Don't need the latest and newest.

Other then replacing my lost HDS 170T with a new 200t, I have no reason to buy the latest and greatest lights to replace lights that illuminate everything I need to see. My EagleTac T20C2 still does the job as do my JETIII ST and M. As well as many other(60+) lights I own. I' m in no way knocking buying the newest lights on the market. Just wondering how many others are sitting pat on the "older" lights they own.

My first "real" flashlight was a Gen. 1 Surefire L1 with a red emitter. I still occasionally use it, and wouldn't dream of selling it. I have several older Inova lights scattered around the house as "beater" lights when I need to quickly illuminate something or go somewhere grungy with a light. I keep an old Nitecore defender infinity in the glovebox of my car.

Most of my most used and loved lights are "latest, greatest" lights that I've bought sometime in the last 3 years or so... but I still have a place/use for several of my old lights. For me, it's more a matter of what works best, rather than what's newest. For whatever reason(s), it just seems to be that most of the latest/newest lights just happen to also be the ones that work the best too! Flashlights are, in general, getting better as time goes on.

This is, of course, with the exception in mind of my red emitter Surefire L1 - the light that has great sentimental value to me as my "gateway light" for my current flashlight obsession.

A red emitter for your first quality light is a unusual choice. Why?

recDNA said:

A red emitter for your first quality light is a unusual choice. Why?

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I was way into astronomy at the time. Red for protecting dark-adapted night vision. I lost most of my interest in astronomy, but developed a new interest in illumination appliances!

LGT said:

Other then replacing my lost HDS 170T with a new 200t, I have no reason to buy the latest and greatest lights to replace lights that illuminate everything I need to see. My EagleTac T20C2 still does the job as do my JETIII ST and M. As well as many other(60+) lights I own. I' m in no way knocking buying the newest lights on the market. Just wondering how many others are sitting pat on the "older" lights they own.

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So, you're a user, and happy with what you have (because it works).

Collectors never are...

Not to mention that the 'latest and greatest' can sometimes even leave you 'out in the cold'. A good example of this is the Zebralight SC5. In many ways, it is a good improvement over the SC52. BUT, in the process of making those improvements, they decided to throw about the ability to run it on a 14500. This makes the light less useful to me, since charging NiMH AA batteries is harder to do away from home. 14500s are MUCH easier (and quicker) to charge with small, USB chargers in your car or at a campsite with alternative energy sources.

Hang on a minute, getting a new HDS is getting the latest and greatest!

But I get your point, many older flashlights still do great work.

One way to "split the difference" is to maintain older flashlights that can use drop-ins. So if you get into the "surefire lego" style, you can keep getting a new drop-in whenever you want to try out something different, e.g., a new LED, or a new reflector type, etc.

You keep the body unchanged. You could even sell older drop-ins at some discount to keep costs low. The main cost is then the flashlight body plus parts. But especially since you keep lights for a long time, the cost is a one-off and so not too problematic.

Got you beat on the HDs, I just freshened up my old EDC 60 with a new 17670 battery tube, it's the last and only HDS/RA/Novatec light I've owned.

BTW, I managed to get the 17670 tube to take 18650's as well!

Next step. swap emitter for something neutral/warmer... that's the beauty of older lights, I'm more willing to perform surgery on them

I pretty much buy what i need and if there's a new one on the market i like then i'll get one and i can either sell or give away some of my older lights. But for the most part other than waiting for some extra cash for a good li-ion flashlight i'm pretty happy with what i got for now .

I think the days of the quantum leaps in LED technology are over. In every light I like I have an XM-L2 with a nice warm tint, and I have yet to see an LED to be announced which suits my needs better. When I buy new lights, it's for the features, not performance. For example, I recently stacked up on a variety of Convoy 18650 lights, wheras I mostly had AA lights before. I can change LEDs easily, even if it involves reflow soldering. So I'll do just that should the need arise, instead of buying new lights.

dss_777 said:

So, you're a user, and happy with what you have (because it works).

Collectors never are...

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collecting, the more I have, the greater the need to add.

flashy bazook said:

Hang on a minute, getting a new HDS is getting the latest and greatest!.

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+1. Even if HDS's general design hasn't changed in years, it's still about the most sophisticated, programable, electronic clicky light out there. Mine's been great so far, and I love it, but I wouldn't consider it as reliable as a simpler Malkoff, Surefire or Peak.

Of my other "lastest/greatest", "best UI/brightest" lights (from ZL, AT, TN) I've actually been rather disappointed - UI failures, UI lock-ups, non-working functions, massive spec exaggeration, etc.

dss_777 said:

So, you're a user, and happy with what you have (because it works).

Collectors never are...

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Great distinction.... I only been "collecting" in a pursuit to beat my favorite "old user" (Quarks) - for my needs, I just haven't been successful yet.

Yeah, if your needs are met by what you have, and you don't think you'd see more with more light, etc, or have no desire to see more...sure, keep what you have.

In real life, I can see more with more light, so, I upgrade.

Horses for courses.

As one of the old relics on CPF....

I've found that at a certain point, there is such a thing as "enough lumens". I mean for practical and general use, not extreme lighting, for which there will never be enough lumens (2600 on my Fenix TK75 and counting). But for practical use, I find that once lights hit the 200 lumen mark, it's actually enough. Beyond that, it's about runtime, which a couple of hours on a single cell is enough. I find that a 2009 Surefire U2 with MC-E emitter, despite being only about 300-400 lumens max, is far more than enough, even in 2015.

I used to say "life begins at 100 lumens" and it really does for me. Today, any light of about 100 lumens or higher is more than enough for practical purposes. We reached that level as long ago as 2005 with my 2-cell first-generation U2, and it's mainly about size and runtime and design since that day. I suppose as my eyes age, I'd like to push that up to 200 lumens, of which there is no shortage of lights which meet that criteria today. But other than that....we certainly are living in times of abundance! Especially if you are simply looking for a utility light.

By way of example, I have this very tattered looking HA-Nat E1e and KL1 LED conversion head from my earliest days on CPF 11 years ago. I modified it to a Cree XR-E, it puts out about ~110 lumens now (previously 25 lumens..!!) .. it's actually enough.

That having been said, there's nothing wrong with collecting and looking for ever brighter lights - I myself greatly enjoyed those days This is CPF after all!

Any time I'm considering something with a _slightly_ improved UI, or a _little_ smaller, it all comes down to the following equation.

V11R + SC600 + Inova XS = covers everything I need

I do also have a LD22, Preon P0, and S20 L2, but they categorize as "household", "kiddos", and "emergency kit" lights. So I totally agree with the OP.

I like my old flashlights, now I'm just looking for 5000k color lights.

People back then got things done with incandescent bulbs just fine.

TEEJ said:

Yeah, if your needs are met by what you have, and you don't think you'd see more with more light, etc, or have no desire to see more...sure, keep what you have.

In real life, I can see more with more light, so, I upgrade.

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But there is a saturation point. Guess I've reached that point a little quicker then you have.