Maglite 6D Replacement

Hi!

I presently have a Maglite 6D and I am planning to replace it. For years, I have been using it in Asian jungle for night bio-study at 50 meters high. Now, with LEDs becoming common, I would like to move on.

My core requirement is that the throw has to be same or greater, the flooding ability is not important.

My budget is tight, hopefully its < $30.

Hope its from sites like DealExtreme and DinoDirect as they ship to Asia.

It has to use commonly available batteries types like AAA, AA, C or D. I can afford to use several sets of battery throughout the night so run time is not a problem.

I note that Terralux produced a cheap dropin providing 150 lm but I became wary after reading in this forum that the bulb would be running at temperature higher than 100C, as I would need a light running continuously for an hour. Can the Terralux bulb (at 100C) run for such a period of time without melting the Maglite's plastic reflector? If yes, I would most likely just buy this bulb.

Thanks for all your replies!

newmont91 said:

Hi!

I presently have a Maglite 6D and I am planning to replace it. For years, I have been using it in Asian jungle for night bio-study at 50 meters high. Now, with LEDs becoming common, I would like to move on.

My core requirement is that the throw has to be same or greater, the flooding ability is not important.

My budget is tight, hopefully its < $30.

Hope its from sites like DealExtreme and DinoDirect as they ship to Asia.

It has to use commonly available batteries types like AAA, AA, C or D. I can afford to use several sets of battery throughout the night so run time is not a problem.

I note that Terralux produced a cheap dropin providing 150 lm but I became wary after reading in this forum that the bulb would be running at temperature higher than 100C, as I would need a light running continuously for an hour. Can the Terralux bulb (at 100C) run for such a period of time without melting the Maglite's plastic reflector? If yes, I would most likely just buy this bulb.

Thanks for all your replies!

Click to expand...

Hi there:welcome:
If you can stretch your budget any, I would highly recommend either one of these light's, they will serve you much better than your 6D cell maglite

First and foremost I highly recommend looking into getting a Fenix TK20 http://light-reviews.com/fenix_tk20/index.html They are now discontinued, however, they can be found for less than $50 US dollars when you shop around. This light is small enough to fit in your pocket, takes common AA batteries, is specifically designed to have maximum throw, and has a very warm tint that not only is very close to that of an incandescent, but will make colors and details much more vivid and lifelike than any cooler white LED's. This light will also run for around 9 hours on it's lower mode, and that low mode is more than enough light for most tasks. Whith one of these in your pocket, and a couple of spare AA batteries, you will be kicking yourself all day long for carrying around that big heavy maglite. This light is also extremely well built, so it will be able to take far more damage than you will be able to dish out.

If that light is a little outside of your budget then I recommend this one http://www.batteryjunction.com/fenix-e21-135-lumens.html Although the tint isn't as warm as the TK20, it has a neutral tint that will show the environment very well, colors will look more vivid. It runs off of common AA batteries as well.

Both of these light's will be brighter or at the very least match a 6D cell maglite with most LED dropin's.

LED technology has advanced greatly. These AA powered lights are just as bright or brighter, run for extremely long periods of time with inexpensive AA batteries, fit inside your pocket, and best of all, render colors and the environment much better than the cool white LED's. For you needs, you can't go wrong with either of these lights. Just my 2cents

Can I assume the Fenix TK20 has a better throw than my present Maglite 6D? By that, I meant I would be able to illuminate a flower at 50m away, which the latter is able to do so.

Also, would this Fenix model be able to operate at high mode non-stop for at least an hour?

From the review, I note it can last 1.5 hours. Would I be able to change to a fresh set of batteries and without giving it time to cool down, continue using it for the next 1.5 hours?

I am worried about spending a sum and end up having a burn out light from overheating.

Thanks!

newmont91 said:

Can I assume the Fenix TK20 has a better throw than my present Maglite 6D? By that, I meant I would be able to illuminate a flower at 50m away, which the latter is able to do so.

Also, would this Fenix model be able to operate at high mode non-stop for at least an hour?

From the review, I note it can last 1.5 hours. Would I be able to change to a fresh set of batteries and without giving it time to cool down, continue using it for the next 1.5 hours?

I am worried about spending a sum and end up having a burn out light from overheating.

