Airline Pilot seeks new light, new to cpf, your advice please...

Hi everyone and thanks in advance for your help,

Great posts and LOTS of data. I've just started researching. I need a new light for my preflights.

I've been using an Underwater Kinetics 4AA that I've owned for over 18 years. I used it while a divemaster in Guam on MANY dives attached to my mask. Under water (@3 atmospheres regularly), it was as bright as a much larger pistol grip light. It had a switch issue about 10 years ago and UK replaced the whole instrument for me at no charge (even shipped it back free).

I'm willing to spend up to $50 or so. I'm only a regional pilot so I'm dirt poor and probably will be forever. This means my new light has to come from a company as great as UK and hopefully last another 20 years.

The only reason I'm considering a new light is all the data on this forum that suggests that technology and price is approaching something that will be affordable for me but make my preflights easier and more thorough. Please believe me, my trusty old UK4AA has helped me find BAD things on my jet before I've gone flying so my choice for a new light is important.

Brightness is the priority, spot and flood would be best, but no other programs are necessary. The light must be small, less than 5 inches long, less than 1 inch diameter and TOUGH. AA batteries are easiest for me to find and keep because I use them for other devices, but I'm willing to consider other batteries for amazing light. I only use the light for 5-10 minutes at a time so heat build up after that would not be an issue.

Thanks for your time and thanks for the forum. I'm a closet torch techie I guess because I love all the discussion here. Wish I had the money to spend on lots of toys.

Welcome to CPF flyjetguy!

Most 2AA flashlights are larger than 5", so if you are willing to go a bit bigger, I would recommend the Fenix TK20. It is much brighter than your UK flashlight, and it is a fairly good thrower, which if I understand correctly is good for pre-flight inspections. You won't be able to use it as a dive light, and it doesn't have spot-to-flood but most flashlights can't do that without compromising the beam quality.
You seemed to be emphasizing toughness though, and the TK20 is one of the toughest flashlights out there.

If size is important to you take a look at the 4sevens Quark line. The R2 versions are being closed out and one can be had for around $50. I have one and while it is nowhere near as strong as the TK20, I don't expect it to break either. The Quarks also have the ability to be lego-ed so you have a very versatile flashlight system.
I don't know if it matters, but the Quarks also have a dim low mode that might be dim enough to use in-flight.

All of these flashlights are brighter, smaller, and longer running than your current flashlight.

Hope this helps some.

Danny

4Sevens Quark line or Fenix lights will probably have something right up your alley.

Check out the discounted R2 Quarks and the Fenix LT series.

im an aircraft mechanic, and use my lights for that same reason as well.

i work the night shift and after a few different lights, i find myself using my quark 123-2 R5 for my walkarounds most. i inspect 747 and 777s, and its makes the job alot easier because of its wide hotspot, and wide spill. also no problem lighting up the vertical stabilizer.

for you, i highly recommend the quark AA-2 R5. since your flying regional jets, you really dont need range. wider beam would be better and makes your walkarounds more thorough, quick and easy.

it uses 2 AA, and is a tad bit longer than 5 inches. very slim design. i would also recommend the tactical version.

you can get them at 4sevens.com includes free shipping, good service.
other post recmomended the quark AA-2 R2, which has more throw, but brightest is overall less.

Also, if buying from 4sevens, use CPF8 discount code for a few bucks off.

OK I'm lusting after the Quark 2AA R5 now after the above posts and some more minutes of my life FRITTERED AWAY on the CPF:shakehead

Thanks for the above posts. Still haven't ordered yet....

While the prices might be a bit much for your budget, you might look at SureFire's offerings. With SF's lifetime guarantee, unless you lose the light, you shouldn't ever have to buy another. Plus, they have built their reputation on building rock-solid, reliable lights.

I will say though, nearly all of their lights are CR123 powered--not AA. You might find other companies offering great looking warranties, but keep in mind that SF has been around 30 years now and likely to still be around in the event that you have a problem with your light. A lot of good deals can be found on CPF Marketplace, which will greatly help you with the sticker shock

With all of that being said, I'd recommend a SureFire L1, E1B, E1L, or A2. Any or these four great lights can usually be had for $100 or less on CPFMP (lately I've seen ~$65-110).

-Robert

Most of the lights I would recommend most are beyond your budget. However, within your budget, the Quark 2AA Tactical and the 2AA Fenix lights would be your best bet.

James.....:thumbsup:

Fenix L2D or its newer cousin LD20...Solid, dropable, dunkable, easy UI, etc. Now that you're a member of CPF, use the coupon codes for whichever website you buy from. http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=181841 :welcome:

Read your post and didn't see anything saying you absolutely needed 2 AA lights, so how about 1 AA light? Lights that are small, use 1 aa and are easy to carry that I can recommend are:

Lumapower Connexion X2

It's 50 bucks, takes a single AA, very simple with 3 modes (low, med, hi). Glow in the dark head and tailcap. My favorite light by far. Best of all, it's small and easy to keep in your pocket or on a small sheath on your belt.

What is the requirement for your airline, like the multiple cells, the equivalent of 2 D cells, or something like that?

RobertM said:

While the prices might be a bit much for your budget, you might look at SureFire's offerings. With SF's lifetime guarantee, unless you lose the light, you shouldn't ever have to buy another. Plus, they have built their reputation on building rock-solid, reliable lights.

I will say though, nearly all of their lights are CR123 powered--not AA. You might find other companies offering great looking warranties, but keep in mind that SF has been around 30 years now and likely to still be around in the event that you have a problem with your light. A lot of good deals can be found on CPF Marketplace, which will greatly help you with the sticker shock

With all of that being said, I'd recommend a SureFire L1, E1B, E1L, or A2. Any or these four great lights can usually be had for $100 or less on CPFMP (lately I've seen ~$65-110).

