Clicky vs. Twisty for Extreme Cold Weather

I was hoping that any CPF members having experience using lights in extreme cold ( 0 deg. F and lower) could expound on whether a clicky or a twisty would be more likely to work ?

Or do both of these setups offer their own unique problems in extreme cold ?

And ofcourse for the sake of argument we will assume that both the twisty and clicky are using the same kind of light (so for instance a Z59 vs. a Z41 on a Surefire 6P).

I would say the twisty would continue to work after a clicky stopped working. Not that a clicky would have problems in temps that low...

The twisty comes down to the lube; if you've got some cheap stuff on the threads, it'll start to seize at around -20 F, quality Teflon lube is good down to -90 F, at which point any kind of battery would be uselessly solid.

How far below 0°F are you talking. I've done cold weather testing before. Most lights will function fine at 0°F provided you have good batteries and do a little bit of prep work before making the trip (such as good lube and cleaning the threads).

Knight_Light said:

How far below 0°F are you talking. I've done cold weather testing before. Most lights will function fine at 0°F provided you have good batteries and do a little bit of prep work before making the trip (such as good lube and cleaning the threads).

Click to expand...

No specific point. If it keeps getting colder and colder, which setup would have the upper hand and why ?

trialt said:

No specific point. If it keeps getting colder and colder, which setup would have the upper hand and why ?

Click to expand...

That is such a hard question to answer. If you have a good quality clicky switch and you have a poorly designed twisty light then the clicky would win out, or vice versa if you have a cheap clicky switch with a high quality twisty light.

If both were high-quality, then I would probably say you are better off with a clicky because twisty lights are more prone to operator induced malfunctions. Such as not using the proper grease, getting moisture on or around the threads, etc.

In reality I think you would have battery problems before you would have any kind of problems with a clicky or a twisty all things being equal.

Knight_Light said:

In reality I think you would have battery problems before you would have any kind of problems with a clicky or a twisty all things being equal.

Click to expand...

Yup; alkalines get iffy at 32F, li-ions start losing capacity around 0F (NiMHs should logically have the same issue, but I have not seen this tested; a CPF member did the li-ion 0F test.) Lithium primaries are your best bet.

Headlamp with a battery pack and a long cord. Keep the battery pack at the inner pocket of your jacket where it's not that cold.

I've used both types in weather as cold as -30C ( -22F ). No problem with either, even on cheap lights.

I have found that switching modes is the problem in cold weather with either set up. The head twist lights are stiff and you can't twist them back and forth quick enough or the tail cap rubber is too stiff and the light will not switch modes correctly. All things do not want to move in the cold.

One thing to think about is the limits of your dexterity in the cold, rather than the limitations of the light. If it is subzero, I am certainly wearing gloves or mittens. It can be challenging to press buttons with them on at times I find. But it is fairly easy to twist on a light even with gloves. (Not necessarily small lights but in the example of a Z41 as given before, they are pretty easy to manipulate with gloves.)

nbp said:

If it is subzero, I am certainly wearing gloves or mittens. It can be challenging to press buttons with them on at times I find. But it is fairly easy to twist on a light even with gloves.

Click to expand...

Very true. However, side buttons are easier to press with gloves than tail buttons. Finding the stupid side button in the dark, while unable to easily feel it with gloves on, is another matter.

Indeed. The tailcap is always on the dark end of the light.

I haven't had any technical problems with either at -35°C (-31°F) but trying to use a twisty interface wearing heavy gloves or mitts is a pain. Some tail clickies that don't protrude much can be a problem. The side switches on my TK41 are OK; I put a band of glow-in-the dark tape all the way around except for a gap at the switches.