Small but brighter than Tec 40 or Poly stinger?

I posted I was looking for a small but powerful light but I should have been more specific. I now use a Princeton Tec 40 and a recharable Streamlight Poly Stinger for going to and from my deer stand in the dark. I want to stay away from lithium batteries because and of price and getting them. Alkaline or recharable would be better for me. I want small but BRIGHT. Walking in the woods in the dark it tough if the light isn's that good! Ant ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Jeff

OK Jeff B.:

The standard qualifying questions at this point would be:

1. How long a run time do you need between battery changes or charges?

2. Do your want a preset spot, a preset flood, or an adjustable light?

The "brighter than a Polystinger" requirement for a small light may be difficult. I don't have a polystinger, but I suspect it approximates a rechargeable Surefire 8X in brightness. I sold the 8X in part because my PT Surge is brighter, longer running, and reasonably compact.

Depending upon your size, brightness, and beam shape requirements I suspect that a Surge is a good choice for you.

If you want a slightly more compact light and want a small, tight hotspot, the Ikelite PC6AA light might satisfy you. I read posts by CPF'ers who sold this light because the beam was too narrow for their tastes.

Look at the Underwater Kinetics SL4 - 4 C cells (rather than 8AA cells). Side by side in pairs. I have an SL6 that is quite bright, but it's 1 C cell longer (and heavier).

Cheers,

Richard

The SL4 is already quite heavy for me (in regards to it's size. I was thinking of getting the replacement Lamp assembly for the SL6 and making a torch from there... maybe from AA batteries? something like the Surge design..

Originally posted by Jeff B.:
....Walking in the woods in the dark it tough if the light isn's that good! Ant ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Jeff

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">I second Lemlux on the Surge and Rhess on the SL4. I own and have used both lights. The SL4 has a relatively narrow, but very intense beam. The Surge is more flexible with an adjustable focus beam that maintains fairly decent characteristics through a moderate range of focus. The Surge is lighter but field changing 8 AA's and removing, loading and replacing its battery caddy can be cumbersome. Field changing the SL4's 4C batteries is much simpler, especially when you take a little time to master UKE's unique battery placement technique. It may appear difficult at first, but after a few times it's easy and convenient.

Based on your description, and especially if you are going far into the wild, in addition to at least one change of batteries I would suggest a spare bulb and a minimum of one, and preferably two backup lights. I don't know the time frame involved, but you can get approximately three hours of diminsihing but serviceable illumination from either light. Of course, the definition of "serviceable" is subject to individual interpretation.

One of the bright LED lights would be a useful adjunct. You might consider the Inova X5, the 2AA LS if you can get one, the Streamlight 4AA LED, or even the CMG Reactor, though excellence there is the luck of the draw. The Inova takes lithium 123's, but you get 5-6 hours of decent bright light in a very small package with only a 7% decrease in brightness in the first 3 hours. I would strongly suggest lithium AA's in the LS and if you get the Reactor you almost must use lithium AA's to get proper performance. There really are times when lithiums are cost and situation-effective, and these lights are relatively economical because are long burning. If size and weight are not a consideration I suggest the Expedition 1400 or 1900, or the LW 3000 or even the 4000 if you don't mind a heavy 3D light that burns longer than the lifespan of some small animals! Some of our modder's LED lights are extremely bright, but at the expense of relatively short run times.

Good luck hunting,
Brightnorm

Since you already have a Tec 40, you already have a compact light with many options for batteries and bulbs.

I'm running a KPR103 ($1.29 @ Radio Shack) in my Tec 40 with NiMH AAs. It is REALLY bright and uses really cheap battery power.

Your quote: "I want small but BRIGHT."

Smaller than the Tec 40?
Brighter than the Tec 40 with REALLY bright bulb?

I own a Brinkmann LX that is somewhat smaller than the Tec 40 and is REALLY bright, but it uses expensive, hard to get bulbs and expensive batteries too.

BTW - whatever you get, I'd think you'd want an LED for a backup light (like an Infinity Blue-Green). Bulb based lights will burn out, usually at inconvenient times.

It's difficult to get any non-lithium light that is *smaller and brighter* than Tec40 (NiMH/3-cell bulb) or PolyStinger.

Alan

Concurr with Alan - good luck in your search, you're going to need it..... The Tec40 is about the smallest and brightest you're going to get with alkalines.