-Robert

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+1!

Great post, I agree 110%!

RobertM said:

With all of that being said, I'd recommend a SureFire L1, E1B, E1L, or A2. Any or these four great lights can usually be had for $100 or less on CPFMP (lately I've seen ~$65-110).

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+1 on the SureFire L1 particularly. I currently carry a modified E1 in my pocket (it's the same size as the E1B / E1L cited above), but I find it just a little too small to handle. YMMV but my L1 is nicer to use, albeit a little less comfortable in the pocket. Also the best UI, but its low mode might be a little high for your tastes. :shrug:

I may be brand new to this forum and the lighting technology world, but it sounds to me like a streamlight stylus series light would be fine for you. Specifically the stylus pro, which runs on 2 AAA batteries and is 5.3" if I'm not mistaken. Also it runs for only about 20-25$, well below your 50$ price ceiling. Those of you out there who hate Streamlight for their simplicity, take no offense, I'm just a meager light user throwing in my 2 bits. BTW let us know what you wind up with and how well it works. My brother's a pilot and his birthday's coming up. About how far is it from the ground to the bottom of a regional jet, anyway? That might help some of the more informed on this forum get better ideas as to what to reccomend.

Hi Fellow Pilot!!

As a pilot too i cannot emphasize enough the importance of having a very LOW low. I use a Liteflux Lf2XT. Might be a little small and weak for you but as tiny EDC fitting in any pocket of your shirt.
So maybe LF5XT for you?? Or LF3XT?

Give it a try... might be slightly over your budget (62$) but worth every penny!!

Plenty information on the forum, beamshots, runtime, etc. just punch LF2XT, 3 and 5s (one is AAA, one is AA, one is CR123) in search and you'll get enough to spent sleepless night over it!!

Enjoy and happy landings!!

Mrija (I guess you know what the Mrija is...but no i dont fly it even if i dream of!)

Some thoughts:

1) For airplane use: Rechargeable lithium bad, one time lithium less bad, Rechargeable NiMH least bad, alkaline OK.

In terms of potential of fire, venting, etc. Or from restrictions based on perceived risk of fire/terrorism.

2) Surefire is probably the right choice if your life depends on the light.

3) Consider having two small lights. Two slightly less reliable lights may cost less than 1 highly reliable lights. Even a Surefire is just a paperweight if the batteries are dead. (Or if you simply lose the light.)

4) You might be surprised at the brightness of some of the really small lights like the iTP A3 EOS at $25 or so.

5) If you have a somewhat less reliable light, but throw it away if it starts getting flaky, you may end up better off than a high dollar reliable light that you keep nursing along as it finally starts to go bad on you.

If having a very low light low setting is good for pilots, maybe the Quark AA or AA tactical would work. They've got a 0.2 lumen and a 4.0 lumen setting as the lowest, are about 4 inches long and run for around 57$, not far beyond your 50$ limit. They also run on one AA battery, per your request. Keep us posted on what you wind up with.

How about the Surefire Aviator? The classic incan with the yellow-green LEDs may be all you need, although it may be slightly pricey and hard to find nowadays.

If you are strict on your budget, why not look for a 1 year old (phased out, overstock) model that is typically on clearance for $30 - $40. Newly introduced, they would sell for $50-$75.......

I would suggest a 1AA for size and you should be able to reliably get 120+ lumens. I know the FAA has restrictions on carrying loose lithium batteries, so I would suggest against lithium/lithium ion powered batteries.

p73rs said:

What is the requirement for your airline, like the multiple cells, the equivalent of 2 D cells, or something like that?

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This is a good question but i am not too sure if his airline does have any mandatory requirements for flashlights (see below).

flyjetguy said:

I've been using an Underwater Kinetics 4AA that I've owned for over 18 years.

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so no issue if he uses AAs

flyjetguy said:

AA batteries are easiest for me to find and keep because I use them for other devices, but I'm willing to consider other batteries for amazing light.

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for amazing light, you will have to move past AAs and quite possibly increase your budget too to take into account the cost of cells (spare cells too) and a charger.

However, if budget is an issue, consider satisfying your needs first and going for the WOW factor later.

A very decent manufacturer for budget AA lights is Romisen, i have owned a few of them and they are great. Their range of AA powered lights can be seen here along with those of other manufacturers' AA powered lights (both single cell and double cell).

Bryan ships really fast too. I'd strongly recommend paying some postage costs to get it shipped quick (think within 24 hours after buying and paying via PP) than hang around waiting for DX/KD slow delivery times.

I'd recommend the RC N3 II (either the Q5 or neutral white) it has 2 modes so you can save on some runtime if you don't need too much light and it can run in either 2xAA or 1xCR123/RCR123 for a smaller configuration. Both these lights use a forward clicky which means you can just press in a little to activate the light for momentary use and press in further till it locks for constant on. To see the difference between the Q5 and the warm white, have a look HERE.

Feedback from my friend's husband whom i gave the RC N3 II Q5 (white) is that it is his daily tool (he transports vehicles by land) to ensure that all the cars are securely tied down, to do his walkarounds before moving off. His usage is usually in a very dark parking lot and he tells me that he usually only needs the lower mode.

He drives one of those vehicles that have like 6 cars stacked 3 on 3 so he needed a pretty ok light. Glad to see that its being used well there.

On the website i sent you are other manufacturers as well, but as i have no experience with them, i shall just stick with what i know.

Good luck on your search.