Shout out to the Aeon!

Here's an odd flashlight experience. We went skiing yesterday and the weather just didn't cooperate. We picked the twilight session. The afternoon runs were ok. Little bit of rain, warm weather, and traffic created ice patches and really thin ice/snow surface area where you can almost see the ground. Still cool, we just avoided them. Then had a break at 4PM, and lift resumed at 6PM...

This was when it became ugly. The terrain became so foggy from halfway to top that visibility was like 10' at best. While on the lift, I couldn't even see the 2nd chair in front of me. Remember the ice patches and the thin surfaces? Those were my concerns. As far as hitting other people, as long as they're moving, you can see their silhouettes so you can avoid them. But if they're down, it's also a problem.

When me and my kids (12 and under) reached the top, my first thought was to wait it out. Maybe the fog will ease up. Then I remembered I have my Aeon on my neck! So I tried to experiment. I put the Aeon on the the side of head and a bit on top of my ear. The ski mask pressed it against my head holding it in place, and I angled in such a way that it's lighting the ground. When I shook my head and it was still in place, I told my kids to follow me down. It was awesome!

That thing lit enough distance in front of me for me to yell out where the danger was. Then people (that were down) that saw us coming were just amazed at my setup. Although I have a feeling they didn't know it was just a flashlight because I heard one say how my mask was cool. I turned it off when I reached the bottom... didn't want to give out the secret ;-). One guy saw me setting it up on the terrain and said it looked like a James Bond gadget.

What amazed me more was I didn't have to change the battery last night. It was using the same battery it came with when I got it early this year. Although it wasn't turned on the entire time, I used it for at least 5 runs for 2 hrs... and it was a long run.

I was so thankful I had my Aeon with me!

Curse you, you're going to make me buy one. I already have enough CR123 lights!

Cool story though. You would've spent far more than the price of an Aeon on repairing broken equipment -- or a broken limb.

deusexaethera said:

Curse you, you're going to make me buy one. I already have enough CR123 lights!

Cool story though. You would've spent far more than the price of an Aeon on repairing broken equipment -- or a broken limb.

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You're in luck. The Aeon uses CR2 ;-).

I think I would have just taken the chair back down. :green:

olrac said:

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+3

Dan FO said:

I think I would have just taken the chair back down. :green:

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+2!

vb14,

Did you use low or high mode?...or a combo of both?

Dan FO said:

I think I would have just taken the chair back down. :green:

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Do they let you do that? I've been to every mountain in the Vancouver BC area, and I don't think I've ever seen anyone ride a lift down. Plus there does not seem to be any way to load onto a down chair.

MKLight said:

vb14,

Did you use low or high mode?...or a combo of both?

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I used high mode all the time. My kids also played with it on high going up.

Dan FO said:

I think I would have just taken the chair back down. :green:

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Qoose said:

Do they let you do that? I've been to every mountain in the Vancouver BC area, and I don't think I've ever seen anyone ride a lift down. Plus there does not seem to be any way to load onto a down chair.

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If you didn't get off the lift to start with, I guess that's ok. But if you got off, then had a change of heart, I don't see a way to go back to the lift. The "landing platform" is so steep it will be hard to go back even with just your ski boots on.

But believe me, between boredom (the ride going up took what seems like forever) and the numbness of your butt, you will not want to stay another minute on it.

vb14 said:

You're in luck. The Aeon uses CR2 ;-).

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Heh.

vb14 said:

I used high mode all the time. My kids also played with it on high going up.

If you didn't get off the lift to start with, I guess that's ok. But if you got off, then had a change of heart, I don't see a way to go back to the lift. The "landing platform" is so steep it will be hard to go back even with just your ski boots on.

But believe me, between boredom (the ride going up took what seems like forever) and the numbness of your butt, you will not want to stay another minute on it.

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Interesting. All the lifts I see have a automatic stop gate that your feet will hit if you stay on. Plus I don't think the lift attendants would keep it running, they might have to stop it, ask you, and then maybe send you off.

+1 on the Aeon.

I got my Aeon for Christmas and just love it! I loaned it to my father the other night. He liked it, liked it so much I was worried about getting it back. Might have to tell him to get his own

The Aeon is an amazing light in a small form factor.

Qoose said:

Interesting. All the lifts I see have a automatic stop gate that your feet will hit if you stay on. Plus I don't think the lift attendants would keep it running, they might have to stop it, ask you, and then maybe send you off.

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There could probably be one in there too. I was just focusing on how to get off that chair I didn't notice it .

Skeptic said:

+1 on the Aeon.

I got my Aeon for Christmas and just love it! I loaned it to my father the other night. He liked it, liked it so much I was worried about getting it back. Might have to tell him to get his own

The Aeon is an amazing light in a small form factor.

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Come on dude, he's your dad. Think of it as an opportunity to get that blue titanium one for yourself :devil:.

I dunno. Looking at the specs, it doesn't hit the 200-lumen mark. If I got one, I would be buying a light that isn't as good as the ones I have. The Fenix P1D is pretty small already; I'm not sure this is worth the money.

Oh this is definitely not the brightest light out there. It's not even the brightest light I have. But the terms "good", "worth it", etc are all relative.

vb14 said:

Oh this is definitely not the brightest light out there. It's not even the brightest light I have. But the terms "good", "worth it", etc are all relative.

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+1 These are solidly built, reliable lights built by Enrique - someone who is highly regarded on CPF and offers quick support if needed. The Aeon uses a slightly smaller battery (CR2 vs CR123) than the P1D and a slightly larger than the Raw (CR2 vs 10280 rechargeable). On average, the other lights can be brighter, but that depends on how you order the Raw. The P1D pretty much comes one way...depending which model/year is purchased. All lights are 'good' and worth it....something like the Aeon or Raw are more of a specialized product, while the P1D is less so...although some of the BEST retailers in the world sell it (inc 4Sevens and Lighthound), you have little to no possibility of contact with the creators of it. That said, I have each of the models noted above and they all perform flawlessly. Best of luck!

Some more random thoughts...some lights specs aren't as they seem. On a positive note, if you look at Surefire, they're lumens ratings ard lower than what you actually see in real world use. CPF has some awesome reviews showing Surefire, Muyshondt's lights, Lummi, Fenix....etc. These should help make an educated purchase. Good luck!

deusexaethera said:

I dunno. Looking at the specs, it doesn't hit the 200-lumen mark. If I got one, I would be buying a light that isn't as good as the ones I have. The Fenix P1D is pretty small already; I'm not sure this is worth the money.

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Please, don't try to compare a Fenix to a custom work of art. That's blasphemy at its finest.

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deusexaethera said:

I dunno. Looking at the specs, it doesn't hit the 200-lumen mark. If I got one, I would be buying a light that isn't as good as the ones I have. The Fenix P1D is pretty small already; I'm not sure this is worth the money.

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:ironic: Someone always pulls the Fenix card when discussing higher end lights (Surefire vs. Fenix, anyone?).

I'm not encouraging a purchase for you one way or the other, but some food for thought:
"Better" is a wholly subjective term. You can get an HID spotlight that produces roughly 8 times the output of an Aeon, is about 50 times the size (by volume), and for at a cost of probably double of what an Aeon retails for. Does that make the larger and brighter light "better"? The answer is an unequivocal no; the value, or "betterness" inherent to a light, or any product, for that matter, is determined entirely by what it's intended application is.

Now, as for the bar of only 200 lumens, consider this: The Fenix P1D is a relatively small light. To get 200 lumens out of the LED you're looking at about 900mA to the LED, about 1000mA if you're referencing "out the front" lumens (see page 8 on the XR-E datasheet for a graph of lumens vs. current). At that level of current the forward voltage of the LED is roughly 3.7 volts (see page 7 of the previously linked datasheet); that means that the LED alone is consuming just about 3.7 watts (!) of power. This isn't taking into account driver efficiencies, battery efficiencies, or anything of that nature, which all produce heat and create greater overall power consumption. In a light of that size, there is no where near enough thermal mass to be removing all that heat from the LED and you will be damaging the diode through frequent use.

If you want a pocket rocket with no regards for the longevity of what you're using (ie: you have no issue with replacing it when the need arises), then you've probably made the right choice with what you have right now.

However, arbitrarily calling your light "better" than any other is a mistake, particularly when you're comparing against high quality, American made products that have had a great deal of care put into every aspect of their design in order to optimize for a high overall system efficiency, with attention paid to the physical constraints of the LED, driver, and battery, as well as longevity of product, runtime, usability, durability and quality of manufacture, etc. etc. Respectfully, I think you have your labeling of what you're calling a "gadget" quite reversed.

The SureFire vs. Fenix debate is one that holds little water, and I hope that it doesn't spill over into another form here. There is a tangible difference between all these sorts of lights and it isn't something superficial due only to brand recognition or similar.

All of that being said, this really is a discussion that has little to do with the original purpose of the thread. Changing gears and getting back to the topic at hand...

vb14: I'm certainly glad to read that you're getting some good use out of your light! It's always nice to hear of how folks are putting their lights through their paces, and I'm glad all of you made it down the slopes safely. Perhaps worth consideration would be carrying a spare cell or two in your jacket just in case you ever get stuck some place inconvenient in the dark and run out of juice.