What is the purpose of the KPR103 bulb? Is
it so I can use nimh batteries? Will it give me the same brightness,
less, or more? I am assuming the nimh reason is for recharging, right?
So many questions!!! Thanks, Jeff

The KPR103 bulb is a 3cell bulb that works well with the lower voltage of 4 NiMH cells. I find a KPR103 with NiMH in my Tec40 is brighter than a regular Tec 40 (HMP20 bulb) with 4 alkalines. I haven't measured run time, but it's probably less with NiMH. Bulb life is probably less, too. Carry a spare. Get 8 NiMH cells and rotate them. Get a Rayovac PS4 or Maha smart charger, too.

Jeff B. wrote: "I am assuming the nimh reason is for recharging"

This partly correct. The NiMH rechargeables are really inexpensive if you use your light a lot. NiMH doesn't have a "memory effect" like the NiCad batteries, so... it is safe to charge them back up even if you've only used them an hour or so. When you leave them in a charger (like the Maha) that will maintain them at peak freshness until needed, then you are always starting out with completely fresh batteries.

But this is only part of the "bright light equation". NiMH operate at a slightly lower voltage then alkalines. NiMH is nominally 1.2v per cell where alkalines are nominally 1.5v per cell. So, in a 4 AA light (like the Tec 40), 4 NiMHs give 4.8v vs. 4 alkalines at 6v. However, NiMH can deliver way more amperage quickly. That is why they are so popular in digital cameras. A digital camera will just eat up alkalines. I know, I started my digital camera out that way. In a high drain device, the NiMH can actually last longer than alkalines (the digicam is certainly like that).

In a Tec 40, the KPR103 bulb is rated at 3.6v so the 4.8v NiMH AAs are "over driving" the bulb. But, this REALLY BRIGHT bulb in the Tec 40 is now a high drain device. So, the NiMH (with their quick deliver amps) are really allowing you to get to that brightness (it isn't just about recharging...that's just a bonus).

You are trading off bulb life for brightness. Like "louie" says above, "carry a spare". In another post, "Alan" reports getting 20 hr. bulb life from the KPR103 in a Tec 40 with NiMH. Your experience could be considerably less with any given bulb.

So...carry a spare ($1.29 at Radio Shack).

The bulb is easy to change in the Tec 40, but, you might want an LED like an ARC AAA or Infinity (Blue-Green) as a back up while you are changing bulbs. Plus, the Infinity (Blue-Green) is only "usefully bright" (not REALLY BRIGHT), so... it won't screw up your night vision or give away your position when you switch it on (not to mention 40 hr battery life on a single alkaline AA and a "bulb" that won't burn out in your lifetime).

I concur with all above, but have you tried XPR103 bulb instead of KPR103? (xenon instead of krypton). RS's catalog says brightness for KPR103 is 2.70 mscp while XPR103 is 4.10 mscp. Both bulbs rated at 3.6V and 800 ma.

More information on XPR103 at here.

Alan

Found some Ray-O-Vac "3D cell" bulbs at WalMart today, they are marked 2-K3 (as in a pair of K3). The bulbs have KPR103 stamped on them.

Price $1.54 for two; about 80 cents each.

That's good. Bright bulbs, 80 cents each.

With the cheap battery energy from rechargeable NiMH, cheap bulbs from WalMart and REALLY BRIGHT Tec 40, I'm pretty darn happy with this setup.

Fooey! My Rat Shack KPR103 just blew out today, after using it for maybe 30 minutes total for a week (on Nexcell NiMHs). Maybe I'll try Mag 3D bulbs, or just go back to PT HMP20. They seemed to last more than a year on NiMHs.

Originally posted by louie:
Fooey! My Rat Shack KPR103 just blew out today, after using it for maybe 30 minutes total for a week (on Nexcell NiMHs). Maybe I'll try Mag 3D bulbs, or just go back to PT HMP20. They seemed to last more than a year on NiMHs.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">I've blown a number of KPR103s this way. I've also used the Nexcells with this mod. I use Powerex now, but I haven't been using this mod enough with them to compare. The reason is the Tec40 ruins rechargeable batteries over time by pushing them in on the bottom. I won't do this to my Powerex batteries.

Hmm... you guys blew a few KPR103. I think the quality of the bulb varies from brand to brand. I use Mag White Star intensively without any problem. I also use KPR103 from Energizer not as intensive as White Star, I still haven't blewn any of them. I don't know who make those KPR103 for RS. My advice is, go for Maglite White Star.

I only use Sanyo 1600, 1700, 1850, Panasonic 1600 and GP1800.

Alan

hi Alan, how much did you pay for the Tec40
I saw them in Api liu street but the price is over $200HKD.
Isn't that a Tec40 is $20USD less?
another Hong Kong CPFers,
Billy

Hi Billy,

I can't remember how much I paid for my first 2 Tec40s. I got my third one from TTS at US$12.99.

Alan

wow, the price is so attractive!
thx