Need a new D Cell LED light

Hey guys, recently discovered LED and joined this forum. I need a bright LED with good throw for camping, and uses D cells for extended run times.

It seems like there aren't many good lights in this category. The only two being the ugly Husky from Home Depot (which has quality control problems), and the other being a Malkoff drop in for a Maglite (pretty expensive). Does anybody know of any good, bright flash lights that uses D cells?

Also, does anyone have the Maglite with Malkoff drop in? Could someone please comment on the brightness/throw on that? If the performance warrants the price, I might be willing to buy one. Thanks in advance.

:welcome:

There are not many D flashlights outhere that can beat a Maglite in build quality... It feels solid, heavy and reliable in hand, can be used as a self defense weapon.

If you feel Malkoffs or Terralux are a little bit expensive, you can get the KD M*g Q5 Drop-in. Other optional components are SMO reflector and the aspheric lens if you want maximun throw.

There are many reviews of this KD M*g kit, and so far I've read good things about it. I'm not very familiar with Malkoff nor Terralux.

If a Malkoff is out of your price range try the Terralux tle6.

I just got a Malkoff for my 3D Mag...

Well worth it!!!

AWESOME Quality beam, and build

I'd be more inclined towards a D bin P7 (preferably 3.25~3.50v input range) on a H22A heatsink (preferably anodized), it's a relatively simple mod, been done by countless members so far, packs a decent output & can run comfortably on Alkalines due to their voltage sag :thumbsup:

Did I mention decent runtime of those lowly Alkalines? I'm still on the same set of batteries I started with and used it for 4 night shifts already

ebolamonkey3 said:

Hey guys, recently discovered LED and joined this forum. I need a bright LED with good throw for camping, and uses D cells for extended run times.

It seems like there aren't many good lights in this category. The only two being the ugly Husky from Home Depot (which has quality control problems), and the other being a Malkoff drop in for a Maglite (pretty expensive). Does anybody know of any good, bright flash lights that uses D cells?

Also, does anyone have the Maglite with Malkoff drop in? Could someone please comment on the brightness/throw on that? If the performance warrants the price, I might be willing to buy one. Thanks in advance.

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:welcome:

And why your post count is showing 0???


I think the Home Depot 4W Husky is the choice for money. You can always choose the best one, buy a few to test and keep the best, and if you don't like them you can return them all.

I had a malkoff for my mag but didn't particularly like it. Sure it's bright, but too bright for most tasks, and runtime isn't that good with it. Also due to the way reflector is modded focus is slow to do and the head needs to be twisted to almost exposing o-ring to properly focus.

Now I use a ssc'ed MagLED module and think it's a good balance between output and runtime.

jzmtl said:

I had a malkoff for my mag but didn't particularly like it. Sure it's bright, but too bright for most tasks, and runtime isn't that good with it. Also due to the way reflector is modded focus is slow to do and the head needs to be twisted to almost exposing o-ring to properly focus.

Now I use a ssc'ed MagLED module and think it's a good balance between output and runtime.

Click to expand...

It sure would be nice if someone started making those sscp4 mods with the warm white high cre led.

BMF said:

I think the Home Depot 4W Husky is the choice for money. You can always choose the best one, buy a few to test and keep the best, and if you don't like them you can return them all.

Click to expand...

+1 about the Home Depot Husky 4 watt 2D. I am blown away by mine, and find it to be the best performing LED light for the price I have ever bought.

I second the Husky 4W.

You're talkin' $25 for a pretty good thrower with better than average build quality. Just find one where the emitter is centered in the reflector.

Well the 200Lm Cree Husky would certainly be way brighter than a stock MagLED... but what sort of runtime are we talking about here? :thinking:



EDIT: for any interested parties, I noted this CPF thread HERE that covers the 4w Husky including comparative beamshots etc.

metlarules said:

It sure would be nice if someone started making those sscp4 mods with the warm white high cre led.

Click to expand...

There's a feeler thread for U2SUNH binned SSC group buy in marketplace right now, which is pretty warm colored.

Another vote for the Husky. I don't know of another 2D light to compare it to.

I recently bought both a Terralux drop-in for my 3-D-cell Maglite, and one of the Husky 4W lights.

The Husky is definitely brighter. It took me a while to get used to the crazy look of it, but now I like it -- it looks like a light saber. When picking mine, I pulled the three they had off the shelf and examined the LED placement of each before picking the one that was most centered.

I still like the Maglite, perhaps because I've had it for so long, and I love the fact that I'll be able to drop in an even better LED some time in the future.

My advice? Get 'em both!

There is no better throwing light for the money than the HUSKY 2D.
You will be amazed what your $25 buys. As mentioned before, the quality control is terrible. I would buy 2 or 3 that appear centered and pick out the best one. If you get a good one, they are fantastic.

Husky 2D no question about it, as far as Maglite goes, they don't deserve my money. I don't like them at all !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow, one day later and I get so many replies, what a great forum. :twothumbs

I ended up buying a Husky earlier today and it kicks my maglite's butt. I'm pretty pleased with it except that the hotspot shows some irregularities at around 20 feet. But I don't think I'll be taking it back since my HD only had two to begin with and I chose the better aligned one.

I might get an Malkoff for my maglite later on, when I have more money (and when they're in stock). Thanks for the help guys!!

Around here Maglite is not know as a torch manufacturer - rather they are know as a decent host manufacturer!

I have a Malkoff and my advice is this:
If you think they are too expensive then buy one anyway! Sure it will sting you in the wallet at purchase time, but will you still be hurting from the cost after a year or two? Long after the pain of spending is over you will have a premium quality LED light with great output. Malkoff works better than the rest - proper heatsinking for full output even after running for more than two minutes!

You haven't really mentioned much about your requirements - how much run time is acceptable? My 4D Maglite with a single Malkoff drop-in is very bright with a nice tint and runs for about 8+ hours on 10,000mAh NiMH cells.

BTW
Malkoff drop-ins are showing in stock right now for both the 2-3D and the 4-6D models.

For the Maglite Check this thread.

There's also a 2D light at Target which has a panel that lets you change the output. IIRC quality isn't that good though.

:welcome: