Newbie- Nitecore D10 or Fenix L1D

I have been looking at lights forever trying to find the perfect match. I have come down to these 2 lights. I want something that I can carry in my pocket and I want a light to hunt with. (get to my stand and to track the blood trail after dark) I am a little concerned with the piston style switch of the D10 but any other advice to a newbie would be very much appreciated.
I have been cruising this site for a number of months and have learned alot from all of you. I never realized that there were others that had the same love of lights as that of myself...

I don't know the Nitecore, as I don't trust that piston drive either. In theory it's a good thing, but I think that in practice I preffer the clicky! I havan't had one in my hands though...

My L1D is a great light. I suppose you mean L1D if you write it, because there's an LD10 now, same light but "renewed", which means new design and new circuit. Perhaps you get a good offer on an L1D now?

The L1D is quite bright even on high, turbo is a luxury. If you want to go hunt with it, you may consider getting a red filter for it. I use it at night to go to... the toilet!

You don't have a light yet? One year ago, I only had the Maglites with the Magled drop-ins installed. See below what CPF can do to you (and your wallet:mecry... Buy ONE light and RUN AWAY, before it is too late!!!

Greets,

Henk :welcome:

Get the D10, I have both lights you mentioned and the D10 is my favorite. although I'm a flashlight newb I'd be willing to bet the piston drive will outlast the clicky switch considering it is just a metal tube that holds the battery, doesn't seem like much can go wrong with that.

I am waiting for the order from 4sevens.com. Among other flashlights I have ordered is the Nitecore D10. I have the Fenix L1D since last winter and it will be interesting to compare them. The biggest drawback with the L1D is the slipper surface, and therefore I like the design of the D10 with the serious knurling. Also I don't like the L1D misses a momentary function. But the D10 has. The stepless brightness seems to be a nice function as well.

Regards, Patric

I'm VERY fond of my D10. As long as you do a bit of basic maintenance on the piston when you get it (clean off old lube, apply some light oil/lube, making sure to get it round the O ring, and not on the back end of the piston) it'll treat you very well

I was making a similar decision in considering upgrading from my L1D-CE to a single AA light with a Q5 emitter. Since I already have an L1D and an L2D - although both are the original P4(?) emitter I was swayed to the PD20 (a CR123 powered light) just to be able to have a Q5 head that could be swapped between the bodies plus a compact high output light.

In my estimation (note I do not own a D10) either light would do the job but if you are hunting, you may want to consider runtime. From what I have read, The L1D has a more efficient circuit and will provide better runtime, for a given light output, on a single AA. Having said that, the D10 can go lower which allows it's runtime to be very impressive, but only if you don't need much light.

I bought my L1D shortly after the Cree LEDs became available and have had no problems with it. Recently I did notice some flickering when accessing any mode except low. A quick clean of the tailcap assembly took care of that.

Also - the user interface is a personal choice but I like being able to select low or hi with just a twist of the head plus it's easy to determine which mode the light will be in prior to turning it on.

Aren't decisions fun?

On the D10 you can go between low and high by quick double press for low and then a quick press and then hold on the 2nd press will jump to high, in between you can just hold and the light will ramp up or down. This is a great UI, I am smitten with this light.

I own both and I love them both. I guess it depends on how you use it. L1D is brighter(little bit) and runs longer in high modes but D10 will last longer with its much lower low. Strangely enough my D10 seems to have a slightly better throw (to my eyes anyway). As mentioned before, L1D is slippery so it does not feel as sure in hand. I also like having the choice of momentary on and the much quieter on/off activation of the piston in the D10. Clicky switches seems insanely loud when you're trying to be quiet. And remember two lights is one and one is none:candle: so buy both and cover your a$$. I love that saying! You guys are great.

I have both and like them both, but it's the D10 I carry everyday.:welcome:

According to what I have read the Nitecores, as well the D10 and D20, are not really as bright as Fenix with the same stated lumens. The D10 has stated 130 lumens which isn't as bright as the 120 lumens of the L1D. The runtime is also shorter. I don't think this would be a large issue, however. I am using recheargable AA cells and if the flashlight runs somewhat shorter time it will not be a problem.
The most important is if I really like the holding and find it's comfortable to use.