Thanks!

Click to expand...

I don't know what type of lamp you have installed in your present 6D Maglite, however, I am going to assume it's either the stock krypton or magnum star xenon lamp. Finding an LED in your price range that can out throw the 6D mag is going to be a challenge. The 6D mag uses a smooth reflector and is able to tighten the beam down very tightly, thus creating lots of throw. The 6D maglite will out throw many LED lights specifically designed for maximum throw that cost 3 times more than what your looking to spend. So the answer to your question is no, the TK20 won't throw farther than the 6D mag, I can't think of any light's in that price range that will.

However, the TK20 is an excellent thrower, one of the best in it's class. I can think of no 2AA powered light in it's price range that can match it. It also features a smooth reflector as the mag does, so this helps it's ability to throw. I would hazard a guess and say that the TK20 will meet your need's for throw.

Heat will not be an issue for you. The low mode of the TK20 is quite bright, and provides more than enough light for most tasks. You more than likely will find yourself using it most of the time. The TK20 gets marginally hot when run on turbo mode for extended periods. I have run mine as long as 45 minutes and the light has only got slighty warm. You will not have any issues running this light on turbo mode for extended periods. If the light does get hot, which could happen depending on the ambient temp, just turn it down to low mode and give it a chance to cool.

Thanks for the reply. Assuming I can increase my budget to not more than $150, would there be a better light (in term of throw) than Fenix TK41?

Would this model out throw my Maglite 6D, with its krypton bulb? The throw is the most important factor as I need to see things clearly at 50m.

Thanks again.

:welcome:

The Fenix TK41 has a cool tint LED. This may not be suitable for bio-study. Cool white LEDs tend to put a blue white blob of light on target making for poor colour rendition. See the comparison photo of cool vs warm LED on the plant here:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...ion-and-Tint-Comparison-Cree-Rebel-GDP-Nichia
The TK41 has as ANSI throw of 472M. You will probably see about 1/4 that so ~100M.

The Fenix E21 has an ANSI throw of 134M so you will not see clearly past 30M.

I don't see the TK20 anymore.

The Fenix LD 40 (4AA) has a warm tint, an ANSI throw of 207M so you should see out to 50M. It won't out-throw your 6D, about the same as a 4D with fresh batteries. But it will maintain that throw for most of the battery's life unlike incans which get dimmer and dimmer as time goes on.

Forget DealExtreme if you want to use common batteries. Their more powerful flashlights use 18650 rechargeable batteries and I have a feeling you can not charge batteries at base camp.
Ditto Dino Direct which tends to be more expensive than the competition unless you have a discount coupon.

I think a new 3D LED MAG would do the trick.

newmont91 said:

I note that Terralux produced a cheap dropin providing 150 lm but I became wary after reading in this forum that the bulb would be running at temperature higher than 100C, as I would need a light running continuously for an hour. Can the Terralux bulb (at 100C) run for such a period of time without melting the Maglite's plastic reflector? If yes, I would most likely just buy this bulb.

Click to expand...

I have their 140lm light for the 4D MagLite. It does not get hot enough to melt plastic, I have ran that thing from fresh batteries to dead twice now and not had any heat issues. Your light will last longer, and will be brighter for longer. While I can't give you exact scientific data, here is how the light performs....

• Right off the bat it is brighter than the 122lm incandescent.

• First 48hrs is above 100lm

• Usable light slowly tapers off for the next 8 days(192hrs)

• Next 4 days is your opinion, personally it was like starring at a hot ember in the fireplace, just not useful.
• Total time is 14 days, but I imagine if you need the brightness then replace batteries every 48 hours would be necessary. As it is, it sounds like you are getting 8hrs per 6 batteries, so the TerraLux bulb would be an improvement.

I also want you to keep in mind that the TerraLux bulb is not regulated, which means that it will slowly get dimmer and dimmer as less power is availible. The higher quality flashlights will be regulated and stay brighter longer, but the down side is that they will dim rapidly. My 260lm flashlight goes 260lms to dead within minutes, but stays at 260lm for roughly an hour or more.

Just my thoughts, here is the link to the bulb I use.

MiniStar5 - LED Upgrade for 2-6 cell C&D Maglites®