am not going to be taking pictures/handling insects/writing things down but I will of course be doing all these things so a good headlamp would be nice.

The headlamp I was looking at getting was the PT Apex but am not sure which one of the apex i should get or even if this is the best possibility. I read something on here about upgrading these to make them more powerful which seems like something I could do but voiding the warranty is important but if they usually last past the warranty then it doesnt matter.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

:welcome: crackedegg. You'll absolutely love Costa Rica. If you're after any other specific info about CR, PM me and we can chat, as I'm "local" now.

Sounds like you have a good idea of what you're after in terns of beam features.

However, where in CR will you be going to and what exactly are you going to do? A solid suggestion (especially in terms of battery type) depends a lot on the answer to those 2 questions.

hopkins · Nov 10, 2008

Always wondered if a colored LED would let me see the ants better as the swarmed up my legs? A UV? I know...don't stand in the same spot for more than a few seconds to beat the ants:green:

For seeing far and for writing notes the PT Apex should by more than fine.
hint : Buy 2 and sell it for cash :naughty:to the group member who forgot hers.

Need recommendations for first time headlamp purchase

crackedegg

Newly Enlightened

Yucca Patrol

Enlightened

yowzer

Enlightened

greenLED

Flashaholic

hopkins

Enlightened

Similar threads

Latest posts