tvadakia
Newly Enlightened
Hello all! My name is Michael and, first off, I just wanted to say how much I appreciate this forum and it's enthusiastic, thorough, and extremely knowledgeable members.
Four years ago I started to do a search of the perfect flashlight for a new job at Clipper Windpower. I was familiar with the common Mag lights, as that's what I had used in Boy Scouts years back... I had no idea that the technology has shifted to drastically.
In a COMPLETELY different type of forum (one for audiophiles) I had gotten on the topic of flashlights and one of the members had pointed me in the direction of purchasing the Fenix T1. Small, bright, uses rechargeable batteries... after viewing a couple of Youtube videos of people trying to crush the thing with extreme pressure, I decided to buy one.
thus was my downward spiral into the world of LED flashlights.
About a year later I bought my EDC (and yes, it still is): the Fenix PD20. I love it. It's bright (esp w/3.7v 123's) or not so much when I don't need it, it doesn't roll on flat surfaces because of its design, it can be stood up and used as a candle, and the user interface is second nature. Simply a GREAT light. I just ordered two more (I'm glad some places still carry them) to keep in the glove compartments of each of my cars.
A couple years later I ordered a 4Sevens Quark123 because it seemed promising, it was on the the first batches made... I love the moonlight mode, but because of a flaw, it has an initial pre-flash into that mode that is quite distracting. It's a good light, but not EDC material.
A couple years later (and after so much money being thrown at trying to take care of my 4-month premature son) I finally decided to delve into something a little stronger than 230 lumens. I got an Olight M30 Triton. Ok, don't laugh, but I ended up getting the Triton over any other light because of 1) I got a good deal on it ($90!!) and 2) (and this is the main reason) Because I own a Korg Triton 88-key music workstation keyboard.
The Triton is impressive in performance, but, frankly, the interface is cumbersome, quirky. I like the light, but not as much as I wanted to.
Just recently I was lucky enough to find and purchase a 4Sevens Maelstrom S12 SE with the gold-on-lead addition. It's a pretty torch aesthetically (though I've seen some beauty in this forum that's quite unrivaled). The interface isn't bad, but far from what I'd like. And the performance is fantastic. I'll be showing this one off for some time I'm sure.
My collection is small. But I'll say this: if I were a richer man, my woman would be a little more worried about my sanity due to flashlightaholicism.
At 36, I'm considering purchasing a McGizmo product because of the urge to own a working art. I thought I had shed all of my boyish traits. I was obviously wrong.
Thank you all for contributing all that you have. I don't talk much, but I, at least, wanted to let you all know my appreciation.
Take care.
Four years ago I started to do a search of the perfect flashlight for a new job at Clipper Windpower. I was familiar with the common Mag lights, as that's what I had used in Boy Scouts years back... I had no idea that the technology has shifted to drastically.
In a COMPLETELY different type of forum (one for audiophiles) I had gotten on the topic of flashlights and one of the members had pointed me in the direction of purchasing the Fenix T1. Small, bright, uses rechargeable batteries... after viewing a couple of Youtube videos of people trying to crush the thing with extreme pressure, I decided to buy one.
thus was my downward spiral into the world of LED flashlights.
About a year later I bought my EDC (and yes, it still is): the Fenix PD20. I love it. It's bright (esp w/3.7v 123's) or not so much when I don't need it, it doesn't roll on flat surfaces because of its design, it can be stood up and used as a candle, and the user interface is second nature. Simply a GREAT light. I just ordered two more (I'm glad some places still carry them) to keep in the glove compartments of each of my cars.
A couple years later I ordered a 4Sevens Quark123 because it seemed promising, it was on the the first batches made... I love the moonlight mode, but because of a flaw, it has an initial pre-flash into that mode that is quite distracting. It's a good light, but not EDC material.
A couple years later (and after so much money being thrown at trying to take care of my 4-month premature son) I finally decided to delve into something a little stronger than 230 lumens. I got an Olight M30 Triton. Ok, don't laugh, but I ended up getting the Triton over any other light because of 1) I got a good deal on it ($90!!) and 2) (and this is the main reason) Because I own a Korg Triton 88-key music workstation keyboard.
The Triton is impressive in performance, but, frankly, the interface is cumbersome, quirky. I like the light, but not as much as I wanted to.
Just recently I was lucky enough to find and purchase a 4Sevens Maelstrom S12 SE with the gold-on-lead addition. It's a pretty torch aesthetically (though I've seen some beauty in this forum that's quite unrivaled). The interface isn't bad, but far from what I'd like. And the performance is fantastic. I'll be showing this one off for some time I'm sure.
My collection is small. But I'll say this: if I were a richer man, my woman would be a little more worried about my sanity due to flashlightaholicism.
At 36, I'm considering purchasing a McGizmo product because of the urge to own a working art. I thought I had shed all of my boyish traits. I was obviously wrong.
Thank you all for contributing all that you have. I don't talk much, but I, at least, wanted to let you all know my appreciation.
Take care.