Regards, Patric

D10 (AA) and EX10 (123) are very popular lights right now and their popularity speaks volumes about how well they work. The Nitecore products are also better made lights and are regarded as good value for their feature set. Although clicky switches rarely fail, they are known for a slightly higher failure rate, particularly the forward clicky. The piston drive eliminates the point of failure in the switch by moving the electrical contact to an interior sliding metal tube that contacts the head to complete the circuit instead of completing the circuit within the switch.

I can't comment on the Nitecore. I have never tried it. I love the P1D though (if you would concider cr123 that is). Actually the P1D can be used with momentary on. If the head is unscrewed so that the light just goes out by pressing the head and body together momentary on is achieved while the pressure is applied. With a little practice this is very useful and easy to do with one hand.

I have both and it would be hard for me to choose one over the other but if I had to choose I think I would choose the Nitecore D10 because it has a very long running low, great knurling, can fuction properly on Li-ion batteries, and I think the piston is less likely to fail than a clickie switch.

On the other hand, the Fenix L1D or LD10 can be used on the P2D or PD20 battery tube for use with CR123 batteries when in freezing tempertures. You can change the brightness level quickly and easily and the battery tube is very thick and duriable.

I agree that you should buy both, but first you should get the Fenix, unless a super-low is really important; then get the D10 first. You're gonna like both of them a lot!

Well, I think my only solution is to buy both (eventually) I think the first one will be the D10 (birthday present) and then for Christmas...it will probably change by then.

Zendude said:

I own both and I love them both. I guess it depends on how you use it. L1D is brighter(little bit) and runs longer in high modes but D10 will last longer with its much lower low. Strangely enough my D10 seems to have a slightly better throw (to my eyes anyway). As mentioned before, L1D is slippery so it does not feel as sure in hand. I also like having the choice of momentary on and the much quieter on/off activation of the piston in the D10. Clicky switches seems insanely loud when you're trying to be quiet. And remember two lights is one and one is none:candle: so buy both and cover your a$$. I love that saying! You guys are great.

Click to expand...

I agree - the L1D-Q5 is brighter, but if you can live with a debugged D10 piston UI, the piston should provide a longer life than a switch. However all 3 of my NiteCore lights give out some sort of a sound when turning on/off.

One caveat, on the D20, I do notice some small amount of flickering as the battery voltage drops. I have yet to measure the 2xAA voltage during the flickering, but it appears that the regulator has difficulty at some point in the discharge voltage ramp.

Gary123 said:

D10 (AA) and EX10 (123) are very popular lights right now and their popularity speaks volumes about how well they work. The Nitecore products are also better made lights and are regarded as good value for their feature set. Although clicky switches rarely fail, they are known for a slightly higher failure rate, particularly the forward clicky. The piston drive eliminates the point of failure in the switch by moving the electrical contact to an interior sliding metal tube that contacts the head to complete the circuit instead of completing the circuit within the switch.

Click to expand...

I'm not sure I agree with Nitecore having better build quality. All the Fenix lights I've bought(5) have been flawless in craftmanship and stout almost to a fault(how thick does the aluminum have to be?). I've seen a couple threads about the PD lights having structural failures because the housing was too thin(still not sure how that could happen just by threading the head on or normal use though). Don't get me wrong, I geek out over my D10 like no other light but it's no Ra Twisty.

The D10 can be difficult to operate if you have ANY arthritis in your hands!:mecry:

I have both and I like better the L1D because you can decide before switching it on whether you want low level or full blast. The UI of D10 is good if you are awake but in the middle of the night I tend to get too much light while I fumble with the switch.

I have an early model of the L1D CE that is still working great for me, meeting my needs quite well. What I would like to know is whether the Nitecore D10 (or maybe the latest version of the L1D) represent so much of an improvement over what I have now that I should consider upgrading to one or the other at this time?

My impression so far is that the answer is that although these lights are improved, with better emitters, runtime, max brightness, features, etc., the differences are not yet that great to make upgrading essential. Maybe wait another year or so?